By Kim J. Harmon

Considering the almost incomprehensible success of the 2004 fall season (a combined 102-24-1 record with three conference champions and two state champions), the 2004-05 winter season seems to have been a bit of a downer.

No, it wasn’t all that great – the six winter sports teams combined for a mediocre 49-49 record with only two individual conference champions (one in swimming and one in wrestling) on which the Nighthawks could hang their collective hat.

A downer?

Sure.

But a failure?

No.

It seemed like something special happened to each team during the past four months that the Nighthawks will be able to overlook the losing records, the early exits from the conference and/or state tournaments, and the general lack of hardware brought home for the trophy case.

GIRLS BASKETBALL (14-9)

 

The 2004-05 season marked the return of Meghan Kelley to the Newtown floor.

After spending a season with the Immaculate High School girls’ basketball, Kelley returned and quickly became the Nighthawks’ leading scorer. She finished with 383 points, the fifth-best single-season total in school history.

At the same time, senior Ashley LaRocque finished her career with 751 points, tied with Jenn Wyslick for seventh on the all-time scoring list.

Kelley averaged 16.6 per game and LaRocque tossed in 11.2 per game for the ‘Hawks, who fell to the No. 1 team in the state, Manchester, in the CIAC Class LL state tournament.

BOYS BASKETBALL (8-14)

 

With the departure of Andrew Fiscella, Dave Anderson and Ron Shimko no one gave the Newtown High School boys’ basketball team much of a chance to compete.

And after the ‘Hawks started the season 0-4, maybe everyone was right.

But more than halfway through the season, the ‘Hawks were 7-7 and  building themselves up as a legitimate threat in the South-West Conference.

Marcus Tracy was having a good season, Josh Rouse was having a good season, Anthony Santella and Kyle Lyddy had become integral components of the team, and freshman Kevin Troy was displaying an incredible shooting touch.

Even though the ‘Hawks went 1-7 the rest of the way, they had a lot to look back on.

SWIMMING (7-3)

 

With teams like Brookfield and Pomperaug in the mix, no one could legitimately expect the Newtown High School swim team to finish any better than third or fourth.

Seven wins in the dual meet season ... a fourth-place finish at the South-West Conference championships ... a new school record in the 200 medley relay ... a new school record in the 400 freestyle relay ... and an individual championship for butterflier Andrew Heller.

Not bad.

At the SWC championships, Heller was seeded second in the 100 butterfly to Matthew Noonan of Weston and yet blew away the field with a 54.57 finish to take the championship.

The fact that the Nighthawks finished fourth overall at the meet did nothing to diminish their accomplishments for the 2004-05 season.

WRESTLING (12-10)

 

Injuries did their part to put a damper on the 2004-05 season for the Newtown High School wrestling team, but the mat was still an exciting place to be.

As newcomer Bob Pattison fired up the crowd with his ferocious style of wrestling, co-captain Alex Read was carving a place for himself in the Newtown record books.

Read captured the South-West Conference 189-pound title with a 6-3 win over previously undefeated Doug Sutherland and went on to finish fifth at the CIAC Class LL championships, securing his 101st career win along the way and joining the select 100-win club at Newtown High.

ICE HOCKEY (8-13-0)

 

The Newtown High School ice hockey team had its back against the boards before the 2004-05 season even started, but they managed to rise above their troubles to improve on a dismal 2003-04 campaign.

Despite a shakeup in the coaching staff and the defection of one of their best players, the Nighthawks won six of their first 10 games.

As Sean and Blaise LaPorta continued to lead the team, younger players like Francis Oggeri, Chris Kraft and Blake Bell were starting to step up and show themselves.

Even though the ‘Hawks dropped five in a row after their nice start and failed to qualify for the CIAC Division II state tournament, maybe 2004-05 was a new beginning.

INDOOR TRACK

 

Since there is no wins or losses and no official “meet” season, the one true goal of the Newtown High School indoor track and field team is capturing a South-West Conference or state championship.

The ‘Hawks did neither, but in the process of competing they slashed the school record sheet to shreds.

At the CIAC Class LL state championships, the ‘Hawks set SIX new school records.

For the girls –

Sadie Ball set a new mark in the 1,000 meters, Colleen Thornberg set a new mark in the 600 meters, and the foursome of Julie Landin, Whitney Allison, Thoirnberg and Ball set a new mark in the 4x400 relay (re-setting it a week later at the CIAC State Open).

For the boys –

The foursome of Dan Gindraux, Liam Cawley, Nick Varga and Matt Cole smoked to a school record in the sprint medley while the foursome of Scott Nichols, Jake Sullivan, Rob DeFillippe and Jon Larsen set a new school mark in the 4x400 relay.

And then the foursome of Varga, Dan Tichon, Cawley and Gindraux set a new record in the 4x200 relay.

Wow – what a winter.