Bits & Pieces
Bits & Pieces
By Kim J. Harmon
HEARTPOUNDING (1)
Has there ever been a more exciting race than the 100-yard freestyle at the South-West Conference swim championships last weekend?
I donât think so.
Travis McNamara of Pomperaug came in as the No. 1 seed with a qualifying time of 49.50 and no one was even close. Billy Magin of Brookfield was the No. 2 seed, but he was 1.13 seconds behind McNamara ⦠a long time in the 100 free.
I figured to be a fast race, but probably not that close.
Wrong.
McNamara won the event in 49.73, but just touched out Magin who finished second at 49.88. And then coming in third was Chris Jacob of Newtown, who had been seeded fifth at 52.28 but who shaved nearly two seconds off that time.
No pool deck anywhere in the SWC has ever been as loud as the Pomperaug deck was last Saturday.
Wow.
BIZARRE
Has there ever been a basketball team that has lost a close game and didnât think it was rooked by the officials?
I didnât think so.
John Quinn, head coach of the Newtown High School boysâ basketball team, walked off the Morgan High School floor in Clinton on Monday night shaking his head and, Iâll tell you, I canât blame him one bit.
The âHawks lost a tough 56-50 decision to Morgan and as much as the Huskies won that game with a couple of second-half runs and some clutch shooting, the âHawks were hamstrung by some bizarre calls by the officials.
Kevin Troy was called for traveling twice ⦠without having possession of the ball either time (in the second half, the freshman guard went up for a rebound and came down on one foot without a firm grip on the basketball. A Morgan defender pushed Troy and as he fell â and before he hit the floor â he lost possession of the ball ⦠only the official had already blown his whistle to signal traveling).
A second-half offensive foul on Josh Rouse â in a critical situation â was inexplicable, too.
The baseline official was also out of position twice, missing the call when a Morgan player stepped out of bounds and missing the call when a ball deflected off a Morgan playerâs shoulder out of bounds.
To be fair, the âHawks got the benefit of a couple terrible calls â the most noticeable one being when Brennan Coakley reached well over the top of a Morgan player for a rebound.
The officials didnât decide the game, but that kind of stuff always leaves a bad taste in your mouth.
HIGH-FLYING
In the first half of the Newtown-Morgan game, Marcus Tracy â who was maybe a full step off the Morgan shooter â got up so high for a block that Morgan players called for the goaltending. That is one call you will rarely see in high school basketball.
HEARTPOUNDING (2)
It has only been over the course of the past few years, but the 50- and 100-yard freestyle events in high school swimming have gotten so much faster.
In the 50 free at the South-West Conference championships, Andrew Murphy of Bethel had a seed time of 23.88 ⦠and that wasnât even good enough for the championship heat. Murphy also had a seed time of 52.99 in the 100 free ⦠and that wasnât good enough for the championship heat.
And talk about heart pounding, the difference between first place and sixth place in the 50 free at the SWC championships was only .49 seconds.
EARLY BRACKET SELECTION
The word is, at least from my 12-year-old son, is that Wake Forest is the team to beat in the NCAA pool. He likes that guy Chris Paul and thinks heâs going to carry the Demon Deacons to a championship.
Me, Iâm looking at Niagara as my sleeper.
BABE RUTH UMPS NEEDED
If youâre over the age of 14, love baseball and would like to umpire in-town Cal Ripken Division (ages 9-12) games, all you have to do is attend an upcoming Umpire Clinic and complete the Babe Ruth Umpire examination (which requires a $30 membership fee).
The $30 fee is required to attend the clinic and will be collected at the clinic along with $2.50 for a 2005 Rule Book.
The next Umpire Clinic will be held Saturday, March 19, from 2 to 4 pm, in the Newtown Middle School cafeteria.
Baseball games are held weeknights starting at 5:30 pm and on Saturdays and Sundays at various times. First-time umpires last year worked as many as 12 games during the spring season, which made them eligible for Fall Ball games played from late August through October.
Itâs a great way to earn some extra cash while doing something that you will learn to love. Most games last no more than two hours.
And donât worry about coaches getting in your face to dispute a call â Newtown Babe Ruth monitors those situations very closely and does not tolerate intimidation or harassment by coaches.
If interested, please forward the following information to Matt McGrath at mattmcgrat@aol.com or 364-0632: Name, address, phone numbers, email address, and whether or not you need equipment.