Boys’ Outdoor Track

The Hand boys’ outdoor track team scored 103 points to finish as the runner-up at the SCC East Sectional Championship at Amity High School on May 14. Shelton took first place by totaling 113 points.

The Tigers posted a few first-place finishes at the sectional meet. Mike Burchell recorded a distance of 52 feet-2.75 inches to win the shot put over Shelton’s Ed Radzion (49-2.5), and he also won the discus with a throw of 132-1, defeating Storm Furtado of Law (129-2). Isaiah McNeilly was the javelin champion with a distance of 175-8, while teammate Quincy Heinrich place second in the event at 153 feet.

The Tigers’ 4x800 relay of Jaime Calderon, Drew Carone, Nick Porte, and Tyler Bennard was the runner-up (8:09.59) to Hillhouse (8:08.96); the 4x100 relay of Steve Kao, Kade Doverspike, Ameen Parks, and Kijana Richmond finished third (44.96); while the 4x400 group of Calderon, Parks, Porte, and Carson Hines also claimed third place (3:28.53).

Elsewhere, Heinrich took third in the high jump (6-0), Porte took third in the 800 (2:00.87) and Calderon finished sixth (2:02.75), while Greyson McGeary finished fourth for the 300 hurdles (42.83) and fifth in the 110 hurdles (15.88). Also for Hand, Bryce Meyers placed fifth for the pole vault (11-6), Jessie Lutz was fifth for the long jump (18-8.5), and McNeilly finished fifth in the discus (118-1). Connor Parthasarthy took sixth (44.45) in the 300 hurdles with Dan Kim in eighth (44.96), Richmond raced to seventh for the 100 (11.31) and also took seventh in the 200 (23.43), and Colin McCabe finished eighth in the shot put (41-8.25).

Girls’ Outdoor Track

Gabrielle Harmon took first place in the 200 for Hand at last week’s SCC East Sectional Championship. The Tigers came in seventh place with 39 points scored at the meet.

Harmon won the 200 title with a time of 26.42 seconds to defeat runner-up Rayna Esch of Sheehan, who finished at 27.05. Harmon also finished second in the 400 at 1:00.01, placing behind Hillhouse’s Jada Boyd (57.49). Chloe Thompson finished third in the 800 (2:24.77); the 4x100 relay of Elinor Laffargue, Bridget Phillips, Sophie Cohen, and Hayley Dean was third (53.55); the 4x400 relay of Keelin Virgulto, Rachel Parthasarthy, Emily Connelly, and Harmon finished fourth (4:19.59); and Erin Naclerio claimed fifth for the pole vault (9-0).

Boys’ Lacrosse

Hand split its last two matchups of the regular season for a record of 11-5. The Tigers are playing in this week’s SCC Tournament.

The Tigers lost a 5-4 overtime contest to Longmeadow, Massachusetts on May 14. Hand then finished the regular season with a 9-6 triumph over Fairfield Prep two days later, handing the Jesuits their first conference loss since the 2015 SCC Tournament final.

Against Prep, Nate Palumbo had two goals and two assists, Tom Swank added two goals, and Jack Flanagan had a goal and helper. Also for Hand, Tyler Boris chipped in two goals and an assist, Conner Bergere and Mark Hartmann each had a goal, and Ryley Brohel assisted on a score. Griffin Fitzmaurice made nine saves for the Tigers, who were outshot by a slim 27-25 margin.

Top-seeded Hand earned a first-round bye in the SCC Tournament and hosted a semifinal on May 22 (after press time) against Cheshire. A victory moves the Tigers into the final on Thursday, May 24 at West Haven at 7:30 p.m. against either Guilford or Fairfield Prep.

Girls’ Lacrosse

Hand finished up the regular season at 14-2 after earning one-goal victories versus Branford and Cheshire last week. The Tigers are competing in the SCC Tournament this week.

The Tigers edged out Branford by a 13-12 final on May 16, giving the Hornets only their second loss of 2018. Hand then downed Cheshire by a 12-11 final the next night to seal the regular-season SCC title.

No. 1-seed Hand now vies for a fourth-straight SCC title. Having earned a first-round bye, the Tigers hosted a SCC Tournament semifinal on May 22 (after press time) against Guilford, and a win there puts them in the final on Thursday, May 24 at West Haven at 4:30 p.m. versus either Branford or Cheshire.

Boys’ Tennis

The Tigers completed a perfect regular season with a record of 17-0 by posting a 7-0 win versus Amity last week. Hand is competing in the SCC Tournament that takes place this week.

Softball

The Tigers moved to 18-1 overall and 7-0 in SCC Quinnipiac Division play after nabbing three more wins last week.

Hand swept a doubleheader against Hillhouse on May 14 by notching a pair of 16-1 victories. The Tigers then defeated Guilford by a 6-4 score on May 18.

Baseball

Hand improved to 15-4 after recording two more victories in last week’s action.

Hand routed Law by a 15-1 score on May 14 to finish at 7-1 in the SCC Hammonasset Division. Julian Banerji hit a grand slam, a double, and drove in five runs for the Tigers, while Cam Fitzgerald had two hits, including an RBI double. Will Reiner contributed three hits and two RBI, and Tom Hobin had two hits, three runs scored, and an RBI. Kyle Schaefer picked up the win on the mound to improve to 6-2.

The Tigers went on to post a 9-3 win over East Haven on May 18.

Boys’ Golf

The Tigers improved to 10-4 after sweeping a recent quad-match against three local opponents.

Hand swept the match on May 14 by posting a score of 159 to defeat Guilford (182), Branford (183), and Morgan (197). Conner Quinn was the match medalist with a score of 36, while Matthew Doyle shot a 39, Michael McKeon finished with a 40, and Aidan Stuart had a score of 44.

The Tigers then took a 163-171 defeat against Cheshire on May 17. McKeon was the low man for Hand with a 41.

Girls’ Golf

Hand has a record of 4-7 after recently losing a couple tightly contested matchups on the links.

The Tigers lost a 208-216 decision versus Cheshire on May 14. Angie Balzano and Bella Larizza each shot a 52 for the Tigers. Josie Anderson finished with a score of 55, Molly Meyer had a 57, and Morgan Lipford totaled a 60.

Hand then lost to Suffield by a 231-232 score on May 17. Balzano earned medalist honors with a round of 53 for the Tigers.

Boys’ Volleyball

Hand is 8-9 after dropping two of its three matches last week and now turns its attention to the SCC Tournament.

Hand took a 3-0 defeat to Masuk on May 14. The Tigers next lost a 3-2 match against Norwich Free Academy on May 16 and then took a 3-2 defeat to Xavier on May 18.

The Tigers are the No. 3 seed in the SCC Tournament and faced No. 2 Shelton in a semifinal on May 23 (after press time). The winner faces either Xavier or Cheshire in the final on Friday, May 25 at 6 p.m.