Newtown High School – Weekly Recaps

By Kim J. Harmon

Highlights, highlights and more highlights – it was a week virtually brimming with highlights at Newtown High School and that’s in addition to the performances by the cross country teams (see related story).

Take a look –

Casey Frobey scores five goals and assists on another as the girls’ soccer team trounces Weston, 7-1. She notches another assist as the girls defeated defending CIAC Class S state champion Immaculate for the second time in 2004.

Meg Regnery scores two goals to lead the field hockey team to a 2-0 win over Joel Barlow … the eighth win of the season for the Lady Nighthawks, who could finish ranked as high as third in the South-West Conference.

The swim team pounds Bunnell and Masuk to complete its second consecutive undefeated dual meet season and run its winning streak to 22 meets. The last team to beat the Lady Nighthawks? That was Masuk in 2002.

Bob Pattison rushes for 113 yards and two touchdowns as the football team defeats New Fairfield, 27-0, on Homecoming Night.

Oh yeah – highlights, highlights and more highlights.

FOOTBALL

Newtown 27, New Fairfield 0

Turnovers.

In all likelihood, the Newtown High School football team would have come away with a win against New Fairfield last Friday anyway, but the visiting Rebels – on Homecoming Night – made it particularly easy on ‘em.

A Jeff Bell interception (the first of two) killed the first New Fairfield drive. A Grant Speer interception killed the next. And a Marc Ingerman fumble recovery killed the one after that. The Rebels never got going in the first half and the Nighthawks were on their way to a 27-0 win.

It was their third win and third shutout of the season.

Bob Pattison rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns, quarterback Josh Rouse rushed for 87 yards and one touchdown and – after Rouse sustained an ankle injury – Tucker Kass tossed a 15-yard fourth-quarter touchdown to Brennan Coakley.

Placekicker Steve Kean was 3-for-4 with his extra-point attempts.

Rouse put the ‘Hawks ahead, 7-0, with 5:49 remaining in the first when he bulled his way through the line from less than a yard out. He set up that touchdown with a 41-yard jolt up the middle earlier in the drive.

Pattison then put the ‘Hawks ahead, 14-0, with a 35-yard scamper down the left sidelines with 10:19 left in the second period. It was a strong run as Pattison, with a couple of nimble moves, made two New Fairfield tacklers miss.

Pattison came back eight minutes later with a one-yard run to put the ‘Hawks ahead, 21-0, at the close of the first half.

Kass’ touchdown pass (the first of his varsity career) to Coakley came with 6:42 left in the fourth quarter. Kass had come off the bench in the third when Rouse went down and on his first play from scrimmage the sophomore southpaw hit John Collins with a 17-yard completion.

The ‘Hawks amassed 244 yards on the ground on 41 carries (5.95 yards per carry) and added 45 through the air. On the defensive side, the ‘Hawks limited the Rebels to just 49 yards of total offense – 45 of that coming through the air.

The ‘Hawks travel to Bridgeport on Saturday to take on Bullard Havens and will be in Danbury on November 6 to take on Immaculate.

Newtown 27, New Fairfield 0

First quarter: Newtown – Rouse 1 run (Kean kick). Second quarter: Newtown – Pattison 35 run (Kean kick), Pattison 1 run (Kean kick). Fourth quarter: Newtown – Coakley 15 pass from Kass (kick failed).

Individual Statistics

Rushing: Newtown – Bob Pattison 19-113, Josh Rouse 10-87, John Collins 4-16, Bill Beatty 1-12, Joe DeVellis 5-7, Roy Scheunemann 1-5, Tucker Kass 1-4; New Fairfield – Danny Stadnyk 5-13, Chris Munson 3-2, Justin Nabozna 1-minus 4, Brian Webb 1-minus 7. Passing: Newtown – Rouse 1-6-1 for 11 yards, Kass 2-7-0 for 34 yards; New Fairfield – Justin Nabozna 4-8-2 for 42 yards, Brian Webb 0-2-0, Adam Benzing 1-4-2 for 3 yards. Receiving: Newtown – Brendan Coakley 2-29, John Collins 1-16; New Fairfield – Jaron Stunkard 4-32, Paul Prokopchuk 1-15.

