WHHS Sports

The West Haven boys basketball team won two of three contests this week. West Haven is now 6-3 on the year.

With its third straight victory, the West Haven boys’ basketball team improved to 5-2 on the season Monday evening. West Haven’s latest victory came at Hall, where the Westies posted a 57-51 victory.

The Westies had three players in double figures, led by Marlin Walker with 18 points. Malcolm Duncanson and Laron Holmes each scored 15 points, with Walker draining four 3-pointers. Shea Sheffield finished with eight points, including a pair of 3-pointers.

West Haven trailed 14-12 after one quarter despite six points on a pair of 3-pointers by Marlin Walker, and 23-22 at the half.

West Haven got things going in the third quarter to take a 41-38 lead with a 19-15 advantage. Duncanson had nine of his points in the quarter. West Haven hit seven free throws in the final quarter to pull out the six-point victory.

West Haven has won four of its last five contests. The fourth win came Friday evening in a 58-43 home victory over Jonathan Law. The Westies took the lead in the second quarter, expanded it in the third, and closed the contest in the fourth.

Duncanson led West Haven with 17 points. Sheffield and Holmes scored 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the Westies.

The West Haven girls’ basketball team won two of three games this week. With the victories, West Haven improved to 6-4 on the year.

West Haven lost its third straight contest Monday evening, with a 52-41 defeat to Mercy at West Haven.

Amani Abuhatab led the Westies with 16 points. Kassidy Carrano had seven points, while Tenique Gates and Sarah Evangelista finished with five points.

West Haven trailed 15-11 in the first quarter despite four points from Abuhatab and three from Evangelista. Mercy pulled away with a 14-7 second quarter run for a 29-18 lead as the Westies connected on just a pair of field goals in the second quarter.

The Westies finally got going offensively in the third quarter with 13 points as six different players were in the scoring column, but West Haven could not get closer as each team scored 23 points in the second half.

West Haven ended a three-game losing streak with a 36-32 victory over Foran Wednesday evening.

Elena Petrie led the way with seven points, including five in the fourth quarter to help the Westies to the four-point win. Abuhatab had seven points, while Evangelista added five in the win.

The Westies came back to win their second game in a row and improved to 6-4 on the year with a thorough 52-41 victory over Lauralton Hall in Milford Friday evening.

A balanced scoring attack saw Carrano lead the way with 14 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. Gates added 10 points, Abuhatab had nine points and Brianna Sebastian and Jayden Steinman each scored six.

Leading by one point, West Haven put the game away with a 21-14 run in the second quarter. West Haven never looked back, leading 40-28 after three quarters of play.

The winning streak has reached nine games to start the season for the West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy girls hockey team.

The Westie Sharks produced their eighth victory in emphatic fashion with an 8-2 victory over Masuk Tuesday evening at the Edward L. Bennett Rink in West Haven.

Ten different players were in the scoring column, led by Taylor Nowak who had three goals and one assist. For Nowak, the goal total is now at 99 in her memorable high school career.

Jianna Cohrs scored twice and added an assist, while Hailey Alfano and Hannah Davey combined to make 12 saves. Alfano finished the contest with seven saves and Davey added five in the victory.

The Westie Sharks took control of the game in the opening period, scoring four times for a 4-0 advantage. Megan Froehlich, who had a goal and an assist, got things going 33 seconds into the contest with a tally off an assist from Cohrs.

Less than five minutes later, the lead was 2-0 when Melissa Tsakonas scored off an assist from Mackenzie Gardner. Cohrs made the score 3-0 off an assist from Nowak 2:10 later, then scored again off an assist from Emilee DeGrand with six seconds remaining in the period for a 4-0 advantage.

Leading 4-1 in the second, the Westie Sharks increased the margin to 5-1 when Caitlin Welch scored off assists from Maya Boyhen and Jenn Hunt. Nowak scored twice in 35 seconds in the second. Then finished her hat trick at the 12:16 mark off an assist from Froehlich.

West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy improved to 9-0 with a 6-2 victory over Branford Thursday evening at the Edward L. Bennett Rink in West Haven.

