Printer Friendly Version - Ferguson Scores Points in Two Events at Class S Championship; Ice Hockey Squad Qualifies for States

Junior Andrew Ferguson and a few other Valley Regional athletes represented the Warriors’ boys’ indoor track team at the Class S State Championship at Floyd Little Athletic Center on Feb. 7. Ferguson took fourth place in the 300-meter dash and also finished sixth in the 55-meter dash. Photo by Kelley Fryer/The Courier

The Valley Regional boys’ indoor track team sent a handful of athletes to compete at the Class S State Championship at Floyd Little Athletic Center on Feb. 7. The Warriors came in 17th place as a squad by scoring seven points at the meet. Junior Andrew Ferguson posted a fourth-place finish in the 300-meter dash by running a time of 36.43 seconds. Ferguson also took in sixth place in the 55-meter dash, finishing in 6.73 seconds. Ferguson scored five points for Valley between these two performances. Senior Nick Braga scored two points by finishing fifth in the 55 with a time of 6.72 seconds. Senior James DiLuca ran a time of 1:32.33 to take 14th place in the 600-meter run for the Warriors.

Valley sophomore Madelyn Costello finished in a four-way tie for sixth place in the high jump at last week’s Class S State Championship. Costello cleared a height of 4 feet-8 inches to tie for fourth and score 0.25 points on behalf of the Warriors, who finished in 29th place overall. Costello also finished 35th in the 300-meter dash with a time of 47.53 seconds.

Valley’s 4x200 relay of Hanna Babek, Lexi Ross, Audrey Lenda, and Leah Bargnesi took 16th place with a time of 1:58.55 at the state meet. Sophomore Emma King finished 17th in the long jump with a distance of 14-4.5, while Audrey Lenda came in 19th place at 14-1. Sophomore Hanna Babek finished 33rd in the 55 with a time of 8.09 seconds, and Lexi Ross finished 43rd at 8.21.

The East Haven-Old Lyme-Old Saybrook-East Hampton-Morgan-Valley Regional (EH-OL-OS-EH-M-VR) ice hockey team qualified for the Division II State Tournament by earning a 3-3 draw at Woodstock Academy on Feb. 9. This marks the 33rd straight year that Head Coach Lou Pane’s squad has reached the postseason. The Yellowjackets, who also defeated Amity and lost to North Branford last week, have an overall record of 7-8-2 this season.

EH-OL-OS-EH-M-VR started off its week by taking a 3-1 road loss versus Amity at Bennett Rink in West Haven on Feb. 2. East Haven junior goalie Logan Hamilton made 43 saves in the game. Old Lyme junior Alec Speirs scored the Yellowjackets’ goal on an assist from Old Saybrook sophomore Cory Benni with less than a minute to play.

On Feb. 6, the team rebounded by posting a 2-0 shutout over North Branford at DiLungo Rink. Hamilton played another great game in net by making 41 saves to blank the Thunderbirds. Morgan sophomore Ryan Egan scored the first goal for the Yellowjackets on assists from Benni and East Haven sophomore Dave Amatruda. Speirs added an insurance marker late in the game.

EH-OL-OS-EH-M-VR finished its week by clinching its spot its states with a 3-3 tie against a 12-win Woodstock Academy squad on Feb. 9.

On Feb. 2, Valley senior Ben Falivene wrestled at the Four Corners Duals that were hosted by Canton High School. Falivene competed in two matches on the day. In the first match, Falivene faced Devin Flagg of Granby and won by pin at the 3:31 mark. In his second match, Falivene pinned Abraham Rodriguez of Derby in just 46 seconds.

The Warriors took losses against Cromwell, Coginchaug, and Somers in last week’s matchups. Valley has a record of 9-10 with one game left in the regular season.

On Feb. 4, the Warriors took a 62-38 defeat at Cromwell. The Panthers jumped out to a 20-11 lead in the first quarter and led the rest of the way. Senior captain Lexie Finnerty led all scorers with 18 points to go along with four steals, two blocks, and four assists. Alena Crosby added nine points and two blocks, while Addi Marchese scored seven points and had four assists.

Three days later, Valley hosted Coginchaug and dropped a 45-40 decision. The Warriors led 18-11 after the first quarter, but the Blue Devils were able to close the gap to 22-21 at halftime. Coginchaug went up 35-30 during the third quarter on its way to the 10-point victory. Finnerty scored 14 points to go with six rebounds, six assists, and seven steals. Reagan Brenneman recorded five rebounds, two steals, and one block. Marchese had 10 points with six assists, while Crosby added seven points, four rebounds, and one block.

On Feb. 9, the Warriors played a road game against Somers and lost a 54-43 contest versus the Spartans.