By Ariana Stover @arianastover ORANGE -- In the final meet of the season, the Amity High School girl’s swimming and diving team defeated North Haven by a score of 93-84 at Orange Community Center Pool. Before the meet began, Amity’s seven senior swimmers sat by the pool among their family members and received gifts in honor of their final season with team. Over the past four years, this senior class has helped to earn its team a total record of 42-4. Between 2011 and up until the final meet of the 2014-15 season, Amity (9-3) hadn’t lost a single regular season meet. Tonight, Amity’s swimmers dominated North Haven (6-5) as they placed first in eight of the 12 events. North Haven had its most success in the diving events as Isabella Alogna finished first with a score of 183.75. On senior night, though, it was a pair of junior twins that shined. Megan and Maggie Lasto placed first in four different events between the two of them. The 200-yard medley relay was the first event of the evening and Amity placed first with a time of 2:00.59 with Maggie swimming solid to start off the night. Megan placed first in the third event, the 200-yard individual medley, with a final time of 2:17.75 and later again in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 1:01.88. For the twins, swimming alongside each other has never really been a competitive thing. “It’s so fun,” Megan said. “We always joke with each other and it’s just fun to share it with her.” The Lasto twins continued to log impressive times as the meet went on. In the 500-yard Freestyle event, Maggie swam to first place with a time of 5:33.88, an impressive seven seconds faster than second-place Jasmine Nguy of North Haven. But the girls are always looking to get better. Next year, Megan hopes to progress in all facets of her swimming. “Get better times and try just to improve my stroke in general, my turns,” Megan said. “Just try to do the best I can for the team.” The swimming community is tight-knit. MaryAnn Smith, mother of Amity senior Brittany, said that the team’s head coach Todd Rainey, coached her daughter when she started swimming. The feeling of unity is overwhelming in the environment of a swim meet. Cheers and words of encouragement echo throughout the room as the swimmers push through the pool. And those senior voices will be missed next season, the swimmers said. “They always just say, ‘Do it for the team,’” Megan said. “They’re always just supportive of everybody no matter what.” Losing seven veterans to graduation isn’t going to be easy, but head coach Rainey said the team has been lucky. “Knock on wood, we always seem to have girls coming in,” Rainey said. “We’ve lost some big swimmers in the past and [we] always seemed to step up.” Southern Connecticut Conference Trials begin Monday, Nov. 2, at 4 p.m. against North Haven.
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By Justin Cloutier @Justin_Cloutier CHESHIRE -- Matching the 11 shutouts she had her sophomore season, Cheshire High School junior goalkeeper Alyssa Stevens turned away everything Guilford smacked her way Tuesday in a 1-0 home victory to continue her stellar year. Cheshire (13-1) continued its six-game win streak by defeating Guilford (8-7-1) in a league field hockey game 1-0 on this cold autumn evening. Midfielder Sara Pierpont scored the only goal for the Rams off a penalty with just three minutes left in the game to secure the win. The teams have faced each other twice this season—the first resulting in a a scoreless tie to open the season, meaning that Stevens started and finished her season with a shutout against Guilford. “Alyssa Stevens is tremendous,” Michelle Federico, a Quinnipiac University midfielder and former teammate of Stevens’ at Cheshire, said. “She creates a solid defensive unit for Cheshire and is truly an amazing athlete.” Stevens posted eight saves in the game and has been strong all season. Before the game, Cheshire head coach Eileen Wildermann said Stevens is one of her players that needs to play well in order for them to win. The junior delivered. First-half action started out as Guilford came out with three quick penalty corners. Stevens denied all of them. Stevens needed to play well because Guilford kept peppering the net with shots. “Today was an example of how we can play even when we’re not on the same page,” Wildermann said. “Teenage girls come with their own set of problems—one might be a boyfriend thing. One might be in a bad mood, or one might have a test, and if we don’t leave that off the field, then we don’t gel, and tonight was an example of that.” The rest of the half consisted of mostly Cheshire possession. Cheshire finished the half after Guilford senior goalie Brooke Misbach denied five unanswered penalty corners. “We’ve been working a lot on me in practice,” Misbach said. “I’ve figured out my mental issues.” Misbach finished the game with six saves. “Brooke played very well,” said Guilford head coach Katharine “Kitty” Palmer. Both teams fired off multiple shots in the second half. Sophomore forward Olivia Clarke led Guilford with three shots, and junior midfielder Teddi Stanley posted two shots, both penalty corners. “We work on our corners every day,” Palmer said. “We just get in a game and things don’t seem to go our way, whether it’s a bounce here or a bounce there.” Cheshire finished the game with nine attempted shots. With three minutes left in the game, Pierpont got a pass from freshman midfielder Bailey Cunningham, and made no doubt with her shot as the ball hit the back of the cage. “Our penalty corners have been close all game,” Pierpont said. “I was so happy to get that pass because we’ve been trying so hard all game and we finally got it.” Cheshire will go into the playoffs Saturday, and will most likely play Sacred Heart Academy in the first round of playoffs at Alumni Stadium in Cheshire.
