There was some heartache but – ultimately – more cheers on Tuesday in jam-packed day of South-West Conference tournament action.

While the Newtown High School girls’ soccer team was stunned by Bethel, 4-3, on penalty kicks and saw their hopes of an SWC title slip away the boys’ soccer team (2-1 winners over Pomperaug), the field hockey team (2-0 winners over Masuk) and the volleyball team (3-1 winners over Masuk) all made dates for their respective conference championships.

Read on –

VOLLEYBALL

Newtown 3, Joel Barlow 2

Newtown 3, Bethel 0

Newtown 3, Masuk 1

Everyone knew it would come to this – Newtown versus Joel Barlow for the South-West Conference championship.

That was patently obvious last week, as the unbeaten Lady Nighthawks were besting the previously unbeaten Lady Falcons, 3-2, in the final match of the regular season in Redding. There was no question – with the 21-25, 25-17, 13-15, 25-15, 15-12 win by the ‘Hawks – that the two best teams in the SWC were on the court.

Of course, in the tournament anything can happen. But both Newtown and Barlow took care of business and set the stage for championship match on Saturday, November 3, at 7 pm at Pomperaug High School in Southbury.

“We never thought about the (undefeated) record,” said senior co-captain Sarah Truitt following the 3-2 regular season win over Barlow last week. “We looked at this as a possible preview of the SWC championship and we wanted to know how to play against them.”

Coming up with a strategy to play Barlow is to figure out what to do about the Lady Falcon’s big middle hitter, Kristin Hanczor, and the two digging demons, Jacqueline and Jennifer Shinall. But while Hanczor was an imposing threat not only at the net, but behind the service line, the ‘Hawks went at her.

“She is a very good player,” said Truitt, “and we can’t keep it away from her. We have to go out and keep playing our game.”

Truitt finished that match with 11 digs and 29 assists. Morgan Knees – who closed things out in the fifth game with back-to-back spikes – finished with 13 kills and five blocks. Melissa Fracker added 13 digs.

Hanczor powered the Falcons with 16 kills, 13 digs and nine blocks. The Shinall twins combined for 41 digs, with Jenn chipping in 28 assists and Jacqueline added 14 kills. Liz Soltesz recorded 18 digs.

The win propelled the ‘Hawks – now 20-0 and ranked No. 1 in CIAC Class LL – into the SWC quarterfinals. An easy 3-0 win (25-18, 25-9, 25-17) over Bethel sent the locals into the semifinals against Masuk, a team which extended the ‘Hawks to five games back on October 10.

Newtown rolled to a 25-12 win in the first game and then added a 25-21 win in the second to put the Lady Panthers on the brink. After stumbling in game three, the ‘Hawks closed out the match with a 25-23 win in game four.

Knees finished with 11 kills, eight digs and seven blocks as Emily Loose collected eight kills and seven service aces. Megan Casey chipped in with seven kills and 13 digs.

BOYS SOCCER

Newtown 1, New Milford 0 (PK)

Newtown 2, Pomperaug 1 (PK)

In a penalty kick shootout, anything can happen.

And what happened was improbable, to say the least, as the #6-seeded Newtown High School boys’ soccer team advanced to the South-West Conference championship with two consecutive penalty kick shootout wins – a 1-0 win over #3 New Milford last Saturday and a 2-1 win over #2 Pomperaug on Tuesday afternoon.

The Nighthawks – who improved to 9-3-5 on the season – will square off with #5 Joel Barlow, which blanked top-seeded Bethel, 1-0, in the nightcap of the SWC semifinal doubleheader at Pomperaug High School in Southbury.

Normally a very prolific offensive team, the ‘Hawks, through the first 15 games of the season, scored just 37 goals – or an average of only 2.47 per game (25 of those goals came in just four games, against New Fairfield, Stratford, Bunnell and Notre Dame). While the locals showed a lot of effort, they simply had to scratch and claw for their goals.

That effort was ratcheted up another notch – or two – last Saturday on a soaked field in New Milford. The ‘Hawks seemed to get to every free ball first and consistently tested the New Milford defense and goaltender Pat Lynch.

