Baseball, Softball Teams Enter Into Postseason

Newtown High School’s baseball and softball teams entered into South-West Conference tournament action this week. Both teams had first-round games postponed because of rain. The baseball team was scheduled to play on Wednesday (after The Bee sports section went to press. Check www.NewtownBee.com for updates). The softball team’s game date was not announced at press time.

Seeded third, the baseball team was originally scheduled to begin the playoffs on Monday, but rain pushed the quarterfinal round clash with No. 6 Stratford to Tuesday, and eventually Wednesday. The eighth-seeded softball squad had the tough task of opening the playoffs against top-seeded Brookfield.

Newtown’s baseball team concluded the regular season with a record of 14-6 overall (10-3 in SWC play). The Nighthawk sluggers capped off the campaign with a pair of one-run games — a 7-6 edging of host New Milford on May 16 and a 4-3 setback at Pomperaug of Southbury the next day.

In the win over New Milford, the Nighthawks overcame a final-inning deficit and held off the Green Wave in its last at bat.

With Newtown trailing 4-3 in the top of the seventh inning, seniors Evan Noonan and Andy Kelley both walked and Kyle Wilcox followed with a single down the left field line. The next batter was junior pinch hitter J.P Blanco, who hit a 2-1 pitch over the left fielder’s head for a go-ahead, two-run hit. Newtown added two more runs, one on an RBI single by junior Justin DeVellis, on his second hit of the day and one on a passed ball.

Pitcher Mike Davis went 52/3 innings, allowing four runs, striking out six, and walking none. Brandon Marks came on in relief and struck out the only batter he faced. Seniors John Hull and Wilcox combined to pitch the seventh inning and finish the game as Wilcox struck out two to seal the Nighthawk win. Senior captain Rich Sandler had two hits and a pair of runs batted in. David Lucia, Mike Allwein, and Noonan also had hits in the win.

Against Pomperaug, the top seed in the tourney, Newtown took a 2-0 first-inning lead but couldn’t hold off the Panthers (one of only two conference teams, the other being second-seeded Bunnell of Stratford, to defeat the Hawks this spring). Pomperaug defeated NHS for the second time this season despite three hits and an RBI by Davis, and two hits each by Noonan (two runs scored) and Kelley (who scored a run). Marks pitched six innings and allowed three earned runs. He struck out five and walked five.

The Newtown softball team lost a tough 3-2 decision to New Milford on May 16, then fell 12-2 to Lauralton Hall of Milford in the season finale the next day. Against New Milford, Jess Gibbons tripled with two outs in the first inning and scored on Emily Woznick’s single for a 1-0 NHS lead. New Milford scored twice in the fourth and once in he fifth before holding off the Hawks. In the seventh, Mady Hauck walked, Gibbons was intentionally walked, and Woznick delivered an RBI double to pull NHS to within a run. The Hawks stranded runners at second and third to end the game.

Against Lauralton, Gibbons was 2-for-3 with a double and triple. She finished the season with an above-.500 batting average. Woznick and Gibbons each had an RBI in the defeat. Newtown pitcher Gillian Galante left the game when she took a line drive come-backer off the foot, and was questionable for the start of the playoffs. Mikayla Kuligowski relieved Galante in the Lauralton game. Newtown finished the season with a 10-10 overall record.