Continuing their winning streak, the Cheshire Rams (16-2) swept the Shelton Gaels (12-6) for their regular season finale Monday night.
The spotlight was truly on the seniors as they dominated the starting lineup. “It really wasn’t our true lineup,” said head coach Sue Bavone about starting the seniors for senior night. “But you know, they got it done. They were able to do it so that was great.” Not only did they get it done, they got it done with ease. Taking the first set 25-16, the Rams then created a comfortable gap by opening the second set with a 10-0 run. The team beamed with confidence as its offensive end proved to be no match for the Gaels. Marli Green, a senior middle hitter, led the front row with eight kills and five blocks for the match. “She’s solid,” Bavone said. “You know she can really intimidate the heck out of any high school defense.” Upon every kill by Green, the crowd would chant in unison, “Whoop! There it is!” Green said she uses her confidence strategically in matches. “I like to look confident. When you look confident, it helps intimidate the other team,” she said. This tactic proved useful as Green marked four kills in the second set, which the Rams took, 25-5. The third set started slower, beginning with a close score of 5-5. But after Bavone called a timeout , the Rams took back their lead by minimizing errors and having a consistent offensive run by senior setter Eleonora Ascheri. Green scored the final point of the match with a kill from the middle, ending the game 25-16. Bavone said the collective ease throughout the match has been the team’s main goal throughout the season. “The type of kids we have are just very analytical, over-thinkers,” Bavone said. “And we’re just trying to tell them to start talking and start communicating and you won’t have to think so much and just play. So, that’s something we’ve really been working on.” As the Rams head into the playoffs Saturday, Bavone hopes improved passing will allow for an offense more centralized around Green. “Our free ball passing needs to be a lot better because we need to be able to run her,” Bavone said. “We need her for offense, and if we can’t get these free ball passes, that’s something we have struggled with all year.” The Rams’ six-match winning streak should provide momentum heading into playoffs. Green said, “I think this win will help a lot, and each practice we ramp it up a little harder.” . For the nine seniors, the victory signified the final match on their home court, but the beginning of what is left to come. By James Anderson
@jaanderson02 CHESHIRE--A fast paced, creative offensive attack, a strong defensive system and chemistry carried the Cheshire High School boys soccer team this season. With a 2-0 win over Sheehan, Cheshire (11-1-2) clinched the Housatonic Division title of the Southern Connecticut Conference for the first time since 2011 with a 5-1-1 record. The Rams also won the division as the outright champions for the first time since 2006 after sharing in 2007 and '11. The division-clinching win came at home against the Titans (5-5-4, 3-2-2 SCC Housatonic). To do it, the Rams paid extra attention to sticking to their defensive formation. The Rams were disciplined and only left their 4-4-2 setup in obvious offensive situations. Cheshire head coach Artur Branco said that this was all a part of shutting down one particular Sheehan forward – Alex Ramirez “Today we really focused more on our defensive shape because they are a very good team… (Ramirez) is a really good player for them,” Branco said. “Our focus was really to neutralize him. We felt if we did that the game would take care of itself. ” Ramirez produced three strong early opportunities for the Titans, but the Rams defense shut him and the Titans offense down only allowing three shots on goal for the entire game. All-conference forward Jacob Goldstein paced the Rams' fast-paced offense as he continued to add to his strong senior year performance with two goals. Goldstein’s first goal came 10 minutes into the game. Off a broken play, the ball was lobbed to junior Mitch Manware. Manware crossed the ball in with pace to Goldstein for a beautiful heel flick deflection into the side netting. The second goal came seven minutes into the second half. A long through-ball pass from junior Dante Rubano led Goldstein. Beating