GIRLS SOCCER

Newtown 5, Pomperaug 1; Newtown 7, Stratford 0; Newtown 7, Weston 1; Newtown 2, Immaculate 1

That loss to Masuk back on October 14 is now but a distant memory thanks to four consecutive wins – including another against defending CIAC Class S state champion Immaculate – that have assured the Newtown High School girls’ soccer team of a No. 2 seed in the upcoming South-West Conference tournament.

The Lady Nighthawks gave life to the four-game winning streak with a 5-1 win over Pomperaug last Thursday and followed up with a 7-0 win over Stratford last Saturday, a 7-1 win over Weston on Monday, and a 2-1 win over Immaculate on Tuesday.

Casey Frobey was the driving force of the offense, scoring 11 goals in the four games (five of those coming in the win over Weston on Monday at Blue & Gold Stadium). That boosted her team-leading total to 25 goals.

Alex Konneker scored four goals along the way and assisted on five others to help power the offense. Mary Anders added two goals and four assists while Darcy Fiscella notched a pair of goals in the win over Weston.

Midfielder Gabby Nastri and sweeper Kyla Miles – such important cogs in the Newtown defense – had an opportunity to score their first goals of the season in the win over Stratford. Meanwhile, Mary Ober and Kelly Corrigan notched their first points (assists) in the win over Weston.

The ‘Hawks march towards an SWC championship will begin (tentatively) on Friday. The ‘Hawks lost their bid for a No. 1 seed with the loss to Masuk at Treadwell Park, but with the No. 2 seed it appears that Newtown and Masuk could be heading for another showdown in November.

Newtown 5, Pomperaug 1

GOALS: Newtown – Casey Frobey 3, Alex Konneker 2; Pomperaug – Jillian Cipriano. ASSISTS: Newtown – Casey Frobey, Mary Anders, Alex Konneker; Pomperaug – Melanie Fernandes. SHOTS: Newtown – 15; Pomperaug – 8. SAVES: Newtown- Ashley LaRocque 4; Pomperaug – Carley Phillips.

Newtown 7, Stratford 0

GOALS: Newtown – Casey Frobey 3, Alex Konneker, Mary Anders, Gabby Nastri, Kyla Miles. ASSISTS: Newtown – Mary Anders 2, Alex Konneker, Stacy Shpunt. SHOTS: Newtown – 20, Stratford – 1. SAVES: Newtown – Ashley LaRocque 1; Stratford – Allie Herman 13.

Newtown 7, Weston 1

GOALS: Newtown – Casey Frobey 5, Darcy Fiscella 2; Weston – Sarah Riccio. ASSISTS: Newtown - Alex Konneker 2, Kelly Corrigan, Casey Frobey, Mary Anders, Tara Gaston, Mary Ober. SHOTS: Newtown – 17; Weston – 3. SAVES: Newtown – Ashley LaRocque 2; Weston – Alyssa Schaefer 10.

Newtown 2, Immaculate 1

GOALS: Newtown – Mary Anders, Alex Konneker; Weston – Lindsey Brown. ASSISTS: Newtown – Casey Frobey. SHOTS: Newtown – 15; Immaculate – 9. SAVES: Newtown – Ashley LaRocque 6; Immaculate – Kristina Haliskoe 13.

BOYS SOCCER

Newtown 2, Pomperaug 0; Newtown 3, Immaculate 0; Newtown 1, Weston 0

A 2-0 loss to Masuk back on October 14 has done little to slow down the Newtown High School boys’ soccer team, which has won its last four games and finished up the 2004 regular season on Wednesday night with an eye on the No. 1 seed in the South-West Conference playoffs.

The Nighthawks defeated Pomperaug (2-0), Immaculate (3-0) and Weston (1-0) to run their record to 13-1 overall, 11-1 in the SWC. A win over Joel Barlow on Wednesday (after press time) would assure the ‘Hawks of the No. 1 seed while a loss would drop them to No. 2.

Nevertheless, the SWC quarterfinals will open on Friday (tentatively) with the ‘Hawks hosting either the No. 7 or No. 8 seed.

In the win over Pomperaug, Rodrigo DeSouza had a goal and an assist while Marcus Tracy scored a goal and Ben Tirigall notched an assist. In the win over Immaculate at Tilson Field on Saturday, Brian Conroy scored a goal and assisted on another as Tony Magliocco notched two assists. Ryan Domingos and Brian Miles also scored.

