Two Shutouts Puts NHS Boys’ Soccer At 7-0-1

By Kim J. Harmon

It seems hard to believe, but the post-season is just about upon us.

The Newtown High School girls’ and boys’ cross country teams are preparing for the South-West Conference championships next Thursday in Bethel with the girls having an excellent chance at coming home with their fourth straight SWC title.

But the SWC volleyball, field hockey, and soccer tournaments will open the following week with swimming and football to follow soon after and basically all the Newtown teams are positioning themselves for a run at a title.

This is when the action really starts to cook.

BOYS SOCCER

Newtown 3, Bethel 0; Newtown 3, Masuk 0

As the old axiom goes, possession is nine-tenths of the law … but it is also the foundation of the offense for the Newtown High School boys’ soccer team.

An explosive, attacking team a year ago, the Nighthawks have had to focus more on possession and crisp passing in 2005 and while that may have led to fewer blowouts and highlight-reel goals, it has been amazingly effective.

The ‘Hawks used possession and near-perfect passing to render a routine, 3-0, defeat of arch-rival Masuk on Tuesday night at Treadwell Park.

“We thought it would be a pretty good game,” said forward Chris Hoagland, whose efforts up front led directly to two goals even though got credit for just one (an assist), “and knew it would be a challenge. We played well, but we did a much better job in the second half possessing the ball in the midfield.”

The ‘Hawks scored twice in the first half – once off a direct kick by Alex Meisel and once off a rebound by Tony Magliocco – but spent an awful lot of time in the defensive half trying to change fields and find a way to advance the ball. And like a child being admonished for playing too close to the road, the ‘Hawks moved the action to midfield in the second half and tacked on another goal … this one by Justin Miller, who found a pass near the top of the box and drilled a shot past Masuk goaltender Dan Martinelli for the score. Hoagland had an opportunity to blow the game open, but twice hit the cross bar with shots from inside the box.

With this win – and a 3-0 win over Bethel last week – the ‘Hawks improved to 7-0-1.

“I’m confident in this team,” said Hoagland, who scored twice and assisted once in that win over Bethel. “We have a lot of talent and everyone does their part with the passing game.”

In the win over Bethel, Meisel also scored while Magliocco, Mike Klein and Miller had assists. Goaltender Louis Ritzinger made three saves in that game – and two against Masuk – and now has registered five shutouts on the season.

The ‘Hawks were in Stratford on Friday and will be in Fairfield on Saturday to take on Notre Dame (weather permitting, of course) and will be Danbury on Monday to take on Immaculate before returning home on Wednesday to face Pomperaug.

Newtown 3, Bethel 0

GOALS: Newtown – Chris Hoagland 2, Alex Meisel. ASSISTS: Newtown – Tony Magliocco, Mike Klein, Justin Miller, Chris Hoagland. SHOTS: Newtown – 19; Bethel – 12. SAVES: Newtown – Louis Ritzinger 3; Bethel – Ben Bryan 6. CORNER KICKS: Newtown – 6; Bethel – 0.

Newtown 3, Masuk 0

GOALS: Newtown – Alex Meisel, Tony Magliocco, Justin Miller. ASSISTS: Newtown – Nick Sando, Chris Hoagland. SHOTS: Newtown – 18; Masuk – 8. SAVES: Newtown – Louis Ritzinger 2; Masuk – Don Martinelli 2.

Junior Varsity

The Newtown High School junior varsity boys’ soccer team improved to 5-0 with a 3-0 win over Bethel last week.

Gareth Jones and Blake Barreto each had a goal and an assist. Jose Dode also scored while Andrew Meisel provided an assist. Kyle DiNicola and Dan Smith combined in goal for the shutout, the fifth registered by the jayvees.

FIELD HOCKEY

Newtown 1, Bethel 1; Newtown 1, Weston 0

It took more than 30 minutes for the Newtown High School field hockey team to really take advantage of the crisp speed of the turf field at Weston, but that still left the Lady Nighthawks enough time to register a 1-0 win over the Lady Trojans and improve to 4-1-1-1 on the year.

A weekend of rain forced the Newtown-Weston field hockey game to be transferred from the sodden grass field in Newtown to the slick turf field in Weston and despite a little spray peppering the field, the conditions were perfect.