out a defender, Goldstein went to the net on a breakaway and poked it under the arms of charging sophomore goaltender Nicolas Trivino Martinez. That was all the offense needed to clinch the win. Eighteen of the 23 roster members of the Rams are upperclassmen, many of whom made up last years’ four-win team. Goldstein believes that the familiarity in the roster has attributed to the team’s success. “Over the years, we’ve played together a lot,” Goldstein said. “Even the incoming freshmen, we’ve played with them before. It also helps coming into the season, everybody knew (the freshmen). It certainly helps for team chemistry.” Two of the three freshmen on the roster are brothers of upperclassmen on the team – Goldstein’s younger brother Toby is on the squad, as are the Mayano brothers, Andrew a junior, and freshman Matthew. While proud of the teams’ accomplishment, Branco knows there is the tougher test of the Southern Connecticut Conference tournament to prepare for. “We’re going to try and enjoy it tonight,” Branco said. “We have another game Wednesday. We’re going to look at it as a learning opportunity to prepare for the games ahead.” The Rams finish up the regular season at home Wednesday as they host Wilbur Cross. The SCC Tournament starts Saturday. By Alec Turner
@alecturner39 CHESHIRE -- All season, Cheshire High School junior goalkeeper Alyssa Stevens has been the backbone for the field hockey team. The reigning All-Southern Connecticut Conference goalie continued her success Friday as she made six second-half saves in the Rams’ 4-1 win over the Hamden Dragons. Cheshire (9-2-2-1, 8-0-1-1 in the SCC) has won four straight games and given up only one goal in the last 240 minutes. With the loss, Hamden (6-8-0-0, 4-5-0-0 in SCC) snapped its two-game winning streak. The Rams scored three goals in the first half and held the ball in the Dragons’ territory. They put nine total shots on Hamden’s goalkeeper Brianna Craft. Cheshire head coach Eileen Wildermann was pleased about the production of the offense in the first 30 minutes of play. “Our first half was a good boost for us moving forward. We tried some new things in our passing patterns and transfers,” Wildermann said. Forward Mikayla Crowley got Cheshire on the board just three minutes into the game. It was the first of two goals on the day for the freshman. She now has four on the season to go along with an assist. “She doesn’t understand how big this is for her,” Wildermann said. “She gives us such a spark.” The Rams’ offense kept possession for the majority of the first half, to where Hamden didn’t get a shot on net for the entire first half. Wildermann brought the offensive success back to having a veteran like Stevens in net. “We can take some offensive risks because we have a good goalie. We wouldn’t be able to do that if we had an average goalie,” Wildermann said. The Rams got their second goal of the game with 13 minutes left in the half. Junior right forward Sarah Pierpont weaved through two Hamden defensemen and passed the ball right to senior forward Samantha Vitale to make it 2-0. Pierpont leads the team in points, goals and assists with 17, five, and seven, respectively. “She really exploded and got all the offensive things going,” Wildermann said. Stevens ended her shutout streak with four minutes left in the game on a Hailey Collins goal. “We’ll get her another one [shutout] in return,” Wildermann said. The win secures Cheshire in third place in the SCC standings. With two games left before the conference tournament on Oct. 31, the Rams need to win out and have Lauralton Hall and Daniel Hand to lose to get the top seed in the tournament. The Rams beat Daniel Hand and lost in overtime to Lauralton Hall earlier this season. Hamden sits at seventh in the conference, and is in control of its destiny in making the tournament next week. “I think we are in a very good position,” Wildermann said about facing the other top teams in the conference. “We have the ability, but we just have to put the package together.” The Rams play Saturday afternoon at Greenwich and host Senior Night Tuesday night against Guilford. WOODBRIDGE -- Despite the crisp chill of the fall air and a winless start to the season for the Amity High School football team, students shuffled to the stands at William Johnson Field field in droves.
