By Kim J. Harmon

NEW MILFORD – There was a moment in their South-West Conference match with New Milford on Monday that things seemed to be unraveling rather quickly for the Lady Nighthawks.

Even though they held a seemingly comfortable 2-0 lead in the match (comfortable because both games were won rather easily), the ‘Hawks found themselves down 10-1 in Game 3 and having all sorts of problems – from poor passing to poor communications and shaky judgements. And if that wasn’t enough, the Green Wave wasn’t making any of the sorts of mistakes that put it in that 2-0 hole to begin with.

But one thing the Lady Nighthawks have learned in 1999 – what has become something of a journey of discovery for most of the players – is that no matter how bleak things may seem, the ‘Hawks are never out of it. Sure, the girls lost Game 3 and even fell into a 7-3 hole in Game 4, but they regained their composure and dispatched the Green Wave 3-1 (15-1, 15-12, 9-15, 15-13) to run their record to 4-4 overall, 4-3 in the SWC.

The ‘Hawks know all about regaining their composure. After all, that minor little slip against New Milford was nothing compared to last Friday when they found themselves down two games to none against Notre Dame of Fairfield and still found it in themselves to rally back for the 3-2 victory.

“They know now they can step up and play well,” said coach Jay Edwards. “They should never be a team that will hang its head. They know they can come back.”

The ‘Hawks have done well for themselves in a season where many expected to see them down and out, set back on the long road to recovery. After all, they lost the final three holdovers from their 1996 CIAC Class L championship team. It should have been a real tough season.

Not so.

Not so at all.

“We’re doing the right things,” said coach Edwards. “I wouldn’t say we’re doing better than I expected, but we’re much more consistent than I’ve expected – especially in serving and passing.”

Playing very well against Weston and New Milford, coming back against Notre Dame, and even challenging New Fairfield in a conference match-up recently, has shown the ‘Hawks the light.

They have the potential and no opponent (except, let’s face it, maybe Darien) is really out of their league.

“We could steal a game from a team like Jonathan Law,” said coach Edwards, “and something like that could change the whole match.”

A Turning Point

Despite coasting through the first two games against New Milford on Monday, the Lady Nighthawks found themselves facing an imposing 10-1 deficit in Game 3 and out of touch with all the things that gave them that 2-0 lead in the first place.

Things were falling apart.

The ‘Hawks couldn’t come back in Game 3 – although they made a show of it – and then fell into a 7-3 hole in Game 4, but soon after that point the cloud passed and the girls were back in the same type of rhythm they enjoyed early in the match. Regaining a measure of calmness, the ‘Hawks outscored the Green Wave 12-6 through the remainder of Game 4 and secured the 3-1 match victory.

It was a nice win to have since the ‘Hawks were without the services of their middle hitter, Amanda Marsilio, who was home nursing an ankle injury. But with Meghan Sheehan stepping in nicely in the middle and Lily Fielding and Laura Hammond doing pretty well on the corners, the ‘Hawks made up for it pretty well.

Besides, with Ashleigh Smarrella (27 assists) coordinating the offense, with Erin Masterson on the back line (four aces, eight digs) and Chrissy DeWeese once again solid behind the service line (14 assists), the ‘Hawks did not really have their backs against the wall without Marsilio.

Still – taking note of the problems in Games 3 and 4 – the ‘Hawks know it would be nice to get her back soon.

The ‘Hawks got off to an unbelievably fast start in Game 1, roaring out to a 13-0 lead. DeWeese earned eight straight service points to start the game and was aided by two Fielding kills and a kill from Ally Gellert. Later, Hammond pounded a pair of kills that put Newtown ahead 10-0 and then Masterson slammed a pair of aces that put the ‘Hawks ahead 12-0.

After Newtown went ahead 13-0, New Milford managed to score one, but Andrea Rustine soon closed the door with an ace.

In Game 2, the ‘Hawks jumped out to a quick 10-1 lead thanks, in part, to five service aces (three from Fielding, one from DeWeese, and one from Masterson). But that is where the Green Wave began picking itself up off the floor, no longer ready to hand the match to the Lady Nighthawks.

New Milford scored three points in a row as Newtown slipped into a little funk. Sheehan came up with a couple of kills that broke that string, but the Green Wave began inching back one step at a time until Newtown found itself leading only 14-12.

After three sideouts, though, Hammond earned the service point that gave Newtown the game, 15-12.

Then came the Game 3 problems.

Down 10-1, the ‘Hawks started inching back themselves with Gellert and Fielding working well at the net and Rustine and DeWeese solid in the service. The ‘Hawks actually outscored the Green Wave 8-2 at that point to pull within three points, 12-9, but New Milford soon pulled away.

Once again things looked bleak when New Milford jumped out to a 7-3 and 8-4 lead, but a Masterson service point started the ‘Hawks on a 7-0 run that put them on top – and in command – with an 11-8 advantage. In that run, Fielding and Sheehan both had hard kills.

But the Green Wave slipped closer, scoring two points to cut the Newtown lead to 11-10, but with two Rustine aces and a DeWeese ace, Newtown jumped back up 14-10 and looked on the verge on winning.

Yet the Green Wave came back – again. Three more points trimmed the lead to 14-13, but there is when luck ran out for the host team.

Newtown finally won it.

In that gutsy comeback against Notre Dame (10-15, 13-15, 15-9, 15-10, 15-9), the ‘Hawks might have been down, but most certainly were not out.

A two-game disadvantage did not have the Lady Nighthawks running scared last Friday. Instead, they buckled down and rallied back in the final three games of this South-West Conference match to steal a win.

Thanks to some monster games.

Hammond came up with 14 kills, 16 service points and six aces. Fielding, meanwhile, was equally as tough with 12 kills, 15 service points, and six aces. And Smarrella offered 34 assists, 18 service points, and seven aces.