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02/09/2019 11:00 PMWrestling
The Hand wrestling team finished in fifth place at the Southern Connecticut Conference Championship last week. The Tigers scored 73 points as a squad to place fifth at Jonathan Law High School on Feb. 9.
Senior Kyle Davern advanced to the championship match of the 120-pound weight class at SCCs. Davern lost an 8-5 decision against East Haven’s Matt DiVito in the final. Davern had defeated Cheshire’s Paul Ponthempilly on a pin at the 1:12 mark in the quarterfinals, after which he won a 12-1 decision over Kyle Pokornowski of Foran in the semis.
Alec Dube finished third in 195-pound division after defeating Notre Dame-West Haven’s Jackson Paulishen in just 29 seconds in the final of the consolation bracket. Matt Derken took third place at 220 when he pinned Billy Ives of Foran at the 1:49 mark. Additionally, Seamus Moriarty finished fourth in the 170-pound bracket for Hand.
Previously, Hand defeated Windham by the score of 48-30 on Feb. 2. Jack Burke prevailed by pin at the 44-second mark of his 120-pound bout for the Tigers, who also received victories from Davern (126, pin at 1:03), Brian Beirne (132, pin at 5:05), Carter Ganino (160, pin at 3:48), Moriarty (170, via forfeit), Sam Docker (195, pin at 1:11), Dube (220, pin at 1:33), and Derken (285, forfeit).
On Feb. 5, the Tigers earned a 53-28 victory versus Fairfield Prep on Senior Night. Hand was bolstered by wins from Sam Stein (106, by 13-3 decision), Zachary Morro (113, forfeit), Davern (120, pin at 2:46), Jared Puricelli (132, pin at 2:13), Beirne (138, pin at 2:48), Blake McGee (145, 14-4 decision), Sam Williams (160, 15-10 decision), Ian Hurley (182, pin at 0:49), Dube (195, forfeit), and Derken (220, 21-3 decision).
Boys’ Indoor Track
Hand came in eighth place by scoring 23.5 points at the Class L State Championship at Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven on Feb. 8.
Ameen Parks took third place in the 300 with a time of 36.39 and also finished sixth in the 55 (6.73) for the Tigers. Russell Powell placed fourth in the high jump by clearing a height of 5 feet-10 inches, while Bryce Meyers finished fifth for the pole vault by reaching 12 feet. Greyson McGeary came in sixth place for the 55 hurdles (8.37), and Dante Zucconi finished sixth in the 1,600 (4:40.95).
In relays, Hand’s 1,600 sprint medley of Braeden Kosiewicz, Joshua Stewart, Carson Hines, and Connor Parthasarthy claimed third place (3:46.24); while the 4x400 of Parthasarthy, Corey Duncanson, McGeary, and Hines finished fifth with a time 3:37.88.
Girls’ Indoor Track
The Tigers saw Chloe Thompson score four points to put them in 23rd place at last week’s Class L State Championship. Thompson tallied those points by finishing fourth in the 1,000 with a time of 3:10.76 in the state meet.
Boys’ Ice Hockey
The Tigers stand at 11-2-1 this year after splitting a pair of contests last week.
Hand defeated Watertown-Pomperaug by a 2-1 final on Feb. 4. Then on Feb. 9, the Tigers took an 8-6 loss in a showdown versus Guilford.
Girls’ Ice Hockey
The Hand-Coginchaug-Old Lyme girls’ ice hockey squad earned its second win of the year last week and is now 3-14 this season.
The Tigers lost a 6-1 final against to Avon-Southington-East Granby-RHAM-Wethersfield on Feb. 6. They promptly responded by defeating Mercy-Northwest Catholic 10-2 the very next day. Then on Feb. 9, the Tigers took a 4-0 loss versus Hamden.
Girls’ Basketball
Hand lost two games last week to move to 9-10 overall and finish with a mark of 4-4 in the SCC Housatonic Division this season. The Tigers took a 52-38 defeat against Mercy on Feb. 5 and then dropped a 57-55 contest to Cross on Feb. 8.
Sara Wohlgemuth led the Tigers with 14 points, four rebounds, and four steals versus Mercy. Hand forced Mercy into committing 25 turnovers, but was out-rebounded by 20-board differential. A pair of threes from Taya Akers helped Hand take a one-point lead after the first quarter. Mercy was up 20-19 heading into halftime and held a 38-36 edge through three. Mercy outscored the Tigers 14-2 down the stretch to walk away with the 14-point win.
In the Cross game, Wohlgemuth scored a game-high 21 points, and Brooke Salutari added 18 points, including four shots from long range. Cross jumped out to an early double-digit lead, but Salutari’s buzzer-beating three got the Tigers within seven at the end of one. Hand hung around in the second quarter and went to the locker room trailing 35-27. The Governors took advantage of their size in the third, pounding the ball inside to stretch the lead to as much as 17, before Hand cut it to 48-35 entering the fourth quarter. The Tigers came alive in the fourth as Salutari hit a pair of threes, and Wohlgemuth scored 10 in the frame to make it a two-point game with just 18 seconds remaining. Hand had four chances to either tie or take the lead down the stretch, but could not complete the comeback, as Cross escaped with the two-point win.
“I’m incredibly proud of our effort tonight. We showed a tremendous amount of mental and physical toughness playing against a very good team in their gym on their Senior Night,” Head Coach Tim Tredwell said. “It was a great atmosphere, and our kids responded well. Even when things looked like they were getting away from us, we stayed focused and composed. Our energy on the defensive end was great, and we moved the ball better than we have all season. Obviously, it hurts to take the loss, but the girls left it all on the floor, and that’s all I can ask. This is another experience that will pay off for us in the long run.”
Boys’ Basketball
The Tigers lost two games last week and are now 5-13 overall with a record of 1-6 in the SCC Hammonasset Division.
Hand took a 70-51 defeat against Hamden on Feb. 5. Nick Donofrio led all scorers with 25 points, including seven 3-pointers, while Pierson Chapman added eight points in the game.
Three days later, the Tigers lost to Cheshire by the final score of 54-42.
Boys’ and Girls’ Fencing
The Hand fencing program hosted North Haven for a meet on Feb. 7. The Tigers’ varsity boys’ foil team continued its undefeated season and improved to 13-0 by earning a 6-3 win versus the Indians. The squad is led by Finn Byrne, who has a record of 29-5; along with Mikey Hilmer and Luke Newton, who have records of 26-6 and 19-10, respectively.
The girls’ épée team improved to 6-2 by claiming a victory over North Haven. The Tigers are led by senior captain Ellie Shea (14-9), Ally Lesnik (13-2), and Sophie Glassman (13-7).
The boys’ épée team evened its record at 4-4 with a win against North Haven. Evan Merenda (11-9) and Andrew Schofield (9-9) are leading the team this season.
Both of Hand’s sabre teams took defeats to North Haven. The boys’ team is led by Daniel Ginsburg (13-13) and Max Wu (3-3). The girls are being guided by Maggie Lesnik, who has a record of 8-8.
The girls’ foil team dropped its contest versus the Indians. The Tigers are led by senior captain Grace McFadden (16-7) and Cam Brown (15-13).
Earlier in the year, Hand turned in an outstanding showing at the state’s Novice Tournament, where they medaled in all six events for the first time in the 10-year history of the program. Angela Zhang came in first place for girls’ foil, Wu finished second in boys’ sabre, Nolan Sherry took third in boys’ foil, Sarah Swenson finished fourth for girls’ épée, Megan Kelly was in fifth girls’ épée, and Brigid O’Keefe scored the final medal for Hand by placing eighth in the girls’ sabre competition.