Printer Friendly Version - Branford Boys’ Golf Keeps Going Strong; Girls’ Tennis Enjoys Nice Week on the Court

Sophomore Keegan LaLonde earned medalist honors for the Branford boys’ golf squad in both of last week’s victories, helping the Hornets improve to 6-1 in the spring season. Photo by Kelley Fryer/The Sound

The Branford boys’ golf team improved its record to 6-1 on the year by earning a pair of victories in last week’s action. The Hornets notched wins over North Haven and Lyman Hall to continue their strong start to the 2021 season.

Branford began its week by claiming a 161-204 road victory against North Haven at Tradition Golf Club on May 3. Sophomore Keegan LaLonde earned medalist honors for the Hornets by turning in a low round of 37 on the afternoon. Junior Justin Acquarulo was next in line by shooting a 39 for Branford. Senior Luke Albinger finished with a score of 42, while sophomore Colin Deane posted a score of 43 in the victory.

The following day, Branford hosted Lyman Hall and scored a 163 as a team to get the win. LaLonde collected medalist honors for the second-straight meet by recording a score of 38 for Branford. Acquarulo was right behind LaLonde with his score of 42. Senior Billy Linder scored a 42, Deane shot a 44, and senior Finn Thompson finished with a 46.

The Branford girls’ tennis team improved to 8-3 on the season after scoring victories in each of last week’s contests. The Hornets defeated both Lyman Hall and Shelton by 5-2 finals in road matches last week.

Branford started off the week by earning a 5-2 road victory versus Lyman Hall on May 4. Senior Shae Lepre notched a 6-4, 6-0 win at No. 1 singles for the Hornets. Sophomore Leila Omeragic claimed a 6-0, 6-0 victory at No. 2 singles; sophomore Evelyn Mollow earned a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 3 singles; and junior Nuala Paudyal triumphed by a 6-2, 6-2 score in the No. 4 singles match for Branford. On the doubles court, the Hornets’ No. 3 team of senior Hanna Bloomquist and sophomore Scout Engstrom netted a 6-2, 6-3 victory.

Two days after defeating Lyman Hall, the Hornets traveled to Shelton to take on the Gaels. Branford won the matchup by the final score of 5-2 to put its eighth victory of the season in the books.

The Branford boys’ tennis team took three defeats in last week’s action. The Hornets moved to 2-10 after losing contests to Cheshire, Amity, and Guilford last week.

On May 3, Branford hosted Cheshire and took a 6-1 loss to the Rams. Then on May 6, the Hornets lost to Amity by a 6-1 score in a road match. The next day, Branford was on the road to face Guilford and dropped a 5-2 decision against the Grizzlies.

The Branford girls’ lacrosse team played three games last week and came away with two wins to level its record at 5-5 on the season. The Hornets earned a one-goal win versus Lauralton Hall, took a against Cheshire, and then came back with a one-goal over Fairfield Warde in last week’s contests.

The Hornets started off their week by playing a road game against Lauralton Hall on May 3. Branford edged out the Crusaders by the final score of 11-10 to notch its fourth victory of the year.

The next day, Branford hosted Cheshire and took a 17-3 defeat against the Rams. Freshman Ava Ferrie scored two goals for the Hornets, while junior Isla Lionetti also scored a goal in the game.

Then on May 7, the Hornets claimed a 10-9 victory versus Fairfield Warde in a road game.

The Branford softball squad raised its mark to 4-8 on the year after claiming victory in two of its last three games. The Hornets recorded wins versus Guilford and Hillhouse and then took a loss to Mercy their recent contests.

In its first game of the week, Branford hosted Guilford on May 3 and edged out the Grizzlies by a 4-3 score. Then May 6, the Hornets claimed a 15-0 win against Hillhouse in a road game. The following day, Branford was back on the road to face Mercy and took a 5-0 defeat to the Tigers.

The Branford baseball team was on the field for four games last week and came away from the slate with one win to move to 3-8 this season. The Hornets earned a win versus Jonathan Law to go with losses against North Haven, Lyman Hall, and Xavier last week.

Branford opened the week by taking a 10-7 road loss against North Haven on May 4. The Hornets had a 4-0 lead entering the bottom of the third inning, but North Haven scored two runs in the frame and then scored eight more runs in the fifth inning to take a 10-4 advantage. Branford rallied with three runs in the seventh, but was unable to complete the comeback. Senior Dan Farricielli went 3-for-4 and had three RBI for the Hornets in the game. Junior Sam Russo had a double, while fellow junior Sam Smith hit a triple for Branford.

On May 6, Branford hosted Jonathan Law and claimed a 3-2 victory for its third win of the year. The following day, the Hornets took a 5-2 home loss to Lyman Hall. Branford finished its week by 12-1 loss versus Xavier in a road game at Palmer Field.

The Branford boys’ outdoor track team earned its first win of the season when the Hornets defeated Hamden in a road meet last week. Branford claimed a 101-40 victory over the Green Dragons in a meet that took place on May 5 and 6, improving its record to 1-2 on the year.

Senior Mekhi Barnette finished first in the high jump, the long jump, and the 100-meter dash for Branford at the meet. Senior Noah Brown won the 400 and was also a member of Branford’s triumphant 4x100 and 4x400 relays. Branford’s 4x100 relay featured sophomore Colin Donahoe, sophomore Ryder Kropiwnicki, sophomore Chase Barnikow, and Brown. The runners in the Hornets’ 4x400 relay were Brown, junior Pat Zdunek, junior Peyton Moriarty, and senior Julio Tozetto.

Branford’s 4x800 relay claimed first place and also qualified for the Class MM State Championship by virtue of its performance against Hamden. The Hornets’ 4x8 featured Zdunek, Tozetto, junior Peyton Moriarty, and junior Wes Raymond.

Branford was bolstered by several other first-place finishes in its meet versus Hamden. Senior Ryan Hanniford finished first in the 300 hurdles and the pole vault for the Hornets, who also received victories from junior Graham Reynolds in the 3,200, junior Inderpreet Behal in the 110 hurdles, junior Andrew Bono in the discus, junior Joe Fanelli in the shot put, and sophomore Avery Atkinson in the javelin.

The Branford girls’ outdoor track team notched a 72-43 victory at Hamden for its first win of the year on May 5. The Hornets improved to 1-2 this spring by defeating the Green Dragons at Hamden High School last week.

Sophomore Hannah Jackson had a huge meet for the Hornets by claiming first place in the 100 hurdles (22.3), the 300 hurdles (64.8), and the 1,600 (6:27.8) against Hamden. Freshman Joelle Budz finished first in the 100 (13.2) and the 200 (27.3), in addition to running on Branford’s victorious 4x100 relay. The Hornets’ quartet of sophomore Sarah Nwagboli, junior Katie Laska, junior Samantha Burzynski, and Budz posted a time of 55.3 seconds to come in first place.

Senior Jen Hincapie claimed first place in the shot put (24-8) and the discus (62-5) to go with a second-place showing in the javelin (70-7) for Branford. Senior Ashley Duong cleared 6-6 to take first place in the pole vault. Freshman Tess Wasiolek finished with a time of 12:04.3 in the 3,200 to finish in first place, while qualifying for the Class MM State Championship in the event in the process.