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10/25/2021 12:00 AMFootball
The Branford football squad notched its fifth-straight victory when the team defeated Brookfield in a home game last week. The Hornets hosted Brookfield for a non-conference matchup on Oct. 22 and defeated the Bobcats by the final score of 41-24 at Branford High School, improving their record to 5-1 on the season.
Branford trailed 10-0 after the first quarter, but scored two touchdowns in the second quarter to make it a 17-14 game at halftime. The Hornets went on to score the first four touchdowns of the second half to get the 41-24 victory.
Junior quarterback Zach Turbert went 13-of-23 passing for three TDs for Branford, spreading out the attack to five receivers and seven running backs. As a team, the Hornets ran the ball 37 times for 176 yards in the game.
With Branford trailing 10-0, Turbert threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Lukas Rhoden six seconds into the second quarter. Turbert later found Rhoden on a 2-yard TD toss with 4:03 left in the first half to put the Hornets up 14-10. Brookfield scored a touchdown with 1:28 remaining in the half to take a 17-14 lead into the locker room.
Branford grabbed the lead for good when Turbert threw a 66-yard TD pass to senior David McDonald with 9:08 to play in the third quarter. Then with 3:28 remaining, senior Cam Paleski scored on a 3-yard run to give the Hornets a 28-17 lead through three.
Paleski rushed for a 1-yard score 56 seconds into the fourth quarter to increase the lead to 35-17. Then with 3:17 left in the game, sophomore Nathan Florio ran for a 12-yard TD for Branford’s final score and a 41-17 advantage. Florio also kicked five extra points on the night.
Branford has a bye week for this week. The Hornets’ next game is at non-conference opponent Avon on Friday, Nov. 5 at 6:30 p.m. at Avon High School.
Girls’ Soccer
The Branford girls’ soccer team played three games last week and came away with victories in all three matchups. With these results, the Hornets improved their record to 10-3-2 entering the final week of the regular season.
Branford kicked off its week by earning a 9-0 road victory over Career-Hillhouse at Boulevard Field in New Haven on Oct. 18. Junior Ava Ferrie scored three goals for the Hornets, while freshman Bryce Infantino had two goals in the win. Sophomore Tess Ferrie, senior Katelyn Robbins, freshman MacKenzie Nguyen, and sophomore Raiyn Fries also scored goals for Branford.
Two days later, the Hornets were on the road to face Jonathan Law and notched a 5-0 shutout versus the Eagles. Ava Ferrie and Tess Ferrie netted two goals apiece for Head Coach Jen Kohut’s club. Senior Kendall Infantino had two assists, and Ava Ferrie added an assist. Bryce Infantino rounded out the scoring for the Hornets, who saw senior goalie Macey Girard record her seventh shutout of the year.
Then on Oct. 23, Branford hosted North Haven and claimed a 6-1 victory. Sophomore Brenna Murphy finished a cross from fellow sophomore Lucy Moran for Branford’s first goal. Tess Ferrie and Kendall Infantino also scored goals for the Hornets during the first half, giving them a 3-1 lead at the break. Tess Ferrie scored two more goals in the second half, and sophomore Joelle Budz also found the back of the net to finish off the 6-1 win.
Boys’ Soccer
The Branford boys’ soccer team earned a tie and took a loss last week to move to 3-9-2 on the season.
On Oct. 18, the Hornets hosted Guilford and dropped a 5-1 decision against the Grizzlies. Then on Oct. 22, Branford played a road game versus Shelton and played the Gaels to a 1-1 draw.
Boys’ Cross Country
The Branford boys’ cross country squad hit the trails to compete in the SCC Championship at East Shore Park in New Haven last week. The Hornets posted a team score of 276 points to finish in 10th place at the SCC meet on Oct. 20.
Seniors Wes Raymond and Peyton Moriarty both earned top-30 finishes for Branford at the SCC Championship. Raymond finished in 26th place with a time of 17:26, while Moriarty ran a time of 17:35 to take 28th place on behalf of the Hornets.
Junior Colin Donahoe finished in 69th place (18:58), and senior Patrick Zdunek recorded a 73th-place performance (19:10) in SCCs. Junior Massimo Corrick finished in 80th place (19:24), sophomore Sam Coppola came in 82nd place (19:31), and sophomore Dominic Zdunek finished in 84th place (19:40) for Branford.
Branford will be competing at the Class MM State Championship at Wickham Park in Manchester on Saturday, Oct. 30. The boys’ race begins at 10:20 a.m.
Girls’ Cross Country
The Branford girls’ cross country team was represented by four runners when the SCC Championship took place at East Shore Park in New Haven on Oct. 20.
Junior Hannah Jackson turned in the top performance for the Hornets by taking 37th place at the SCC Championship. Jackson finished with a time of 22:53 on her way to placing 37th at the meet.
Freshman Peyton Gaudreau finished in 50th place with a time of 23:38 for Branford. Senior Bella Finta finished in 67th place (24:34), and freshman Ella Stone came in 98th place (27:34) at SCCs.
The Hornets’ next meet is the Class MM State Championship at Wickham Park in Manchester on Saturday, Oct. 30. The girls’ race gets underway at 10:50 a.m.
Field Hockey
The Branford field hockey team gained a split of two games last week and now has a record of 10-3-0-1 on the season. The Hornets shut out Mercy and then took a loss versus Guilford in their recent contests.
Branford started off its week by earning a 2-0 home victory versus Mercy on Oct. 19. Sophomore Mia d’Amuri gave the Hornets a 1-0 lead when she scored on an assist from senior Lenora Longway during the first quarter. In the second quarter, junior Lauren Kendrick scored from fellow junior Gianna Bozzi and Longway to increase the lead to 2-0.
Senior goalie Nina Shamas made eight saves in net as Branford notched its eighth-straight shutout. Senior Julia McHenry and junior Scout Engstrom played great games to help the Hornets prevail.
Then on Oct. 22, the Hornets played a road game against Guilford and took a 4-2 defeat to the Grizzlies. Shamas made 10 saves for Branford in goal.
Girls’ Volleyball
The Branford girls’ volleyball squad took two recent defeats to move to 13-4 heading into the last week of the regular season. The Hornets lost contests against Hand and Lyman Hall in last week’s action.
In its first match of the week, Branford took a 3-0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-12) road loss against Hand on Oct. 18, marking the Hornets’ first loss in their last nine matches. Senior Marzia Johnson had 16 digs with two kills and two assists for the Hornets. Junior Allie Bietz had 18 assists with six digs, two kills, and one ace.
On Oct. 22, Branford traveled to Wallingford to face Lyman Hall and dropped a 3-1 decision in the match.
Girls’ Swimming and Diving
The Branford girls’ swimming and diving team took two defeats during the final week of its regular season. The Hornets dropped contests against Shelton and Guilford in recent action.
Branford took a 102-45 road loss against Shelton at Shelton Community Center Pool on Oct. 18. Then on Oct. 21, Branford had a road meet versus Guilford and lost the contest by a 82-68 score.