Still …

“We just couldn’t put it together in the first half,” said co-captain Lisa Alberico, “but towards the end we really starting passing the ball and playing well.”

Alberico scored the lone goal of the game at the 16:34 mark of the second half. On a restart, Lauren Babbage took a pass at the top of circle and pushed it into the fray. Erin Clark – who had a rocket shot stopped cold in the first half – got a stick on the ball and levied a shot on the cage that was stopped by Weston goaltender Shana Hurley. But as the ball rebounded high, Alberico stuck her stick out and knocked it into the netting at the top of the cage.

Newtown out-shot Weston, 11-2, and really started running the field in the second half, but could only manage the one tally.

“Yes, we’re disappointed because we could have scored more goals,” said Alberico, “but we felt better at the end because we saw how well we could play as a team.”

Last week, the ‘Hawks recorded a 1-1 tie against Bethel but knew, at the end there, that they let a win get away.

“We felt bad about that one,” Alberico said, “but we’re proud of where we are now.”

That’s at 4-1-1-1 with a rematch against New Milford on Friday, a visit to Immaculate on Saturday and a game against Masuk next Tuesday coming up. The ‘Hawks – currently ranked eighth in Class L – are solidifying a position in the South-West Conference playoffs.

Newtown 1, Bethel 1

GOALS: Newtown – Erin Clark; Bethel – Carey Stephens. ASSISTS: Newtown – Sam Wong; Bethel – Alissa Graef. SHOTS : Newtown – 3; Bethel – 10. SAVES: Newtown – Alissa Gross 9; Bethel – Ally Walsh 2. PENALTY CORNERS: Newtown – 5; Bethel – 4.

Newtown 1, Weston 0

GOALS: Newtown – Lisa Alberico. ASSISTS: Newtown – Erin Clark. SHOTS: Newtown – 11; Weston – 2. SAVES: Newtown – Alissa Gross 2; Weston – Shana Hurley 10.

GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY

Newtown 17, New Milford 44; Newtown 15, Bethel 50

It could have been billed as a battle between the two last unbeaten teams in the South-West Conference, but what the Newtown High School girls’ cross country team proved on Tuesday at Fairfield Hills is that there is little hope for any team – even New Milford, which had been 12-0 – to stop the Lady Nighthawks in the upcoming conference championships.

With Sadie Ball cruising to a first-place finish at 17:22, the ‘Hawks – who took the top three spots and six of the top seven spots – defeated New Milford (17-44) and Bethel (15-50) to finish the regular season unbeaten at 13-0.

In 13 meets, the ‘Hawks registered seven sweeps and only once – against Lauralton Hall – scored more than 20 points. And while a fourth-consecutive SWC championship appears to be a lead-pipe cinch, the ‘Hawks will not be complacent next Thursday at Bethel High School.

“Obviously our goal is to well at the SWCs and I believe we’re the favorites to win it,” said head coach Doug Russell, “but we also want to prepare ourselves for the states. We finished seventh last year and my goal is finish in the top five there and then qualify as a team for the Opens.”

The ‘Hawks seem well equipped to do that as they have runners that harbor a pack mentality. On Tuesday, Moira Collier (2nd – 17:38), Sara Pollock (3rd – 17:42), Elise DeRoo (5th – 17:46), Michelle Brennan (6th – 18:00) and Jen Brill (7th – 18:14) crossed the line one after the other.

“We have goals set higher for ourselves,” said coach Russell. “But I’m not changing anything we’re doing. And this (Fairfield Hills) is probably the toughest course we’ve run this year, which will be good preparation for the states.”

TEAMS: Newtown 17, New Milford 44; Newtown 15, Bethel 50; New Milford 17, Bethel 46.

INDIVIDUALS: Sadie Ball (N) 17:22, 2. Moira Collier (N) 17:38, 3. Sara Pollock (N) 17:42, 4. Laura Hermann (NM) 17:43, 5. Elise DeRoo (N) 17:46, 6. Michelle Brennan (N) 18:00, 7. Jen Brill (N) 18:14, 8. Lindsey Colbert (NM) 18:34, 9. Leanna Jablonski (NM) 18:34, 10. Carolyn Gingras (N) 18:38, 11. Megan Kelly (B) 18:49, 12. Beca Martin (NM) 18:57, 13. Kate Welton (NM) 18:56, 14. Erica Schlicht (NM) 18:58.