The Amity Spartans (1-5) defeated the Hamden Dragons (1-5) 49-20 Friday night to give Amity its first win of the season. Amity had a hot start in front of a noisy crowd, scoring on its first drive of the game with a touchdown from junior running back Colin Beaulieu. Beaulieu had a strong first quarter, scoring both of Amity’s touchdowns to put his team up 14-0. Beaulieu has been a prime offensive weapon for the Spartans this season and his success continued as he tallied three touchdowns in just the first half of the game. Head coach Ted Czepiga is pleased with his running back’s season thus far. “Colin is a tremendous football player,” Czepiga said. “Pretty much every game we go out there he’s one of the best players on the field.” The Spartans continued to move the ball successfully and efficiently throughout the first quarter while the Dragons struggled to find an offensive rhythm. The only first-half touchdown for Hamden was a 6-yard run scored by senior captain and wide receiver Angelo DiMonaco. Amity opened up the second quarter just as quickly as the first. Senior quarterback Michael DeVito connected with senior receiver Christopher Daddio for a 16-yard touchdown, putting the Spartans up 21-0. “Electric” was how DeVito described the feeling of being on the field tonight. “All of the other games we kind of came out flat, but right away Coach Czepiga really got us excited for the game,” DeVito said. “I think that was the main difference between all of the other games. We all knew that we came to play tonight.” One minute into the third quarter, Hamden showed signs of life, cutting the deficit to 35-14. But the celebrations on the Hamden sideline didn’t last long as Amity answered right back when Beaulieu scored his fourth touchdown of the night to extend their lead to 42-14. Even with the impressive night, Beaulieu remains humble about his success. “It starts with my line, first of all. My line and my quarterback,” Beaulieu said. “Coach has been calling the right plays and we’ve been making plays.” DeVito got on the score sheet himself, running in a touchdown with under five minutes left to play in the third quarter to put up the Spartans 49-14. Hamden got on the scoreboard late in the fourth quarter, but it was too late to overcome Amity’s explosive offense. Going forward, Czepiga hopes to see this success carry through the rest of the season. “We’ve come a long way from Sept. 11, our first game,” Czepiga said. “The sky is the limit for some of these players.” Czepiga emphasizes the importance of starting the next week fresh, not allowing any time to dwell on previous games, no matter the outcome. This message resonates strongly with DeVito and the rest of his team. “Every week, whether we win or lose, as soon as we’re done with film Saturday morning, we’re 0-0,” DeVito said. “It’s a new week.” By Laynie Barrantine
@LaynieBar NORTH HAVEN -- The North Haven High School girls soccer team takes the term teamwork to new heights and, after dealing with multiple losses throughout the season, the team has found that no loss can tear them apart. Despite a 1-11-1 record before the start of tonight’s Senior Game, the Indians defeated Wilbur Cross/Hillhouse/Career, 3-1. North Haven senior co-captains Christina Holle and Morgan Heyl believe the team won because it was Senior Night. Their coach, Brittany Collard, agreed. “The general consensus was really embraced around the seniors,” Collard said. “The girls just really putting their hearts out on the line for the seniors really is what made the difference in this game compared to other games this year.” The Indians have a young team this season made up of mostly freshmen. Last year, the team lost 12 seniors, about 80 percent of its starting lineup. Both Holle and Heyl believe it took time for the freshmen to get used to playing against older girls on a varsity level—something they did not see as much of last year. But despite having a better record last season, the Indians believe they are a better overall team this season. “Although last year we had a better record, I think this year overall we have played generally better than last year,” Collard said. “I think that it was just an overall team effort every single game. And then they come in the next day, we lose, they are acting like they’re 10 and zero.” “We’re hard workers and we’re always thinking ahead,” she said. “We never dwell on the faults, which is awesome.” “Many coaches have come up to our coach this year and have asked if our team has had any issues because of the season were having,” Holle said. “She proudly says no because no matter how bad the loss is, we always are willing to go into practice the next day and work even harder than the day before.” Early in the first half, it was evident the Indians did not dwell on the faults. The