By Kim J. Harmon

 

Fans of Newtown High School basketball had a chance two weeks ago to feel what it was like to win an epic thriller. And those same fans had a chance one week ago to feel what it was like to lose an epic thriller.

 

Turnabout is fair play …

It was back on Friday, January 16, that the girls’ basketball team rallied back from a 12-0 first-period deficit to eventually overcome Pomperaug. And it was back on Friday, January 23, that the boys’ basketball team rallied back from a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit only to lose in overtime.

 

For every action …

The rest of the week had sort of the same feel.

The hockey team defeated Housatonic Valley (to avenge a loss earlier in the season) only to lose a few days later to New Milford. And the wrestling team won a pair at the Morgan Duals this past weekend, only to lose a pair at the same time.

And this up and down week ground to a halt on Tuesday with the arrival of a snowstorm expected to dump 10 to 15 inches on Connecticut.

The girls’ basketball game with Foran was postponed to Wednesday, February 4, while the boys’ basketball game at Foran was postponed to Monday, February 2. The swim meet with Brookfield was also postponed, but a new date was not set at press time). And a wrestling match slated for Wednesday against Bunnell (Senior Night), has been postponed to Monday, February 2.

Both the girls’ and boys’ basketball teams also had games slated with Bethel on Thursday night.

Here is a recap of the week in Newtown High School sports –

For want of a simple free throw, the Newtown High School boys’ basketball team lost an opportunity for their most impressive win of the season.

At two different moments in the fourth quarter – with 39.5 seconds left and then with 35.8 seconds left – Newtown marched to the free throw line with the opportunity to salt away its South-West Conference game with Bunnell.

The first time the ‘Hawks were up two with a chance to go up four and the second time they were up three with a chance to go up five. One missed free throw in each case allowed the Bulldogs the chance to can a long jump shot with 23.3 seconds left and then a pair of free throws with 10.4 seconds left to force an overtime session.

And that’s where the game slipped away and the ‘Hawks fell, 72-68.

A win would have been very impressive for the ‘Hawks, who were without the services of Marcus Tracy (sidelined for the remainder of the season with a knee injury) and Devon Manfredonia (sidelined because of a broken finger).

And a win certainly seemed possible as the ‘Hawks (with Andrew Fiscella and Dave Anderson almost scoring at will) dominated play in the first half and led 32-28 at the break. But a horrendous start to the second half – four fouls (three of those charges) in the first 1:18 – allowed the Bulldogs to go on a 16-3 run in the third quarter.

The ‘Hawks were down as much as eight points until Josh Rouse tipped a shot in with two seconds left to trim the Bulldog lead to 47-41.

The Bulldogs canned a three-pointer off an inbounds play and then, with 5:52 left, went up as much as nine points, 53-44. But after Anderson (22 points on the night) dropped in a baseline shot and a foul, the ‘Hawks went on an incredible 13-0 run to take a 57-53 lead. Fiscella (27 points) scored four baskets in that run while Ron Shimko added one of his own.

The final basket in the run came when Fiscella stole a terrible, ill-advised pass and converted an easy layup with 1:58 remaining.

But the Bulldogs stopped the bleeding seven seconds later on a baseline bucket. The ‘Hawks attempted to burn time off the clock, but the Bulldogs began fouling and forced the Nighthawks to try and put the game away at the line.

Which they couldn’t.

The loss dropped the ‘Hawks to 7-4 overall and 5-2 in the conference.

NOTE: Andrew Fiscella’s 27 points boosted his career points total to 1,192 … just 89 shy of Steve Kordish.

Bunnell                72

Newtown            68

NEWTOWN (68): Anderson 7 8-12 22, Fiscella 11 5-7 27, Smith 2 1-2 5, Shimko 3 0-0 8, Rouse 2 0-2 4, Oliver 1 0-0 2, Santella 0 0-0 0 (TOTALS: 26 14-23 68); BUNNELL (72): Murray 5 0-0 13, Staley 6 0-0 13, Degree 9 4-7 24, Peeler 5 2-4 12, Butler 1 3-5 5, Cervone 0 0-0 0, Franklin 2 1-2 5 (TOTALS: 28 10-18 72).

Three-pointers: Shimko (N) 2, Murray (B) 3, Degree (B) 2, Staley (B).

The catalyst.