BOYS CROSS COUNTRY

New Milford 23, Newtown 36; Newtown 16, Bethel 46

Another step closer.

The Newtown High School boys’ cross country team has been intent, all season, on closing the gap between itself and powerhouse New Milford and an Tuesday afternoon at Fairfield Hills took another step closer to doing that.

In the end, however, the Green Wave were simply too many and too strong. The Nighthawks fell to 10-2 with a 23-36 loss to the Wave and a 16-46 win over Bethel.

“To be honest, I was hoping for something a little better,” said head coach Dave Foss, “but we were competitive with them and that’s the important thing.”

Heading into the final 200 yards, Eric MacKnight had a half-step lead over Anthony Socotch of New Milford, but as the pair hit the final stretch around the baseball backstop at Fairfield Hills Socotch slipped ahead and finished one second in front of MacKnight.

Alister Ratcliff came in second, about 12 seconds back, but then a parade of New Milford runners – five in a row – crossed the finish line before Scott Nichols of Newtown finished ninth overall at 17:39. Zach Schwartz (10th – 17:42), Matt Cole (13th – 17:59) and Jake Sullivan (15th – 18:07) rounded out Newtown’s top five.

When the ‘Hawks head to the South-West Conference championships next Thursday they will little more on their minds than getting even closer to New Milford. They will also want to avenge a regular season loss to Weston.

“We want to be a close to New Milford as possible, but we also want to beat Weston. That’s what we’re looking to do,” said coach Foss. “But our big goal is to get to Opens.”

TEAMS: New Milford 23, Newtown 36; Newtown 16, Bethel 46; New Milford 15, Bethel 50

INDIVIDUALS: 1. Anthony Socotch (NM) 16:48, 2. Eric MacKnight (N) 16:49, 3. Alister Ratcliff (N) 17:01, 4. Dan DeCrescenzo (NM) 17:03, 5. Andy Watson (NM) 17:07, 6. Anthony Vento (NM) 17:17, 7. Mike DeCrescenzo (NM) 17:23, 8. Aaron Simmons (NM) 17:26, 9. Scott Nichols (N) 17:39, 10. Zack Schwartz (N) 17:42, 11. Dan Watson (NM) 17:50, 12. Tim Isselee (B) 17:52, 13. Matt Cole (N) 17:59, 14. Kyle Anderson (NM) 18:04, 15. Jake Sullivan (N) 18:07.

VOLLEYBALL

Newtown 3, Brookfield 0; Newtown 3, Lauralton 0; Newtown 3, Pomperaug 0; Newtown 3, Notre Dame 0

The Newtown High School volleyball team was dealt a crippling blow last week – except, how crippling won’t become evident until next week.

Senior hitter Diana Grimaldi suffered a severe dislocation of her left shoulder last week prior to a match with Brookfield and early reports had her missing at least three weeks … and probably more. As it happens, the injury occurred during the softest part of the Lady Nighthawks’ schedule and even without Grimaldi in the lineup the locals went on to record four consecutive sweeps to improve to 7-3 on the season.

The Hawks blanked Brookfield, Lauralton Hall, Pomperaug and Notre Dame.

It wasn’t always pretty, but at least the Hawks were effective.

The injury provided Emily Loose and Morgan Knees with expanded roles on the court and both have done well, but next Monday the Hawks will be entertaining Masuk – which defeated Newtown, 3-1, back on September 23 – and within the following seven days will face Bethel (7-4) and Weston (9-1) as the regular season comes to a close.

In the 25-14, 25-8, 25-19 win over Brookfield last Thursday Jenna VanWaalwijk had six kills and five digs while Becky Huot had three aces and five kills. Jill Logan was solid with four service aces, four digs and 15 assists.

In the 25-22, 25-14, 25-20 sweep of Lauralton Hall, Huot came up big with 13 kills and four digs while Loose had four kills and a couple of blocks. Setter Christie Iwanicki was solid, registering 18 assists while coming up with five kills and four aces.

In the 25-14, 25-14, 25-15 win over Pomperaug, Knees had two blocks and eight service aces while Van Waalwijk recorded seven kills and five digs. Miranda Rucinski dug out seven balls to help anchor the defense.

