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05/15/2022 12:00 AM

North Haven Boys’ Tennis Sees a Winning Week; Golf and Baseball Teams Gain Splits


Junior Billy Lipinski and the North Haven boys’ tennis team are closing in on a state tourney berth after winning three of their four matchups last week. File photo by Kelley Fryer/The Courier

Boys’ Tennis

The North Haven boys’ tennis team improved to 7-10 on the season after winning three of its four matchups last week. North Haven claimed wins against Career, Wilbur Cross, and West Haven to go with a loss against Guilford in recent play.

The Nighthawks notched a 6-1 road win over Career on May 9. Senior Ben Rudikoff earned a 6-3, 6-2 victory for North Haven in the No. 2 singles match. Junior Billy Lipinski gutted out a 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 10-5 win at No. 3 singles; while sophomore Nathan Oh won his No. 4 singles match by a 6-0, 6-0 score.

The next day, North Haven took a 5-2 loss to Guilford in another road match. Rudikoff posted a 6-3, 7-5 win at No. 2 singles; and junior Jess Hansard netted a 7-5, 6-3 win at No. 4 singles for the Nighthawks.

On May 11, North Haven hosted Wilbur Cross and won the contest by a 6-1 score. Freshman Seth Tobin claimed a 6-3, 6-2 victory in the No. 1 singles match. Rudikoff posted a 6-0, 6-0 shutout at No. 2 singles; and Hansard won his No. 4 singles match by the final tally of 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 10-6.

On the doubles court, the Nighthawks’ No. 1 team of senior Justin Geremia and Oh netted a 6-3, 6-1 victory. North Haven’s No. 2 team of sophomore Parthiv Patel and freshman Nick Sabina earned a 6-1, 6-2 win; while the No. 3 tandem of junior Evan Looney and junior Alex Ranciato won their contest by a 6-1, 6-0 score.

Then on May 13, the Nighthawks were on the road to face West Haven and notched a 5-2 victory against the Blue Devils. Rudikoff notched a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 2 singles; and Hansard claimed a 6-3, 5-7, 10-5 victory at No. 4 singles for the Nighthawks. North Haven’s doubles teams of Geremia-Oh (6-1, 6-1), Patel-Sabina (6-2, 6-2), and Looney-Ranciato (6-1, 6-3) were also victorious.

Girls’ Tennis

The North Haven girls’ tennis team had a busy stretch with five matches in a five-day span last week. The Nighthawks came away with victories in two of those contests to put their record at 11-5 on the season.

North Haven took a 4-3 home loss against Cheshire on May 9. The following day, the Nighthawks hosted Guilford and edged out the Grizzlies by the final score of 4-3. Freshman Sophia Padro won a 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 decision for North Haven in the No. 2 singles match. North Haven’s No. 1 doubles team of seniors Noelle Carmody and Zenna Mohamed claimed a 6-1, 6-4 victory. The No. 2 duo of Chandler Morris and Samantha Ide earned a 6-4, 6-4 win; and the No. 3 tandem of Emily Cerasoli and Anna Hansard notched a 6-3, 6-3 win.

On May 11, North Haven took a 7-0 defeat to Amity in a road match. The day after that, the Nighthawks traveled to Milford to face Foran and notched a 7-0 win over the Lions. Senior Ally Vollero recorded a 6-0, 6-0 shutout in the No. 1 singles match. The Nighthawks also received victories from Padro (6-0, 6-0), senior Taylor Morris (6-2, 6-0), and junior Risa Tobin (6-0, 6-0) at the No. 2 through 4 singles spots, respectively. The Nighthawks were additionally bolstered by straight-sets wins from their doubles teams of Carmody and Mohamed (6-1, 6-0), Chandler Morris and sophomore Alyssa Cherian (6-0, 6-1), and Cerasoli and Hansard (6-0, 6-0).

North Haven closed out its week by dropping a 4-3 decision at Hand on May 13. Padro (6-1, 6-4), Taylor Morris (6-3, 6-1), and Tobin (6-0, 6-1) won their singles matches for the Nighthawks.

Boys’ Golf

The North Haven boys’ golf team moved to 6-6 on the year after splitting a pair of matches last week. The Nighthawks notched a win over Lyman Hall before taking a loss to Sheehan in recent action.