And in the win over Weston, Ryan Davies scored the lone goal off an assist from Chris Hoagland.

Newtown 2, Pomperaug 0

GOALS: Newtown – Rodrigo DeSouza, Marcus Tracy. ASSISTS: Newtown – Ben Tirigall, Rodrigo DeSouza. SHOT S: Newtown – 16; Pomperaug – 4. SAVES: Newtown – Adam Drummond 3; Pomperaug – Dan DeBlasio 5.

Newtown 3, Immaculate 0

GOALS: Newtown – Ryan Domingos, Brian Conroy, Brian Miles. ASSISTS: Newtown – Tony Magliocco 2, Brian Conroy. SHOTS: Newtown – 7; Immaculate – 3. SAVES: Newtown – Adam Drummond 3, Louis Ritzinger 1; Immaculate – Ryan McDonald 5.

Newtown 1, Weston 0

GOALS: Newtown – Ryan Davies. ASSISTS: Newtown – Chris Hoagland. SHOTS: Newtown – 25; Weston – 6. SAVES: Newtown – Louis Ritzinger 1; Weston – Mark Shaw 6.

FIELD HOCKEY

New Milford 4, Newtown 1; Newtown 2, Masuk 0; Pomperaug 4, Newtown 0; Newtown 2, Joel Barlow 0

When the shot from just inside the circle deflected off a defender’s stick, rose high in the air, and dropped quietly over the goaltender’s head and onto the mesh screen at the back of the cage it looked like it would be that kind of afternoon.

“Was that a goal?” a couple of players asked when the referee’s signal was unclear.

Yes, it was – the first of two goals that Meg Regnery and the Newtown High School field hockey team would score in a 2-0 win over Joel Barlow on Tuesday afternoon in Redding. It was the Lady Nighthawks’ eighth win and gave them a pretty firm grasp on the No. 3 seed in the upcoming South-West Conference tournament – although a loss to Brookfield on Thursday could drop them as low as fifth.

Regnery put the ‘Hawks ahead, 1-0, on that odd goal in the first half and then sweetened the deal a little while later on a breakaway. She had beaten the defense on a through ball, chased the ball down and hammered a shot that was stopped cold. Regnery controlled the ball, though, a flipped a shot from the end line behind the goaltender and off a defender’s stick into the cage.

With the win, the ‘Hawks improved to 8-7-1.

The ‘Hawks needed a win after dropping decisions to New Milford (4-0) and Pomperaug (4-0) last week. A win over Masuk (2-0), though, eased the pain a little.

In the loss to New Milford, Jess Gaddis scored the lone Newtown goal in the second half. Jenny Urfer and Alissa Gross combined to make seven saves.

In the win over Masuk, Cat Williams scored both goals with one assist from Lisa Alberico. The ‘Hawks had a 16-6 advantage in shots and a 7-4 advantage in penalty corners. Urfer and Gross combined for six saves.

And in the loss to Pomperaug, the ‘Hawks were outshot 23-8 and were on the short end of a 13-5 tally in penalty corners. Gross made 10 saves and Urfer added four.

The ‘Hawks concluded the regular season on Thursday against Brookfield. A win there would secure the No. 3 seed while a loss could drop the locals as far as No. 5. So, as of press time, it was unclear when or where the ‘Hawks would open the SWC tournament.

New Milford 4, Newtown 1

GOALS: New Milford – Christina Gioia 2, Michelle Pearl, Megan Monteiro; Newtown – Jess Gaddis. SHOTS: New Milford – 13; Newtown – 10. SAVES: New Milford – Ashley Hinz 6; Newtown – Jenny Urfer 5, Alissa Gross 2. PENALTY CORNERS: New Milford – 8; Newtown – 6.

Newtown 2, Masuk 0

GOALS: Newtown – Cat Williams 2. ASSISTS: Newtown – Lisa Alberico. SHOTS: Newtown – 16; Masuk – 6. SAVES: Newtown – Jenny Urfer and Alissa Gross 6. PENALTY CORNERS: Newtown – 7; Masuk – 4.