And in the 25-11, 25-15, 25-11 win over Notre Dame, Kelly Tenney (six service aces) and Jenn Blauvelt (eight aces, three kills) had a chance to star. Meanwhile, Van Waalwijk recorded six aces and six kills.

The ‘Hawks will be in New Fairfield on Friday before beginning that really tough run next week.

GIRLS SOCCER

Newtown 3, Bethel 2; Masuk 2, Newtown 0

With the return of Kyla Miles last week, the Newtown High School girls’ soccer team was all but complete.

And yet, oddly enough, it was a tough, tough week. The Lady Nighthawks rallied to defeat Bethel, 3-2, last Thursday at Blue & Gold Stadium and then suffered a 2-0 loss to arch-rival Masuk on Tuesday night in Monroe to fall to 6-2-0 on the season.

Masuk defeated Newtown, 3-2, in the season-opener back on September 15.

Alex Konneker scored a goal and assisted on another and Casey Frobey had a pair of assists in the win over Bethel last week. The game had become a special event, serving as a fundraiser for the KickAids program created by Survivor: Africa winner Ethan Zohn, who was at the school that day to talk to health class students.

Tara Nathan put the Lady Wildcats on top first with a goal, but freshman Tania Domingos answered back just 33 seconds later off an assist from Frobey. A goal from Konneker – with an assist from Tara Gaston – staked the ‘Hawks to a 2-1 lead, but the ‘Cats answered back on a goal by Lauren Cantor.

Konneker’s second goal – off an assist from Frobey – settled the match.

The locals were not as fortunate on Tuesday night. Ashley Testani and Lindsay Pennella scored a goal apiece as the ‘Hawks failed to avenge that season-opening loss to the Lady Panthers (who remained undefeated at 10-0-1).

The Panthers unleashed 24 shots on net and freshman goaltender Emily Kluga made 13 saves.

The ‘Hawks were set to host Stratford on Friday and while they should be able to rebound from the loss to Masuk in those that contest, things will get a little tougher next week when they host Immaculate on Monday night at Blue & Gold Stadium.

Newtown 3, Bethel 2

GOALS: Newtown – Alex Konneker 2, Tania Domingos; Bethel – Tara Nathan, Lauren Cantor. ASSISTS: Newtown – Casey Frobey 2, Tara Gaston. SHOTS: Bethel – 8; Newtown – 20. SAVES: Bethel – Chelsea Schumacker 17; Newtown – Emily Kluga 6. CORNER KICKS: Bethel – 0; Newtown – 3.

Masuk 2, Newtown 0

GOALS: Masuk – Lindsay Pennella, Ashley Testani. ASSISTS: Masuk – Ashley Testani. SHOTS: Newtown – 15; Masuk – 24. SAVES: Newtown – Emily Kluga 13; Masuk – Erin Lillywhite 7. CORNER KICKS: Newtown – 5; Masuk – 6.

FOOTBALL

Joel Barlow 14, Newtown 7

Except for one game – when the conditions were perfect and the competition was less than stringent – the Newtown High School football team has struggled to find rhythm in its offense.

Nothing changed on a rainy Friday night at Blue & Gold Stadium as the Nighthawks amassed just 195 yards of total offense and dropped a 14-7 decision to Joel Barlow. Joey DeVellis scored the lone Newtown touchdown on a seven-yard swing pass from Tucker Kass with less than 30 seconds remaining in the first half.

Truth be told, Joel Barlow did not fare much better against a staunch Newtown defense, which allowed just 230 yards of total offense (180 of that on the ground). But the Wing-T was perplexing enough that the Falcons managed to drive the length of the field twice in the second half (going 98 yards the first time and 85 yards the second time) to snare the 14-7 win.

Steve Sternberg and Sean Delaney scored the touchdowns.

In the fourth, the Nighthawks kept their hopes alive when they drove deep into Joel Barlow territory. On fourth-and-one from the 11, Kass kept the drive going with a one-yard push off the left side. But on first and goal, the ‘Hawks managed nothing on two straight runs into the line and on an attempted halfback option lost five yards. On fourth-and-15, Kass hooked up with Grant Speer on a slant over the left hash marks but Speer was stopped just inches shy of the goal line.

