This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
12/29/2019 11:00 PMThe year 2019 saw a lot of good things happen for sports in Clinton. The Huskies fared well on the basketball court throughout the winter season, after which Clinton made some noise on the baseball field during the summer. The fall campaign was highlighted by the Morgan boys’ soccer squad claiming a share of the Shoreline Conference title. Let’s review the year in Clinton sports.
Winter
The Morgan boys’ basketball team had a nice turnaround in Frank Rossi’s first year as head coach. Morgan saw a 13-win improvement from the previous year by going 17-8 this winter.
The Huskies qualified for the Division V State Tournament and made it to the quarterfinals by defeating Haddam-Killingworth (56-54) and Terryville (45-42) in the first and second rounds, respectively. In the Shoreline Conference Tournament, Morgan defeated Old Saybrook 40-38 in the quarterfinals and then lost to Cromwell in the semis.
Morgan was lead by senior captains Chris Nuzzo, Garrett Johnson, and AJ Fritz. Other contributors included senior JP Nye and sophomores Robbie Zirlis and Zach Johnson.
The Morgan girls’ basketball team picked up its first victory in the Class M State Tournament in three seasons with a 35-33 first-round win over Ellington. The Huskies also reached the Shoreline Conference Tournament semifinals on their way to a record of 16-8, which was six wins better than the previous year. Morgan was led by senior captains Becca Shamp, Joelle Vuilleumier, and Kylee Clifton. Junior Leah McComiskey and sophomore Catie Donadio also made key contributions for the Huskies.
Sophomore wrestler Louis Bradley had a big season for the Huskies in 2019. Bradley took the Class S state title and also won the SCC crown in the 132-pound division. In states, Bradley claimed a 8-7 decision over Devin Matthews of Gilbert in the final. At SCCs, he defeated Keldon Rose of Guilford by a 7-4 score in the championship bout.
The Huskies’ girls’ indoor track team took fourth place at the Shoreline Conference Championship. Colleen Edwards finished second in the shot put with a throw of 30 feet for Morgan. The 4x200 relay of Alyssa LeMay, Madison Corgan, Jessica Flanagan, and Carley Schmidt placed second (1:53.20), while the 4x800 relay team of Erin Lindsay, Isabella Ranaudo, Madison Emmi, and Maura Kelly also finished second (11:10.20). Olivia McCray came in third place for the 55 hurdles (9.86 seconds).
The Morgan boys’ indoor track team saw its 1,600 sprint medley relay of Mike Savage, Bryce Thomas, Calvin Jackson, and Chayse Lofgren take second place with a time of 3:53.81 at Shorelines. The 4x200 quartet of Thomas, Ryan Caldwell, Ryan Warner, and Savage earned third place (1:38.43).
The Morgan fencing program turned in a solid campaign this winter. The girls’ squad finished with a record of 17-3 during the regular season, while the boys’ team went 12-10. Three of Morgan’s squads made the Team State Championships, where girls’ sabre earned second place, girls’ épée took third place, and boys’ sabre finished fifth. Morgan’s senior captains were Rebecca Arribas Cockley, Olivia Morrissey, and Scott Accetta.
Spring
The Morgan boys’ tennis team had a successful year by going 14-4 this spring. Senior captains Chris Nuzzo and Garrett Johnson led the Huskies from No. 1 and No. 2 singles positions, respectively, during the regular season. Nuzzo and Johnson then teamed up to compete in the doubles bracket in the Class S State Championship and made it all the way to the final match. After that, they competed at the State Open.
Morgan’s other senior captains were Paddy Murray and Sean Arribas Cockley, who played No. 3 and No. 4 singles, respectively. Zach Johnson and Charles Whelan made it to the third round of the Class S doubles tournament, as did Murray and JP Nye.
The Morgan baseball squad started off with a record of 1-7 record before winning eight of 12 to make the Class S State Tournament. The Huskies were led by senior captain AJ Fritz, who had a .379 batting average with 15 runs scored and 10 RBI. Senior Connor Derry recorded three wins with 34 strikeouts on the mound. Senior Mike Menacho (12 runs, 10 walks), senior Kyle Burt (.326, 2 triples), and sophomore Robbie Zirlis (1.94 ERA, 26 Ks) also helped Morgan throughout the year.
