Field Hockey

Field Hockey

The Hand field hockey team claimed victory in its final two games of the regular season and then notched a win in its opening contest of the SCC Tournament last week. The Tigers are sporting an overall record of 12-4-1 as they get ready to face Cheshire in the SCC semifinals.

In its first game of the week, Hand earned a 3-0 road victory over North Haven on Oct. 24. Junior Jordan Kells scored 2 goals and had 1 assist for the Tigers. Sophomore Bridget Waters scored the other goal for Hand in the win. Junior goalie Faith Minickene picked up the win in net. The Tigers were bolstered by excellent defensive performances from senior Shawn Stakk, senior Kennedy Courtney, senior Olivia Ameika, and junior Becca Snyder in the victory.

The Tigers were back on the road to face Cheshire two days later and defeated the Rams by a 3-1 score in their last game of the regular season. Cheshire led by a goal early in the second period, but Hand answered back with 2 goals from Waters in a 14-second span to take a 2-1 advantage. Sophomore Morgan Mastrobattisto and Kells had the assists on Waters’s goals.

The Tigers increased their lead to 3-1 when Kells scored on a penalty shot during the third period. Minickene made 5 saves in the cage for the Tigers.

No. 3 seed Hand went to host No. 6 Sacred Heart Academy in an SCC Tournament quarterfinal game on Oct. 29 and won the contest by a 5-0 score. Kells had 2 goals and 1 assist, while junior Kelly Kilbourn had 1 goals with 2 assists in the win. Waters had 1 goal and 1 assist, junior Katie Flanagan also scored a goal, and Snyder, Mastrobattisto, and sophomore Addison Kosiewicz each had an assist for the Tigers. Minickene made 14 saves for another shutout.

Hand is playing at No. 2 seed Cheshire in the SCC semifinals on Tuesday, Nov. 1 at 3 p.m. With a win, the Tigers would advance to face the winner of top-seeded Guilford and No. 4 Branford in the final at Amity High School on Thursday, Nov. 3 at 7:15 p.m.

Girls’ Soccer

The Hand girls’ soccer team recorded a shutout over North Haven in its regular-season finale last week and then blanked Guilford in an SCC Tournament quarterfinal game a few days later. The Tigers have an overall record of 14-2-1 as they get ready to play Mercy in the conference semifinals.

Hand hit the road to face North Haven for its last game of the regular season on Oct. 24 and notched a 3-0 shutout against the Nighthawks in the contest.

Then on Oct. 29, the No. 3 seed Tigers hosted 6th-seeded Guilford for a quarterfinal game in the SCC Tournament and posted a 2-0 victory versus the Grizzlies, giving Hand its 13th shutout among its 14 victories this season.

Hand is playing an SCC semifinal game against No. 2 seed Mercy at Xavier High School on Tuesday, Nov. 1 at 4 p.m. With a victory, the Tigers would advance to face the winner of top-seeded Cheshire and No. 4 seed Branford in the final at West Haven High School on Thursday, Nov. 3 at 5:30 p.m. Following SCCs, Hand will be taking part in the Class L State Tournament that starts on Saturday, Nov. 5.

Boys’ Soccer

The Hand boys’ soccer squad finished regular-season play with an overall record of 7-7-2 after notching a win and a draw in last week’s matchups. The Tigers posted a shutout over Jonathan Law and then played Shelton to a scoreless tie during the last week of regular-season action.

Hand began last week by claiming a 6-0 road win against Jonathan Law in Oct. 24. Three days later, the Tigers played a road game versus Shelton and battled the Gaels to a 0-0 tie in their regular-season finale.

Hand is competing in the Class L State Tournament that will begin on Saturday, Nov. 5.

Football

The Hand football team traveled to Middletown to square off against Xavier in an SCC Tier 1 matchup on a Friday night on Oct. 28. The Tigers notched a 21-7 victory versus the Falcons at Xavier High School to improve their overall record to 1-5 with a record of 1-4 in the division. Xavier moved to 2-5 overall with a divisional record of 0-4 with the loss.

Hand held an 8-0 lead over Xavier after the first quarter and maintained that advantage heading into halftime. After the teams traded touchdowns in the third quarter, the Tigers brought a 14-7 lead into the fourth. Hand scored an insurance touchdown in the fourth quarter and went on to get the 21-7 victory.