Nine different players were in the scoring column, led by Jenna Hunt and Jianna Cohrs with two goals and an assist apiece. Maya Boyhen finished with a pair of assists. Hailey Alfano finished with 12 saves, including five in the second period.

The Westie Sharks trailed 1-0 until Megan Froehlich scored off assists from Cohrs and Brooke McNabola with 20 seconds remaining in the opening period.

West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy scored the first three goals of the second period for a 4-1 advantage.

Hunt gave the Westie Sharks the lead for good with an unassisted goal at the 10:20 mark, before she scored again 1:06 later off assists from Mia Celentano and Boyhen. When Cohrs scored an unassisted goal 48 seconds later, WH/SHA led 4-1.

With a 4-2 advantage, the Westie Sharks put the contest away with two third period goals. Mackenzie Gardner scored at the 6:39 mark off assists from Hunt and Anne Plunkett, before Cohrs scored her second of the game with 1:12 left off assists from Taylor Nowak and Boyhen.

After starting the season in feel-good fashion, the West Haven boys’ hockey team has seen adversity cross its way. The battle to get through a three-game losing streak was up for a tall test against Fairfield Prep Wednesday evening.

Despite a scoreless first period, the Westies watched as the Jesuits scored three times in each of the second and third periods to top West Haven 6-0 at the Wonderland of Ice.

The Westies were outshot, 41-17, in the contest with Jared Pliszka making 35 saves.

With inclement weather approaching, Saturday morning’s contest between Cheshire and West Haven was moved to an earlier start time. The Westies were hoping such a change could lead to a different result as they were in the midst of a four-game skid.

While West Haven got on the board first, Cheshire scored the last three and topped West Haven 3-1 to send the Westies to their fifth straight loss.

Kaden Morgillo got the Westies going in the contest when he scored 9 minutes, 44 seconds into the game off an assist from Robbie Forleo.

Morgillo’s goal was West Haven’s only lead of the game and it was short-lived as Cheshire scored 1:59 later.

After a scoreless second period, Cheshire took a 2-1 lead 50 seconds into the third. West Haven never got the equalizer and the Rams iced the contest with an insurance tally with 27 seconds remaining.

Pliszka made 17 saves in the loss for West Haven.

The West Haven boys swim team used solid team work to pull out an 88-84 victory over Sacred Heart Tuesday evening at West Haven High. The Westies had seven first place finishes and eight second place finishes.

The 200 yard medley relay team of Bryan Barrington, Christopher D’Inzio, Luis Lopez, and Shane Taulty won in 1 minute, 58.01 seconds, while the 200 yard free relay team of Issac Gorske, Lopez, Anthony Castillo, and Mustansir Jamalee won in 1:47.33.

Luis Lopez was victorious in the 200 yard IM in 2:21.50, while the 50 yard free was won by Gorske in 23.59 seconds. Vincent Militrano was victorious in the diving event with 135.75 points, and Gorske won the 100 yard free in 56.02 seconds. The 100 yard breaststroke was won by Christopher D’Inzio in 1:10.98.

West Haven also had eight second place finishes. The 400 yard free relay of Bryan Barrington, John Barrington, D’Inzio, and Shane Taulty was second in 4:16.77, while the 200 yard free had a second place finish with Mustansir Jamalee in 2:26.42.

Bryan Barrington was second in the 50 yard free in 25.68, the 1 M diving had Youssef Ossama with 118.20 points, and the 100 yard butterfly saw Taulty second in 1:07.17. D’Inzio was second in the 100 yard free in 56.43, Anthony Castillo was second in the 500 yard free in 6:21.20. The 100 breaststroke saw Lopez place second in 1:12.32.

The West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy girls hockey team continues to roll along, winning seven straight to open the 2019/2020 season.

Behind 19 saves from Hailey Alfano, two goals and an assist from Taylor Nowak, and a goal and an assist each from Brooke McNabola and Jianna Cohrs, the Westie Sharks improved to 5-0 with a 6-1 victory over Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe at the Edward L. Bennett Rink Monday evening.

Alfano was stellar in goal, making five saves in the first and four more in the second with the Westie Sharks in a tight contest. Alfano was at her best in the third period with 10 saves, and the rest of the team responded with four goals to put the game away.