It has only been two games (it would have been four, but Mother Nature had other plans this week), but the Newtown High School girls’ basketball team has really been sharp and it all goes back to the catalyst – a come-from-behind win over Pomperaug – 14 days ago.

Although Newtown dispatched New Fairfield rather easily back on January 20, as expected, the Lady Nighthawks figured to get a tougher test against arch-rival Bunnell on January 23.

Superlative efforts from Kelley Haines (22 points with 10-of-10 shooting from the foul line) and Stephanie Logan (13 points, 14 rebounds) propelled the ‘Hawks to an impressive 52-34 win which improved their record to 10-3 overall and 7-2 in the South-West Conference.

It was a low-scoring affair right from the get-go, with the ‘Hawks taking an 8-3 lead at the end of one period. The offenses started loosening up in the second period and the ‘Hawks took a 23-13 lead into the break.

They never looked back.

Julie Iwanicki canned seven points (with 5-of-6 shooting from the foul line) and dished off six assists.

As a team, the ‘Hawks shot 18-of-25 from the line (72%).

This week was expected to be a relatively easy one for the ‘Hawks, with both Foran and Bethel coming into town, but the arrival of a snowstorm on Tuesday forced the postponement of that game with Foran. Things will get a little tougher for the ‘Hawks as they travel to Lauralton Hall on February 3, Jonathan Law on February 10, and Masuk on February 18.

NOTE: With her 22-point effort, Kelley Haines boosted her career total to 1,062 … just 53 shy of Lynn Lattanzio.

Newtown            52

Bunnell                34

NEWTOWN (52): Iwanicki 1 5-6 7, Curran 1 0-0 2, Logan 6 1-2 13, Larocque 2 0-2 4, Cooper 0 1-3 1, Filler 1 1-2 3, Haines 6 10-10 22, O’Connor 0 0-0 0 (TOTALS: 16 18-25 52); BUNNELL (34): Boyd 2 3-6 7, Walker 6 3-4 15, Poniatowski 0 0-0 0, Wombie 3 1-2 7, Payton 0 0-0 0, Yearwood 1 3-4 5, DeFeo 1 0-0 2 (TOTALS: 11 10-16 34).

Three-pointers: None.

It came in the nick of time.

The Newtown High School hockey team, having lost three in a row and five of its previous six games, was in desperate straits and looking for a win … and looking for it against a team (Housatonic Valley) the Nighthawks had already lost to a month before.

But with a couple late third-period goals, the ‘Hawks snapped a 2-2 tie and slipped past Housatonic Valley, 4-2, to stop their three-game slide. The win was tempered, however, by a 5-2 loss to New Milford last Saturday at the Danbury Ice Arena.

The ‘Hawks went to 5-9 overall, 4-4 in the South-West Conference.

In the win over Housatonic Valley, Nick Magoulas and Buzz LaPorta scored second period goals to force a 2-2 tie. Buzz and Harry Kass assisted on the Magoulas goal while the LaPorta goal was unassisted as well as shorthanded.

In the third period, Corey Regensburger snapped the 2-2 tie with just over five minutes gone … and then assisted on an insurance goal notched by Blaise LaPorta later in the period. Goaltender Pete Oggeri only allowed goals to Raleigh Zbinden and Dane Nielsen, but shut down Housatonic in the third and finished the game with 30 saves.

In the loss to New Milford, the Green Wave scored three goals in the first period and two more in the second to take a commanding lead. JM Brodski scored two of those goals on two assists from Chris Rasor.

The Wave outshot the ‘Hawks 39-16.

With the game already out of reach, the ‘Hawks got a pair of third-period goals from Buzz LaPorta to inch a little closer to the Green Wave. Oggeri had a pretty strong game in net, knocking away 34 shots (.871 save percentage).

The ‘Hawks will host Fairfield on Saturday (puck drops at 4:10 pm) and will host Masuk on February 4 (puck drops at 8:40). While the ‘Hawks have yet to play Fairfield this year, they have played Masuk (on December 13) and came away with a 5-3 win.

Housatonic         2

Newtown            4

GOALS: Newtown – Nick Magoulas, Sean LaPorta, Corey Regensburger, Blaise LaPorta; Housatonic – Raleigh Zbinden, Dane Nielsen. ASSISTS: Newtown – S. LaPorta, Harry Kass, Regensburger; Housatonic – Mike Schopp. SHOTS: Newtown – 32; Housatonic – 32. SAVES: Newtown – Pete Oggeri 30; Housatonic – Brett Conklin 28.

