By Kim J. Harmon

 

Alex Konneker and Sadie Ball may have combined for six titles, but they were merely the biggest cogs in a Newtown High School girls’ track and field machine that rolled to a South-West Conference championship on Tuesday afternoon in Brookfield.

Konneker captured first place the 100-, 200- and 400-meter dashes while Ball captured first in the 800- and 1,600-meter races and the two got together with Remy Ball and Ciara Simek to capture first in the 4x400 relay as the Lady Nighthawks easily distanced themselves from the rest of the field and won their second conference championship in a row.

“Sadie has gotten so much better,” said head coach Doug Russell, “and then to have Alex come off the 100 and go on to win the 400 is an incredible feat.”

It was the second year in a row that Konneker earned and/or shared four titles and was named the top track athlete at the meet. For Ball, it was a masterful performance as she simply bided her time in both the 800- and 1,600-meter races to overcome Kasey Sullivan of Pomperaug and Erika Mansson of Masuk.

“Sadie has been running very smart,” said coach Russell. “She measures out the field and waits her turn.”

The efforts of Konneker and Ball seemed more than enough to carry the day, but the ‘Hawks simply bombarded their opponents from almost all quarters.

The 4x800 relay team of Darcy Fiscella, Whitney Allison, Kate Stickles and Remy Ball – who all turned in splits in the 2:30 range – started off with a conference title but then sophomore Kristi Nowak gave the ‘Hawks an exciting jolt when she finished second to Konneker in the 100-meter dash.

“Kristi pushed Alex and pushed herself,” said coach Russell, “and she had an amazing race.”

Jessica Cosgrove earned a second-place finish in the discus with a throw of 103-8 … just four inches off the winning mark.

But Stickles (5th – 1,600 meters; 4th – 800 meters), Julie Landin (6th – 400 meters; 6th – 200 meters), Elise DeRoo (6th – 3,200 meters), Simek (6th – long jump), Gabby Nastri (5th – triple jump), Jacky Curran (3rd – high jump), Siobhan Cooper (4th – shot put; 5th – javelin), Leah Herity (3rd – pole vault) all got into the act and delivered a convincing win for Newtown.

“The girls were very confident,” said coach Russell, “but once we got off the bus they were focused and ready to go. I have been working on keeping them level-headed all year and they certainly kept their poise.”

Although Jen Brill and Michelle Brennan did not score in the meet, they both a chunk of time off their personal bests in the 3,200 meters – 15 seconds for Brill and 13 seconds for Brennan – and showed what the ‘Hawks have in store for next year.

“We have 30 some sophomores on this team,” said coach Russell, “and my goal is to keep building the program and continuing to improve. It’s exciting.”

Exciting for everyone.

The results –

TEAM SCORES: Newtown 118, Brookfield 89, Masuk 65, Pomperaug 60, Bethel 46, Joel Barlow 44, Weston 26, Bunnell 26, Stratford 24, New Fairfield 19, Lauralton Hall 15, Notre Dame-Fairfield 12, New Milford 12, Immaculate 0.

 