The Morgan boys’ lacrosse team put together a record of 11-8. The Huskies reached the Shoreline Conference Tournament final, where they lost to North Branford. Morgan also qualified for the Class S State Tournament. Ryan Caldwell, Ford Pender, Zak Johnson, Matt Lee, Tim Lichack, Sean Fitzgerald, Matt Koziy, and goalie Matt Luchuk were among the club’s top players.
The Huskies’ girls’ lacrosse team qualified for the Class S State Tournament and grabbed a 13-11 win over St. Bernard in the qualifying round. A big moment came during the regular season when junior Maddie Stopkoski scored her 100th career goal with the Huskies. Stopkoski had 90 goals and 20 assists on the season.
The Huskies were led by senior captains Olivia McCray (20 goals), Grace Roman, and Erin Lindsay (13 goals, 37 ground balls). Other key players included Carley Schmidt (17 goals, 11 assists), Delaney Mastriano (44 ground balls, 10 caused turnovers), Lindsay Naracci (31 goals, 17 assists), Joelle Vuilleumier (21 goals), and Aryn McQuarrie (11 goals, 10 assists).
The Morgan girls’ outdoor track team took fifth place at the Shoreline Conference Championship meet. Alyssa LeMay claimed second place in the 100-meter dash (13.14) and the 200-meter dash (27.08) at Shorelines. In the long jump, LeMay recorded a leap of 16 feet-11 inches for third place. Ashley Annicelli took third in discus with a throw of 77 feet-2 inches.
Summer
The Clinton Huskies’ 19-U AAU baseball team had a solid summer in the East Shore League. The Huskies reached the East Shore Playoffs, where they earned an exciting 11-10 extra-inning win over the Northern Connecticut Mustangs in the semifinals. The Huskies went on to lose a 15-4 contest in the championship game to finish the year at 14-3-1 overall. Top contributors for the Huskies included John Urban, AJ Fritz, Mike Menacho, Trevor Follo, Nick Caprio, Spencer Buckley, and Ryan Inglis.
The Clinton Little League 10-U All-Star baseball team recorded several victories in the District 9 Tournament on its way to taking the title. Clinton earned wins versus Old Saybrook (19-6), East Haddam (13-3), Middletown (17-3), and then East Haddam (15-5) again to move on to the district final. In the double-elimination matchup, Clinton defeated Madison by earning a 6-4 win and a 7-4 victory to advance to sectionals.
In the Section 3 Tournament, Clinton defeated Newington 9-2 in the first game of a three-team playoff. In the second game, Clinton lost to Waterford by a 7-0 score. After a tiebreak scenario, Clinton and Waterford advanced to the final, where Clinton battled back from a 5-1 deficit to tie the game at 5-5 in the final inning. Waterford was able to push a run across the plate and get a 6-5 walk-off victory that ended Clinton’s run.
Fall
The Morgan boys’ soccer squad claimed a share of the Shoreline Conference title with Old Saybrook in 2019. The Huskies were named Shoreline co-champions after playing the Rams to a 2-2 tie in the conference final, resulting in their third-straight conference crown. Morgan had defeated Portland 3-1 in semifinals to make the championship game.
After Shorelines, Morgan advanced to the quarterfinals of the Class M State Tournament with victories over Ansonia (7-0) and Watertown (3-1) before dropping a contest to Ellington in the quarterfinals. Morgan ended up with a overall record of 15-3-3 on the year.
Senior captains Alex Kadloff and Zach Tuccitto were the senior captains for the Huskies, who were also bolstered by the play of Justin Castro, Andrew Daly, Max Skidmore, Alex Gallardo, Tyler Mucha, and Sebastian Kadlof.
The Morgan girls’ soccer squad had a challenging season, but still earned another berth to the Class M State Tournament. The Huskies went 6-7-4 overall on the year. Senior captain goalie Natalie Novarro recorded seven shutouts in net, while fellow senior captain Alyssa Smith had a great campaign in the midfield for Morgan. Junior Carley Schmidt led the team with 13 goals.
The Morgan field hockey team qualified for the Class S State Tournament for the first time in nine years this fall. Head Coach Emily Lisy’s squad finished with an overall record of 6-10-1. The Huskies were led by senior captains Aryn McQuarrie, Delaney Mastriano, and Jillian Crowley.
The Morgan volleyball squad made it to Shoreline Conference Tournament, where the Huskies dropped a quarterfinal contest to Coginchaug. The Huskies’ record on the year was 5-16. Charlotte Davenport, Sarah Keuver, and Emma Iovene served as senior captains for Morgan.