Newtown            2

New Milford      5

GOALS: Newtown – Sean LaPorta 2; New Milford – JM Brodski 2, Eric Tougas, Kevin Crossen, Brian Parke. ASSISTS: Newtown – none; New Milford – Chris Rasor 2, Ryan Kaiser, Zach Lamb, Brodski). SHOTS: Newtown – 16; New Milford – 39. SAVES: Newtown – Pete Oggeri 34; New Milford – Nick Longobardi 14.

There might have been some cause for concern with the Newtown High School wrestling team stuck in an 18-6 deficit after four weight classes last Wednesday at Jonathan Law, but a solid effort in the middle weights (as well as five consecutive forfeits) gave the Nighthawks enough momentum to secure a 60-24 win.

The ‘Hawks – who participated at the Morgan Duels and had a moderately successful day on Saturday (two wins, two losses and finishing fourth) – improved to 11-6 overall, 6-2 in the South-West Conference.

In the win over Law, a pin at 112 immediately dropped the ‘Hawks into a 6-0 hole. After Mike Rambone pinned Amber Wing at 1:52 in the 119-pound weight class to even the score at 6-6, the ‘Hawks forfeited the 125-pound weight class and saw one of their most impressive wrestlers, Jeff Bray, get pinned at 4:44 by Nick Newell in the 130-pound weight class.

Joe Sgammato and Gary Andrews earned pins at 135 and 140, respectively, to once again even the score, but the Lawmen went on top by six with a 63-second pin at 145. At that point, though, Colin O’Connor (152), Skye Perry (160), Alex Read (171), Edmund Breitling (189) and Brandon Thomas (215) paraded onto the mat and accepted forfeit wins that put the ‘Hawks ahead, 48-24.

To finish off the match, Dan Schierloh pinned Matt Nastri in just 22 seconds at 275 pounds and then Dan McIlrath pinned Bryant Jeriviscoval in 2:39 at 103 pounds.

At the Morgan Duals in Clinton, the ‘Hawks faced some tough competition but did some away with a pair of wins. The ‘Hawks defeated Fairfield Prep (48-30) and Vinal Tech (66-12) but lost to Waterford (64-12) and Daniel Hand (53-27).

In the win over Vinal Tech, McIlrath (103), Giacolone (119), Kearns (125), Bray (130), Sgammato (140),  Andrews (145), Perry (160), Read (171) and Breitling (189) all earned pins while Jeff Lipnick (112) and Thomas (215) earned three-point decisions over their opponents.

In the win over Fairfield Prep, McIlrath (103), Giacolone (119), Kearns (125), Bray (130), Terhaar (135), Read (171) and Breitling (189) all pinned their opponents while Sgammato (140) earned a 5-4 decision over Sergio Reyes and Perry (160) earned a 9-4 decision over Nabil Boutagay.

In the loss to Hand, which put the ‘Hawks in fourth place, McIlrath (103) got his third pin of the day - stopping Jay Maloney in 2:27. Giacolone (119) pinned JC Lipan in 1:50 and freshman Bray (130) defeated senior Nick Spinato, 12-5. Perry (160) and Read (171) earned pins (for Read, it was his 14th of the season) for the final Newtown wins of the match.

“This was the first time we had made it to the championship round of the Morgan Duals,” said head coach Alan Potter, “and the team wrestled very well to capture fourth out of 12 schools.”

On Saturday, the ‘Hawks will battle Enfield, Conard and Newington up in Enfield and will return to the SWC schedule on Wednesday with a trip to New Milford.

Newtown            60

Jonathan Law   24

103 – McIlrath (N) pinned Jeriviscoval (L) 2:39; 112 – Root (L) pinned Lipnick (N) 1:43; 119 – Rambone (N) pinned Wing (L) 1:52; 125 – Nibart (L) by forfeit; 130 – Newell (L) pinned Bray (N) 4:44; 135 – Sgammato (N) pinned Lugus (L) 1:59; 140 – Andrews pinned Albelli (L) 1:30; 145 – Ulrich (L) pinned Bowen (N) 1:03; 152 – O’Connor (N) by forfeit; 160 – Perry (N) by forfeit; 171 – Read (N) by forfeit; 189 – Breitling (N) by forfeit; 215 – Thomas (N) by forfeit; 275 – Schierloh (N) pinned Nastri (L) :22.