Pomperaug 4, Newtown 0

GOALS: Pomperaug – Paige Moore 2, Jenn Tanney, Rachel Sepelak.ASSISTS: Pomperaug - Julee McNeish 2, Paige Moore. SHOTS: Pomperaug – 23; Newtown – 8. SAVES: Pomperaug – Sarah Shaban 3; Newtown – Jenny Urfer  4, Alyssa Gross 10. PENALTY CORNERS: Pomperaug – 13; Newtown – 5.

SWIMMING

Newtown 92, Bunnell 84; Newtown 94, Masuk 84

The winning streak is at 22 meets, but the most important meet of all is coming up – the South-West Conference championship meet on Wednesday and Saturday, November 3 and 6, at Masuk High School in Monroe.

The Newtown High School swim team completed its second consecutive undefeated season this past week by pounding archrival Bunnell (92-84) and Masuk (94-84). The Lady Panthers of Masuk are the last team to beat the Lady Nighthawks in a dual meet.

But it all comes to a head starting next Wednesday when the SWC diving championships open at 5:30 pm at Masuk. A strong contingent of divers (Melissa Metzger, Kim Mayers, Shannon Kennedy, Tierney Carey and Nicole Borruso) should have the ‘Hawks off and running when it comes time for the swim championships next Saturday at 3:30 pm at Masuk.

Several Newtown swimmers have shots at winning an individual conference championship, most notably junior Abby Atkinson in the 200 individual medley and 100 breaststroke.

In the win over Bunnell, Sally Tabler (200 and 500 freestyle) and Maricate Conlon (100 butterfly and 100 backstroke) were double winners while Atkinson (200 individual medley), Amy Robinson (50 freestyle), Carey (diving) and Maggie Hemingway (100 breaststroke) were solo winners.

In the win over Masuk, Conlon (100 butterfly and 100 backstroke) and Atkinson (200 individual medley and 100 breaststroke) were double winners while Jaclyn Van Waalwijk (50 freestyle), Carey (diving) and Robinson (100 freestyle) were solo winners.

Newtown 94, Masuk 84

200 medley relay – 1. Newtown (Conlon, Atkinson, Tabler, Van Waalwijk) 2:03.57, 2. Newtown (Smith, Remitz, Taylor, Kotwicki) 2:08.11, 3. Masuk 2:13.17. 200 freestyle – 1. Horvath (M) 2:02.61, 2. B. Horvath (M) 2:07.80, 3. Hemingway (N) 2:07.22, 4. Iassogna (N) 2:12.16, 5. McCann (M) 2:37.85.200 individual medley – 1. Atkinson (N) 2:16.87, 2. Tabler (N) 2:27.22, 3. E. Atkinson (N) 2:32.16, 4. Donlan (M) 2:39.23, 5. Terneu (M) 2:48.16. 50 freestyle – 1. Van Waalwijk (N) 26.68, 2. Robinson (N) 26.97, 3. Cerou (M) 27.06, 4. Gugino (N) 27.45, 5. Lang (M) 27.74. Diving – 1. Carey (N) 170.2 points, 2. Borruso (N) 162.25, 3. Racia (M) 153.05, 4. Mayers (N) 130.70, 5. Lazar (M) 119.70. 100 butterfly – 1. Conlon (N) 1:05.03, 2. Smith (N) 1:06.73, 3. Taylor (N) 1:07.92, 4. Long (M) 1:09.64, 5. McCann (M) 1:13.72.100 freestyle – 1. Robinson (N) 58.27, 2. Cerulli (M) 58.68, 3. Van Waalwijk (N) 59.18, 4. Gugino (N) 1:00.32. 500 freestyle – 1. Horvath (M) 5:22.87, 2. B. Horvath (M) 5:32.45, 3. Tabler (N) 5:46.22, 4. Iassogna (N) 5:48.78, 5. Harmonay (N) 6:10.95. 200 medley relay – 1. Newtown (Gugino, Van Waalwijk, Hemingway, Robinson) 1:49.16, 2. Masuk 1:54.83, 3. Newtown (Yakush, Hoolehan, E. Atkinson, Iassogna) 1:58.88.