The Westie Sharks took a 1-0 lead on an unassisted goal by McNabola 2 minutes, 56 seconds into the game and held that lead until the second period. With the game even at one, Cohrs scored off an assist from Anne Plunkett at the 9:24 mark of the second to give West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy a lead it never relinquished.

The Westie Sharks scored four times in the third as Emilee DeGrand opened the scoring at the 6:10 mark off assists from Mia Celentano and Jenna Hunt for a 3-1 lead. Mackenzie Gardner increased the lead to 4-1 just 4:22 later off an assist from Nowak, before Nowak put the game away.

The senior gave West Haven / Sacred Heart Academy a 5-1 lead with 1:57 left off assist from Cohrs and McNabola, before scoring an unassisted tally with 12 seconds remaining.

The West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy girls hockey team continues to find different ways to win. Through six games, the Westie Sharks are a perfect 6-0.

The latest victory for the Westie Sharks came Wednesday evening against rival Hamden. Scoring six times in the second period, West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy posted a 10-8 victory at the Lou Astorino Rink in Hamden.

Megan Froehlich led the way for the Westie Sharks with three goals and two assists, Jianna Cohrs added two goals and three assists, while Taylor Nowak had three goals and one assist in the win.

Trailing 4-2 in the second period, the Westie Sharks scored five straight times to take a lead they never relinquished.

Froehlich scored off an assist from Cohrs to get West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy within 4-3 5:04 into the second, before an unassisted goal by Nowak evened the contest at four just 54 seconds later.

Cohrs scored an unassisted goal 1:34 later for a 5-4 advantage, before Nowak set up Froehlich for a 6-4 lead 41 seconds later. Froehlich made it a 7-4 contest off an assist from Anne Plunkett with 4:31 left in the second.

The Westie Sharks increased the margin to 8-5 with 18 seconds remaining in the middle period when Nowak scored her third of the game off assists from Cohrs and Froehlich.

With the lead at 8-6, the Westie Sharks increased the margin to three goals on a tally by Hunt with 6:54 to go. Hamden got with 9-8 on a pair of goals in 1:05, but Brooke McNabola iced the contest with 32 seconds to go.

Cohrs gave West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy a quick lead in the contest, scoring 5:36 in, before Hamden scored the next two goals. Nowak evened the contest at two with her first of the game off assists from Cohrs and Froehlich with 2:57 left in the opening period.

Hailey Alfano made 15 saves in the win for the Westie Sharks.

The winning streak to start the season reached seven games for the West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy girls hockey team. Behind four goals from Taylor Nowak, including the game-winner with 11 seconds remaining in the third period, the Westie Sharks topped Notre Dame-Fairfield 6-5 at the Edward L. Bennett Rink Saturday afternoon.

Leading 5-3 heading into the third period, WH/SHA watched as the Lancers evened the contest with a short-handed goal with 1:09 remaining.

Nowak was there to bail her team out. Off an assist from Mackenzie Gardner, Nowak found the back of the net in the final seconds for a 6-5 advantage.

Notre Dame took a 2-0 lead in the first period before the Westie Sharks got within 2-1 when Nowak scored off an assist from Hunt with 15 seconds to go in the opening period.

Off an assist from Brooke McNabola, Megan Froehlich evened the game at two 1:11 into the second.

Trailing 3-2, WH/SHA closed the period with three consecutive goals. Nowak evened the contest off an assist from Froehlich at the 8:21 mark, and an unassisted goal by Nowak put the Westie Sharks on top 4-3 with 4:20 remaining in the period. Jenna Hunt increased the lead to 5-3 with 40 seconds to go in the period off an assist from Mia Celentano.

Hailey Alfano made 17 saves in the win as the Westie Sharks held a 45-22 shot advantage in the game.

After cruising through the first five games of the season, the West Haven boys hockey team is faced with some adversity. Fresh off its initial loss of the season against Branford, the Westies were looking to regroup against Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe Monday evening at the Wonderland of Ice.

Despite winning the first meeting of the two teams earlier in the year, West Haven could not match that effort and fell, 5-2.

