The new year — as in this season for Newtown High School’s girls’ basketball team — has started off pretty well, and Coach Jeremy O’Connell is hopeful the Nighthawks can build off recent success as his Nighthawks begin play in the New Year.

Newtown has won two consecutive games, and three of four to carry an overall record of 3-2 into 2023. The Nighthawks followed a 38-32 setback at Kolbe Cathedral of Bridgeport on December 29 with a 41-29 win at Norwich Free Academy two days later, then a 51-22 triumph over visiting East Lyme on December 27.

O’Connell was pleased with how strongly his team came out in the win over East Lyme.

“We played our style and we were able to finish the first quarter,” said O’Connell, whose team led 19-5 heading to the second and built a commanding 38-10 halftime lead before holding the visitors scoreless in the third.

The magic number in this one was 19. In addition to the Hawks putting up that point total in each of the first two stanzas, Izzy Caron led all scorers with 19 points, including nine on a trio of 3-pointers. What’s more, the Hawks racked up 19 steals.

Bella Gerace and Bridget McCleary both scored nine, Allie Bradley had eight, and Kristen Reisert and Sofia Verdi added four and two, respectively.

Bradley had six rebounds and one shot block, and Ava Rochester had five rebounds. Gerace led the Hawks with five steals, Caron had four, Reisert and McCleary both had three, and Bradley and Sam Diaspro each had two.

In the previous game, against NFA, Gerace poured in 16 to lead the Nighthawks; McCleary had nine, and Rochester and Bradley each contributed seven.

“We’re nowhere near where we want to be yet,” said O’Connell, adding that he has been pleased with his team’s improvement on defensive positioning and getting out on the fast break. O’Connell added that the 1-3-1 zone defense is looking good and that he would like to see some improvement in half-court man defense and in boxing out.

“Every year our expectations are to try for an SWC championship and a deep run in states. We want to be playing our best basketball in February,” said O’Connell, whose squad is looking to get back to its first South-West Conference title game since 2020, one year after winning it all.

The Nighthawks restart after New Year’s with a battle against New Fairfield, runner-up to Notre Dame-Fairfield in last year’s SWC pinnacle game; the Rebels visit NHS on Thursday, January 5 at 7 o’clock.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.