Track Events

4x800 relay – 1. Newtown (Darcy Fiscella, Whitney Allison, Kate Stickles, Remy Ball), 10:08.34; 2. Masuk, 10:13.68; 3. Joel Barlow, 10:16.74; 4. New Fairfield, 10:21.42; 5. Weston, 10:23.14; 6. New Milford, 10:51.93; 4x100 relay – 1. Weston (Sarah Sidhu, Nicole Krist, Catherine Sippin, Gabrielle Brody), 53.01; 2. Lauralton Hall, 53.46; 3. Pomperaug, 53.98; 4. Bethel, 54.50; 5. Newtown, 54.56; 6. Masuk, 54.86; 1,600 meters – 1. Sadie Ball, Newtown, 5:26.94; 2. Kasey Sullivan, Pomperaug, 5:31.33; 3. Erika Mansson, Masuk, 5:36.36; 4. Rebecca McCollum, Masuk, 5:38.24; 5. Stefanie Cullingford, Masuk, 5:39.82; 6. Kate Stickles, Newtown, 5:40.72; 100 high hurdles – 1. Lauren Tanz, Brookfield, 15.47; 2. Mary Stocking, Pomperaug, 16.60; 3. Jessie Belden, Brookfield, 17.26; 4. Catherine Sippin, Weston, 17.75; 5. Alex Helmes, New Fairfield, 20.34; 100 dash – 1. Alex Konneker, Newtown, 13.03; 2. Kristi Nowak, Newtown, 13.35; 3. Mary Negro, Lauralton Hall, 13.58; 4. Krystina Lucia, Stratford, 13.71; 5. Ashley Matakevich, Bunnell, 13.72; 400 dash – 1. Alex Konneker, Newtown, 59.93; 2. Olivia Pruszko, Masuk, 1:00.01; 3. Kara Fisher, New Milford, 1:00.98; 4. Erica Celini, Joel Barlow, 1:02.46; 5. Chelsea Schumacher, Bethel, 1:02.87; 6. Julie Landin, Newtown, 1:03.66; 300 intermediate hurdles – 1. Lauren Tanz, Brookfield, 48.78; 2. Mary Stocking, Pommperaug, 49.55; 3. Jessie Belden, Brookfield, 49.89; 4. Amy Gould, Joel Barlow, 49.96; 5. Catherine Sippin, Weston, 50.85; 6. Liz LaMontagne, New Milford, 51.38; 800 meters – 1. Sadie Ball, Newtown, 2:25.45; 2. Kasey Sullivan, Pomperaug, 2:28.10; 3. Erika Mansson, Masuk, 2:28.67; 4. Kate Stickles, Newtown, 2:32.71; 5. Laura Hermann, New Milford, 2:33.41; 6. Remy Ball, Newtown, 2:35.29; 200 dash – 1. Alex Konneker, Newtown, 26.73; 2. Olivia Pruszko, Masuk, 27.21; 3. Erica Celini, Joel Barlow, 28.00; 4. Maria LoBalbo, Bethel, 28.05; 5. Kim Schnabel, New Fairfield, 28.21; 6. Julie Landion, Newtown, 28.28; 3,200 meters – 1. Rebecca McCollum, Masuk, 12:05.46; 2. Katie Baczeski, Pomperaug, 12:17.61; 3. Dana Lehner, Bethel, 12:17.89; 4. Deanna Rogers, Bunnell, 12:28.12; 5. Laura Simons, New Fairfield, 12:31.04; 6. Elise DeRoo, Newtown, 12:35.98; 4x400 relay – 1. Newtown (Remy Ball, Sadie Ball, Ciara Simek, Alex Konneker), 4:15.36; 2. Weston, 4:26.07; 3. Pomperaug, 4:26.58; 4. Joel Barlow, 4:28.64; 5. New Milford, 4:32.90; 6. Brookfield, 4:35.00.

Field Events

Long jump – 1. Lauren Tanz, Brookfield, 15-7.5; 2. Ashley Matakevich, Bunnell, 15-1; 3. Kim Schnabel, 14-7; 4. Laura Czernik, Joel Barlow, 14-6.5; 5. Ashley Critelli, Pomperaug, 14-4.75; 6. Ciara Simek, Newtown, 14-3; Triple jump – 1. Lauren Tanz, Brookfield, 32-1; 2. Ashley Matakevich, Bunnell, 31-8; 3. Krystina Lucia, Stratford, 31-1.75; 4. Shannon Hovan, Bunnell, 30-5.5; 5. Gabby Nastri, Newtown, 30-3.25; 6. Jessie Belden, Brookfield, 29-9.25; High jump – 1. Olivia Pruszko, Masuk, 5-2; 2. Sarah Soldano, Bethel, 5-0; 3. Jacky Curran, Newtown, 4-10; 4. Jessie Beldon, Brookfield, 4-10; 5. Emily Ahlberg, Joel Barlow, 4-8; 6t. Bridget Leahy, Lauralton Hall, 4-8; 6t. Abby Conway, Lauralton Hall, 4-8; Shot put – 1. Randi James, Stratford, 36-7; 2. Candace Williams, Notre Dame-Fairfield, 35-2; 3. Brooke Nichols, Joel Barlow, 31-5; 4. Siobhan Cooper, Newtown, 29-11; 5. Heather Knapp, Pomperaug, 29-4.5; 6. Alexandra Brandt, Bethel, 29-2; Pole vault – 1. Dara Samuel, Brookfield, 8-0; 2. Kristen Barra, Bethel, 7-6; 3. Leah Herity, Newtown, 7-0; 4. Nadine Kesten, Pomperaug, 7-0; 5. Lindsey Weidmann, New Fairfield, 6-6; 6. Alex Helmes, New Fairfield, 6-6; Discus – 1. Samantha Schueschner, Brookfield, 104-0; 2. Jessica Cosgrove, Newtown, 103-8.5; 3. Alissa Graef, Bethel, 97-7.5; 4. Randi James, Stratford, 95-10; 5. Erin Lillywhite, Masuk, 88-8.5; 6. Alexandra Brandt, Bethel, 87-9; Javelin – 1. Judy Allen, Brookfield, 98-0; 2. Brooke Nichols, Joel Barlow, 96-5; 3. Tina Closius, Bethel, 94-7; 4. Sheila Purushotham, Notre Dame-Fairfield, 84-10; 5. Siobhan Cooper, Newtown, 84-3; 6. Samantha Schueschner, Brookfield, 83-11.

