Newtown High School Recaps

By Kim J. Harmon

The boys’ basketball and ice hockey teams at Newtown High School are enjoying incredible turnarounds from the 2005-06 season and while some may be expecting either to hit a bump in the road, neither looks ready to do any such thing.

The boys’ basketball team (coming off a 4-16 campaign) improved to 8-2 with impressive wins over New Fairfield and Bethel while the hockey team (coming off a 5-12-3 season) improved to 7-2-0 with wins over Housatonic Valley Regional and Masuk.

While the girls stumbled against Bethel, the wrestlers rallied against New Fairfield as Joel Minalgo pulled off a thrilling win in the final event of the night.

Read on –

BOYS BASKETBALL

Newtown 64, New Fairfield 55; Newtown 54, Bethel 40

The Newtown High School boys basketball team had a chance to prove something to itself this past week and ended up proving what most people around here were already knew.

It is legitimate.

This past week, the Nighthawks hosted New Fairfield and Bethel – two of the teams which had given the locals the most problems through the first half of the season. Bethel handed Newtown its first loss back on December 22 while the locals squeaked by New Fairfield, 51-50, back on January 3.

The ‘Hawks made an emphatic statement here, though, by pounding the Rebels (64-55) and the Wildcats (54-40) to improve to 8-2 overall, 3-0 in the South-West Conference.

The win over New Fairfield last Friday may be more the more impressive win of the two as the ‘Hawks trailed only once in the entire game, when the Rebels opened the first period by popping in a couple of three-pointers. But with Mike Kennedy (23 points) dominating in the low post and Joe DeVellis (10 points, 11 assists) distributing the ball to every corner of the floor the ‘Hawks built up a nice lead and maintained it throughout the game.

“We wanted to dictate the tempo of the game,” said DeVellis, “and we got them out of their trap defense. They stayed in the game, but we were relentless.”

The locals led by as much as 11 points, but never fewer than three in a physical contest that saw the teams combine for 50 free throws. Kevin Troy tossed in nine points while Dan Smith added six and Jason Smith and Shaun Coakley contributed four apiece.

“The last time we played New Fairfield the place was rocking,” said DeVellis, “and they had all their fans there. We knew they were a good team, but knew we weren’t just one point better than them.”

The ‘Hawks road the momentum of that win into Tuesday night, when they pounded Bethel, 54-40. The ‘Cats had dropped a 69-64 loss on the locals back on December 22, but that was a non-conference tilt.

This time around, Troy canned 11 points and DeVellis added 10 more to spark the offense. Jake DeVellis tossed in eight points and Dan Smith chipped in seven.

The locals will be in New Milford on Friday before traveling to Monroe next Tuesday to take on Masuk. The ‘Hawks topped the Panthers, 61-58, back on December 13 to open the 2006-07 season.

Newtown 54, Bethel 40

BETHEL (40): Chris Carillo 3 5-5 14, Keegan Burke 2 0-0 5, Ryan Rose 5 4-7 15, Matt Barnes 0 0-0 0, Adam Bomberger 0 0-0 0, Robbie Phelps 0 0-0 0, Kyle Devaney 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 12 11-14 40

NEWTOWN (54): Mike Kennedy 2 1-2 5, Tucker Kass 3 0-0 6, Dan Smith 3 0-0 7, Jack Quinn 1 0-0 3, Kevin Troy 4 3-4 11, Jason Smith 0 0-0 0, Mike Maher 0 0-0 0, Jake DeVellis 4 0-0 8, Shaun Coakley 2 0-0 4, Joe DeVellis 3 3-5 10. TOTALS: 22 7-13 54.

Three-pointers: Carillo (B) 3, Burke (B), Rose (B), Smith (N), Quinn (N), Joe DeVellis (N).

Newtown 64, New Fairfield 55

NEW FAIRFIELD (55): Greg McLain 0 1-2 1, Steve Bulan 2 9-12 14, Sam Osborne 1 0-1 2, James Nabozna 3 2-2 9, Dave Elser 0 0-0 0, Matt Charney 2 2-2 7, Ryan Harro 1 0-0 2, Pat Cassidy 5 2-4 16 , Dan Negron 1 1-3 4, TOTALS: 15 17-26 55.

NEWTOWN (64): Mike Kennedy 9 5-6 23, Tucker Kass 1 0-0 2, Dan Smith 3 0-0 6, Jack Quinn 1 0-0 2, Kevin Troy 3 3-5 9, Jason Smith 0 4-4 4, Mike Maher 0 0-0 0, Jake DeVellis 1 1-2 3, Shaun Coakley 2 0-1 4, Joe DeVellis 2 5-6 11, TOTALS: 22 18-24 64.

