By Kim J. Harmon

Maybe not enough New Years resolutions made, but the early days of 2006 have not been all that kind to Newtown High School sports teams.

But although the Nighthawks only registered three wins in their last 12 contests, fans were treated to a couple of thrilling performances – like the boys’ basketball team’s three-point loss to Bunnell on Monday night in the Hawks’ nest and Bryant Aliaga’s amazing, second-period 16-0 technical fall victory against Weston at the Southington Duals on Saturday.

And no doubt there will be more performances like those in the weeks to come.

SWIMMING

Pomperaug 103, Newtown 82

Newtown 97, Bethel 81

Just when the Newtown High School swim team was prepared to try and make a statement in the South-West Conference, circumstances conspired against it.

The Nighthawks faced their most challenging opponent of the season – Pomperaug – last Wednesday in Southbury and while coach Matt Childs admittedly was not all that confident his squad could pull off what would be considered a miracle, he was at least hoping for a more competitive meet.

But with a couple of swimmers battling illnesses and others falling short of their best times, the ‘Hawks were soundly beaten by the Panthers, 103-82. The locals recovered with a 97-81 win over Bethel on Tuesday to improve to 4-1 on the season.

“If everything had gone our way and kids swam the way they have,” said coach Childs, “we could have won this meet. But if nothing goes our way, this is what happens.”

The ‘Hawks opened by winning the 200 medley relay as Anthony Fiore, Stefan Toi, Nick Maurer and Max Barrett swam to a 1:48.97 finish (almost two seconds ahead of Pomperaug) and winning the 200 individual medley as freshman Brendan Deveney swam to a 1:54.90 finish (better than four seconds ahead of second-place Pomperaug).

But after those two events the ‘Hawks and Panthers were even at 15-15 as the Panthers made up a lot of ground with the back-end points … the seconds, thirds and fourths. And after the Panthers went 1-3-4 in the 200 individual medley, they began to pull away.

Barrett captured first in the 100-yard freestyle with a solid 51.87 finish, but came in second to Ben Smith in the 50-yard freestyle by less than a half-second. Deveney – a double winner on the day – also took the 500-yard freestyle by coasting to a 5:03.33 finish.

Against Bethel, Toi (200 freestyle and 100 butterly) was a double winner while Deveney (200 individual medley), Barrett (50 freestyle) and Chris Hoagland (diving) were solo winners. The 200 medley relay foursome of Fiore, Deveney, Zack Moliver and Barrett earned a first-place finish as did the 200 freestyle relay foursome of Mike Parker, Fiore, Toi and Deveney.

The ‘Hawks will be in Waterbury on Friday to take on Holy Cross and will return home next Tuesday to host the Bunnell-Stratford Co-Op.

Pomperaug 103, Newtown 82

200 medley relay – 1. Newtown (Fiore, Toi, Maurer, Barrett) 1:48.97, 2. Pomperaug 1:50.44, 3. Pomperaug 1:51.79; 200 freestyle – 1. Deveney (N) 1:54.90, 2. Papiro (P) 1:58.99, 3. Monroe (P) 2:01.08, 4. Sherer (P) 2:02.38, 5. Whalley (N) 2:03.43; 200 individual medley – 1. McNamara (P) 2:00.84, 2. Toi (N) 2:12.60, 3. Theleen (P) 2:14.34, 4. Shand (P) 2:14.61, 5. Moliver (N) 2:19.18; 50 freestyle – 1. Smith (P) 23.53, 2. Barrett (N) 23.90, 3. Gallagher (P) 24.61, 4. Roche (P) 24.87, 5. Fiore (N) 25.01; Diving – 1. Banwell (P), 2. McLaughlin (P), 3. Gallagher (P), 4. M. Hoagland (N), 5. C. Hoagland;100 butterfly – 1. Banwell (P) 58.08, 2. McLaughlin (P) 1:00.06, 3. Maurer (N) 1:01.39, 4. Gallagher (P) 1:03.08, 5. C. Fragoso (N) 1:09.01;100 freestyle – 1. Barrett (N) 51.87, 2. Widman (P) 52.81, 3. Shand (P) 54.32, 4. Roche (P) 55.13, 5. Herring (N) 59.01; 500 freestyle – 1. Deveney (N) 5:03.33, 2. Strobel (P) 5:26.35, 3. Theleen (P) 5:33.00, 4. Sherer (P) 5:38.12, 5. Whalley (N) 5:58.75; 200 freestyle relay – 1. Pomperaug 1:34.63, 2. Newtown (Hubbard, Barrett, Maurer, Deveney) 1:40.76, 3. Pomperaug 1:46.19; 100 backstroke – 1. Flynn (P) 56.14, 2. Fiore (N) 59.39, 3. Parker (N) 1:03.69, 4. Theleen (P), 5. McNamara (P). 100 breaststroke – 1. Smith (P), 2. Hubbard (N) 1:11.37, 3. Moliver (N) 1:12.51, 4. Parker (N) 1:21.69; 400 freestyle relay – 1. Newtown (Whalley, Fiore, Deveney, Herring) 3:47.75, 2. Newtown (Bonnacorso, Fragoso, Morlath, Parker) 4:13.55).

