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10/12/2020 12:00 AMBoys’ Soccer
The Branford boys’ soccer team opened up the 2020 season by notching a pair of victories last week. The Hornets earned wins versus Career-Hillhouse (C-H) and East Haven to start off the year with a record of 2-0.
Branford traveled to New Haven to face C-H for its season opener on Oct. 8. Head Coach Paul Hunter’s squad won the game by the final score of 6-0 at Bowen Field.
Branford scored three goals during the first 14 minutes of the game to take a 3-0 lead into halftime over C-H. Junior Dimitrios Gionteris scored on an assist from senior Raffaele Ciarleglio in the fifth minute, Ciarleglio scored from Gionteris three minutes later, and then Gionteris scored on an assist by senior Din Durmic in the 14th minute to get the Hornets rolling.
Durmic scored from Sebastian Verdesoto in the 51st minute to make it 4-0. Junior Peyton Moriarty scored from senior Matt Cordero in the 72nd minute and then sophomore Ryder Kropiwnicki scored on senior Julio Tozetto’s assist in the 79th minute to finish off a 6-0 victory for the Hornets.
On Oct. 10, Branford hosted East Haven for its first home game of the year. The Hornets wo 5-0 victory for their second victory on the campaign.
Branford held a 2-0 halftime advantage in this one. Gionteris scored on an assist by Verdesoto in the fourth minute, after which Ciarleglio scored from senior Mykael Zuniga Cordova just two minutes after that to put Branford up by a pair.
In the second half, Cordero scored from Verdesoto in the 45th minute, Durmic scored from Zuniga Cordova in the 54th minute, and then Gionteris scored from Ciarleglio in the 64th minute to put a bow on the 5-0 shutout. Senior Alec Aceves-Acosta played goalie for Branford in both of last week’s victories.
Girls’ Soccer
The Hornets’ girls’ soccer squad was on the field for a pair of matchups last week. Branford took a defeat to Daniel Hand before bouncing back with a win over Career-Hillhouse to put its record at 2-1 this year.
On Oct. 6, the Hornets hosted Hand and dropped a 3-1 decision at Branford High School. Two days later, Branford played a road game against Career-Hillhouse and posted an 11-0 shutout at Boulevard Field in New Haven.
Field Hockey
The Branford field hockey team traveled to Madison to take on Daniel Hand on Oct. 5. The Hornets took a 3-1 loss against the Tigers to move to 1-2 on the season.
Girls’ Volleyball
The Branford girls’ volleyball team hit the court to face Daniel Hand for its first matchup of the year last week. On Oct. 9, the Hornets hosted Hand and defeated the Tigers by a 3-1 score at Branford High School. Branford is entering its first season with Giovanni Meier as its head coach this fall.
Girls’ Cross Country
The Hornets’ girls’ cross country team earned a sweep of a tri-meet with East Haven and Lyman Hall at Wharton Brook State Park on Oct. 8. Branford now has a record of 2-2 on the campaign after defeating both East Haven (17-46) and Lyman Hall (15-50).
Junior Isla Linoetti crossed the finish line with a time of 22 minutes and 13 seconds to claim third place for the Hornets in the sweep. Sophomore Hannah Jackson finished sixth (22:31), junior Bella Finta placed seventh (22:59), senior Steph Toste was ninth (25:19), and sophomore Marina Smiarowski came in 10th place (26:12) for Head Coach Kevin Connell’s club.
Boys’ Cross Country
The Branford boys’ cross country squad split a meet against Lyman Hall and East Haven at Wharton Brook State Park in Wallingford last week. On Oct. 8, the Hornets earned a 19-42 victory against East Haven and took a 26-31 loss to Lyman Hall to move to 1-3 this year.
Junior Cheng Wu delivered Branford’s top performance by taking third place with a time of 18:54. Junior Wes Raymond finished fourth (18:58), senior Brennan Hynes came in seventh (19:23), junior Pat Zdunek placed ninth (19:42), freshman Sam Coppola was 10th (19:44), and sophomore Colin Donahoe finished in 11th place (20:09) for the Hornets.
Girls’ Swimming and Diving
The Branford girls’ swimming and diving team took on Daniel Hand last week. The Hornets were edged out by the Tigers by the final score of 77-76 at the meet.
Branford and Hand competed separately at the Madison Racquet & Swim Club on Oct. 5. Hand’s athletes were to first to compete, after which the Hornets’ athletes hit the water to turn in their performances. The two teams’ performances in each event were then compared to one another in order to score the meet. In the end, Hand claimed a 77-76 victory versus Branford.