By Kim J. Harmon

The Newtown High School junior varsity girls’ basketball team was in an unusual position … and didn’t like it one bit.

The Lady Nighthawks have been dominating the competition through the early stages of the 2005-06 season, but in the championship game of the annual Masuk Holiday Tournament last week they were down 17-13 to Ridgefield and not playing all that well.

That changed rather quickly, though.

The ‘Hawks went on a 9-0 tear and took over the game, rolling to a 48-32 win. Morgan Knees dropped in 11 points and Katie Condon – while shooting 4-of-4 from the foul line – added 10 more. Nora Lynn Shimko popped in nine points while Lauren Ciccomascolo and Jen Mariani added seven points apiece.

Shimko and Mariani also canned three-point baskets along the way.

The locals reached the tournament championship after pounding Masuk, 51-34, in the opening round. Nine different players got into the scoring column for the ‘Hawks, with Condon scoring 11 points (with the aid of one three-pointer). Ciccomascolo had nine points, Shimko chipped in eight and Mariani had five. Knees, Lucy French, Joanna Barry and Brittany Papaj scored four points apiece.

It was a busy week for the jayvees. In between the two tournament games, the ‘Hawks defeated Wilton, 42-32, as Knees poured in 18 points and Shimko – with a pair of three-pointers – added 10 more.

With the three wins last week, the ‘Hawks improved to 7-0.

Jayvee Boys Win

Staples Tourney

With a 61-58 win over Ridgefield and a 46-41 win over Staples, the Newtown High School junior varsity boys’ basketball team won the Staples Holiday Tournament ... the second holiday tournament title in a row for the Nighthawks.

In the win over Ridgefield, Jake DeVellis canned the go-ahead basket with 11 seconds left and Jason Smith iced it with a pair of free throws with four seconds left. DeVellis finished with 16 points while Smith finished with 14. Danny Smith and Mike Maher scored 10 points apiece.

In the win over Staples, Maher poured in 18 points and DeVellis added 11 more. Maher (9.6 points per game) and DeVellis (9.4) are the two leading scorers on a team captained by Jason and Danny Smith.

The jayvees opened the 2005-06 season with a 59-37 as Shawn Coakley poured in 20 points and Jason Smith added 14. In a 42-33 loss to Immaculate, Coakley tossed in another 15 points while Smith chipped in with eight. In a 40-32 loss to Norwich Free Academy, Danny Smith popped in 13 points and Maher added 10 more.