 

SOFTBALL

Newtown 4, Stratford 0

Newtown 1, Masuk 0

Newtown 4, Brookfield 1

A four-game losing streak heading into the final week of the season did little to dim the tournament hopes of the Newtown High School softball team.

Instead, the losing streak challenged them – and the Lady Nighthawks proved worthy to the challenge, defeating Stratford (4-0) and Masuk (1-0) to close out the regular season and then overcoming one of their chief foes, Brookfield (4-1), in the quarterfinals of the South-West Conference tournament.

“We didn’t really play poorly in any of those (losses),” said head coach Jay Edwards. “It was just a hit here or a hit there, a gap here and gap there. We were right there … like we have been all year.”

The win over Stratford was a grand day for the ‘Hawks and their senior pitcher Lisa Morgan.

On a bright, sunny afternoon – with the new scoreboard (donated by assistant coach Lin Hertberg) operating for the first time – the ‘Hawks celebrated Senior Day and watched as Morgan whiffed seven batters, set the all-time Newtown strikeout record (now at 658), and recorded her 50th career win.

Morgan helped herself out with a two-run double as Ashley Ferris and Emily Blewett also drove in runs.

The following day, the ‘Hawks closed out the regular season with a 1-0 win over rival Masuk. The lone run was unearned and – once again – Lisa Alberico was the one scoring it (she only has 16 official at bats, but she has scored 14 runs this year).

That set the stage for the SWC quarterfinals in Brookfield.

The ‘Hawks lost twice to the Lady Bobcats during the regular season, both times by a 1-0 score, and when the ‘Hawks allowed an unearned run in the top of the first inning on Monday coach Edwards could barely suppress a groan.

But the ‘Hawks recovered … despite getting a runner tossed out at the plate in the bottom of the first.

“We told the girls we weren’t going to let this happen again,” said coach Edwards.

In the bottom of the fourth, the locals rallied for four runs in large part on singles by Meg LaFlamme and Sammie Ciaccia.

After Annie Grills earned a leadoff walk, LaFlamme – in a textbook bunting situation – singled to center. Then Ciaccia – in another textbook bunting situation – singled to left to load the bases with no outs.

“Conventional wisdom says to bunt in those situations,” said coach Edwards, “but Meg has hit (Brookfield pitcher Ashley Castellano) hard all year and Sam has been swinging well, too.”

Christina Wolf lofted a fly ball to right field and Grills appeared to get gunned down at the plate by Melissa Coladarci, but it was ruled that Grills was interfered with when she attempted to get back to third and tag up.

The fly out counted, but the ‘Hawks had runners on second and third. Ferris was walked to load the bases and Jenna Van Waalwijk’s fielder’s choice grounder back to the mound forced out LaFlamme at the plate.

Morgan then delivered an RBI single to score Ciaccia and Alberico – running for Ferris – followed her in on a throwing error to put the ‘Hawks ahead, 3-1. Blewett followed with a run-scoring single to give the ‘Hawks their margin of victory.

Blewett made an even bigger impact in the field, snaring a couple of fly balls in the sixth and seventh innings on a dead run to keep Brookfield from mounting an attack.

Newtown’s reward for winning the game was a visit in the semi-finals with unbeaten Lauralton Hall, a team that did not allow a run in its first 16 games (although the ‘Hawks snapped that streak in a 5-2 loss on May 13).

The game was originally scheduled for Tuesday night at Penders Field in Stratford and rain forced its postponement to Wednesday … although at press time it looked as if the game would be postponed again.

NOTE: Kelley Tenney collected her first varsity hit in the win over Brookfield.