Pomperaug swam the final two events unofficially

 

ICE HOCKEY

Beth-Brook 3, Newtown 2

Close games are becoming quite common for the Newtown High School hockey team … but not always in its favor.

For the second game in a row, the Nighthawks dropped a 3-2 decision to a South-West Conference opponent. First it was Masuk on Friday, December 30, and then it was Bethel/Brookfield on Friday, January 6.

The ‘Hawks have had both of their wins decided by two goals, two of their four losses decided by one goal, and have registered two ties. Through their first eight games, Newtown (at 2-4-2) has a goal differential of only minus-8.

Six of those goals came in a 6-0 loss to the No. 1 team in the state, Notre Dame, on December 26.

Last Friday, Bethel/Brookfield took a 2-0 lead on a first-period goal by Jeff Gabriel and a second-period goal by Justin Holmes, but the ‘Hawks soon rallied back to draw even at 2-2. Matt Wright tallied at the 1:34 mark of the second period off an assist from Francis Oggeri and then Blake Bell tallied at the 5:32 mark of the third period off assists from Oggeri and Wright.

The two squads – who combined for just 42 shots on the night – battled for the next six minutes before Bethel/Brookfield broke the draw when Scott Skrzypczak scored at the 11:42 mark.

The locals will travel to the East Haven Rink on Saturday to take on Guilford (puck drops at 6 pm) and will return home next Wednesday to host New Fairfield (puck drops at 5:40 pm). The ‘Hawks were bested by the Rebels, 6-2, back on December 17 and will look to exact a little bit of revenge.

Bethel/Brookfield 3, Newtown 2

GOALS: Newtown – Matt Wright, Blake Bell; Bethel/Brookfield – Jeff Gabriel, Justin Holmes, Scott Skrzypczak. ASSISTS: Newtown – Francis Oggeri 2, Matt Wright; Bethel./Brookfield – Dan Campbell 2, Mike Campbell, Sean Tarrant, Joe McCarthy, Justin Holmes. SHOTS: Newtown – 17; Bethel/Brookfield – 25. SAVES: Newtown – Pete Oggeri 22; Bethel/Brookfield – Mike Sullinger 15.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Immaculate 37, Newtown 35

After opening the 2005-06 season with three wins in their first four games, the Newtown High School girls’ basketball team hit a downward spiral late in the month of December and a Friday night game against a deceptively good New Milford team may prove whether or not the Lady Nighthawks have pulled themselves out of it.

Yes, after out so well the ‘Hawks dropped three of their next four games before crushing Weston, 67-35, last Friday.

The ‘Hawks are 5-4 overall, 4-2 in the South-West Conference.

An easy win over Wilton back on December 28 had snapped a two-game losing streak and seemed to be moving the ‘Hawks back in the right direction. And early in the first quarter against Immaculate last Wednesday, the offense was off to a pretty hot start with a couple of three-pointers by Kacy Foehrenbach.

But the offense cooled off considerably, lost its grip on a three-point fourth-period lead, and suffered a 37-35 loss.

Foehrenbach finished with 12 points and a trio of three-pointers while Christie Iwanicki and Kristi Nowak combined for 13 more. But Maggie Farrell had 13 points for the Lady Mustangs, who scored the final five points of the contest.

The Mustangs – who were without their top player, 1,000-point scorer Lindsay Brown – shot just two free throws for the entire game while the ‘Hawks were 10-of-20 from the line.

The locals rebounded on Friday with an easy 67-35 win over Weston. Ten different players got into the scoring column with Carly Curran leading the way with 12 points. Foehrenbach and Morgan Knees chipped in 10 points apiece while Nowak tossed in nine points. Katie Condon and Kelley Tenney scored their first varsity points, with Condon notching hers on a three-pointer.

The ‘Hawks will travel to New Milford on Friday for a 7 pm game and next Tuesday will host New Fairfield. A game against Pomperaug – postponed this week due to the death of Pomperaug head coach Pete Kamide – will be rescheduled for next week.