Three-pointers: Cassidy (NF) 4, Joe DeVellis (N) 2, Bulan (NF), Nabozna (NF), Charney (NF), Negron (NF).

HOCKEY

Newtown 6, Housatonic 4; Newtown 2, Masuk 1

After a two-game hiccup, the Newtown High School hockey team has posted three wins in a row to improve to 7-2-0 overall.

The Nighthawks defeated Housatonic Valley Regional (6-4) and Masuk (2-1) and currently rank third in CIAC Division III behind 7-1-1 Sheehan and 6-1-1 Staples-Weston and first in the South-West Conference Division II standings.

In the win over Masuk at the Rinks at Shelton on Tuesday night, Matt Wright and Christian Beitel scored the goals off assists from Francis Oggeri, Tucker Grose and Taylor Casey. Goaltender Mitch Bloomberg needed to make just nine saves in the net to preserve the win.

*Last week, Newtown defeated Housatonic Regional in a back and forth match-up at the Danbury Ice Arena. Ultimately, Newtown dominated the first and third periods, with a lapse in the second period allowing three goals. Their strong play in the bookend periods, however, allowed the locals to leave the ice with the 6-4 win.

They rolled over Housatonic in the first period, with junior Oggeri scoring the first goal off a strong slap-shot, setting the tone and paving the way for two more goals in the first period alone. Senior PJ Horozsko (+4 in the plus/minus for the game) scored unassisted and then Beitel, tied for the points lead on the team, scored the third goal for Newtown to cap off a dominating first period.

The tide changed in the first two minutes of the second period, though, as Housatonic – which has turned itself around from an 0-20 campaign in 2005-06 – quickly posted two straight goals. Beitel scored once again to bring the lead back up to 4-2, and then Wright followed almost immediately with another, extending the lead to 5-2.

The period continued back and forth, with both teams controlling the puck in the opposing teams zones for minutes at a time, before Kevin Cantele of Housatonic scored, cutting the Newtown lead to 5-3.

Seven minutes into the third Andy Moore of Housatonic scored, cutting the once three-goal lead to a narrow 5-4 margin for the Nighthawks. Yet, senior assistant captain Pat Daly posted his first goal of the year a few minutes later, sealing the win for Newtown.

With the win, the Nighthawks improve to 6-2, and Housatonic drops to 4-4 on the year. With their sixth win, Newtown tops their win total of five from last year, and they continue to improve with each week, which is a promising sign for an emerging program.*

The Nighthawks will host New Fairfield on Friday at the Danbury Ice Arena (puck drops at 5:30 pm) and will host Bethel-Brookfield next Wednesday (puck drops at 7:45 pm).

* – Jake Burg

Alumni Game

The Nighthawks hosted their first alumni game on Saturday at the Danbury Ice Arena and the “old-timers” featured players from the past four seasons – including Al Mazur, Blaise and Sean LaPorta, Nick Magoulas, Mike Conroy, Dan Mallen, Tim Hoeffel, Corey Regensberger, Steven Borchetta and goaltenders Pete Oggeri and Mike Jurasek.

Newtown High School guidance counselor Jeff Tolson was the public address announcer for the contest, which supposedly ended in a tie if the scoreboard was to be believed. In the spirit of the game, the referees issued some unusual penalties (Sean LaPorta received two minutes for having too much girth and Francis Oggeri was slapped with a two minute penalty for having too much facial hair) and a lot of the announcing came out of the Harry Carey book of humorous announcing (“Would the player who just scored that goal please turn around so we can see your number?” and “Does anyone in the stands have an official rule book for the refs?”).

Admission to the game was by donation and the Nighthawks hope to make it an annual event.

Newtown 6, Housatonic Regional 4

GOALS: Newtown – Christian Beitel 2, Pat Daly, PJ Horozsko, Francis Oggeri, Matt Wright. ASSISTS: Newtown – Max Beitel 3, Blake Bell, Christian Beitel, Pat Daly, Matt Wright. SHOTS: Newtown – 21; Housatonic – 16. SAVES: Newtown – Mitch Bloomberg 12.