North Haven teed off its week by claiming a 215-241 road win over Lyman Hall at Wallingford Country Club on May 10. Freshman Will Sagnella collected medalist honors by shooting a low score of 49 for the Nighthawks. Sophomore Kevin Lawlor scored a 52, sophomore Chris Labanara finished with a score of 53, senior Brady Connolly shot a 57, and sophomore Dinny LaDore scored a 61.

The next day, the Nighthawks hosted Sheehan at Tradition Golf Club and lost to the Titans by the final score of 189-195. Labanara was the match medalist with a score of 42 for North Haven. Sagnella carded a 49, Lawlor shot a 51, and junior Chris Basmadjian and Connolly both posted scores of 53 in the contest.

Baseball

The North Haven baseball team moved to 7-10 on the season after winning two of its four games last week. The Nighthawks earned wins versus East Haven and Branford to go with losses against Xavier and Amity for split on the week.

North Haven took a 6-0 home loss to Xavier on May 9. The next day, the Nighthawks were on the road to face East Haven and claimed a 6-2 victory over the Yellowjackets. North Haven went on to take a 7-0 defeat against Amity in a home game on May 11. The Nighthawks closed out their week by claiming a 7-5 road victory verrsus Branford in a Saturday afternoon matchup on May 14.

Softball

The North Haven softball team won one of its four games last week and is now 9-8 on the year. North Haven took losses against East Haven, Hamden, and West Haven before defeating Mercy in last week’s contests.

On May 9, the Nighthawks took an 8-3 home loss to East Haven. Freshman Alyssa DiGiovanna had 3 hits including a double for North Haven in the game.

The following day, North Haven was on the road to face Hamden and lost the matchup by a 12-5 score. Junior Kayla Balisiciano and sophomore Ava Carlson both had 2 hits for the Nighthawks in the contest.

Then on May 11, the Nighthawks played a road game versus West Haven and dropped a 6-3 decision to the Blue Devils. DiGiovanna hit a triple and had 2 RBI for North Haven.

Two days later, North Haven hosted Mercy and notched a 10-0 shutout in the contest. Sophomore Nina DeMennato pitched a complete-game shutout for the Nighthawks. Senior Anna Schepisi hit a pair of 2-run home runs in the victory. Junior Maria Lockery and sophomore Izzy Blanchard had 2 hits apiece for North Haven.

Boys’ Outdoor Track

The North Haven boys’ outdoor track team took two defeats in a tri-meet at Amity High School on May 9. The Nighthawks dropped a 95-55 decision to Xavier and lost to Amity by a 105-45 final to move to 5-4 on the season.

Senior Cole DeCusati finished first in the shot put (44-9) and the discus (134-1.75) for North Haven at the meet. Senior Matthew O’Connell claimed first place in the long jump (19-1.75) and the pole vault (11-0).

Girls’ Lacrosse

The North Haven girls’ lacrosse team took three losses last week to move to 4-11 for the season. The Nighthawks dropped two contests against Mercy before finishing the week with a defeat versus Amity.

North Haven took a 15-10 defeat to Mercy in a home game on May 10. Senior Shea Saracino scored 3 goals for North Haven in the contest. Senior Eliza O’Connor and senior Liz Hansen both scored 2 goals. Senior Sophia Dorio, senior Riley Minns, and sophomore Catherine Bianchi added 1 goal apiece. Junior goalie Gabby Barry made 15 saves in net for the Nighthawks, who were led by seniors Lauren Bogaert and Jenna Pine on defense.

The next day, the Nighthawks faced Mercy on the road and lost to the Tigers by that same 15-10 final. Saracino netted 5 goals for North Haven. Minns scored 2 goals, while O’Connor, Dorio, and Hansen all scored 1 goal. Dorio also had 4 assists in the contest. Senior Hannah Sommer made 15 saves in goal.

Then on May 12, North Haven traveled to Woodbridge to face Amity and took a 16-3 loss to the Spartans. Saracino, Hansen, and Dorio scored the Nighthawks’ goals in the game. Senior Erin Johns, junior Aisling Pretty, and sophomore Kylie Pollard played solid defense on the back line for North Haven.