Immaculate 37, Newtown 35

IMMACULATE (37): Maggie Farrell 5 1-2 13, Nikki Weiss 6 0-0 12, Megan Wax 0 0-0 0, Ashley Ward 2 0-0 4, Erica Euven 3 0-0 6, Rachel Heisler 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 17 1-2 37.

NEWTOWN (35): Ciara Simek 1 2-2 4, Carly Curran 1 2-3 4, Kacy Foehrenbach 4 1-3 12, Christie Iwanicki 2 3-8 7, Kristi Nowak 2 2-4 6, Darcy Fiscella 0 0-0 0, Morgan Knees 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 11 10-20 35.

THREE-POINTERS: Foehrenbach (N) 3, Farrell (I) 2.

Newtown 67, Weston 35

NEWTOWN (67): Ciara Simek 1 1-2 3, Carly Curran 6 0-0 12, Kacy Foehrenbach 4 0-0 10, Christie Iwanicki 3 2-2 8, Kristi Nowak 4 1-2 9, Darcey Fiscella 2 0-0 4, Casey Frobey 0 0-0 0, Morgan Knees 5 0-0 10, Lauren Ciccomascolo 2 1-2 6, Katie Condon 1 0-0 3, Kelley Tenney 1 0-2 2. TOTALS: 29 5-10 67.

WESTON (35): Alyssa Bowie 0 2-4 2, Kate Butlein 1 0-0 3, Carolyn Judge 1 1-5 3, Liz Ogiba 6 1-2 13, Anna Feingold 5 0-0 10, Marissa Diaz 0 0-0 0, Alison Crennan 0 00-0, L. Sytsma 1 0-0 2, Sarah Glasser 0 0-0 0, Jenna Keplesky 0 1-2 1, Jane Dudley 0 0-0 0, King 0 1-2 1. TOTALS: 14 6-15 35.

THREE-POINTERS: Foehrenbach (N) 2, Ciccomascolo (N), Condon (N), Butlein (W).

BOYS BASKETBALL

Weston 64, Newtown 41

Bunnell 56, Newtown 53

There is something about Bunnell that always seems to bring the best out of the Newtown High School boys’ basketball team.

Who can forget the 55-36 pounding of the Bulldogs almost one year ago? Just a couple of weeks after suffering a 10-point loss to the ‘Dogs, the Nighthawks came back with a vengeance as Marcus Tracy scored 16 points and Anthony Santella added 14 more.

That team didn’t boast the kind of offense it boasted the year before and the 2005-06 team, perhaps, boasts even less as it struggles to rebuild. But on Monday night the ‘Hawks battled the ‘Dogs right down to the finish before finally succumbing, 56-53.

Dave McLaughlin canned 16 points and Joe DeVellis added 14 more, but it wasn’t enough as McLaughlin’s three-point attempt at the buzzer was blocked. Dwight Franklin led all scorers with 24 markers.

“I’m real pleased with the effort,” said head coach John Quinn. “The kids are fighting hard every night and that’s a real good sign.”

The ‘Hawks crafted a 15-10 lead on the ‘Dogs in the first period largely on the efforts of DeVellis and Kevin Troy (four points apiece) and the inside presence of Mike Kennedy (big block) and Marc Ingerman. But the ‘Dogs scored nine unanswered points in the second period and held the locals without a field goal for almost six minutes and when halftime rolled around the ‘Hawks were down by seven, 32-25.

The ‘Hawks were down as much as 11 points in the third when they started to rally. McLaughlin canned a three-pointer, DeVellis had three foul shots and Troy made a big steal and lay-in but the ‘Hawks were still down seven heading into the fourth.

Troy opened with a jumper in the lane and Mike Mitchell added a pair of free throws to pull the ‘Hawks to within three. After Kennedy banked in a basket in the low blocks, the ‘Hawks were down only two, 47-45.

The Bulldogs, though, popped in a couple of baskets to go back up by five, 51-45, and seemingly took charge with less than two minutes left.

But then Troy buried a three-pointer and Jack Quinn followed up with a steal and a lay-in with 1:20 left to pull the ‘Hawks to within one. After Taylor Lasko canned a three-pointer to put the ‘Dogs back up by four, McLaughlin answered back with his third trey of the game with 8.9 seconds left to pull the ‘Hawks back within one.

It was an exciting sequence, too, as Troy missed a three-pointer, Ingerman missed the putback tip, and the rebound went out to McLaughlin on the wing for the bucket.

With 6.4 seconds left, Bunnell canned a pair of free throws to take a three-point lead and then McLaughlin’s three-point attempt at the buzzer was blocked, allowing the ‘Dogs to escape the Hawks Nest with the win.