The two teams played to a scoreless game through two periods, before Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe scored three times in the first 5 minutes, 51 seconds of the final period, including the initial goal just 1:02 into the third.

Trailing 3-0, the Westies tried to rally, scoring twice in a span of 2:10 to get within a goal. Ben Carfora opened the West Haven scoring with 7:25 remaining off an assist from Sean Dupre, before D.J. Carfora scored off an assist from Robbie Forleo with 5:15 to go to get West Haven close at 3-2.

The Westies got no closer as Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe scored twice in the final 3:10, including goals 39 seconds apart, to pull away for the win.

The losing streak reached three games for the Westies. Despite putting 49 shots on goal, West Haven fell to East Haven 2-1 Saturday afternoon on Sammy Hotchkiss Day at the Edward L. Bennett Rink.

East Haven goaltender Logan Hamilton made 48 saves, several in spectacular fashion as the Yellowjackets sent the Blue Devils to their third straight defeat.

West Haven took a 1-0 lead in the opening period when Kaden Morgillo skated in from the slot area, went to the backhand and beat Hamilton. Richie Greene and Kevin Moriarty assisted on the goal which came 5 minutes, 45 seconds into the contest.

Morgillo’s tally was the lone goal for the Blue Devils as Hamilton was on his game, including making stellar stops on Forleo, D.J. Carfora, Ben Carfora, Kevin Moriarty and Joe D’Aurio in the middle period in which West Haven held a 16-4 shot advantage.

While West Haven was held off the scoreboard, East Haven’s Parker Sprankle won the battle to a loose puck and beat West Haven goaltender Jared Pliszka at the 2:49 mark.

West Haven then held a 19-9 shot advantage in the third period, but again was denied by Hamilton. DJ Carfora was turned aside by a blocker save with 11:10 remaining, Forleo was denied in front and Carfora was turned aside from the slot within seconds with 8:10 to go.

East Haven scored the go-ahead goal with 5:07 remaining when Alec Speirs knocked in a rebound of a Dave Amatruda shot,

West Haven put the pressure on in the final minutes, but Hamilton was not to be beaten as he denied Morgillo in front with a pad save with 3:12 to go. Moriarty then had a pair of opportunities in front, but saw his initial shot deflected over the goal, and his second sail just over the crossbar.

The four-game win streak came to an end for the West Haven girls basketball team this week. Unable to get in a groove, the Westies fell at North Haven 57-43 Tuesday evening.

The Westies were hurt at the free throw line where they connected on just 8-of-17 shots, and on the outside, where they did not drain a 3-point shot. With the loss, West Haven dropped to 4-2 on the year.

Despite 10 points from freshman Amani Abuhatab in the opening quarter, the Westies trailed 14-13. Abuhatab continued her string of scoring in double figures in all six games with 26 points.

West Haven remained in the game in the second quarter with 10 points, four each from Abuhatab and Dealyce Howard, but trailed 26-23 at the break. The Indians pulled away in the third quarter, outscoring the Westies 16-8, and holding West Haven to just four field goals in the quarter.

Abuhatab added eight more points in the final eight minutes, but it was not enough in the road loss.

Howard finished with six points in the loss, while Tenique Gates and Elena Petrie each scored four.

First-year Sacred Heart Academy head coach Jason Kirck has a young squad. Youth does not matter when a team is poised.

For Kirck and his team, that poise came through down the stretch Friday evening as the Sharks held off a feisty West Haven squad in a 43-35 Southern Connecticut Conference interdivision victory at West Haven High.

Behind 12 points from Rosa Rizzitelli, including three 3-pointers, and 10 points apiece from senior Elena Farquharson and freshman Emma Kirck, the Sharks had a balanced attack which came through with clutch shots throughout the contest.

Farquharson led the key run in the game as she scored the last eight points of the third quarter to give Sacred Heart Academy a 37-29 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

West Haven held an 18-17 lead in the final seconds of the opening half, before Emma Kirck drained a 3-ponter to give Sacred Heart Academy the lead at the half.

