The Valley Regional boys’ basketball team dropped a contest against Old Lyme in the Shoreline Conference Tournament semifinals on Feb. 26. The 3rd-seeded Warriors took a 66-47 defeat versus No. 2 seed Old Lyme to move to 16-6 with the Division V State Tournament on the way.

Valley and Old Lyme played to an 11-11 stalemate in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Old Lyme’s offense caught fire and helped the Wildcats take a 37-21 lead into halftime. Although Valley opened the third quarter on a 9-0 run, Old Lyme was able to regain control of the game and come away with the 19-point victory.

Junior guard Cade Ensinger scored 14 points for the Warriors, while junior Chris Sparaco had 12 points. Junior guard Gavin Grabowski scored 11 points, and senior captain Kevin Fasulo recorded six points on the night.

Valley Regional is the No. 5 seed in the Division V State Tournament and has a bye through the first round. In the second round, the Warriors will host either No. 12 seed Kaynor Tech or No. 21 Derby on Thursday, March 7 at 7 p.m. The Division V quarterfinals are on Monday, March 11; the semis take place on Wednesday, March 13; and the Division V state final will be held at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville on either Saturday, March 16 or Sunday, March 17.

—Chris Negrini