Newtown 4, Stratford 0

BATTERIES: Newtown – Lisa Morgan and Ashley Ferris; Stratford – Vicki Petersen and Nicole Venna. WP: Morgan (11-8). LP: Petersen (1-5). SO: Morgan 7, Petersen 3. BB: Morgan, Petersen 4. 2B: Morgan 1. RBI: Newtown – Morgan 2, Ferris, Emily Blewett.

Newtown 4, Brookfield 1

BATTERIES: Brookfield – Ashley Castellano and Caitlin Smith; Newtown – Lisa Morgan and Ashley Ferris. WP: Morgan (13-8). LP: Castellano (12-7). SO: Castellano 2, Morgan 4. BB: Castellano 2. 2B: Meg LaFlamme (N), Christina Wolf (N). RBI: Newtown – Morgan.

GIRLS TENNIS

Newtown 4, Lauralton Hall 3

Joel Barlow 5, Newtown 2

Okay, maybe their top singles players are among the top-ranked players in New England but Newtown girls tennis head coach Maureen Maher still thought her team had a chance to knock off Joel Barlow in the semi-finals of the South-West Conference team tournament on Monday.

A slim chance … but still a chance.

“I thought all three of our doubles teams could win,” said coach Maher. “We tried to pep the girls up on the bus and told them all we needed to do was win one singles match. (Even though we lost), the girls are psyched. We gave Barlow more of a run than anybody else.”

For the second time in two weeks, the Lady Nighthawks dropped a 5-2 decision to the Lady Falcons – who won their fourth consecutive SWC championship.

The Holzberg sisters – Lauren and Jennifer – had command at No. 1 and No. 2 singles, earning 6-0, 6-0 sweeps over Lauren Nemeth and Tara Ryan. Where the match could have turned was at No. 3 singles, but Michelle Serock – after a stiff challenge in the first set – dropped a 7-6 (7-5), 6-1 decision to Meredith Earley.

“The Holzberg girls are so good,” said coach Maher.

The loss dropped the ‘Hawks to 15-2 overall which will set them up for a home match in the opening round of the CIAC Class L state tournament next weekend.

Coach Maher put a lot of stock in her doubles contingent and no one let her down. Jill Tanner and Emily Fields continued to shine at No. 1 and earned a 6-4, 7-5 win over Brittany Shea and Chelsea Edwards. And at No. 3, Jenna Moser and Katie Serock captured a tough 6-4, 6-4 win over Kristen Hanczor and Sarah Sproviero.

The ‘Hawks advanced to the championship match with a 4-3 win over Lauralton Hall last Saturday. It was only the second time that the ‘Hawks won by such a narrow margin. Three of the seven individual matches went to a third set.

Nemeth and Ryan earned critical wins at No. 1 and No. 2 singles as both Michelle Serock and Sarah Salbu were bested at No. 3 and No. 4. Nemeth defeated Abby Barbour 6-4, 6-0 while Ryan had to work hard to a 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 win over Kat Patrikios.

And since Tanner and Fields suffered a rare loss at No. 1 doubles (dropping a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 decision to Katherine Hiambalbo and Tess Hanley) it was up to the duos of Ashley Gabor/Kristene Salbu and Moser/Katie Serock to come up with wins.

Both did, but neither was easy. Gabor and Salbu earned a 7-5, 6-3 win over Jen Shrader and Lindsay Trapp while Moser and Serock earned a 6-4, 6-2 win over Katie O’Connell and Katherine Peck.

The SWC individual tournament will open next week and the ‘Hawks will be sending all four of their singles players and their No. 1 and No. 3 doubles teams.

“The girls are solid all the way through,” said coach Maher. “They have had a good season.”

Joel Barlow 5, Newtown 2

SINGLES:  Lauren Holzberg (B) def. Lauren Nemeth 6-0, 6-0; Jennifer Holzberg (B) def. Tara Ryan 6-0, 6-0; Meredith Earley (B) def. Michelle Serock 7-6 (7-5), 6-1; Jill Mackey (B) def. Sarah Salbu 6-0, 6-1. DOUBLES: Jill Tanner/Emily Fields (N) def. Brittany Shea/Chelsea Edwards 6-4, 7-5; Christine Shawah/Sara Russo (B) def. Ashley Gabor/Kristene Salbu 6-1, 6-4; Jenna Moser/Katie Serock (N) def. Kristin Hanczor/Sarah Sproviero 6-4, 6-4.