Indians’ offense maintained control of the ball and took numerous shots. North Haven’s penchant for teamwork was shown with lots of passing and watching for other players. Its defense did its part, as well. Senior goalkeeper Angela Sanzari made multiple saves throughout the half. Toward the end of the first half, the Indians had an opportunity to score and they took it. Junior Kayla Rodriguez scored the first goal of the game. However, North Haven did not have much time to celebrate as Wilbur Cross/Hillhouse/Career scored on a penalty shot. Continuing to not dwell on its faults, North Haven received another opportunity to score. Heyl kicked the ball right past Wilbur Cross/Hillhouse/Career goalkeeper’s hands, making the score 2-1. Toward the end of the game, Rodriguez took four shots, but was blocked each time. Junior Natalie Acquarulo scored in the last minutes to make the score 3-1. Holle said, “Morgan and I are very proud of the girls for not giving up hope, or getting down on each other. Everything we go through, we do it as a team and that's the most important part.” By Tanner Harding @tanner_harding CHESHIRE—For the Cheshire High School girls volleyball team, wins are coming from every direction. Primarily, though, they’re being delivered from Italy. Senior exchange student Eleanora Ascheri again led the Rams (14-2) to a 25-20, 20-10, 20-11 sweep over Lyman Hall here Wednesday night. Ascheri led Cheshire with 23 assists, two aces, four digs, three blocks and three kills. “If we ever hit the jackpot with an exchange student, it’s this year with her,” head coach Sue Bavone said. “She really stands out.” Exchange students are something Bavone has a lot of experience with. A former player of hers hosts an exchange student every year—always requesting a volleyball player because she loves to go to the matches. Ascheri, who is from Italy, brings maturity and a calm presence to the team that Bavone said helps the girls when they get off to a slow start, like they did against Lyman Hall (5-13). Great transition “Our passing is shaky at times, so you can see -- because she’s experienced -- she settles that second ball for us when other player couldn’t,” Bavone said. The Trojans started off strong, grabbing the first two points. They held the lead for the first half of the set, taking advantage of some bad blocks, missed spikes and bad serves from Cheshire. Lose the oxford comma – ap style However, it was a miscommunication between teammates on Lyman Hall’s end that turned things around for the Rams. The hosts capitalized on that mistake, and gained momentum. A double-touch by the Trojans allowed Cheshire to take the lead for the first time in the set, making the score 16-15. They would not relinquish the lead for the rest of the match. The Rams finished the first set 25-20, and came out strong in the second set, jumping out 5-0. Despite Lyman Hall’s best efforts, they could not recover against the dominant Rams, who won the second set with a convincing score of 25-10. It was more of the same in the third set, and Ascheri scored the match point. Wins like this have come often for the Rams. “The bottom line is this is what the team has been like this entire year,” Bavone said about the Rams starting off slow in the first match. “It’s really aggravated me. We don’t come out as fired up as I’d like us to be.” Senior captain Marli Green agreed, emphasizing that the team needs to come out with a higher energy. “In the past two games we’ve come out flat, and then in the second set we’re a little more warmed up,” Green said. “That’s when we’re trying to limit our errors and be the better team.” The Rams only have four returning players this year, so the inexperience and shakiness of the team has been a problem all year. And, despite being only 16, Ascheri is a player Bavone relies on. Ascheri has been playing volleyball since she was 8, and has “touched a million more balls than any of these girls ever will,” Bavone said. “To be honest with you, if we didn’t get (Ascheri), our record would look nothing like it does,” Bavone said. By Christine Smaltz