After Ally Kirck put the Sharks in the third quarter, the Westies (4-3) took a 27-25 lead on a 3-pointer by Sarah Evangelista and a pair of buckets by Elena Petrie. When the Westies had the chance to expand the lead, rushed shots hurt them.

Rizzitelli evened the game at 27, and after a bucket by West Haven’s Petrie tied the game at 29, Farquharson went on a run to give Sacred Heart Academy a lead it never relinquished.

The Sharks hit only one 3-poiter in the final quarter, that from Rizzitelli, while scoring the remaining points from the free throw line to seal the victory.

The Westies took a 10-7 lead after one quarter of play as freshman Amani Abuhatab gave her team a 6-4 lead with a bucket and free throw. Petrie increased the margin to 10-5 with 15 seconds left in the quarter, but a key bucket by Gianna Pye got the Sharks within three as the quarter expired.

Rizzitelli opened the second quarter with a 3-pointer, then hit another for a 13-10 lead for the Sharks with 5:40 remaining in the first half. Baskets by West Haven’s Dea Howard and Petrie, along with a pair of buckets from Abuhatab had West Haven on top 18-17.

Abuhatab, who has scored in double digits in all seven of West Haven’s games, led the Westies with 13 points. Petrie finished with 10 and Evangelista had five in the loss.

The West Haven boys basketball team got back to its winning ways with a 60-56 victory over Cheshire Tuesday evening at West Haven High. With the win, West Haven improved to 3-2 on the year.

West Haven had four players in double figures, led by Malcolm Duncanson and Marlin Walker with 14 points each. Shea Sheffield scored 13 points and Laron Holmes scored 10.

Cheshire jumped out to an early 19-9 lead after one quarter, but the Westies held the Rams to just 16 points over the next two quarters. West Haven hit on only three field goals in the opening quarter, before going on an 18-7 run in the second quarter for a 27-26 lead at the half.

Walker and Sheffield each scored five points in the quarter, while Duncanson added four to help turn the game around.

West Haven pulled away with another big run, this one 19-9 in the third quarter for a 46-35 lead. Holmes drained three field goals, Duncanson had five points, and Sheffield drained a big 3-pointer.

The Westies were outscored 21-14 in the final quarter, with all but five points coming from the free throw line.

West Haven won its second straight contest and improved to 4-2 on the year with a 70-61 road victory over Fairfield Prep Thursday evening.

Holmes led three players in double figures with 15 points, while Duncanson added 11, and Walker had 10.

Despite leading after one quarter of play, led by Duncanson’s five points, the Westies trailed at the half by six.

West Haven’s offense awakened in the second half, including the third quarter when Walker drained a pair of key 3-pointers and Duncanson and Tyrese Hargrove each scored four points.

The Westies closed out the game in the fourth quarter draining ten free throws, getting a big 3-pointer from Sheffield, and nine points from Holmes.

The West Haven boys swimming team fell to Xavier Friday evening. Xavier came in and placed in the top three in every individual event except for the 200 IM and breaststroke. 

Luis Lopez scored third in 2 minutes, 27.04 seconds in the 200 IM and third with a 1:13.96 in the breaststroke. Issac Gorske was third in the 50 free in 24.45 seconds and third in the 100 free with a 57.41.  Chris D’Inzio scored third in the 100 Butterfly in 1:08.89.

West Haven was third in the 200 medley relay with a team of Shane Taulty, D’Inzio, Lopez, and Christopher Olsen in 2:03.36.

The West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy girls hockey team is off to an impressive start with all facets of the game clicking, the Westie Sharks are undefeated early on.

West Haven / Sacred Heart Academy improved to 3-0 with an 8-5 victory over Hall-Conard Monday evening in West Hartford.

Jenna Hunt led the offense with two goals and two assists, Emilee DeGrand had one goal and three assists, Mia Celentano added two goals and an assist, while Megan Froehlich and Taylor Nowak each had a goal and an assist as seven players were in the scoring column. Hailey Alfano made 13 saves in the victory, including six in the middle period.

“Hall/Conard got on the board early first, but what makes me proud is our girls didn’t hang their heads,” West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy coach Erin Blake said. “They fired right back and kept the momentum up the rest of game. It was a whole team effort.”