“The last time we played New Milford we were short a couple of players and ended with a 1-1 draw,” said senior co-captain Mat deBrantes. “Tonight, I think we out-played and out-hustled them.”

Newtown took 16 shots on goal, but couldn’t sneak one past Lynch. On the other side, the Green Wave managed just four shots on goal but senior co-captain Dan Smith made all the stops. And after 80 minutes of soccer, nothing was resolved.

The locals had a couple of nice chances in the first overtime session – one, especially, on a great feed from Evan Kennedy – but nothing came of it. And despite the efforts of players like Andrew Meisel, John Gouveia, Connor Collier, Matt Slattery and deBrantes another 20 minutes of soccer did nothing to decide the game.

And so it went to kicks.

Meisel, Andrew Domingos, Slattery and Kennedy all converted on their kicks and the fifth man in the rotation did not even have to toe the line as Smith made stops on New Milford’s third and fifth attempts to lift the ‘Hawks to the win.

“It stinks to lose on PKs,” said deBrantes, “but it’s sweet when you win.”

And three nights later, they had to do it all over again.

Ryan Hudock put Newtown on top, 1-0, with a goal 15 minutes into the second half. But the Panthers tied it up about six minutes later on a goal by Joel Rubino. For the next 19 minutes of regulation and 20 minutes of overtime, the match continued to hang in the balance.

So it went to kicks. And like on Saturday night, the ‘Hawks did not have to send their fifth kicker to the line. Meisel, Domingos, Sam Hoagland and Kennedy all converted their attempts while Smith made two key stops to send the locals to the SWC championship for the sixth time in the last seven years.

But the Nighthawks are looking to rewrite history a little bit, considering that last year they lost to Joel Barlow in the SWC semifinals and the year before lost to Joel Barlow in the SWC championship game.

Newtown 1, New Milford 0 (PK)

SHOTS: Newtown – 16; New Milford – 4. SAVES: Newtown – Dan Smith 4; New Milford – Pat Lynch 7. CORNER KICKS: Newtown – 8; New Milford – 2.

Newtown 2, Pomperaug 1 (PK)

GOALS: Newtown – Ryan Hudock; Pomperaug – Joel Rubino. ASSISTS: Newtown – Matt Slattery; Pomeraug – Chris Comeau, Daniel Fabian. SHOTS: Newtown – 8; Pomperaug – 16. SAVES: Newtown – Dan Smith 7; Pomperaug – Tom Berlenbach 6, Brian Schaake 0. CORNER KICKS: Newtown – 0; Pomperaug – 3.

FIELD HOCKEY

Newtown 2, New Fairfield 1

Newtown 1, Shepaug 1

Newtown 2, Masuk 0

The clock read 00:00, but there was still plenty of time to score.

Hannah Tenenbaum used a nifty back-handed lift to score the first – and, ultimately, winning – goal in the Newtown High School field hockey team’s thrilling 2-0 win over Masuk in the South-West Conference semi-finals at Weston.

Time had officially expired in the first half, but right before it did Newtown was awarded a penalty corner (one of 14 on the night). By rule, the half is not over until the penalty corner has been completed – i.e., the ball leaves the circle or a goal is scored.

The Lady Nighthawks took the second route.

“I learned how to do the lift in the past,” said Tenenbaum, “but I haven’t had the opportunity to use it before.”

And just to put the icing on the cake, Courtney Gleason slammed a shot into the cage from the top of the circle with 10 seconds left in the second half and, moments later, celebrated the historic win with her teammates.

The 2-0 victory sent the ‘Hawks to the SWC championship game for the first time ever.

“This is the first time we’ve been in this position,” said Gleason, “and we knew this was the game we had to win.”

Pomperaug defeated New Milford, 4-0, in the second game of semifinal doubleheader. The SWC championship game was set for Thursday at 7:30 pm at Pomperaug High School in Southbury.

Even in the midst of their best season ever, the ‘Hawks knew their semifinal tilt with the Lady Panthers would be no picnic. Back on October 12, the two teams drew to a 1-1 tie and by the time they met again on Tuesday, the Panthers had racked up 12 wins.