@smaltzy16 CHESHIRE— Eleanora Ascheri has proven to be a huge asset to the Cheshire High School girls volleyball team this season as it improves to 14-2 after a three-set win against the Lyman Hall Trojans Wednesday night. Despite a slow start in the first game, the Rams found their rhythm of offense with the help of Ascheri, a senior setter, and dominated the next two games in the match 25-20, 25-10, 25-14. Ascheri, the 16-year-old foreign-exchange student from Italy, had 23 assists, two aces and three kills in the match, while senior captain Marli Green had with 14 kills and three aces. The Lyman Hall Trojans (5-13) put up a fight against the tough Rams’ offense throughout the first game, but their defense proved no match for Ascheri-Green duo in the following games. “Our energy definitely increased from the first game to the second. During the second game, we came out stronger and tried to limit our errors,” Green said. Head coach Sue Bavone attributed the team’s success this season to Ascheri’s versatility and ability to control the offense. “Ele is a skilled and mature setter so that helps us a lot because we have so many inexperienced players and the pace of the game is so much faster than they are used to,” Bavone said. “Our passing is shaky at times and because she’s experienced, she settles that second ball for us.” After the Rams began to control their passes following the first game of the match, their offense was unstoppable. Green noted that her team relies on working as a unit and feeding off each others’ energy, as opposed to the previous season highly skill players got the job done. After losing six seniors following the 2014 season, the Rams have had to focus on creating this unit. “Even though these players are upperclassmen, this is really the first year they have gained a lot of experience on a varsity level following a mainly senior based team in 2014,” Bavone said. Practices have been aimed towards building intensity and confidence in ability during each play and strengthening communication, she added. With the loss of starting seniors and the gain of Ascheri, the Rams have proven that they still are a force to be reckoned with this season. Going into the postseason, Bavone said their main focus will be to improve their passing and increase intensity to ensure stronger first game start in the future. The Rams hope to clinch the second spot in their division with a win against Guilford this Friday night at Guilford High School and bring the first playoff match to their home court. By Vincent Yancigay
@Vin_Yance At 14-2, the Cheshire High girls volleyball team is used to winning. However, slow starts are causing a little concern. The Rams trudged to a 5-0 deficit against the 5-13 Lyman Hall Trojans Wednesday night before turning it on for a three-set sweep. “Our energy changed a lot more for some reason. The past two games we have come out low and with not a lot of energy, and then the second [set] we are a little bit more warmed up and that’s when we come out strong,” senior captain Marli Green said. The starts aren't indicative of the results, as Cheshire won 25-20, 25-10, 25-13. Senior captains Katelyn Morley, Lauren Carbone, and Green came into this season with a huge reputation to live up to up since they only lost three matches in the program’s previous three seasons. “It was so much pressure." coach Sue Bavone said. "They didn’t know how to lose and they had never seen losing, so when they did lose, they were devastated. They felt like they let the whole program down." The learning continues, however. Lyman Hall came out strong Wednesday jumping to an 11-6 lead, but the Rams did not back down. Led by the serving of senior setter, Eleanora Ascheri, the Rams surged back to tie the game 12-12. From this point on, the Rams stayed in control to take the first set 25-20. “The bottom line is this is what this team has been like all year, which has really aggravated me. We don’t come out as fired up as I would like us to. We always come out feeling out the other team,” Bavone said. After some quick adjustments from the first set, the Rams brought the intensity, jumping out to a quick 5-0 lead in the second set. Behind the dominant play of Green, who had 14 kills in the match, the Rams continued to pile on the points.. The Rams have a lot of weapons this year, but the not-so-secret weapon is Eleanora Ascheri, an exchange student from Italy who has been playing since she was 8. Her experience shows, Bavone said. “She’s just a skilled setter and a mature setter, so that helped us a lot since we had so much inexperience back there," Bavone said. Even though Ascheri has only joined the team for this season, she is a key piece for the Rams' success. “To be honest with you, if we didn’t get Ella, our record would look nothing like it does. We would have dropped a lot more games, “ Bavone said. “She turned what could have been a really rough season into a really good season.” Ascheri added 23 assists and three kills. The Rams continue to grow and form their identity going into the playoffs, but Bavone believes they still have a few things to work on. “The game of volleyball is a serving and passing game so if you can serve and you can pass well, you can win. So we need to get better at those two aspects before states rolls around,” Bavone said. The Rams will face Guilford in their next match on Wednesday, Oct. 23 before returning home for their regular season finale at home against Shelton. |
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