The Nighthawk defense kept the Falcons pinned close to the end zone and after a punt the locals had the ball back on the Joel Barlow 26 with 1:42 left. But Kass tossed three incomplete passes and was called for intentional grounding on another attempt and the game slipped away from the Nighthawks, who dropped to 2-2 overall.

Roy Scheunemann returned to the backfield and picked up 66 yards on nine carries (53 yards coming on a scamper early in the first quarter) while Billy Beatty had 39 yards on 10 carries. The rain was not kind to the passing attack as Kass went 5-of-12 for just 72 yards.

But twice, Kass came within inches of tossing a touchdown pass. Besides the throw to Speer in the fourth quarter, the junior QB dropped a perfect pass to DeVellis on the left sidelines on the final play of the first half but DeVellis – double covered at the time – was pushed out at the two yard line.

The ‘Hawks will host a tough Bunnell team on Friday night.

Joel Barlow 14, Newtown 7

SCORING: Second quarter – Joey DeVellis (N) 7 pass Tucker Kass (John Nelson kick); Third quarter – Steven Sternberg (JB) 1 run (Alex White kick); Fourth quarter – Sean Delaney (JB) 6 pass from Ryan Brown (White kick).

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing: Joel Barlow – Ryan Brown 15-75, Anthony DeSalva 10-70, Jake Getman 5-24, Sean Delaney 4-8, JJ Contessa 1-3; Newtown – Scheunemann 9-66, Billy Beatty 10-39, Chris Potter 2-16, Marc Ingerman 2-4, Tucker Kass 5-3, Joey DeVellis 3-minus 5. Passing: Joel Barlow – Ryan Brown 4-7-1 for 50 yards; Newtown – Tucker Kass 5-12-0 for 72 yards. Receiving: Joel Barlow – Sean Delaney 3-47, Jake Getman 1-3; Newtown – Joey DeVellis 3-39, Grant Speer 2-33.

SWIMMING

Newtown 109, Weston 75; Newtown 105, Brookfield 75

If Pomperaug and Lauralton Hall couldn’t challenge the Newtown High School girls’ swim team, no one expected Weston or Brookfield to be able to challenge it, either.

The Lady Nighthawks eased past Weston and Brookfield by nearly identical scores (109-75 over Weston and 105-75 over Brookfield) and improved to 6-0 on the season. At the same time, Newtown’s dual meet unbeaten streak climbed to 28.

In the win over Brookfield, Abby Atkinson was a double winner, capturing the 200 individual medley and he 100 breaststroke. Jaclyn Van Waalwijk (50 freestyle), Dana Gnerre (100 freestyle), Sally Tabler (100 butterfly) and Maricate Conlon (100 backstroke) while the 200 medley, 200 freestyle and 400 freestyle relay teams all finished first.

In the 200 medley and 400 freestyle relays, Newtown actually went 1-2.

In the win over Brookfield, Sally Tabler and Gnerre were both double winners, with Tabler capturing the 200 individual medley and the 100 butterfly and Gnerre capturing the 50 and 100 freestyles. Jen Iassogna (500 freestyle), Nicole Borruso (diving) and Conlon (100 backstroke) were all winners as the ‘Hawks, once again, won all three relays.

The ‘Hawks will host New Fairfield on Friday and will visit Stratford next Tuesday. A meeting with the currently undefeated Masuk is just 11 days away.