“New Milford is our big rival,” said Gleason, “and Masuk beat them, 3-1, so that was a little scary.”

And the ‘Hawks – who finished up the regular season with a 2-1 win over New Fairfield and 1-1 draw with Shepaug Valley – played with those pre-Halloween jitters for the first several minutes of the opening half. With nearly nine minutes gone in the game, goaltender Lisa Isabella was forced to make a stop on a hard smash from inside the circle.

About 14 minutes into the game, though, the ‘Hawks got their first good rush at the cage and with 11:20 left in the half, Gleason had a hard shot off a penalty corner.

The tide had turned.

“I think once we got the first few corners,” said Gleason, “we realized how close we were.”

Newtown had a sequence of five penalty corners in a row with 4:39 left in the half, but was unable to convert. But on the last corner of the half, they did. The ‘Hawks had a couple of shots on the cage off the corner, but Masuk failed to clear and Tenenbaum was in the right place at the right time.

The goal was off the lift and, at the same time, it provided a huge lift to the ‘Hawks, who continued to dominate the game. The only other credible opportunity Masuk had was with 16:06 left to play, but on a hard deflection about thigh high Isabella made a pad save to preserve the shutout.

It was Isabella’s ninth shutout of the season.

Now, the task ahead is a daunting one, indeed. Pomperaug is 16-1-0 and beat Newtown twice by a count of 2-0 and 3-1.

In the annals of local field hockey, one would be talking decades when referring to the last time Newtown bested Pomperaug.

“The whole tournament was filled with surprises,” said Tenenbaum. “Maybe we can surprise some people, too.”

Newtown 2, New Fairfield 1

GOALS: Newtown – Nicole Alberico, Renee Solheim; New Fairfield – Ashley Andreasen. ASSISTS: Newtown – Taylor Barry, Linda Magliocco. SHOTS: Newtown – 16; New Fairfield – 9. SAVES: Newtown – Lisa Isabella 3; New Fairfield - Ashley Visser 5. PENALTY CORNERS: Newtown – 11; New Fairfield – 5.

Newtown 1, Shepaug 1

GOALS: Newtown – Renee Solheim; Shepaug – Linnea Quist. ASSISTS: Newtown – Courtney Gleason;Sbepaug – Courtney Weaving. SHOTS: Newtown – 20; Shepaug – 7. SAVES: Newtown – Lisa Isabella 2; Shepaug – Kathryn Droessler 7. PENALTY CORNERS: Newtown – 12; Shepaug – 4.

Newtown 2, Masuk 0

GOALS: Newtown – Hannah Tenenbaum, Courtney Gleason. SHOTS: Newtown – 18; Masuk – 5. SAVES: Newtown – Lisa Isabella 5; Masuk – Kelsey Cox  16. CORNER KICKS: Newtown – 14; Masuk – 4.

GIRLS SOCCER

Newtown 2, New Milford 1

Bethel 4, Newtown 3 (PK)

Everyone sensed it – this was going to be the year the Newtown High School girls’ soccer team was going to win a South-West Conference championship.

Instead, the Lady Nighthawks will once again have to watch from the sidelines while two other teams battle for that championship. This, after a semifinal battle on Tuesday night that saw the ‘Hawks, 4-3, stunned by Bethel in a penalty kick shootout.

Some will question whether fate, since the inception of the SWC more than a decade ago, is simply against the ‘Hawks after Bethel benefited with two virtually un-savable goals and another that came after a loose ball squirted through the hands of Newtown goaltender Emily Kluga.

No matter how the circumstances appeared, it looked as if the ‘Hawks would not be denied. After Bethel took a 1-0 lead just 2:15 into the game, the locals answered back on two quick goals by Megan Hansen to take a 2-1 lead.

The first came with 17:30 left in the first half when junior Kasey Schulz was taken down in the box by Bethel goaltender Justine Braisted and Newtown was awarded a penalty kick. The second game less than two minutes later when Kelly Sullivan sent a perfect cross to the far post, where a sliding Hansen knocked it into the goal.