It was a much better effort for the ‘Hawks following a 64-41 loss to Weston last Friday. McLaughlin was the only local in double figures as he canned 10 points with the aid of two three-point buckets. David Chase of Weston led all scorers with 18 points.

“We’re making a lot of mistakes,” said coach Quinn, “but that has a lot to do with experience. We’re getting better.”

The ‘Hawks will host New Milford on Friday and will travel to New Fairfield next Tuesday.

Weston 64, Newtown 41

NEWTOWN (41): Shawn Coakley 2 1-3 5, Joey DeVellis 2 3-6 7, Marc Ingerman 0 2-2 2, Mike Kennedy 1 1-2 3, Dave McLaughlin 2 4-4 10, Mike Mitchell 3 0-1 6, Jack Quinn 1 0-0 3, Dan Smith 0 0-0 0, Jason Smith 0 0-0 0, Kevin Troy 1 0-0 3, Mike Maher 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 13 11-18 41.

WESTON (64): Peter Skogg 5 0-0 11, Jon Fishman 1 2-2 4, David Chase 8 2-3 18, John Galvin 5 7-9 17, Ben Kosinski 2 3-3 7, Dan Seymour 1 0-0 2, Connor Babcock 1 2-4 4, Tom Montelli 0 1-2 1. TOTALS: 23 17-23 64.

THREE-POINTERS: McLaughlin (N) 2, Troy (N), Quinn (N), Skogg (W).

Bunnell 56, Newtown 53

BUNNELL (56): Danny Paolini 4 5-7 14, James Jordan 0 0-0 0, Matt Wojcicki 3 0-0 7, Evan Kulhawik 0 0-0 0, Taylor Lasko 1 1-2 4, Gary Little 2 0-2 5, Dwight Franklin 10 4-6 24, Jeff Farrell 0 0-4 0, Terrell Coward 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 21 10-21 56.

NEWTOWN (53): Shawn Coakley 1 0-0 2, Joey DeVellis 5 4-5 14, Marc Ingerman 1 0-0 2, Mike Kennedy 1 0-0 2, Dave McLaughlin 5 3-4 16, Mike Mitchell 1 2-3 4, Jack Quinn 1 0-0 2, Dan Smith 0 0-0 0, Jason Smith 0 0-0 0, Kevin Troy 5 0-0 11. TOTALS: 20 9-12 53.

THREE-POINTERS: McLaughlin (N) 3, Troy (N), Paolini (B), Wojcicki (B), Lasko (B), Little (B).

WRESTLING

New Milford 49, Newtown 17

Newtown 47, Weston 28

Windham over Newtown

Amity over Newtown

Greenwich over Newtown

The Southington Duals started out okay for the Newtown High School wrestling team, but facing some of the top teams in the state of Connecticut proved to be too daunting a task.

After a 47-28 win over Weston, the Nighthawks fell to Windham, Amity and Greenwich and finished sixth overall.

The host team slipped past Windham High, 37-30, to earn the championship. Amity finished third, followed by Fairfield Warde, Greenwich, Newtown, Cheshire and Weston.

In the win over Weston to open the Duals, the ‘Hawks were in an early 10-9 hole despite a forfeit win at 275 pounds by Aadil Ansari and a pin by John Gouveia at 112 pounds. But Mark Bonamici started a strong rally at 125 pounds when he earned a 35-second pin and Jeff Lipnick followed with a second-period pin at 130 pounds to stake the ‘Hawks to a 21-10 lead.

Mitch Rucinski earned an 8-2 decision at 135 pounds before Colin O’Connor (140), Jeff Bray (145) and Gary Andrews (152) all earned pins to give the locals a convincing 42-10 lead. The Trojans pulled a little close with pins at 160 and 171 pounds, but Bryant Aliaga officially put the match away at 189 pounds.

Aliaga did the seemingly impossible, earning a 16-0 technical fall in the second period.

Aliaga was one of the few to register a win last Wednesday in a 49-17 loss to powerhouse New Milford … but he did, an 11-8 decision over Chris Leier. Also recording wins were Gouveia at 112 pounds ( a 16-1 tech fall of Andrew Falencki), Lipnick at 130 pounds, Andrews at 160 pounds and Jagi Enkhabaatar at 171 pounds.

All were three-point decisions.

The ‘Hawks hosted New Fairfield on Wednesday night and on Saturday will host Brien McMahon, Thomaston and Immaculate with the action set to start at 10 am. The locals will travel to Brookfield next Wednesday for a 7 pm match.

