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02/09/2019 11:00 PMGymnastics
Branford’s Brooke Kustra totaled a score of 32.4 to finish eighth in the all-around on her way to garnering All-Conference recognition at the Southern Connecticut Conference Championship last week. Kustra, a sophomore, made the All-SCC Team for the second straight season with her performance at Jonathan Law High School on Feb. 7.
Kustra finished in a tie for fourth place on the vault with a score of 8.4 at the SCC Championship. She also recorded a fifth-place finish on the beam by scoring a 7.9. On the bars, Kustra finished with a score of 7.9 to take seventh place. Kustra’s night also featured a score of 8.4 on the floor exercise.
Kustra competes on behalf of Branford as a team-of-one. Throughout the past two seasons, she has trained with and competed at meets alongside the gymnastics team at Daniel Hand High School in Madison. Hand Head Coach Kelly Smith gave Kustra high marks for her performance at SCCs.
“This was an exciting night for Brooke for a few reasons. First and foremost, she made a skill called a giant on bars that she’s been working really hard on the last few years. This was the first time she’s made that skill in competition, and it came during our first rotation to set the tone for her meet,” said Smith. “She followed that routine with a hit beam routine, and finished up the meet sticking her vault. Brooke thrives in championship competition and brings her absolute best gymnastics when it matters most. We’re so proud of her, and it’s an honor for her to be All-SCC last year and this year.”
Boys’ Indoor Track
The Branford boys’ indoor track team turned in a pair of runner-up performances at the Class M State Championship last week. Senior Marzio Mastroianni finished second in the 1,000-meter run and also ran on the Hornets’ second-place 1,600 sprint medley relay (SMR). Branford scored 18 points and finished in eighth place at the meet.
Mastroianni ran a time of 2:32.92 to take second place in the 1,000, only finishing behind Rhys Hammond of Stonington (2:31.80). Mastroianni scored eight points for Branford with his performance. In the SMR, the Hornets’ senior quartet of Praneeth Ganedi, Carlos McCaay, Matt Daley, and Mastroianni clocked in with a time of 3:46.32 to earn a second-place finish and score eight points.
Branford also picked up two points from its 4x800 relay team of junior Nolan Scott, junior Andrew Betzig, freshman Cheng Wu, and Daley, which came in fifth place with a mark of 8:28.80. The 4x400 relay of Daley, Wu, Scott, and Mastroianni finished in 3:35.18 to take seventh place, while setting a school record in the process.
Senior Brandon Perez finished 10th in the high jump by clearing 5 feet-6 inches. Perez also finished 22nd for the long jump with a distance of 15-3.75. Senior Matt Alexander came in 19th place in the long jump at 17-1. Junior Sean Jansen cleared 10-6 to take 13th place in the pole vault, while senior Justin Dombrowski finished 14th by reaching 10 feet. In the 600, Betzig crossed the finish line in 1:31.38 to finish 16th.
Branford’s 4x200 relay of Perez, Ganedi, junior Andrew Wirtz, and McCaay finished 19th by posting a time of 1:44.97.
Girls’ Indoor Track
The Hornets saw two athletes compete in individual events and one relay participate at last week’s Class M State Championship.
Senior Liante Claude posted a ninth-place finish in the 600-meter run with a time of 1:45.29 for Branford. In the 300-meter dash, sophomore Rose Lockery ran a personal-record time of 44.20 seconds to take 10th place. Additionally, the Hornets’ 4x200 relay featuring Lockery, freshman Katherine Laska, fellow freshman Catherine Duffy, and Claude finished in ninth place by recording a time of 1:55.09.
Boys’ Ice Hockey
Branford played two games last week and came away with a pair of victories to improve to 10-3-3 this season. The Hornets earned a road win over Guilford and then defeated New Milford in a home game during last week’s action.
On Feb. 6, Branford posted a 5-0 road shutout against fellow SCC/SWC Division II opponent Guilford at DiLungo Rink. Junior Jack Manware had two goals with an assist, while sophomore goalie Jared Yakimoff made 23 saves to get the shutout. Junior Chris Donadio scored an unassisted goal to give Branford a 1-0 lead just 26 seconds into the game. With 3:46 to play in the opening period, senior Rob Lionetti scored a goal to make it 2-0 after one. Senior Max Bunton scored on a Manware assist to increase the lead to 3-0 about three minutes into the second period. With 5:33 left in the frame, Manware found to back of the net to give the Hornets a 4-0 advantage entering the third. Manware scored from junior Zach Jones in the final frame to put a bow on the 5-0 win.
