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02/16/2019 11:00 PMBoys’ Ice Hockey
The Branford boys’ ice hockey squad picked up a pair of victories last week to improve to 12-3-3 with two games left in the regular season. The Hornets defeated Lyman Hall/Haddam-Killingworth/Coginchaug (LH/H-K/C) and North Haven in two games in which they were the designated road team at Northford Ice Pavilion.
Branford opened the week by scoring an 8-5 victory versus LH/H-K/C on Feb. 13. Senior Max Bunton and junior Chris Donadio both scored two goals for the Hornets in the win. Zach Jones scored from fellow junior Spencer Engstrom to give Branford a 1-0 lead just 2:18 into the game. Two minutes later, Bunton scored from fellow senior Rob Lionetti to make it 2-0. The Trojans came back with three straight goals to take a 3-2 lead after the first period.
With 7:48 to play in the second, Bunton scored from junior Jack Manware and sophomore Billy Linder to tie the game at 3. The Trojans went up 4-3, but senior Theo Kirby scored a goal on an Engstrom assist to make it 4-4 with 3:25 left in the frame. Just a minute later, Jack Manware scored from Linder and junior Max Manware to give Branford a 5-4 lead heading into the third period.
Donadio and Lionetti both scored unassisted goals to make it 7-4 within the first four minutes of the third. The Trojans cut it to 7-5 late in the game, but Donadio netted his second goal for an 8-5 cushion with 1:15 left on the clock. Sophomore goalie Jared Yakimoff made 21 saves to get the win for the Hornets.
Three nights later, the Hornets faced off with North Haven and defeated the Indians by a 3-1 final in an SCC/SWC Division II matchup.
Girls’ Ice Hockey
The Branford-North Branford-Sheehan-Lyman Hall (B-NB-S-LH) girls’ ice hockey squad completed the regular season with a record of 9-10-1 after winning one of its three games last week. Later in the week, the Wings took a first-round loss in the SCC South Division Tournament.
On Feb. 13, B-NB-S-LH dropped a 5-2 decision versus West Haven-Sacred Heart Academy on the road at Bennett Rink. Juniors Sophia Caturano and Emma Sheehan scored goals for the Wings, while freshman Meghan Montenaro had an assist.
Two days later, the Wings posted a 6-1 road victory over Hand-Coginchaug-Old Lyme at Northford Ice Pavilion. Meghan Montenaro netted three goals for a hat trick in the win. Sophomore Molly Donegan scored two goals, and Caturano had one goal for the Wings. Sophomore Ashleen Keating, junior Gianna Benni, and freshman Maddie Montenaro added one assist apiece.
The following night, the B-NB-S-LH took a 5-1 loss against East Catholic-Glatsonbury-South Windsor in a home game at DiLungo Rink.
On Feb. 18, the Wings entered the SCC South Division Tournament as the No. 5 seed and took a 2-0 loss against the 4th-seeded Notre Dame-Fairfield co-op team at The Rinks at Shelton to move to 9-11-1 on the year.
Boys’ Indoor Track
Senior Marzio Mastroianni claimed second place in the 1,000-meter run and also ran on two relays that turned in significant performances when the Hornets competed in the State Open Championship at Floyd Little Athletic Center on Feb. 16.
Mastroianni posted a time of 2:33.63 to finish as the runner-up in the 1,000 to make All-State at the Open. Mastroianni placed ahead of third-place runner Rhys Hammond (2:34.36), who had recently edged him out for the top spot at the Class M State Championship, and only finished behind Miller Anderson from Hall, who won the race with a time of 2:33.22. Mastroianni scored eight of the nine points that Branford totaled at the State Open, putting the team in 22nd place.
Mastroianni also teamed up with fellow seniors Praneeth Ganedi, Carlos McCaay, and Matt Daley to take sixth place in the 1,600 sprint medley relay with a time of 3:45.58. Branford’s quartet, which was anchored by Mastroianni, earned All-State honors with their finish and also scored a point for the Hornets. In the 4x400 relay, Branford’s unit of Daley, freshman Cheng Wu, junior Nolan Scott, and Mastroianni set a new school record by taking 13th place with a time of 3:34.61. The Hornets’ 4x800 relay of junior Andrew Betzig, Scott, Wu, and Daley finished 16th in a time of 8:38.75.
Earlier in the postseason, Mastroianni took first place in the 1,000 at the SCC West Sectional Championship (2:38.05) and also finished second in the Class M State Championship (2:39.32). Branford’s 4x400 relay had previously set the school record at 3:35.18 when it took seventh place at states.
Girls’ Basketball
Branford finished its regular season by defeating Lauralton Hall and then lost to Hillhouse in the first round of the SCC Tournament last week. The Hornets will be competing in the Class L State Tournament beginning on Monday, Feb. 25.
Branford faced Lauralton Hall in its regular season finale on Feb. 11 and notched a 52-34 road win to complete a two-game sweep of the Crusaders this year. The Hornets had previously earned a nail-biting 38-36 home victory over Lauralton Hall on Jan. 4. This one wasn’t nearly was close as Branford jumped out to a 14-6 lead after the first quarter and held a 30-11 halftime advantage on its way to the 18-point win. Junior Karly King scored 24 points, while senior Sophia Araneo had 23 points to lead the Hornets, who finished the regular season with a record of 9-11.
On Feb. 14, No. 14 seed Branford opened play in the SCC Tournament by playing a first-round game at No. 3 seed Hillhouse. The Hornets took a took a 64-51 defeat against the Academics to move to 9-12 overall. Hillhouse held an 18-7 lead after the first quarter, but Branford won the second quarter 17-15 to make it 33-24 at halftime. The Hornets stuck around in the third quarter and were only down 50-42 going into the fourth. However, the Academics outscored Branford 14-9 during the final period to pull away for the victory. Araneo had 22 points, and King scored 17 for the Hornets. Sophomore Gabriella Lucertini added seven points in the game.
Boys’ Basketball
The Hornets hosted a pair of contests last week and came away with a split by losing to Law and then defeating Foran. Branford has a record of 2-17 with one game remaining in the season.
On Feb. 13, Branford dropped a 54-39 home game versus SCC Quinnipiac Division opponent Law to finish with a record of 0-8 in the division this year.
Two nights later, the Hornets hosted Foran and claimed a 64-53 victory that capped off a season sweep of the Lions. Branford had previously earned a 42-40 victory at Foran on Jan. 9.