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09/15/2019 12:00 AMFootball
The Hornets’ football team opened up the 2019 season by taking a 20-19 defeat against Guilford in an SCC Tier 3 showdown at Branford High School on Sept. 13. Branford brought a 19-7 lead into the fourth quarter, but the Indians scored the final two touchdowns of the night and then hung on for the win.
Guilford scored on an 18-yard touchdown run to take a 7-0 lead just 2:47 into the game. In the second quarter, junior Kamryn Holmes rushed for a pair of TDs to give the Hornets a 12-7 advantage at halftime. Holmes first scored on a 34-yard touchdown run to cut the deficit to 7-6 with 9:30 to play in the half. Later in the frame, Holmes found pay dirt from 14 yards away to put Branford up 12-7 with 4:08 remaining before the break.
With just 23 seconds left in the third quarter, senior captain quarterback Sean Kelly found junior Mekhi Barnette on a 67-yard TD pass. Senior Jake Bodner kicked the extra point to extend Branford’s lead to 19-7.
Just 1:37 into the fourth quarter, Guilford used a 59-yard touchdown rush to make it 19-14. Later the frame, the Indians went for it on 4th-down-and-2 from their own 11-yard line and picked up the first down on a short run. A few plays later, Guilford used a 72-yard TD run to take a 20-19 lead with 4:51 left in the contest. The Hornets one last chance to take the lead, but saw their final drive stall when they were whistled for a penalty after picking up a first down on a 4th-and-5 play.
Holmes carried the ball 12 times for 108 yards and two touchdowns to lead Branford’s running game. Kelly threw for 136 yards and a TD to go with 12 carries for 50 yards.
This week, Branford is hosting Stratford for a non-conference game on Friday, Sept. 20. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Branford High School.
Girls’ Swimming and Diving
Branford competed against the East Haven-Cross co-op squad in its first meet of the season. The Hornets earned an 87-80 victory over the Yellowjackets at the East Haven Town Pool on Sept. 14.
Branford fell behind early, but rallied to win its opening meet. Senior Cordelia Keberle took first place in the 50 freestyle with a time of 28.11 seconds, while fellow senior Gabby Gillis won the 100 freestyle in 59.31 seconds. Sophomore Erika Barone claimed top honors in the 100 breaststroke by finishing in 1:15.73. The Hornets’ 200 freestyle relay of Barone, Keberle, sophomore Rory Jacobson, and Gillis finished first in 1:52.93.
Branford finished in 14th place at the SCC Championship and then came in seventh place in the Class M State Championship last season.
Boys' Soccer
The Hornets started off their season by hosting Barlow on Sept. 14. Branford earned a 1-0 win against the Falcons in the non-conference contest.
This is Paul Hunter's 11th season as head coach of the Hornets. Branford is competing in the SCC Quinnipiac Division with Amity, Cross, and Notre Dame-West Haven.
Last season, Branford recorded a mark of 11-3-2 during the regular season on its way to making the SCC and Class L State tournaments. In the SCC Tournament, Branford notched a 1-0 overtime win against Cheshire in the quarterfinals before taking a 1-0 defeat to Xavier in the semis. In the Class L State Tournament, the Hornets earned a 3-0 victory versus Harding in the first round, defeated Barlow by a 1-0 score (5-4 in PKs) in the second round, and then dropped a 2-1 decision to Maloney in the quarterfinals to finish with an overall record of 14-5-2.
Field Hockey
The Hornets hosted non-conference opponent Wilton for their first game of the season on Sept. 14. Branford lost a 6-2 contest against the Warriors in its season opener.
Freshman Scout Engstrom had a goal with an assist, while sophomore Nora Longway also scored a goal for the Hornets. Seniors Brianna Shaw and Molly Zaffino handed out one assist apiece. Senior goalie Gianna Messina made seven saves in the game. Head Coach Pete Frye said that Branford also received solid contributions from seniors Maggie Martin and Alexis Pepe, junior Jocelyn Smestad, and freshman Lauren Kendrick.
Frye is back for his second season as the Hornets’ head coach. Last year, Branford finished with a record of 8-5-2-1 in the regular season to qualify for the SCC Tournament and the Class M State Tournament. In SCCs, Branford posted a 3-2 win over Amity in the quarterfinals and took a 5-0 loss to Cheshire in the semis. Then in states, the Hornets dropped a 3-0 decision to Hand in a first-round game to finish the year at 9-7-2-1 overall.
Volleyball
Branford was on the road to face East Haven for its first matchup of the year last week. The Hornets took a 3-1 loss versus the Yellowjackets on Sept. 13.
Cody Michaels is back for her third season as Branford’s head coach. Branford is playing in the SCC Oronoque Division with Amity, Law, Lyman Hall, and Mercy. Branford finished with a record of 5-15 in the 2018 season.
Girls' Cross Country
Branford started off its season by competing at the Haddad Windham Invitational that took place at Windham High School on Sept 7. The Hornets finished in 15th place out of 24 teams at the meet.
Sophomore Bella Finta recorded the best finish for Branford by taking 25th place with a time of 21:52. Fellow sophomore Isla Lionetti finished in 52nd place (23:44), junior Steph Toste came in 81st place (24:52), and senior Juil Dillon finished 89th (25:10). Senior Abbey Pawlowicz finished in 131st place (27:20), while junior Maddy Steinman came in 159th place (29:52).
Three days later, Branford defeated two of its three opponents in a tri-meet at the Supply Pond. The Hornets defeated Hillhouse and Career by identical 15-50 finals and also took a 24-37 defeat versus Hand. Finta came in fourth place (23:12), Lionetti finished fifth (23:35), and freshman Hannah Jackson placed sixth (23:52) at the meet. Also hitting the course for Branford were Toste (12th, 25:49), Dillon (13th, 26:34), Taylor Tracy (16th, 29:14), and Steinman (19th, 29:36).
The Hornets went 6-3 during the regular season last season, after which Branford finished 14th at the SCC Championship and 15th in the Class MM State Championship.
Boys' Cross Country
The Hornets finished in 17th place among 26 clubs when they ran at the Haddam Windham Invitational on Sept. 7.
In his first cross country race, senior Nolan Scott led the Hornets' pack by taking 65th place with a time of 18:22. Branford's other runners at the meet included sophomore Pat Zdunek (98th, 19:14), senior Andrew Betzig (102nd, 19:17), sophomore Cheng Wu (126th, 19:47), sophomore Wyatt Reynolds (137th, 20:09), junior Brennan Hynes (142nd, 20:14), and sophomore Wes Raymond (151st, 20:22).
On Sept. 10, Branford took two of three in a tri-meet at the Supply Pond. The Hornets posted a 15-50 victory over Hillhouse, defeated Career by that same score, and took a 17-46 loss against Hand. Scott finished in fourth place with a time of 18:46 for the Hornets, whose other runners were Zdunek (7th, 18:53), Wu (11th, 19:20), sophomore Ben Watson (14th, 19:38), Reynolds (18th, 20:11), Hynes (23rd, 20:16), and Betzig (24th, 20:24)
Branford finished with a record of 3-6 last year and then came in 15th place at both the SCC Championship and the Class MM State Championship.