With 20:06 left in the game, though, Bethel drew even when a slow-moving shot on goal slipped through the hands of Kluga. An alert Liana Eckert was still in the box and raced forward to tap the ball into the net.

A shocker, yes, but the locals recaptured the lead with 5:53 left to play when Ally Modzelewski sent a perfect through ball to Schulz, who ended up with an easy one-on-one opportunity and the goal that put the locals on top, 3-2.

Then, with 2:21 left to play, a long serve on the net from some 30 yards out by Liana Eckert slipped under the crossbar, beyond the reach of Kluga, to even the score at 3-3 and, ultimately, send the game into overtime.

A Bethel header off the cross bar in the first 10-minute session was the closest either team came to scoring.

In the first round of penalty kicks, the Lady Wildcats had a 2-1 advantage after three kicks, but Brittany Papaj and Hansen converted and Kluga made a key save to send the game into another round. The ‘Hawks and ‘Cats each converted on their first two kicks, but three consecutive misses – the last a nice save by Braisted – sent Bethel on to the finals and Newtown on home to await the start of the CIAC Class LL state tournament.

The SWC tournament was a bit of a struggle all the way through the ‘Hawks, who out-scored their opponents 51-11 heading into the post-season. The locals narrowly edged New Milford, 2-1, in the quarterfinals last week on a pair of goals by Schulz.

Newtown is currently ranked second in CIAC Class LL behind undefeated Cheshire.

The state tournament is set to open on Monday.

Newtown 2, New Milford 1

GOALS: Newtown – Kasey Schulz 2; New Milford – Michaela McCrain. ASSISTS: Newtown – Monica Warek, Tania Domingos. SHOTS: Newtown – 20; New Milford – 8. SAVES: Newtown – Emily Kluga 8; New Milford – Desarae VanCoughnett 12. CORNER KICKS: Newtown – 4; New Milford – 1.

Bethel 4, Newtown 3

GOALS: Bethel – Lianna Eckert 2, Tara Nathan; Newtown – Megan Hansen 2, Kasey Schulz.ASSISTS: Bethel – Jo Ann Merheb; Newtown – Kelly Sullivan, Ally Modzelewski. SHOTS: Bethel – 18; Newtown – 23. SAVES: Bethel – Justine Braisted 14; Newtown – Emily Kluga.

FOOTBALL

Bunnell 35, Newtown 14

A berth in the South-West Conference championship game was, if not exactly probably, at least mathematically possible for the Newtown High School football team.

But Bunnell did the math – and the remainder did not come up Newtown.

With three touchdown passes from quarterback Chris Sloat, the Bulldogs defeated the Nighthawks, 35-14, on Sunday afternoon in Stratford. The loss dropped the locals to 5-2-0 overall and fourth place in the Colonial Division.

Whatever mathematical hopes the ‘Hawks had of qualifying for the CIAC Class LL playoffs also took a serious hit. The locals fell from sixth to ninth in the rankings.

The locals had some trouble holding on to the football on Sunday, turning the ball over five times. A couple of those fumbles were turned into touchdowns as Bunnell took a 29-0 lead at the half and 35-0 lead by the close of the third period.

Jamie Goodwick scored both of the Newtown touchdowns in the fourth period, the first on a one-yard run and the second on an 18-yard run. Freshman kicker Rory Noonan added the extra point both times.

Junior quarterback Jake DeVellis led the ‘Hawks on the ground, rushing for 68 yards on 10 carries. The locals amassed 144 yards on the ground while the ‘Dogs gained 152. But the Newtown passing game accounted for just 73 yards while the ‘Dogs gained 212 yards through the air.

Bunnell is the second-highest scoring team in the South-West Conference with 284 points in eight games, or 35.5 points per game.

The locals will return to the field on Saturday at 3 pm when they visit Joel Barlow. The Falcons are 2-5-0 overall, having allowed 212 points on the season.