Newtown            48

Fairfield Prep   30

103 – McIlrath (N) pinned Lee (FP) 1:12; 112 – Mocciola (FP) pinned Lipnick (N) :29; 119 – Giacolone (N) pinned Solomito (FP) :41; 125 – Kearns (N) pinned Lukaniec (FP) :44; 130 – Bray (N) pinned A. Mocciola (FP) 2:52; 135 – Terhaar (N) pinned D’Elia (FP) :50; 140 – Sgammato (N) dec. Reyes (FP) 5-4; 145 – Cardone (FP) pinned Andrews (N) 5:03; 152 – Gleason (FP) pinned O’Connor (N) 2:18;160 – Perry (N) dec. Boutagay (FP) 9-4; 171 – Read (N) pinned A. Gleason (FP) 1:18; 189 – Breitling (N) pinned Lane (FP) :16; 215 – Bernstein (FP) pinned Thomas (N) 5:49; 275 – Demby (FP) pinned Schierloh (N) 1:02.

Newtown            66

Vinal Tech          12

103 – McIlrath (N) pinned Capistany (V) 1:34; 112 – Lipnick (N) dec A. Capistany (V) 10-8; 119 – Giacolone (N) pinned Drener (V) 1:09; 125 – Kearns (N) pinned Chesser (V) :47; 130 – Bray (N) pinned Aling (V) 1:47; 135 – Lombardo (V) pinned Terhaar (N) 1:38; 140 – Sgammato (N) pinned Felbes (V) 2:28; 145 – Andrews (N) pinned McCarthy (V) :45; 152 – O’Connor (N) by forfeit; 160 – Perry (N) pinned Cox (V) 1:46; 171 – Read (N) pinned Dumbowski (V) 4:24; 189 – Breitling (N) pinned Goff (V) :47; 215 – Thomas (N) dec. Holiday (V) 5-1; 275 – Rustic (V) pinned Schierloh (N) 1:22.

Meanwhile, the junior varsity wrestling team traveled to the Danbury Tournament and medal winners included Mubarq Von Schleusingen (2nd – 95), Rambone (4th – 119), Mick Carter (2nd – 125), and Mike Cash (4th – 189).

Ryan Peters (145), Gramham Philbrick (140), Brian Cullen (160) and Ethan Brietling (171) also wrestled well.

“The kids showed a lot good skill and strong desire in every match today,” said coach Steve Ford. “The team will be in good hands as these wrestlers move up to varsity.”

The South-West Conference championships are just a week away and the Newtown High School indoor track team is making a big push to get ready.

The Nighthawks were at an SWC Developmental meet last weekend at Staples High in Westport.

Here are some of the results:

Quincey Blanchard did a 14-7 in the long jump and 4-6 in the high jump ... both team bests for the season.

Leah Herity vaulted seven feet as the miler group of Carolyn Brennan, Moira Collier, Michelle Brennan, Sarah McSweeney, and Megan Rogers all broke seven minutes (6:12, 6:17, 6:29, 6:53 and 6:57).

In the 600, Caitlin Thursland and Lindsay Weber both qualified for SWC’s with times of 3:25 and 3:36.

Relay teams also did well. The SMR team of Julie Landin, Becky Huot, Leah Herity, and Thursland ran together for the first time and finished with the fifth best time of the night (5:12).  The 4x400 team of Landin, Blanchard, Lindsay Weber, and Thursland also ran a solid time (5th-4:52) that puts them in the running at the SWC’s.

 The 4x240 team of Whitney Allison, Jenna VanWaalwijk, Huot, and Herity also raced to a 5th place finish (2:38). 

On the boys side, Tim Carlisle blistered through the hurdles and was neck and neck with thebest of the conference.  He should challenge for an SWC title in the event.

Then, he and John Kostecki headed to the high jump pit where they both cleared five feet with potential for more.

In the 600, Dan Tichon and Matt Cole led the team with solid 1:45’s. In the 1000, Alister Ratcliff, Jon Larson, and Scott Nichols all ran times of 3:01 and 3:02.

The sprint medley of Carlisle, Kostecki, Dan Gindraux, and Larson came home in 4:19 while the 4x240 team of Carlisle, Gindraux, Liam Cawley and Larson ran a competitive time.

The ‘Hawks are heading back to Staples this weekend, looking for more qualifiers. They expect to see Sadie Ball, Weber and Pete Dittmar return from injury.