Branford Baseball No-Hits McMahon; Deane Earns Medalist Honors in Win Versus Foran
By Chris Piccirillo
Sound Sports Editor
Baseball
The Hornets’ baseball team began the 2017 campaign by winning its first two games last week. Branford beat Career in its opener and then used a combined no-hitter to dispatch McMahon later in the week.
In its first game, Branford hosted Career and posted a 3-0 victory on April 3. Zane Kmietek worked five scoreless innings for the Hornets, allowing just two hits, while striking out seven. Jack Spencer closed out the win by pitching the last two innings and fanning three. Trevor Brown went 2-for-2 with a two-run double for Head Coach Steve Malafronte’s club. Alphonse Suppa also collected two hits.
Then on April 8, Branford played at non-conference opponent McMahon and prevailed 8-2 to move to 2-0. Suppa was the winning pitcher by allowing two runs on no hits, and then Carson Mendoza but a bow on the no-hitter by striking out four through two scoreless innings. Branford racked up 12 hits on the day. Suppa went 3-for-4 with a double, a walk, and a RBI. Botte hit a two-run home run and also drew a walk. DJ Caron hit a three-run homer in the seventh to put the game away for the Hornets, who also saw Brown and James Wallace get two hits.
Golf
Branford teed off 2017 by hosting Foran at Pine Orchard County Club and came away with a 176-201 victory.
Junior Liam Deane earned medalist honors for the Hornets by turning in the low scorecard of the day with a 37. Senior Ryan Sember finished a close second with a 39, junior Jason Brennan tallied a total of 47, and freshman Minsok Lee scored a 53.
The Hornets are coming of a season where they went 14-6 and finished in 12th place at the Division II State Championship.
Girls’ Outdoor Track
The Hornets started their campaign with a tri-meet at North Haven on April 5. Branford took an 80.5-68.5 loss against Oronoque Division foe North Haven and prevailed 85-61 versus Lauralton Hall.
Recording first-place finishes for Branford were Leah Pendl-Robinson in the 100 (18.1), Molly Zaffino in the 300 (54.3 in her first time running the event), Keira Integlia in the javelin (109-9), Bridget Wirtz in the pole vault (11-0), and Liante Claude for the 400 (60.7). The Hornets’ 4x100 relay of Amanda Acquarulo, Taylor Brown, Wirtz, and Claude raced to victory in 52.8 seconds, while the 4x400 of Kathryn Pollard, Emily Borst, Zaffino, and Claude took first place at 4:38. The Hornets were in third place in the 4x4 before Claude took the baton for the anchor leg and surged ahead in the final 200 meters to give Branford the victory.
Placing second for Head Coach Kevin Connell’s squad were Claude in the 200 (27.2), Brown for the pole vault (8-6), Kiersten Bjork in the javelin (87-6), and Wyntre Fries in the 100 hurdles (18.4). Posting third-place finishes were Pollard in the 400 (67.9), Integlia in the shot put (29-9.5), and Acquarulo in the high jump (4-8).
“We got from our top athletes what I thought we would get, but we had a lot of questions about the new girls, and they came through,” Connell said. “We have a number of girls trying new events and there’s a lot of learning to do. I’m excited about this group because they are establishing a new identity for the team. There’s a lot of talent and, as long as they put in the work, we should see good things from them.”
Last year, Branford went 10-1 in the regular season and then finished fourth at the SCC West Sectional Championship.
Boys’ Outdoor Track
Branford had a tri-meet in North Haven on April 6 and gained a split to open the season. The Hornets lost 94-56 versus Oronoque Division opponent North Haven, but posted a 94-46 victory against Fairfield Prep. The win marked the first for new Head Coach Katherine Reynolds, who takes over for Rich Biondi.
Branford finished with a regular season record of 4-7-1 in 2016, after which the Hornets took sixth place at the SCC West Sectional Championship.
Boys’ Lacrosse
The Hornets began their season by playing a pair of road games last week. On April 6, Branford took a 19-5 defeat against Fairfield Prep. Two days later, Head Coach Jim May’s club played at non-conference squad Stamford and lost 10-9 in overtime. The team’s senior captains are Brennan Beauton, Harrison Smith, and Noah Pantani.
Last year, Branford finished with a record of 8-9 and qualified for the Class M State Tournament.
Boys’ Tennis
Branford had one match in the first week of the season and lost a 4-3 contest against Xavier at home on April 7.
The Hornets’ three victories were delivered by Praneeth Ganedi, Bradley Stutzman, and Darsh Patel at the No. 1, 2, and 4 singles positions, respectively.
Matt Fraenza returns as head coach of the Hornets, who went 10-7 for the regular season and matched their all-time best showing at states by placing second in the Class M State Championship in 2016.
Girls’ Tennis
Branford was on the court for two matches last week and dropped a pair of decisions.
The Hornets started 2017 by playing at Shelton on April 3 and lost a 5-2 contest. Lauren Elmasry and Jen Hwang picked up straight-sets victories at the No. 1 and 2 singles spots, respectively, for Branford.
Four days later, the Hornets had a match at Law and were edged 4-3.
Last year, Branford finished at 8-9 with Head Coach Jim Cole, who returns for his second season this spring.