Newtown 4, Lauralton Hall 3

SINGLES: Lauren Nemeth (N) def Abby Barbour 6-4, 6-0; Tara Ryan (N) def Kat Patrikios 6-1, 3-6, 6-3; Catherine Hines (L) def Michelle Serock 6-1, 6-1; Morgan Dunne (L) def Sarah Salbu 6-2, 3-6, 6-1. DOUBLES: Katherine Giambalbo/Tess Hanley (L) def Jill Tanner/Emily Fields 6-2, 2-6, 6-3; Ashley Gabor/Kristene Salbu (N) def Jen Shrader/Lindsay Trapp 7-5, 6-3; Jenna Moser/Katie Serock (N) def Katie O’Connell/Katherine Peck 6-4, 6-2.

BOYS TRACK

11th at SWC Championships

For a team that had hopes of challenging for a South-West Conference championship, things could not have worked out any worse.

As its No. 1 threat sat in the bleachers with a tight hamstring, the Newtown High School boys’ track and field team suffered a disappointing 11th-place finish at the SWC championship meet on Monday afternoon at Bunnell High School in Stratford.

The ‘Hawks were without Marcus Tracy, their No. 1 threat, who had to sit out the meet with a tight hamstring. Coupled with the fact that some runners came off the weekend with tired legs, the ‘Hawks were in trouble right from the opening gun.

“It was a tough day all around,” said assistant coach Dave Foss.

The ‘Hawks did have a chance to make some hay, though, and did that by capturing first in the first track event of the day – the 4x800 relay. Scott Nichols, Jake Sullivan, Eric MacKnight and Pete Dittmar ran school record time of 8:19.40 and bested New Milford by almost two seconds.

But for the ‘Hawks, that accounted for almost half of the points they scored as a team all afternoon.

Charlie Baldour (5th – 1,600 meters), Jeff Lipnick (5th – 300 intermediate hurdles), Alistair Ratcliff (5th – 3,200 meters), Adam Drummond (6th – high jump), Ryan Peters (6th – discus) and Tyler von Oy (5th – discus) had the top individual finishes for the ‘Hawks.

The 4x400 relay team took fifth while the 4x100 relay team was disqualified.

Weston and New Milford finished the meet tied for first with 100 points. Masuk came in third with 73 points and Brookfield followed in fourth with 46 points. Bunnell (30), New Fairfield (30), Joel Barlow (30), Bethel (26) and Pomperaug (24) came in ahead of Newtown (23) while Notre Dame (10) and Immaculate (1) took up the rear.

The ‘Hawks lost only to Weston and New Milford during the regular season.

The CIAC Class LL state championships begin next week.

NOTE: Newtown won the South-West Conference’s inaugural Sportsmanship Award.

BASEBALL

Newtown 7, Stratford 2

Newtown 14, Masuk 0

Bunnell 3, Newtown 2

Bunnell is turning into an albatross for the Newtown High School baseball team.

With three unearned runs in the top of the first inning on Monday afternoon, the Bulldogs scored all the runs they would need and defeated the Nighthawks, 3-2, in the quarterfinals of the South-West Conference tournament.

It was Newtown’s third loss this year to Bunnell and of the 14 runs the ‘Hawks have allowed, 11 of them have been unearned.

But, nevertheless, there was some cause to look on the bright side as it was Newtown’s first trip to the SWC tournament since 1997.

“To be competitive at this point in the season – with Masuk and Bunnell – it’s nice to see all of the hard work has paid off,” said head coach Carl Strait. “The kids are still working hard and we’re happy to still be playing baseball at this time of the year.”

Steve Marks earned the start and was reached for four hits in the first inning, but two wild pitches and a wild throw to second on a steal attempt opened the door for the ‘Dogs. Marks recovered and allowed just three hits the rest of the way.

The ‘Hawks recovered, too, only not quite enough.

In the top of the second inning, Matt Nicoll roped a two-run double to deep centerfield to pull the ‘Hawks to within one run. But from that moment on, the ‘Hawks had a miserable time trying to move runners over and eventually ran out of chances.

The ‘Dogs had a chance to extend the lead in the fifth inning when a dropped ball in the outfield opened the door and allowed them to eventually load the bases, but Marks was stoic on the hill and the defense came up big when it needed to.

“That’s the difference between this year and last,” said coach Strait. “We kept our heads about us and we were able to make plays.”

The ‘Hawks closed out the regular season with wins over Stratford (7-2) and Masuk (14-0).

