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06/12/2021 12:00 AMBoys’ Tennis
The Hand boys’ tennis team sent two singles players and a doubles team to compete at the Individual Invitational Tournament held at Wesleyan University last week. Hand’s doubles team of senior Reilly Vejar and junior William deChabert advanced to the championship match of the doubles tournament at the meet. Senior Josh Israel and junior Sebastian Lowy competed in the singles tournament for the Tigers.
Vejar and deChabert were the No. 2 seed in the doubles bracket and had a bye through the first round. In their first match, Hand’s tandem earned a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Christian Ripke and Jake Manley of Fairfield Warde in a quarterfinal contest.
Then in the semifinals, Vejar and deChabert took on the 3rd-seeded team of Alex de Castro and Teddy Callery of Darien. Vejar and deChabert grinded out a three-set victory by a 6-3, 4-6, 10-8 score to advance to the final.
Vejar and deChabert went up against the top-seeded team of Luke Brodsky and Bradley Sheppard of Staples in the doubles final. Vejar and deChabert took a 7-5, 6-1 defeat to Brodsky and Bradley in the title match on June 10.
Israel was the No. 3 seed in the singles bracket and had a bye through the first round. Israel faced Lukas Phimvongsa of Enfield in a second-round match and lost a 6-4, 6-4 decision.
Lowy faced Ethan Zhang from Darien in the first round of the tournament. Lowy took a 6-2, 6-1 defeat in the match.
Boys’ Outdoor Track
The Hand boys’ outdoor track and field team was represented by several athletes when the State Open Championship was held at New Britain’s Willow Brook Park on June 10. The Tigers scored 13 points as a squad and finished in a tie for 18th place at the State Open.
Senior Bryce Myers scored six points for Hand by taking third place in the pole vault with a height of 13 feet-6 inches. Myers had previously won the pole vault at the SCC Championship and then placed fourth in the Class MM State Championship.
Hand’s 4x800 relay team of junior Jack O’Keefe, senior Joseph Genther, senior Connor Parthasarthy, and senior Dante Zucconi claimed fourth place with a time of 8:11.47 at the Open, scoring five points. The Tigers’ quartet also finished first at the SCC East Sectional Championship and the SCC Championship, followed by a second-place finish at the Class MM meet this spring.
Hand’s 4x400 relay of junior Paul Odyniec, freshman Kyle Hoffman, Parthsarthy, and Zucconi posted a time of 3:28.65 to take seventh place at the Open and score three points.
Junior Morgan Veth finished 13th in the high jump (5-10) for Hand. Senior Josh Stewart came in 14th place for the preliminaries of the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.24 seconds. Senior Aidan McCabe placed 16th in the shot put (42-4), while fellow senior Sander Coscia finished 18th in the discus (119-8).
Girls’ Outdoor Track
The Hand girls’ outdoor track team had four athletes compete in individual events and also saw a relay compete at the State Open Championship last week. The Tigers scored six points and finished in finished in a tie for 33rd place at the meet.
Senior Anna Steffen claimed third place in the 3,200-meter run for the Tigers at the State Open. Steffen clocked in with a time of 10:41.49 to take third place and score six points for Hand. Earlier in the postseason, Steffen finished first in the both the 3,200 and the 1,600 at the SCC East Sectional Championship, the SCC Championship, and the Class MM State Championship.
Sophomore Julia Coric finished 15th in the 400-meter dash (1:10.96) for the Tigers at the State Open. Sophomore Adelyn Arroyo finished 20th (5:23.42) for the 1,600, and junior Meryl Sullivan took 21st place (5:39.43) in the event.
Hand’s 4x400 relay of Coric, Arroyo, freshman Jordan Kells, and Sullivan finished in 21st place at the Open by posting a time of 4:14.14.
Girls’ Golf
The Hand girls’ golf team competed in the Division II State Championship at Farmington Woods Golf Course in Avon on June 7. The Tigers totaled a team score of 461 and finished in 14th place at the meet.
Junior Lila Sullivan led the Tigers by shooting a 18-hole score of 102 to finish in a tie for 22nd place at states. Senior Lucia Balzano finished in a tie for 29th place with a score of 106, sophomore Julia Dougherty tied for 56th place with a 119, and senior Hannah Kidwell scored a 134 to finish in a tie for 69th place.