Bunnell 35, Newtown 14

First quarter: Bunnell – Guerrero 1 run (Guerrero run). Second quarter: Bunnell – Sloat 21 run (pass failed); Bunnell – Harrison 49 pass Sloat (Jackson run); Bunnell – Easley 17 pass Sloat (Sloat kick). Third quarter: Bunnell – Harrison 6 pass Sloat (kick blocked). Fourth quarter: Newtown – Goodwick 1 run (Noonan kick); Newtown – Goodwick 18 run (Noonan kick).

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing: Newtown – Jake DeVellis 10-68, Jamie Goodwick 7-30, Kyle O’Connor 3-23, Brian Reszoly 2-10, Brendan Martin 1-7, Kurt Nacewicz 4-5; Bunnell – Oliver Aurelia 10-89, Chris Sloat 9-42, Mike Easley 1-5, Jonathan Jackson 2-4, Mario Guerrero 3-2. Passing: Newtown – Jake DeVellis 5-8-1 for 55 yards, Charlie LoBosco 1-5-1 for 18 yards; Bunnell – Chris Sloat 11-23-0 for 179 yards, Chris Rosario 1-1-0 for 33 yards. Receiving: Newtown – Brian Reszoly 2-21, Eric Dreher 1-18, Jamie Goodwick 1-13, Kurt Nacewicz 1-11, Conor Martin 1-10; Bunnell – Mario Guerrero 3-71, Mark Harrison 3-68, Mike Easley 5-60.

GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY

5th in Class LL

Elise DeRoo proved herself as one of the top runners in the state, but the Newtown High School girls’ cross country team was just a step off the pace set by teams like Glastonbury and Hall of West Hartford.

DeRoo finished second overall to Heather Stephens of Ridgefield as the Lady Nighthawks earned a fifth-place finish at the CIAC Class LL championships last week at Wickham Park in Manchester.

Stephens crossed the line in 16:04 and DeRoo, who led the ‘Hawks to their sixth consecutive South-West Conference championship about eight days before, trailed in 14 seconds later. Jennifer Brill was second for the ‘Hawks, 12th overall, at 17:17.

Glastonbury eased into first and was followed by William Hall, Norwich Free Academy, Ridgefield and, then, Newtown.

Sara Pollock (24th – 17:41), Anne Martino (36th – 18:04) and Carolyn Gingras (63rd – 18:46) rounded out Newtown’s top five. Christie Attanasio (75th – 19:02) did not figure into the meet scoring.

The CIAC State Open championships will be held Friday, November 2, at 2:45 pm at Wickham Park.

TEAMS – 1. Glastonbury 1:25.38; 2. William Hall 1:27.29; 3. Norwich Free Academy 1:27.31; 4. Ridgefield 1:27.39; 5. Newtown 1:28.06; 6 Amity 1:28.18; 7. Shelton 1:30.52; 8. Cheshire 1:31.05; 9. Manchester 1:31.06; 10. South Windsor 1:32.20; 11. Staples 1:33.30; 12. Trumbull 1:33.36; 13. Greenwich 1:34.15; 14. New Milford 1:34.37; 15. Hamden 1:37.25; 16. Southington 1:40.42; 17. Danbury 1:43.59; 18. Westhill 1:46.16; 19. Masuk 1:48.32; 20. West Haven 1:50.23.

INDIVIDUALS – 1. Heather Stephens (Ridgefield) 16:04; 2. Elise DeRoo (Newtown) 16:18; 3. Lindsay Crevoiserat (Glastonbury) 16:28; 4. Jenna London (Hall) 16:28; 5. Katherine Beam (South Windsor) 16:29; 6. Kristin Mitchell (Glastonbury) 16:32; 7. Meegan Joly (Norwich Free Academy) 16:36; 8. Irene Kalbian (Cheshire) 16:38; 9. Christine Vogel (Glastonbury) 16:39; 10. Cassy Hunter (Norwich Free Academy) 17:06; 11. Annelies Gamble (Amity) 17:11; 12. Jennifer Brill (Newtown) 17:17; 13. Katherine K Howley (Ridgefield) 17:18; 14. Madeleine Elkins (Westhill) 17:18; 15. Alicia Kaestli (Staples) 17:18; 16. Isabella F Corso (Ridgefield) 17:23; 17. Morgan Roche (Hall) 17:25; 18. Ashley Sarris (Shelton) 17:26; 19. Paige Pallotto (Amity) 17:27; 20. Lacey Vogel (Amity) 17:29; 21. Kathleen O’Brien (Norwich Free Academy) 17:35; 22. Emily Anderson (Manchester) 17:38; 23. Stephanie Bohannon (Hall) 17:41; 24. Sara Pollock (Newtown) 17:41; 25. Alissa Watson (Manchester) 17:46; 36. Anne Martino (Newtown) 18:04; 63. Carolyn Gingras (Newtown) 18:46; 75. Christie Attanasio (Newtown) 19:02