Trailing 1-0, the Westie Sharks evened the contest with 1 minute, 59 seconds remaining in the opening period when Mia Celentano scored off assists from DeGrand and Hunt.

West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy put the game away with five goals in the second period. Hunt gave the Westie Sharks a 2-1 lead off an assist from Mackenzie Gardner 1:22 into the second, before Hunt’s second of the period, off an assist from DeGrand with 10:25 remaining gave West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy a 3-1 lead.

“Jenna’s (Hunt) line had 11 points total between the three of them,” Blake said. “(Jenna) started the scoring and Emilee (DeGrand), as a freshman, had her first goal and added in four points. Taylor’s (Nowak) line all scored so each player on our top two lines scored. Brooke (McNabola) played her best game yet, holding down the defensive with Mackenzie (Gardner).”

Leading 3-2, DeGrand scored off an assist from Celentano, and Celentano scored 1:59 later off assists from DeGrand and Hunt for a 5-2 advantage. Froehlich added a tally with 33 seconds remaining in the period for a 6-2 lead.

The Westie Sharks took a 7-2 lead 2:43 into the third when Nowak scored an unassisted goal, before Nowak and Froehlich set up Cohrs with 8:18 remaining for an 8-3 lead.

The West Haven/Sacred Heart girls hockey team improved to 4-0 with its second consecutive 8-5 victory over Hall-Conard Saturday afternoon at the Edward L. Bennett Rink in West Haven.

Nine players were in the scoring column, including Froehlich with three goals and two assists, and Celentano and Nowak with two goals apiece. Jianna Cohrs and Meghan Dupre each had a pair of assists in the win for the Westie Sharks.

West Haven / Sacred Heart Academy took a 4-0 lead in the opening period. Jenna Hunt got things going 2:06 into the contest off assists from Froehlich and Dupre, before Froehlich scored off assists from DeGrand and Brooke McNabola 5:48 later.

Froehlich scored again 26 seconds later off an assist from Cohrs for a 3-0 lead, before Celentano scored off and assist from Dupre for a 4-0 advantage.

Hannah Davey made nine saves, including five in the opening period, and Hailey Alfano made four in the win for the Westie Sharks.

Five games into the regular season, West Haven coach Steve Harris loves the way his team is playing. Five wins in five games is a great start.

The Westies showed plenty of grit in their latest victory. Playing without some key players due to injury and illness, West Haven improved to 5-0 with a 6-1 victory over North Haven Thursday evening at the Northford Ice Pavilion.

Seven different players were in the scoring column and Jared Pliszka continued his hot start with 15 saves as the Westies were in control from the start. Mike Alfano and Ben Carfora led the offense with two goals apiece, Nick Boanno and Richie Greene each had a goal and an assist, while Kevin Moriarty added two assists in the victory.

“Tonight, we had to use our depth,” Harris said. “Everyone contributed. We had guys out with injuries and sickness, and everyone stepped up.”

The Westies took a 2-0 lead in the opening period and never looked back. Carfora took advantage of a North Haven turnover and scored an unassisted goal 6 minutes, 31 seconds in.

Pliszka needed to make just three saves in the period, before Greene fed Boanno in front with 3:46 remaining for a 2-0 lead. Moriarty also picked up an assist on the goal.

After Carfora gave the Westies a 3-0 advantage 2:24 into the second off a scramble in front, Pliszka kept the lead at three with nine saves in the middle period, including a point blank shot with 6:17 remaining.

“The biggest thing for us is keeping the shots wide,” Harris said. “We want to keep them at the perimeter. Jared (Pliszka) is playing really well. We want to keep the shots to the perimeter and contain the middle.”

The Westies put the game away in the third period with three more tallies. Alfano had the biggest goals, scoring twice in 33 seconds for a 5-0 advantage.

After a North Haven turnover off the boards, Alfano picked up the loose puck and roofed a shot to the top corner for a 4-0 advantage 2:47 into the third. Alfano then took a pass from Ryan Bernardi and went to the lower right corner for a 5-0 lead.

