Printer Friendly Version - Hornets See Several Teams Compete in States

Junior Amanda Gage claimed a straight-sets win in her No. 2 singles match to help the Branford girls’ tennis squad notch a 6-1 victory at Maloney in the qualifying round of the Class M State Tournament on May 24. The Hornets later took a loss against Barlow to finish with a record of 13-9 on the year. File photo by Catherine Avalone/The Sound

The Branford girls’ tennis team defeated Maloney in the qualifying round of the Class M State Tournament, before taking a loss versus Barlow in a first-round match last week. The Hornets completed their campaign with an overall record of 13-9.

Branford was the No. 19 seed in the Class M tourney and started off the draw by earning a 6-1 win at No. 14 Maloney in qualifying-round action on May 24. Junior Amanda Gage notched a 6-4, 6-0 victory at No. 2 singles, junior Samantha Velardi prevailed by a 6-3, 4-6, 10-7 final at No. 3 singles, and fellow junior Gianna Benni claimed a 6-2, 6-2 win in the No. 4 singles match for the Hornets.

In doubles play, Branford’s No. 1 team of sophomores Alayna Boileau and Shae Lepre netted a 7-5, 5-7, 10-6 victory, the No. 2 duo of juniors Ellie Bartlett and Sarah Berdon posted a 6-2, 3-6, 10-7 win, and the No. 3 tandem of junior Jessica King and freshman Nuala Paudval won a 7-5, 6-4 decision.

Then on May 25, the Hornets were on the road to face No. 3 seed Barlow and dropped a 7-0 decision in a first-round contest.

The Hornets qualified for the Class M State Championship as a team and saw several athletes compete at the event on May 24 and 25.

In the singles tournament, senior Dan McGuire claimed a 6-2, 2-6, 11-9 victory in his first-round match and then took a loss in the second round. Fellow senior Praneeth Ganedi posted a 6-0, 6-0 shutout in the first round and lost his second-round contest by the score of 6-2, 0-6, 10-5. Junior Eli Hanlon dropped a 6-3, 6-7, 10-4 decision in first-round action. Freshman Josh Berdon took a defeat in a qualifying-round matchup.

For the doubles bracket, Branford’s team of junior Jaden Andresen and senior Paul Riccio posted a 7-5, 6-3 victory in the first round, after which they lost their contest in the second round. The duo of senior Kurt Schalper and Wes Raymond triumphed by a 6-3, 6-1 score in a first-round match and then took a defeat in the second round. The team of juniors Jason Hackett and Dan Pagliaro took a loss in the first round.

Branford came into states after notching a record of 12-6 during the regular season. The Hornets also qualified for the SCC Tournament and lost a quarterfinal contest against Xavier to finish at 12-7 overall.

Branford saw its season come to a close when the Hornets took a loss against Notre Dame-West Haven in the first round of the Class M State Tournament. The Hornets, who were No. 7 seed, hosted Notre Dame on May 29 and dropped a 13-6 decision to the Green Knights. Branford, which also qualified for the SCC Tournament this year, finished its campaign with an overall record of 11-7.

The Hornets were eliminated from the Class M State Tournament when they lost a contest against Hand in the qualifying round last week. No. 16 seed Branford played No. 17 Hand at home and took a 16-6 defeat on May 24. The Hornets, who also made the SCC Tournament this year, posted an overall mark of 8-10 on the season.

The Hornets were represented by four athletes at the Class MM State Championship last week.

Branford saw seniors MaryBeth Nwagboli and Liante Claude compete in the 200-meter dash at the state meet. Nwagboli ran a time of 28.10 seconds to take 19th place in the event. Claude finished the 200 in 28.18 seconds and came in 23rd place.

In the 4x100 relay, Branford’s team of senior Lily Milici, junior Rose Lockery, Nwagboli, and Claude posted a time of 52.97 to finish in 17th place

Senior Praneeth Ganedi won his opening contest in the singles bracket in shutout fashion while representing the Branford boys’ tennis team at the Class M State Championship last week. File photo by Kelley Fryer/The Sound

Junior Rose Lockery ran on the Hornets’ 4x100 relay at the Class MM Girls’ Outdoor Track Championship. The meet was held at two separate sites and took two days to complete due to another deluge of rain that hit the state. File photo by Kelley Fryer/The Sound