Newtown 109, Weston 75

200 medley relay – 1. Newtown (Conlon, Atkinson, Tabler, Gnerre) 2:00.00, 2. Newtown (Smith, E. Atkinson, Taylor, Gugino) 2:04.94, Weston 2:05.05. 200 freestyle – 1. Phillips (W) 2:11.77, 2. Shine (W) 2:13.03, 4. Iassogna (N) 2:13.03, 5. Kroon (N) 2:17.03. 200 individual medley – 1. Atkinson (N) 2:18.53, 2. Border (W) 2:25.03, 3. E. Atkinson (N) 2:28.09, 4. Remitz (N) 2:35.47, 5. Crocker (W) 2:45.03. 50 freestyle – 1. Van Waalwijk (N) 26.71, 2. LJ (W) 28.06, 3. Gugino (N) 27.26, 4. Feingold (W) 27.50, 5. Hull (N) 28.25. Diving – 1. DiMarco (W), 2. Metzger (N), 3. Borruso (N), 4. Dittmar (W), 5. Membrey (W). 100 butterfly – 1. Tabler (N) 1:04.56, 2. Border (W) 1:07.57, 3. Taylor (N) 1:10.78, 4. Amerson (W) 1:10.88, 5. Smith (N) 1:11.75.100 freestyle – 1. Gnerre (N) 56.85, 2. Van Waalwijk (N) 59.42, 3. McKnight (W) 59.39, 4. Shine (W) 1:00.78, 5. Gugino (N) 1:01.06. 500 freestyle – 1. Phillips (W) 5:54.46, 2. Iassogna (N) 5:57.62, 3. Harmonay (N) 6:02.22, 4. McCormick (W) 6:06.22, 5. Carnali (N) 6:15.44. 200 freestyle relay – 1. Newtown (E. Atkinson, Hull, Gugino, Van Waalwijk) 1:49.10, 2. Weston 1:49.47, 3. Newtown (Remitz, Hoolehan, Taylor, Legros) 1:58.24. 100 backstroke – 1. Conlon (N) 1:04.03, 2. McKnight (W) 1:06.12, 3. Smith (N) 1:06.78, 4. Kroon (N) 1:07.56, 5. LJ (W) 1:10.59. 100 breaststroke – 1. Atkinson (N) 1:12.62, 2. E. Atkinson (N) 1:16.45, 3. Remitz (N) 1:21.53. 400 freestyle relay – 1. Newtown (Van Waalwijk, Tabler, Gnerre, Atkinson) 3:58.69, 2. Newtown (Iassogna, Hull, Kroon, Conlon) 4:07.56, 3. Weston 4:10.34.

Newtown 105, Brookfield 75

200 medley relay – 1. Newtown (Conlon, Atkinson, Tabler, Gnerre) 2:00.71, 2. Brookfield 2:05.65, 3. Newtown (Smith, E. Atkinson, Taylor, Hull) 2:11.30. 200 freestyle – 1. Tabia (B) 2:11.81, 2. Iassogna (N) 2:13.06, 3. Kroon (N) 2:15.15, 4. Harmonay (N) 2:21.58, 5. Lizarizzi (B) 2:29.61. 200 individual medley – 1. Tabler (N) 2:21.91, 2. Wibbian (B) 2:27.29, 3. E. Atkinson (N) 2:29.64, 4. Smith (B) 2:34.51, 5. Remitz (N) 2:34.35. 50 freestyle – 1. Gnerre (N) 26.02, 2. Magin (B) 27.48, 3. Wantman (B) 27.63, 4. Hull (N) 28.11, 5. Gugino (N) 28.62. Diving – 1. Borruso (N), 2. Hennedy (N), 3. Monahan (N). 100 butterfly – 1. Tabler (N) 1:04.10, 2. Lizarizzi (B) 1:06.88, 3. Conlon (N) 1:07.29, 4. Taylor (N) 1:12.43, 5. Ziaba (B) 1:13.44. 100 freestyle – 1. Gnerre (N) 56.96, 2. O’Liary (B) 58.22, 3. Gugino (N) 1:03.02, 4. Hull (N) 1:03.20, 5. Lanchak (B) 1:03.40. 500 freestyle – 1. Iassogna (N) 5:58.28, 2. Wantman (B) 6:06.74, 3. Harmonay (N) 6:09.97, 4. Carnali (N) 6:17.10. 200 freestyle relay – 1. Newtown (E. Atkinson, Hull, Gugino, Gnerre) 1:49.68, 2. Brookfield 1:49.94, 3. Brookfield 2:05.06. 100 backstroke – 1. Conlon (N) 1:04.05, 2. Kroon (N) 1:08.36, 3. Smith (N) 1:09.34, 4. Magin (B) 1:10.53, 5. Lanchak (B) 1:15.92. 100 breaststroke – 1. O’Leary (B) 1:13.11, 2. William (B) 1:15.00, 3. E. Atkinson (N) 1:17.21, 4. Remitz (N) 1:22.45, 5. Carey (N) 1:25.82. 400 freestyle relay – 1. Newtown (Gugino, Tabler, Conlon, Atkinson) 3:56.84, 2. Brookfield 4:13.47, 3. Newtown (Iassogna, Taylor, Harmonay, Kroon) 4:24.45.