Sophomore quarterback Paul Calandrelli and fellow sophomore Tyler Narracci both rushed for a touchdown to help Hand defeated Xavier in last week’s matchup. Senior John Hayden returned an interception for a touchdown for the Tigers.

Calandrelli finished the game 9-of-17 passing for 141 yards to go with 12 carries for 73 yards and a TD in the victory. Narracci had 15 rushes for 65 yards and a score. Senior Sam Sisk had 4 receptions for 73 yards, and junior Owen Preskar had 4 catches for 66 yards on the night.

Along with Hayden’s pick-6, senior Ryan Milliard also had an interception on defense for Hand. Senior John Hayden, junior Nick Platanos, and sophomore Morris Selmani each recorded a sack in the win. Junior Gavin Wagner and Sisk both had a pair of pass deflections.

Senior Alex Cushing made 14 tackles for the Tigers. Junior Brady Corsello and Hayden each had 10 tackles in the victory.

Hand’s next contest is a road game against SCC Tier 1 opponent North Haven (6-1, 3-1) at North Haven Middle School on Friday, Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. The Tigers will then host Sheehan at the Surf Club on Friday, Nov. 11 at 7 p.m., after which they will play at Guilford for their annual Thanksgiving Week game at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 23.

Boys’ Cross Country

Senior Harry Grenier finished in fourth place to lead the Hand boys’ cross country team to a fourth-place showing in the Class MM State Championship meet held at Wickham Park in Manchester in Oct. 29. The Tigers totaled a team score of 138 points on their way to taking fourth place at the state meet last week.

Grenier crossed the finish line with a time of 16:42 en route to taking fourth place at the Class MM State Championship. Senior Nicholas Montana was next in line for the Tigers by finishing in 13th place with a mark of 17:24.

Junior Christopher Bonavita finished in 36th place with a time of 18:15 for Hand in the Class MM meet. Junior Jacob Merenda posted a time of 18:24 to claim 42nd place, while fellow junior Jacob Merenda came in 43rd place with that same time of 18:24. Sophomore Jack Rickleman finished in 68th place (19:05), and junior Elliot Lee finished in 93rd (19:50) on behalf of the Tigers.

Girls’ Cross Country

Freshman Annecy Vlieks recorded a third-place performance for the Hand girls’ cross country team at the Class M State Championship meet last week. The Tigers finished in 10th place as a squad with 257 points scored when the state meet was hosted on Oct. 29 at Wickham Park.

Vlieks claimed third place by running a time of 19:53 for the Tigers in the Class M State Championship. Sophomore Marla Lafferty finished in 45th place with a time of 23:46, and sophomore Kylee Bolding took 51st place by posting a mark of 24:11.

Sophomore Hannah Staron finished in 80th place (25:22), while freshman Maya Bell finished 90th (26:08) for the Tigers at states. Junior Tessa Burch placed 93rd (26:16), and junior Ava Millen finished in 124th place (28:46).

Girls’ Swimming and Diving

The Hand girls’ swimming and diving team sent four athletes to compete in the SCC Diving Championship last week. The meet was hosted at Sheehan High School on Oct. 29.

Freshman Ella Speerli finished in 15th place for the Tigers by posting a score of 310.10 points at the SCC Diving Championship. Junior Abigail Simpson claimed 17th place with a score of 290.65.

Junior Hadley Reiss came in 19th place with a score of 283.30 for the SCC diving competition. Sophomore Georgia Cohen posted a score of 267.15 and finished in 23rd place.

Hand is competing in the swimming portion of the SCC Championship at Southern Connecticut State University on Thursday, Nov. 3 at 5 p.m. After that, the Tigers will participate in the Class S State Championship meet.

Girls’ Volleyball

The Hand girls’ volleyball team finished its regular season with a record of 5-15 after taking three defeats during the final week of play. The Tigers lost contests against Guilford, Waterford, and Haddam-Killingworth last week.

On Oct. 24, Hand took a 3-1 loss to Guilford in a home match. Then on Oct. 26, the Tigers were on the road to face non-conference opponent Waterford and took a 3-0 loss in the contest. The following day, the Tigers hosted Haddam-Killingworth for their regular-season finale and took a 3-1 defeat to the Cougars at Daniel Hand High School.