Boys’ Cross Country

Guilford swept a tri-meet against Hand and Foran on Oct. 16 in Milford to win the SCC Hammonasset Division title, marking the Indians seventh crown since 2008 and their 10th overall. Guilford finished the dual-meet season with a record of 8-1 and went 4-0 in the division. Ben Siciliano won the race in 15:59 and he was followed by Finn Davidson in second (16:12) and Josh Stern for fifth (16:44).

“Our first goal was to get the division back. I was helping out with the girls last year, but I saw frustration in not winning last year and know how much it meant to win it back this year. We did not have our best race of the season, but we did what we needed to do to win and I am proud of the guys,” said Head Coach Jon Rivera. “Our goal for Thursday [Oct. 22 at the SCC Championship] will be to try and crack the top three. Amity and Fairfield Prep are powerhouses this year, but I think we can battle for the third spot if we run our race. From there, we will get ready for states with an eye on winning, but it is one race at a time with this team. We do not look ahead and have to complete one task at a time.”

Girls’ Cross Country

In a tri-meet for the SCC Hammonasset Division crown on Oct. 16 against Hand and Foran in Milford, the Indians bested Foran 20-36, but were edged by the Tigers 28-29. Claire Keanna was race runner-up in 19:54, while Amy Puchini came third (20:12), plus Evelyn Ferrall was fourth (20:14) for the Indians (6-3, 3-1).

Field Hockey

Guilford had a strong week with shutout wins at North Haven on Oct. 13 and home versus Sacred Heart Academy on Oct. 17.

A 5-0 win at North Haven included goals by Kate Dinauer and two goals each by Sami Clayton and Olivia Clarke.

The home 4-0 victory against SHA featured goals by Clayton, Clarke, Isabelle Risse, and Julia Ellman for the Indians (now 7-4-1 overall).

Volleyball

Guilford marched to 13-1 with a 3-1 victory (25-18, 24-26, 27-25, 25-15) over Law before also sweeping aside Hillhouse on Oct. 14 to improve to 6-0 in SCC Hammonasset Division play.

Offensively versus Law, Heather Wirth had 16 kills, while Meredith Shank added 14. Defensively, Wirth blocked 10 shots. For digs, Meredith Shank led with 30, Amanda King tacked on 14, and Sam Shank punched up 10. Jill Wirth handed out 41 assists, plus King and Trinity Flynn each had three aces.

Taking on Hillhouse, Guilford won 25-6, 25-19, 25-18). Natalie Stanton tallied nine kills, King added eight kills, and Meredith Shank had six kills, seven digs, and served up three aces.

Guilford then dropped to 14-2 with a 3-2 loss (25-20, 20-25, 25-21, 14-25, 10-15) to another division foe in Hand on Oct. 16. Meredith Shank had a dozen kills and 19 digs; Heather Wirth killed 10 balls and had five blocks; King netted 11 kills and 19 digs; plus Jill Wirth dished out 33 assists with 14 digs for the Indians.

Girls’ Soccer

The Indians took their first loss of the year on Oct. 12 against Lauralton Hall by a 4-1 final. Guilford responded the next day with a 5-2 decision against Law and then finished the week with a 2-0 blanking of Foran on Oct. 17 to move to 8-1-2 overall and 4-0-1 in its division.

Against Lauralton, Andrea Basilicato scored for Guilford. The Indians outshot the Crusaders 25-12.

Against Law, Guilford notched five goals on 20 shots. Twenty-three minutes in, Molly Kosh propelled the ball into the goal. Unfortunately, Jocelyn Wirth of Law put in its first shot of the half over the head of the Guilford keeper to tie things up. Guilford kept to its game and finally broke through for more goals when Chloe Shaw drove a low shot that ricocheted in, after which Kayley McLaughlin redirected a lined direct kick from Andrea Basilicato. With a 3-1 lead at the half, the total marked the most goals Guilford had scored in its last four games. The second half saw McLaughlin net her second goal with a clean finish of a loose ball. Law was able to make it 4-2 before Grace Clancy possessed, turned, and sent a perfect diagonal pass to a sprinting Taylor Shutak, who nailed the final goal into the lower-left corner.

“Having two games in two days is a strange scheduling twist in our league this year. While often a troubling circumstance, today it was helpful as we came back from last night’s loss and continued our overall decent play, but this time with the reward of five goals scored,” said Head Coach Scott McMahon. “Our depth continued to show with scoring from four different players. Erin Lamberton stepped in at defense, allowing Chloe Shaw to move up to attacking mid, which really allowed us to possess and break the scoring ice. Kayley’s two goals were a nice reward for her continued strong play at center-mid and Andrea Basilicato at forward provided a few assists and made Law worry about her, which really opened things up for our midfield.”

Taking on Foran, The Indians earned seven corner kicks with 18 shots on goal to the Lions’ three.

The first goal came 18 minutes in off a corner kick from Izzy Nerney that Basilicato kept alive before Shutak finished for her second goal in as many games. The first half saw dominance of possession, but not as many shots on goal as earned. Jacqui Guerra netted her goal 23 minutes into the second half after some steady passing.

“I was very happy with our play and this result for this time of the season. Our attentions are turning towards the final Hammonasset Division title game [at Hand on Monday, Oct. 26], the SCC Tournament, and states,” said McMahon. “While scoring is still an area to develop, we are getting it from many players, and it’s often the result of great team play and possession. Translating that possession to goals will be our focus.”

Football

Guilford hosted Fitch on Oct. 16 and took a 30-21 defeat to drop to 1-5. Jack Jankura had 21 complete passes on 35 attempts for 222 yards, while Casey Huffman reeled in nine receptions for 114 yards.

Mike Filley (30 carries, 155 yards on the ground) put Guilford ahead 7-0 with a 3-yard touchdown rush before the Falcons (4-1) made the score stand at 7-7 to end the first thanks to a 2-yard scoring scamper. Jankura then connected with Ben Fazzina on a 17-yard TD toss to put the Indians ahead 14-7 at the half. The visitors responded with a pair of big runs (71 and 55 yards) to the house in the third to lead by seven entering the final frame. Fitch padded its command on a 44-yard touchdown dash and 28-yard field goal. Filley then ran it in from 13 yards out to close the night.

After a bye week, Guilford (1-0 in SCC Division II West) returns to action on Friday, Oct. 30, when it hosts divisional rival Lyman Hall (0-4, 0-2) at 7 p.m.