BOYS CROSS COUNTRY

9th in CIAC Class LL

The Newtown High School boys’ cross country has found a lot of success (and some glory) on the state level the past few years and the Nighthawks were looking for a little bit more last week at the CIAC Class LL championships at Wickham Park in Manchester.

With Kevin Hoyt finishing eighth overall at 16:42 – about 50 seconds behind Donald Cabral of Glastonbury – the ‘Hawks finished ninth overall.

Danbury, with all five of their runners finishing in the top 10, stormed to the title ahead of Glastonbury and Norwich Free Academy. Newtown finished behind Xavier of Middlebury and just ahead of Manchester.

David Meyer was Newtown’s second runner, coming in 37th overall at 17:53. Alex DiNoto came in third for the locals, 42nd overall, at 18:04. Jordan Reed (62nd – 18:18) and Adam Schankman (101st – 19:14) also ran well to round out the top five.

Jon Zigman (106th – 19:24) and Tucker Grose (108th – 19:31) did not figure into the scoring.

TEAMS – 1. Danbury 29; 2. Glastonbury 88; 3. Norwich Free Academy 127; 4. Shelton 142; 5. Simsbury 146; 6. Ridgefield 172; 7. Westhill 187; 8. Xavier 235; 9. Newtown 250; 10. Manchester 259; 11. Fairfield Prep 294; 11. Cheshire 294; 13. South Windsor 351; 14. Trumbull 388; 15. Southington 393; 16. Hamden 437; 17. Naugatuck 459; 18. Greenwich 522; 19. Norwalk 527; 20. East Hartford 650; 21. West Haven 656; 22. New Britain 661.

INDIVIDUALS – 1. Donald Cabral (Glastonbury) 15:52; 2. Forrest Misenti (Xavier) 16:08; 3. Matt Terry (Danbury) 16:35; 4. Joseph Bubniak (Danbury) 16:36; 5. James Llamas (Glastonbury) 16:38; 6. Willie Ahearn (Danbury) 16:41; 7. Tucker Schaefer (Danbury) 16:42; 8. Kevin Hoyt (Newtown) 16:42; 9. Ricky Balmaseda (Danbury) 16:44; 10. Justin Rau (Danbury) 16:56; 11. Andrew Cardin (Norwich Free Academy) 16:58; 12. James Grebey (Westhill) 16:59; 13. Kevin Russell (Danbury) 17:00; 14. Keith Sansone (Shelton) 17:02; 15. Cody Otto (Glastonbury) 17:03; 16. Justin Mullen (Simsbury) 17:07; 17. Peter Jankovsky (Westhill) 17:08; 18. Matthew Oakes (Ridgefield) 17:08; 19. Jonathan Verrengia (Simsbury) 17:08; 20. Michael J Ignatowic (Ridgefield) 17:17; 21. Robert Yamnicky (Shelton) 17:21; 22. Colby Welch (Manchester) 17:25; 23. Craig Babcock (Norwich Free Academy) 17:27; 24. Ehrin McWeeney (Shelton) 17:29; 25. Richard Stoliker II (Shelton) 17:29; 37. David Meyer (Newtown) 17:53; 42. Alex DiNoto (Newtown) 18:04; 62. Jordan Reed (Newtown) 18:18; 101. Adam Schankman (Newtown) 19:14; 106. Jon Zigman (Newtown) 19:24; 108. Tucker Grose (Newtown) 19:31.