Newtown 2, Masuk 1

GOALS: Newtown – Matt Wright, Christian Beitel; Masuk – Tim Zackrzewski. ASSISTS: Newtown – Francis Oggeri, Tucker Grose, Taylor Casey. SHOTS: Newtown – 27; Masuk – 10. SAVES: Newtown – Mitch Bloomberg 9; Masuk – Ryan Eglington 25.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Newtown 59, New Fairfield 45; Bethel 49, Newtown 47

With three losses in their last four games, the Newtown High School girls’ basketball team has slid dangerously close to the .500 mark with an even more dangerous park of their schedule coming up.

The Lady Nighthawks topped New Fairfield last week, 59-45, to snap a two-game losing streak but suffered a 49-47 loss to Bethel on Tuesday night to drop to 6-5 overall, 1-4 in the South-West Conference.

The ‘Hawks will be hosting a New Milford team on Friday night which is desperate for a win after dropping two straight and, next week, will be squaring off against Masuk and Pomperaug in pivotal SWC battles.

In the loss to Bethel, Nora Lynn Shimko was the lone Newtown player in double figures as she canned 10 points with the aid of two three-pointers. Kristi Nowak and Morgan Knees tossed in eight points apiece while Christie Iwanicki (averaging nearly 18 points a game heading in) and Darcy Fiscella were limited to six points each.

The Lady Wildcats broke open a game that was tied 18-18 at the half with a 20-point, third-quarter explosion. The locals rallied in the fourth, but could not overcome the ‘Cats, who registered their third win of the season.

In the win over New Fairfield, Iwanicki was the game-high scored with 24 points while Nowak dropped in 10 with Knees and Jordan Good contributing eight points apiece.

Newtown 59, New Fairfield 45

NEWTOWN (59): Jen Brewer 0 0-0 0, Christie Iwanicki 10 3-6 24, Nora Lynn Shimko 2 0-2 5, Darcy Fiscella 2 0-0 4, Kristi Nowak 4 2-4 10, Morgan Knees 3 2-2 8, Katie Condon 0 0-0 0, Jordan Good 3 2-2 8. TOTALS: 22 9-16 59.

NEW FAIRFIELD (45): Jessica Donovan 5 2-4 14, Chelsea Immen 0 0-0 0, Ashley Andreasen 3 2-2 8, Megan Cammarota 1 0-0 2, Vicky Vitale 3 0-0 7, Abby Fedigan 1 0-0 2, Candice Galante 0 3-4 3, Val Lupo 0 0-0 0, Dona Dika 3 0-1 9, TOTALS: 16 7-11 45.

Three-pointers: Dika (NF) 3, Donovan (NF) 2, Iwanicki (N), Shimko (N), Vitale (NF).

Bethel 49, Newtown 47

NEWTOWN (47): Jen Brewer 0 0-0 0, Christie Iwanicki 3 0-4 6, Nora Lynn Shimko 3 2-2 10, Darcy Fiscella 3 0-1 6, Kristi Nowak 3 2-4 8, Morgan Knees 4 0-2 8, Katie Condon 2 0-0 5, Jordan Good 1 2-2 4. TOTALS: 19 6-15 47.

BETHEL (49): Chelsea Schumacher 2 1-3 5, Karyn Garrison 4 3-4 11, Sara Oberhammer 7 0-0 14, Kate Robbins 1 0-0 2, Maria LoBalbo 1 1-3 3, Nikki Usher 0 0-2 0, Katie Voorhees 6 0-0 12, Tina Closius 1 0-1 2. TOTALS: 22 5-13 49.

Three-pointers: Shimko (N) 2, Condon (N).

SWIMMING

Newtown 107, Holy Cross 73

The Newtown High School swim team improved to 4-1 with a 107-73 win over Holy Cross of Waterbury last Friday night.

It was the Nighthawks’ third consecutive win following a loss to arch-rival Pomperaug back on December 19. Since then, the locals have topped Bethel, Bunnell/Stratford and Holy Cross with Brookfield heading into town on Friday for a 7 pm meet.

The ‘Hawks will be in Weston next Tuesday, as well.

* Note – Results from the Holy Cross meet will be published in the next issue of The Newtown Bee.

WRESTLING

Newtown 41, New Fairfield 36; Newtown 56, McMahon 21; Thomaston 45, Newtown 33

The odds seemed pretty long.

The Newtown High School wrestling team was down 36-35 to New Fairfield heading into the final match of the evening and after two minutes of action junior Joel Minalgo – who was out-weighed by some 45 pounds by heavyweight Jim Wild – was down 7-1.

Things looked pretty grim.

But then Minalgo reversed Wild for five points to get back into the match and then reversed for five more points in the third period before ultimately earning the pin and lifting the Nighthawks to the improbable win.