– The Nighthawks were unofficial in the next three events –

100 backstroke – 1. Conlon (N) 1:03.23, 2. Smith (N) 1:06.09, 3. Gutbrod (N) 1:12.16, 4. Sage (M) 1:18.28, 5. Jakerson (M) 1:24.20. 100 breaststroke – 1. Atkinson (N) 1:13.32, 2. Hemingway (N) 1:15.96, 3. Remitz (N) 1:18.57, 4. Jermeu (M) 1:19.46, 5. Donlan (M) 1:19.56. 400 freestyle relay – 1. Newtown (Robinson, Tabler, Hemingway, Atkinson) 3:56.13, 2. Newtown (E. Atkinson, Iassogna, Gugino, Conlon) 4:06.12, 3. Masuk 4:10.64.

Newtown 92, Bunnell 84

200 medley relay – 1. Newtown (Conlon, Atkinson, Tabler, Van Waalwijk) 2:03.23, 2. Newtown (Smith, Remitz, Harmonay, Hull) 2:10.24, 3. Bunnell 2:20.09. 200 freestyle – 1. Tabler (N) 2:09.88, 2. Iassogna (N) 2:11.98, 3. Pappas (B) 2:12.25, 4. Carss (N) 2:13.11, 5. Gugino (N) 2:13.80. 200 individual medley – 1. Atkinson (N) 2:21.96, 2. E. Atkinson (N) 2:30.33, 4. L. Remitz (N) 2:36.38, 4. Sepurale (B) 2:54.91. 50 freestyle – 1. Robinson (N) 26.16, 2. Chimilewski (B) 26.30, 3. Van Waalwijk (N) 26.61, 4. Hemingway (N) 27.48. Diving – 1. Carey (N) 160.25 points, 2. Borruso (N) 155.35, 3. Metzger (N) 155.30, 4. Kerney (B) 116.0, 5. Sumpu (B) 107.35. 100 butterfly – 1. Conlon (N) 1:05.34, 2. Smith (N) 1:09.25, 3. Finnegan (B) 1:13.06, 5. Harmonay (N) 1:14.24. 100 freestyle – 1. Chimilewski (B) 57.29, 2. Robinson (N) 57.47, 3. Van Waalwijk (N) 59.99, 4. Gugino (N) 1:00.88, 5. Cars (B) 1:02.48. 500 freestyle – 1. Tabler (N) 5:47.06, 2. Iassogna (N) 5:52.13, 3. Pappas (B) 5:57.44, 4. Finnegan (B) 6:25.59, 5. L. Remitz (N) 6:26.57. 200 freestyle relay – 1. Newtown (Gugino, Van Waalwijk, Hemingway, Robinson) 1:48.18, 2. Bunnell 1:48.76, 3. Newtown (Hoolehan, Yakush, Hull, Ball) 2:02.24.

– The Nighthawks were unofficial in the next three events –

100 backstroke – 1. Conlon (N) 1:03.99, 2. Smith (N) 1:10.04, 3. Gutbrod (N) 1:14.45, Sempak (B) 1:15.96, 5. Falcone (N) 1:22.28.100 breaststroke – 1. Hemingway (N) 1:14.93, 2. E. Atkinson (N) 1:17.98, 3. J. Remitz (N) 1:18.40, 4. Cox (B) 1:32.42. 400 freestyle relay – 1. Newtown 3:58.67, 2. Bunnell 4:11.70, 3. Newtown 4:12.95.

VOLLEYBALL

Bethel 3, Newtown 1; Newtown 3, Kolbe 0; Weston 3, Newtown 0

With the South-West Conference quarterfinals looming, the Newtown High School volleyball team is struggling to find its way.

The Lady Nighthawks have dropped three of their last four matches and with just one left on the schedule (New Milford on Wednesday night) they have fallen to 10-5. Last week, the locals fell to Bethel (3-1) and Weston (3-0) while capturing a win over Kolbe-Cathedral (3-0) on Senior Night.

In the loss to Bethel (18-25, 25-20, 25-16, 25-23) Diana Grimaldi and Lisa Morgan continued to shine – Grimaldi with 11 digs, eight kills, six services aces and five blocks and Morgan with 12 assists. Paula Wickman also had a strong performance with 12 kills, three blocks and three digs.

In the win over Kolbe (25-21, 25-8, 25-12) Grimaldi and Wickman combined for 15 kills while Morgan registered 21 assists and seven service aces.

And in the loss to Weston (13-25, 23-25, 17-25) Grimaldi had eight kills and four blocks while Morgan had four aces, four kills, two blocks and 16 assists.