Against Stratford, Marks went the distance, scattering five hits and striking out five batters. Alex Dolan tripled as Joe DeVellis and Steve Vichiola drove in two runs apiece. Against Masuk, Dolan turned in the best performance of his career – a three-hit shutout with three strikeouts. The ‘Hawks banged out 15 hits.

After the loss to Bunnell, the ‘Hawks dropped to 12-9 – but their regular season record of 12-8 is what gets factored in to the CIAC Class LL playoff formula. And at press time, it looked as if the ‘Hawks had a chance to earn a first-round home game.

Bunnell 3, Newtown 2

BATTERIES: Newtown – Steve  Marks and Peter Oggeri; Bunnell – Brett  Shulick. WP: Shulick (9-0). LP: Marks. SO: Marks 3, Shulick 6. BB: Marks 2, Shulick 2. 2B: Matt Nicoll (N) 2, Shulick (B). RBI: Newtown – Nicoll 2; Bunnell – Shulick.

Newtown 7, Stratford 2

BATTERIES:: Stratford – Matt  Anzoletti, Mike Gill (5) and John Sulzicki; Newtown – Steve  Marks and Pete Oggeri. WP: Marks (7-3). LP: Anzoletti (1-2). SO: Marks 5, Anzoletti 1. BB: Anzoletti 4. 2B: Shain Pucci (S). 3B: Alex Dolan (N). RBI: Stratford – Jay  Tuff;. Newtown – Joe  DeVellis 2, Steve Vichiola 2, Matt Nicoll 1.

Newtown 14, Masuk 0

BATTERIES: Newtown –  Alex  Dolan and Pete Oggeri; Masuk – Vinnie  DeRosa, Teddy Huruul (4), Kyle Sandor (4) and Joe Klein. WP: Dolan (3-2). LP: DeRosa (6-2). SO: Sandor 1, Dolan 3. BB: Huruul 2, Sandor 2, Dolan 1.

GIRLS LACROSSE

Newtown 13, New Milford 9

Newtown 18, Notre Dame 2

After securing a spot in the South-West Conference Division I championship game, the Newtown High School girls’ lacrosse team still had to take care of business and finish of the regular season.

And with wins over Notre Dame (18-2) and New Milford (13-9), the Lady Nighthawks concluded their regular season slate at 11-4 and are now preparing themselves for a May 31 meeting with Joel Barlow (which defeated the ‘Hawks, 8-5, way back on April 12).

In the win over Notre Dame, Karli Beitel scored three goals and assisted on four others to lead the offensive explosion. Kate McNulty notched three goals as Jen Greenwood, Casey Frobey, Kim Solheim and Erica Vacaro scored two goals apiece.

Rachel Eastman, Moira Collier, Libby Feltch and Courtney Gleason also had an opportunity to score.

In the win over New Milford, Frobey scored four goals, Collier scored three and Sudby scored two to lead the offense. Beitel had a goal and an assist as Gaston and Curran both notched goals. Goaltender Kerrie Canavan recorded the win with 11 saves.

Newtown 13, New Milford 9

GOALS: Newtown – Casey Frobey 4, Moira Collier 3, Kate Sudby 2, Karli Beitel, Tara Gaston, Carly Curran; New Milford – Barksdale 4, Monteno 2, Daros 2, Bull. ASSISTS: Newtown – Karli Beitel. SAVES: Newtown – Kerrie Canavan 11; New Milford – Clark 7.

 

Newtown 18, Notre Dame 2

GOALS: Notre Dame – Penna, O’Connor;. Newtown – Karli  Beitel 3, Katie McNulty 3, Jen Greenwood 2, Casey Frobey 2, Kimberly Solheim 2, Erica Vacaro 2, Rachel Eastman, Moira Collier, Libby Feltch, Courtney Gleason. ASSISTS: Newtown – Beitel  4, Greenwood, Eastman, Frobey. SAVES: Notre Dame – Bomber (ND) 16; Newtown – Kerrie  Canavan (N) 2.

BOYS TENNIS

Weston 7, Newtown 0

With the South-West Conference team tournament out of its reach, the Newtown High School tennis team hunkered down this week and prepared for the individual tournament.

The Nighthawks (7-7 overall, 7-5 in the SWC) will be sending (whenever rain allows the tournament to begin) three singles and one doubles duo to Bethel.

At No. 1 singles, Drew Adamek (6-6 in the conference) drew the sixth seed and will square off against Chuck Feldman of Joel Barlow, whom Adamek pressed during the season before dropping a 6-3, 6-4 decision.

