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01/16/2016 11:00 PMBoys’ Basketball
North Haven lost its first two games last week, but later scored a 62-50 victory at East Haven to own a record of 2-5. The Indians first took a 67-57 home loss to Career, then dropped a 46-38 contest in West Haven, followed by the divisional win against the Yellowjackets.
In the West Haven game, the Indians led 22-20 at halftime before getting outscored 28-16 in the latter half. Jack Steinman had 13 points with seven rebounds, Chris Watson scored eight and grabbed three steals, Jarrod Sancho and Tommy Dodge each scored six points, David Mikos collected 10 boards, and Emadi Okwuosa had eight rebounds with a pair of steals for Justin Falcon’s squad.
Girls’ Basketball
The Indians have gone up against some of the SCC’s stiffest competition lately and dropped a few decisions to stand at 2-7. North Haven recently took a 63-29 loss at Mercy, a 47-23 defeat at Career, a 55-40 loss at home against Amity, and a 70-36 home defeat versus East Haven.
Against Mercy, the Tigers jumped out to a 25-10 lead after the opening quarter and went on to victory. Jill Oestreicher had five points with six rebounds, while Ariana DelVecchio scored six to go with four assists and three steals for North Haven.
Facing Career in their Oronoque Division opener, the Indians were only down 6-4 after one quarter, but allowed the Panthers to go on a 13-2 run in the second for a 23-6 advantage at the half. Christina DeFalco had eight points, eight rebounds, and four steals for North Haven.
“We had our opportunities and, outside of the second quarter, proved we can play with this squad,” Head Coach Ray Degnan said. “We just need to convert more often when the chances present themselves.”
Taking on Amity, North Haven fell behind 10-0, yet fired back with seven-straight points and was down 15-9 after the first quarter. Marissa Thomas got scorching hot in the second quarter and finished the first half with 15 points as the Indians only trailed 25-21. Thomas finished with 20 points and three assists, while Julia Puzone netted her sixth double-double of the year with 14 points and 12 boards, although North Haven was unable to convert enough baskets in the second half and took the 15-poind defeat. DelVecchio contributed with six points, six rebounds, and four steals for Degnan’s squad.
“The final deficit is not indicative of how tight this game was throughout the evening. We were right there for three-and-a-half quarters, but just could not get enough momentum moving in our direction,” said Degnan. “Thomas and Puzone were great on the offensive end, but the defense DeFalco and DelVecchio played on their perimeter players was equally impressive. They held their two best well below their season averages and kept us in the game.”
Boys’ Ice Hockey
North Haven took its first defeat of the season by taking an 8-2 loss at Simsbury last week. Mike Gambardella scored a power play goal and Josh Back had the other goal for the Indians, who are 4-0-1. JJ Jensen and Pasquale Liuzzi each posted assists. Justin Daddio had 25 saves on 30 shots and John Reilly stopped 19 of the 22 shots he faced.
“This was not a good performance by us tonight. The third period is really the only time I felt we decided to play,” said Coach Mike Silengo. “Last year was a real close game against them at our place. I was hoping for a good game tonight. I know the boys wanted this game badly to test ourselves against a solid [Division I] team, but in the end, their talent and our first experience this year on a bigger rink proved to be costly. Just like when we win, we need to learn from this, turn the page, move on, and get ready for our next game against Branford.”
Boys’ Swimming and Diving
North Haven has had five meets this winter and owns a record of 0-4-1. The Indians’ tie came in the form of an 89-89 stalemate against Lyman Hall on Jan. 4.
North Haven’s senior captain is Holden Perrelli and the club features other returning athletes in Jack Hildebrandt and fellow junior Kyle Duby, a diver; along with sophomores Riley Powell, Albi Koleci, and Ryan Tanguay. The Indians also have five freshmen JP Stoeffler, Joe Stock, Tommy O’Connor, Will McCleery, and Angelo Fraschilla. Marcus Zikaras is a first-year sophomore. Coach Phelan noted that Stoeffler has recorded multiple first-place finishes and been especially outstanding in the 500 freestyle. Stoeffler recently swam a lifetime-best mark of 5:19.42 when North Haven faced Hand.
“I am very encouraged by the new swimmers improvement in such a short period of time,” said Coach Phelan. “This is a young team with great potential. The interest in varsity swimming is growing and I am excited to continue building on this.”
The Indians will also be hosting their first Lion Heart fundraising event for breast cancer research with a Lap-a-Thon at Gawrych Town Pool from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 22. Through last year’s Lap-a-Thon events, North Haven’s boys’ and girls’ swim teams combined to raise $7,400 for the Lion Heart Fund for Breast Cancer Research that supports The Breast Center at Smilow Cancer Hospital. Those who wish to donate may do so at lionheart.kintera.org.