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04/18/2015 12:00 AMIn recent years, the Branford girls’ lacrosse team tended to start a tad slow and then had to scramble to make the playoffs by surging down the stretch. Apparently, the Hornets aren’t in the mood for any late-season drama this spring as Jackie Ceccolini’s squad is 3-1 to open the campaign and claimed victory in all three of its contests last week. Branford notched a 10-9 home win versus Mercy on April 14, followed by an 11-10 triumph at home over Lauralton Hall the next day, after which the Hornets won big at Sacred Heart Academy by the score of 15-5 on April 17.
“We’re definitely off to a nice start at 3-1. The SCC is a very competitive league and there’s no sigh of relief yet, but I like the way the team is going. It’s a good group that’s fun to work with and works hard and you can’t ask for anything more,” said Ceccolini, whose team went 8-7-1 for the regular season before losing to New Canaan in states last year. “So far, the season is going good. We started off with a tough loss to a team good team [a 7-4 loss to Barlow on April 11], but showed a lot of grit and what our team is capable of doing this week. We had some tough games and, fortunately, we came out on top.”
Branford’s busy slate began with a home duel against Mercy and the Hornets stormed out of the gates by taking a 5-0 advantage. The Tigers rallied to slice it to 6-4 at halftime and it was a close contest throughout, although the Hornets never surrendered their lead and came away with the 10-9 victory.
Senior captain Teagan Mockus, senior Claire Benevento, and sophomore Ashlee Smestad—all attackers—each tallied two goals to help Branford tame the Tigers. Senior midfielder Kara Nardella posted a goal with an assist and senior captain midfielder Caroline Murphy, junior midfielder Kendall Simmons, and freshman midfielder Autumn McHenry each added a score for the Hornets.
New varsity goalie, sophomore Sydney Smith, came through with eight saves and Coach Ceccolini additionally pointed out a strong effort from her defensive corps of senior captain Cara Broughal, sophomore Morgan Gilman, plus freshmen Sabrina Torcellini and Sophie Spencer.
“We felt this was a must-win for us and we wanted it. The girls fought hard. We let them come back, which wasn’t our game-plan, but we finished strong at the end,” said Ceccolini, who’s in her eight campaign at the Hornets’ helm with assistance from JV coach Melissa Carney, plus her father Joe Alessi and brother Billy Alessi. “We have a really solid defense that’s playing extremely aggressive this year. They denied passes and carried up the field for us in this game.”
Branford then hosted SCC newcomer Lauralton Hall on April 15 and it was another one-goal decision, although this one was a bit more of a nail-biter with the Hornets rallying to get the W. The game went to halftime tied 5-5 and then the Hornets were staring at a one-goal deficit as the second half wound down. Fortunately, junior midfielder Carolyn Caminear netted the equalizer and then Spencer assisted McHenry for the winner with about four minutes left. Branford held off the Crusaders the rest of the way and collected the victory.
McHenry totaled four goals for Branford, Benevento and Nardella each tallied two goals with an assist, and Murphy also scored twice. Smith made six saves in net.
“This was another tough, hard-fought game and I was really proud of the way the girls performed against adversity when we were down. They stepped up their level of play as the game progressed. They realized they had to turn it on or they wouldn’t come out on top and, to their credit, they turned it on,” Ceccolini said. “We received a standout performance from Sophie Spencer. Toward the end of the game, she took the team on her back, causing turnovers and speeding all through the field.”
On the heels of these two heart-stomping contests, Branford made quick work of its next foe in Sacred Heart Academy by taking an 11-3 halftime lead and cruising to the 15-5 win in Hamden. Murphy led the charge by scoring three goals and handing out a pair of assists. Benevento and Smestad also netted three goals and had one helper apiece with Torcellini adding two goals and two assists. Additionally, Caminear had a goal and an assist; Nardella, Gilman, and freshman attacker Lan Le Crotty scored goals; and Simmons contributed an assist. Keeper Smith steered aside six shots for the win.
“We controlled the tempo of the game from the start and moved the ball nicely up the field with a lot of assisted goals, which is always nice to see,” Ceccolini said. “We were able to play everyone and it was just a solid performance by all.”
The Hornets’ senior class features captains Mockus, Broughal, and Murphy, in addition to Benevento and Nardella. Coach Ceccolini complimented her veteran quintet for displaying great leadership and also expressed how happy she is to see several underclass athletes making an immediate impact in a season that’s gotten out to a strong start and will hopefully feature a fine finish.
“The senior leadership has been great on and off the field. They’re making the team their own this year and are forever learning and working hard. The underclassmen are also really impressing us and a lot of that goes to our youth program for developing our athletes to make the high school team better,” Ceccolini said. “Our goals this season are to be ready from the first whistle and compete hard from the start of the game without letting up any easy goals. We also want to communicate and work well together as a team. If we’re all on the same page, good things will happen.”