New Milford 49, Newtown 17

103: Anthony Amorando (NM) pinned Colin Smith 0:30. 112: John Gouveia (N) tech. fall Andrew Falencki 16-1. 119: Edin Mesanovic (NM) major dec. Dan Van Buskirk 11-0. 125: Spiros Stefanatos (NM) pinned Kris Kling 1:14. 130: Jeff Lipnick (N) dec. Dan Cahalane 9-4. 135: Korban Bradshaw (NM) pinned Andrew Kmetez 3:11. 140: Mike Bellagamba (NM) pinned Colin O’Conner 3:40. 145: Cody Griswold (NM) dec. Jeff Bray 5-3. 152: Jamie Pisano (NM) pinned Zack Klein 1:35. 160: Gary Andrews (N) dec. P.J. Arnold 9-7. 171: Jagi Enkhabaatar (N) dec. Thad Diamond 8-4. 189: Bryant Aliaga (N) dec. Chris Leier 11-8. 215: Steve Bendrick (NM) pinned Joel Minalgo 1:30. 275: Tom Ferrell (NM) pinned Aadil Ansari 1:35.

Newtown 47, Weston 28

103: Jamner (W) major dec. Kim Solhiem 14-3. 112: John Gouveia (N) dec. Kirschenbaum 5-2. 119: Levene (W) pinned Dana Van Buskirk 4:53. 125: Mark Bonamici (N) pinned Pachman 0:35. 130: Jeff Lipnick (N) pinned P. Squillante 3:54. 135: Mitch Rucinski (N) dec. Sandolo 8-2. 140: Colin O’Connor (N) pinned Waterhouse 1:47. 145: Jeff Bray (N) pinned M. Squillante 1:10. 152: Gary Andrews (N) pinned Allen 3:14. 160: Bolea (W) pinned Anthony Klabonski 1:05. 171: Witter (W) pinned Eric Puffer 0:55. 189: Bryant Aliaga (N) tech. fall Champtaloup 16-0. 215: Kannon (W) pinned Joel Minalgo 4:45. 275: Aadil Ansari (N) wins by forfeit.

INDOOR TRACK

SWC Developmental

The Newtown High School indoor track and field team is gearing up for the fast-approaching South-West Conference championships (January 28) and while several athletes have already qualified for the meet several more qualified with their performance last Saturday at an SWC Developmental meet at Staples High School in Westport.

“It is exciting to see how excited the kids are to do well,” said head coach Doug Russell. “There are some younger athletes and newcomers that we need to keep our eyes on.”

Keep those eyes on SWC qualifiers –

Will Jacobs with an 8.4-second performance in the 50-meter hurdles; Jenna Van Waalwijk with a 4-4 leap in the high jump; Ryan Morrissey with a 5-4 leap in the high jump; Moira Collier with a run of 3:28 in the 1,000-meters; Scott Nichols with a run of 1:33 in the 600-meters (just one second off a CIAC qualifying time); Remy Ball with a 6-6 in the pole vault; Charlie Baldour (4:48) and Eric Macknight (4:53) with runs of 4:48 and 4:53 in the 1,600-meters; and Jessica Halloran and Rishona Hines with runs of 7.8 seconds in the 50-meter dash.

And keep those eyes on CIAC qualifiers –

Lindsay Weber with a 4-8 leap in the high jump; Sadie Ball with first-place finishes in the 1000-meter (3:17.5) and 1,600-meter (5:44) events; Baldour with that 4:48 finish in the 1600 meters; Zack Schwartz with a run of 2:47.9 in the 1000 meters; and Chris Nuelle with a 10-0 in the pole vault.

Collier, Michelle Brennan and Matt Cole had already qualified for the 1,600-meter event with their performances at a recent meet at Wesleyan University. And Jaclyn Van Waalwijk had qualified for the SWC meet with a toss of 27-5 in the shot at the Wesleyan meet.

Weber is close to getting in the SWCs in the 50-meter hurdles as her run of 9.92 at Staples leaves her just 0.6 seconds away. Sarah Bonacci and Andie Maret are a half-second away from qualifying in the 50-meter dash while Brian Pennarola is just 0.4 seconds away. In the 400-meters, Remy Ball is one second shy of qualifying after her 1:53 finish at Staples while Julie Landin and Cole are both four seconds shy. Meanwhile, Meghan Barbour (49.2 at Staples) and Emily Lockhart (50.04) are close to reaching the 47.0 mark in the 300-meter event.

“We need to continue to improve on our relays and our long jump,” said coach Russell, “but I am confident that we will have athletes going to SWC and states in each of our events.”

The Nighthawks will be at Wilton High School on Saturday for an SWC Developmental that kicks off at 4 pm.