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03/01/2019 11:00 PMGirls’ Basketball
The Branford girls’ basketball team notched a win versus Watertown in the first round of the Class L State Tournament, after which the Hornets took a second-round defeat against Pomperaug last week. Senior Sophia Araneo recorded a major milestone when she scored the 1,000th point of her high school career during the Hornets’ first-round win over Watertown.
Araneo scored 26 points to lead 22nd-seeded Branford to its 61-46 victory at No. 11 seed Watertown in the first round of the Class L State Tournament on Feb. 25. Head Coach Rob Manghnani said the Hornets also received a boost from a strong contribution by sophomore Gabby Lucertini in the win.
Three days later, Branford lost a 60-44 decision at No. 6 seed Pomperaug in a second-round matchup. Araneo scored 22 points in her final game with the Hornets.
In its first season with Coach Manghnani, Branford finished with a regular-season record of 9-11 and an overall mark of 10-13, having qualified for both the Southern Connecticut Conference Tournament and the Class L State Tournament.
Cheerleading
The Branford cheerleading team competed in the Class L State Championship at Floyd Little Athletic Center on March 3. The Hornets earned second runner-up status by recording a third-place finish with a score of 156.9 at the meet. Branford had previously finished in fourth place for the All-Girl Division at the Southern Connecticut Conference Championship this season.
The Hornets' roster includes juniors Lila Beard, Bella Miranda, Taylor Nichols, Rachel Rustemeyer, and Jade Smith; sophomore Lilly Longway; and freshmen Kallista Berner, Fiona Cavallaro, Mariella Esperti, Samantha Iagrossi, and Svea Lundgren.
Wrestling
Sophomore Justin Osler represented the Branford wrestling team when he competed at the New England Championship on March 1. Osler wrestled in three bouts in the 182-pound weight class and came away with one victory at the regional meet, which took place in Providence, Rhode Island.
Osler started off action in the 182-pound bracket by defeating Dom Ledoux of Massachusetts via injury default at the 3:57 in a first-round match. In the next round, Osler lost to Gregory Gregorian from Rhode Island by pin at the 1:03 mark. That sent Osler to the consolation rounds, where he lost a 9-3 decision versus Jack Cronin of Nonnewaug in his final match.
Osler was only the fourth athlete in the history of Branford wrestling to qualify for the New England Championship. Osler qualified after finishing in fifth place at the State Open Championship, where he became the first sophomore in program history to win a medal. Osler had previously finished first in the 182-pound weight class at the Southern Connecticut Conference Championship and second at the Class M State Championship. He finished his sophomore season with 41 victories and has 70 wins for his career.
Boys’ Indoor Track
Senior Marzio Mastroianni took fifth place in the 1,000-meter run for Branford at the New England Championship last weekend. Mastroianni finished with a time of 2:33.46 at the regional meet, which was held at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston, Massachusetts.
Earlier in the postseason, Mastroianni finished first in the 1,000 at the SCC West Sectional Championship (2:38.05), placed second at the Class M State Championship (2:39.32), and then came in second place at the State Open Championship (2:33.63).