“Coach Potter and I had to make the decision,” said assistant coach Angelo Bodetti. “We bumped up Joel Minalgo, our 215-pound wrestler who weighed in at 209 pounds, to wrestle New Fairfield’s heavyweight who weighed in at 255 pounds. But Joel went out there and proved to us and the rest of the SWC that although he may be a little unorthodox, he is here to stay and he will be a force to be reckoned with.”

Minalgo remained undefeated in the conference, as did John Gouveia (119 pounds), captain Bryant Aliaga (189 pounds) and Jagi Gymacho (152 pounds).

It was the second year in a row that the match with New Fairfield was decided in the final weight class; last year, it was the Rebels coming out on top.

Gouveia earned a major decision over Mikhail Grant, 11-2, to avenge a loss at the Danbury Tournament earlier in the season. Also, two weekends ado at the Southington Duals Gouveia pinned the number two ranked kid from Amity to prove he may be among the top five in his class in the entire state.

Last weekend the locals split decisions in a dual meet with a win over Brien McMahon (56-21) and a loss to Thomaston (45-33).

Gouveia had a pair of pins, Mark Bonamici (125) earned two decisions, Gymacho (152) earned two pins and Minalgo (215) earned two pins.

The locals hosted Brookfield on Wednesday and will be at Fitch to meet Fitch, Pomperaug and Manchester this weekend before traveling to Stratford High School next Wednesday.

Newtown 41, New Fairfield 36

103 – Tyler Reszoly (N) dec. Mike Hess 10-7. 112 – Jessie Broderick (NF) pinned Thomas Merrifield 1:12. 119 – John Gouveia (N) major dec. Mikhail Grant 11-2. 125 – Dana Van Buskirk (N) pinned Carlos Rosario 1:37. 130 – Mike Frick (NF) pinned Mark Bonamici 4:35. 135 – DJ McCarthy (NF) pinned Tyler Rudolph 4:58. 140 – Mitchell Rucinski (N) won by forfeit. 145 – Shane Yachulke (NF) pinned Chris Salvatore 3:07. 152 – Joe Wabshinak (NF) pinned Ed White 2:31. 160 – Jagi Gymacho (N) major dec. Ben Wantman 13-4. 171 – TJ Silva (NF) pinned Matt Brede 5:01. 189 – Bryant Aliaga (N) won by forfeit. 215: Matt Kuruk (N) won by forfeit. 285: Joel Minalgo (N) pinned Jim Wild 3:45.

Newtown 56, Brien McMahon 21

103: Joe Nacco (BM) dec. Tyler Reszoly 11-6; 112: Tom Merrifield (N) by forfeit; 119: John Gouveia (N) pins Aaron Whitman 0:45; 125 Dana Van Buskirk (N) by forfeit; 130: Mark Bonamici (N) dec. Sean Fields 6-5; 135: Joey Rideman (BM) pins Tyler Rudolph  2:50; 140: Mike Rodriguez (N) by forfeit; 145: Peter Camacho (BM) pins Chris Salvatore 1:45; 152: Jagi Gymacho (N) pins Scott Spezzano 1:43; 160: Chris Marks (N) pins Trevor Kline 1:06; 171: Matt Brede (N) pins Richard Basset 0:47; 189: Bryant Aliaga (N) dec. Tim Phillips 14-9; 215: Joel Minalgo (N) pins Isreal Guardano 3:06; 285: Gadwin Agosto (T) pins Thaddeus Adams 3:20

Thomaston 45, Newtown 33

103: Tyler Foley (T) pins Tyler Reszoly 1:30; 112: Andrew Dulccin (T) pins Tom Merrifield 0:59; 119: John Gouveia (N) pins Dylan Platt 1:36; 125: Chris Bordner (T) pins Dana Van Buskirk 5:30; 130: Mark Bonamici (N) dec. Connor Hacert 6-4; 135: Francis Gelada (T) pins Tyler Rudolph  0:50; 140: Rich Rosa (T) pins Mike Rodriguez 0:22; 145: Ryan Plourde (T) dec. Chris Salvatore 7-6 (OT); 152: Jagi Gymacho (T) pins Colin Platt 0:21; 160: Justin Chariman (T) pins Chris Marks 3:51; 171: Brad Hackert (T) pins Matt Brede 1:37; 189: Bryant Aliaga (N) pins Corey Russel 1:49; 215: Joel Minalgo (N) pins Mason Cleveland 0:12; 285: Thaddeus Adams (N) by forfeit.