Three nights later, the Hornets hosted New Milford and earned a 3-1 victory versus the Green Wave. Junior Spencer Engstrom scored from Lionetti with 5:31 to play in the first period. A few minutes later, New Milford netted a goal to tie the score at 1. Following a scoreless second period, Donadio’s unassisted goal gave Branford a 2-1 lead 2:41 into the third. The game stayed that way until there was just 2:49 to play, when Jones scored from Engstrom and junior Blake Kustra to solidify the 3-1 victory. Senior Greg Lucente made 20 saves in net for the Hornets.
Girls’ Ice Hockey
The Branford-North Branford-Sheehan-Lyman Hall (B-NB-S-LH) girls’ ice hockey team notched three wins in its four games last week. The Wings improved to 8-8-1 by taking three of four on the week.
The Wings lost a 5-2 road game against Amity-North Haven-Cheshire in an SCC South Division matchup at Lou Astorino Ice Arena on Feb. 2.
Two nights later, B-NB-S-LH earned a 4-3 road win over non-conference opponent Stamford-Westhill-Staples at Terry Conners Ice Rink. Head Coach Jack Norton’s club started strong as sophomore Ashleen Keating, freshman Meagan Montenaro, and junior Emma Sheehan each scored a goal in the opening period. In the third period, Sheehan netted her second goal on an assist from Montenaro to solidify the victory. The Wings totaled a season-high 34 shots on goal in the win.
B-NB-S-LH finished off the week by posting a 2-0 shutout over divisional opponent Notre Dame-Fairfield/Law/Foran/Weston/Pomperaug in a home game at DiLungo Rink on Feb. 7. The victory avenged the Wings’ 4-2 defeat against the Lancers earlier this season. In the rematch, the Wings put together their most complete performance of the year, led by a goal and an assist from junior Sophia Caturano. Keating also scored a goal for the Wings, who saw junior Christina Meadows earn the shutout in net.
On Feb. 10, the Wings earned a 3-2 road victory in overtime against Guilford at DiLungo Rink. Freshman Maddie Montenaro scored the game-winning goal in overtime for the Wings, who also received goals from Meagan Montenaro and sophomore Molly Donegan. Caturano and Keating had two assists apiece.
Girls' Basketball
The Hornets took three defeats in SCC Hammonasset Division play last week to move to 8-11 with one game remaining in the regular season.
Branford hosted Mercy on Feb. 4 and dropped a 30-27 decision. Despite the defeat, the game marked a major improvement for the Hornets from their first game against Mercy, where Branford took a 68-34 defeat on Jan. 11. In this one, Branford trailed 16-9 at halftime and was down 25-18 after the third quarter. The Hornets outscored Mercy 9-5 in the final frame, but the Tigers came away with the win. Senior Sophia Araneo scored 14 points for Branford, while junior Karly King added nine points.
The following night, the Hornets took a 52-45 loss at Career. Branford trailed 14-6 after the first quarter, but won the second quarter 15-9 to cut it to 23-21 at the break. The game was tied 33-33 heading into the fourth quarter, where Career outscored Branford 19-12 to get the victory. Araneo had 23 points to lead the Hornets. King netted 14 points on the night.
Then on Feb. 8, Branford dropped a 54-33 decision against divisional opponent Sheehan to finish with a record of 2-6 in the Hammonasset. Araneo scored 15 points, King had nine points, and sophomore Gabriella Lucertini scored eight points.
Boys’ Basketball
The Hornets lost contests against Xavier, West Haven, and Shelton last week.
Branford began the week by dropping a 44-29 decision versus SCC Quinnipiac Division opponent Xavier in a home game on Feb. 4. Xavier was up 23-16 at halftime and then outscored Branford 15-4 during the third quarter to pull away for the win. Junior Kevin Baxter scored 15 points for the Hornets.
The following evening, Branford hosted divisional opponent West Haven and took a 51-39 defeat. The Hornets were only down 37-36 entering the fourth quarter, but were outscored 12-3 in the final frame. Baxter scored 12 points, while sophomore Justin Elpi had nine points for Branford. Junior Aidan Jacobson had seven points, and sophomore Jack Van Gelder scored five points.
On Feb. 8, Branford lost to Shelton by a 75-62 final on the road. The Gaels were up 14-10 after one, held a 37-22 halftime advantage, and then outscored Branford 23-15 during the third quarter. Elpi scored 19 points, and Baxter had 17 points for the Hornets (1-16, 0-7). Junior Kamyrn Holmes scored 10 points, while Jacobson added seven points.