Three Guilford Teams in State Semis; Girls’ Cross Country Runs at New Englands
Volleyball
One week after playing in the SCC Tournament final, the Guilford volleyball team advanced to the Class L State Tournament semifinals by winning its first two matches in the bracket.
After earning a first-round bye, 4th-seeded Guilford hosted Pomperaug in the second round of the state tourney and prevailed 3-1 (25-22, 21-25, 25-18, 25-23) on Nov. 9. Emma Appleman recorded 15 kills, three aces, and five digs; Juliet Young had 14 digs and three aces; Trinity Flynn notched 10 kills, two blocks, and three digs; Julia Hyman handed out 37 assists and three digs, plus Amanda King had 11 kills and seven digs for the Indians.
Hosting No. 5 Farmington in the quarterfinals on Nov. 11, Guilford swept the opposition by a 3-0 (25-21, 25-14, 25-20) score. Flynn had 12 kills, a block, and two digs; Appleman added 11 kills, five digs, three aces; and Sam Seneco had six skills, three digs, four aces, and a block. Hyman dished out 31 assists, while Juliet Young chipped in with seven digs and a pair of aces in the victory.
The Indians (22-3) are playing No. 1 seed RHAM (20-0) in a Class L semifinal on Wednesday, Nov. 15, and the winner moves on to the final against either No. 6 Barlow or No. 7 Woodstock Academy at East Haven on Saturday, Nov. 18.
Field Hockey
The Guilford field hockey squad won its first two games of the Class M State Tournament and is back in the semifinal round.
The 3rd-seeded Indians defeated No. 14 Lauralton Hall 2-0 in the first round of the tournament on Nov. 7. In the quarterfinals against No. 6 Avon on Nov. 9, Guilford won with a 6-0 shutout.
The Indians (16-3-1) next take on No. 2 seed Hand (18-1-2) in the state semis on Tuesday, Nov. 14 at Branford at 7 p.m. The winner goes to the championship game on Saturday, Nov. 18 at Wethersfield against either No. 8 New Canaan or No. 4 Branford.
Boys’ Soccer
The Indians’ boys’ soccer squad was victorious in its first three games of the Class L State Tournament to reach the semifinals.
Guilford, the No. 3 seed, opened the draw with a 5-1 win over No. 30 seed Weston in the first round on Nov. 6. In the second round on Nov. 8, Guilford hosted No. 14 Wethersfield and prevailed 4-2. Hosting No. 11 Branford in the quarterfinals on Nov. 11, the Indians took a 3-0 victory.
The Indians (17-2-1) will next face No. 10 Hand (17-3-2) in the Class L semifinals on Monday, Nov. 13 at 6:30 p.m. at West Haven. The winner moves onto the final on Friday, Nov. 17 or Saturday, Nov. 18 against No. 1 E.O. Smith or No. 4 Masuk.
Girls’ Soccer
The Guilford girls’ soccer team won its opening game in the Class L State Tournament last week before taking a second-round loss.
The Indians, the 17th seed in the Class L bracket, scored a first-round road win over No. 16 Masuk in penalty kicks on Nov. 7. The squads were scoreless before Guilford prevailed 4-3 in the PK session to win 1-0 and advance.
Guilford next headed to top-seeded RHAM in the second round on Nov. 9 and lost 2-1 in double overtime to finish the year at 9-5-5 overall.
Girls’ Cross Country
The Indians’ girls’ cross country squad competed as a team at the New England Championship in Belfast, Maine on Nov. 11. Guilford finished in 20th place at the regional meet.
Meredith Bloss led the way by placing 13th with a time of 18:33 for the Indians, whose other runners were Jacqui Guerra (115th, 19:59), Clara Wiesler (187th, 21:09), Emma Bonz (198th, 21:19), Claire Keanna (205th, 21:21), and Alexis Sattler (229th, 21:48).