Chris Martin (7-5) will be the alternate in the five-player second singles draw while Chris Meier (7-4) is seeded fifth at third singles and will face Nathan Eivaz of Brookfield, who defeated Meier in three sets during the regular season. And Max Margulies (8-3) will have the number four seed in the fourth singles and he will face Emmett Garber of Bunnell, whom Margulies bested back on April 13.

The first doubles team of Mike Coster and Jim Wilkins (6-3) will be seeded fifth and are slated to face Burak Buyuksolak and Brendon Neaton of Masuk – a replay of Coster and Wilkins’ three-set win back on April 29.

The ‘Hawks also qualified for the CIAC state tournament and will send Drew Adamek, Chris Martin, Chris Meier, Max Margulies and Mario Roehrs to play singles and Jim Wilkins/Mike Coster and Dave Wilkins/Ben Wicki to play doubles.

Weston 7, Newtown 0

SINGLES: Matt Oberman (W) def Drew Adamek 6-0, 6-1; Brandon Gillespie (W) def Chris Martin 6-2, 6-1; Brandon Zakarof (W) def Max Margulies 6-1, 6-0; Corey Brandon (W) def Adam Feldman, 6-0, 6-1. DOUBLES: Taylor Stein and Ebi Kolan (W) def Mike Coster and Jim Wilkins 6-1, 6-3;  Alex Toofoouji and Tim Silver (W) def Mario Roehrs and Baj Ahtchi 6-0, 6-2; Drew Johnson and Will Gregg (W) def Ben Wicki and Shane McCarthy, 6-0, 6-0.

 

GOLF

Newtown over Stratford (f)

Bunnell 171, Newtown 185

If the Newtown High School golf team was going to finish the season on an even keel (that is, 6-6) it would have to defeat powerhouse Pomperaug on Tuesday afternoon.

It was too much to ask.

The Nighthawks dropped a 154-183 decision to the Panthers at Heritage Village Country Club in Southbury and finished the regular season at 5-7. The South-West Conference championship tournament will be held Wednesday, June 1, at Ridgewood Country Club in Danbury.

In the loss to Pomperaug, the ‘Hawks struggled a bit on the Heritage layout as Billy McCann led the way with an 8-over par 44. Sam Pelletier fired an even-par 36 to capture medallist honors and propel the Panthers to the win.

On Monday, the ‘Hawks dropped a 171-185 decision to Bunnell at Oronoque Country Club in Stratford. Dave McLaughlin, Billy McCann and JP McDade carded rounds of 10-over par 46 while Matt Taylor finished with an 11-over 47.

Austin Johnson led the Bulldogs with a round of 3-over 39 and earned medallist honors.

The ‘Hawks did capture a forfeit win over Stratford (which had just one golfer) last week at the Newtown Country Club. Nevertheless, McLaughlin still turned in a solid round of 3-over par 37 while Dave Freeston carded a 4-over 40.

Bunnell 171, Newtown 185

NEWTOWN (185): Dave McLaughlin 46, Billy McCann 46, JP McDade 46, Matt Taylor 47. BUNNELL (171): Austin Johnson 39, Tommy Maraglino 43, Mike Gallo 44, James McIntosh 45. COURSE: Oronoque Country Club. MEDALIST: Austin Johnson (B) 39.

Pomperaug 154, Newtown 183

POMPERAUG (154): Sam Pelletier 36, Jim Widman 37, Chris Blake 42, Alex Rocque 39. NEWTOWN (183): Billy McCann 44, Dave McLaughlin 45, JP McDade 46, Jake Maher 48. COURSE: Heritage Village (par 36). MEDALIST: Sam Pelletier (P) 36.

BOYS LACROSSE

Staples 16, Newtown 4

Brien McMahon 14, Newtown 1

New Fairfield 11, Newtown 4

The Newtown High School boys’ lacrosse team has had a tough enough time this year but things got a little tougher last week.

The Nighthawks had to face powerhouses Staples and Brien McMahon and after losses to those two teams  (16-4 to Staples and 14-1 to McMahon) they concluded the regular season with an 11-4 loss to New Fairfield on Tuesday.

Travis Speer and Brendan O’Connor scored two goals apiece and Jeff Bell added one. O’Connor, Travis Speer and Grant Speer recorded assists while goaltender Drew Harmata registered 12 saves.