“The big thing was, after the St. Joe’s game, we wanted to keep the pressure on for three periods,” Harris said. “We wanted to take advantage of the power play and put pressure on. In the last seven minutes of the second period, we got a little sloppy. We regrouped between the second and third periods, and got three in the third.”

Greene capped West Haven’s scoring off assists from Boanno and Moriarty with 11:12 remaining for a 6-0 lead. North Haven scored with 5:49 remaining to spoil Pliszka’s shutout bid.

The win streak to open the season came to an end for the West Haven boys hockey team. Facing a big and fast Branford hockey team, the Westies were defeated 4-2 Saturday afternoon at the Northford Ice Pavilion.

Despite each team taking 34 shots in the contest, Branford was in control from the start, taking a 2-0 lead in the first, and extending the margin to 4-1 after two periods of play.

“We came out flat,” Harris said. “We could feel it even in warmups. We did not see any pep. But, Branford played a great game. They took it to us all three periods. You have to give them a lot of credit.”

Goals by Jack Manware and Blake Kustra gave Branford a 2-0 lead after one period of play, before Kustra and Daniel Farricelli scored in the second for a 4-0 advantage.

Branford goalie Jared Yakimoff was solid in goal for the Hornets, denying 19 West Haven shots in the first two periods, including D.J. Carfora in front with 4:13 left in the first, and Robbie Forleo’s point blast with 7:31 remaining in the second.

Off a perfect pass from Kaden Morgillo, Moriarty was turned aside 14 seconds before he found the back of the net for West Haven’s first goal of the game.

West Haven finally got on the scoreboard with 1:36 remaining in the period when Moriarty scored a power play goal in front off assists from Greene and Morgillo.

Boanno scored off an assist from Ben Carfora in the third, but it was not enough. Pliszka and the Westies suffered their first loss of the season, despite Pliszka making 30 saves.

“It is not easy to take a loss, but a loss like this could help us,” Harris said. “We will see how we regroup from this on Monday.”

The West Haven boys basketball team felt as if it was up to the test entering Friday evening’s contest with cross-town rival Notre Dame. Unfortunately for the Westies, Notre Dame was too much to handle in a 76-66 Notre Dame victory at Alumni Hall at Notre Dame. 

The Westies trailed from the first quarter on, falling behind by 10 points after one quarter of play. The Green Knights led 34-24 at the half, and 58-43 after three quarters of play.

Laron Holmes led West Haven with 15 points, Shea Sheffield added 14, and Malcolm Duncanson had 10 points in the loss for West Haven. Zach Laput led Notre Dame with 26 points, Ben Carroll had 13, Kairon Hooks added 11, and Marquise McDuffie scored 10 for the Green Knights.

The West Haven girls basketball team improved to 4-1 on the year with a 49-43 victory over Cheshire Friday evening at West Haven High. After a season-opening loss to Bunnell, the Westies have rolled off four straight victories.

Freshman Amani Abuhatab led the Westies with 20 points, including 4-of-5 from the free throw line. Tenique Gates scored eight points, Sarah Evangelista scored seven, and Jayden Steinman added six in the victory.

The Westies, who drained just a pair of 3-pointers in the contest, trailed 11-7 after one quarter, before rallying to take a 21-18 lead at the half with a 14-7 run.

The Westies were just 1-of-4 from the charity stripe in the first quarter and hit just three field goals, two by Abuhatab and one by Evangelista. In a 14-7 second quarter run, Abuhatab scored eight points, including three field goals. Steinman also hit a pair of field goals in the quarter.

Evangelista drained a 3 in the third quarter and had five points, while Abuhatab scored four points from the field. Gates helped close out the contest with six points in the fourth quarter.

The West Haven/Platt Tech boys swim team fell to Shelton on the road Friday afternoon 103-65. Issac Gorske won the 50 freestyle in 23.90 seconds and Christopher D’Inzio was first in the 100 backstroke in 1 minute, 8.72 seconds.

“The Shelton meet was a challenge for West Haven/Platt with many of our swimmers sick or away on vacation, but the seniors and captains from West Haven and Platt stepped up to the challenge and swam their hardest with Westie Pride,” West Haven coach Kevin Dickson said. “The team will be back together and ready for our next meet this Friday.”

The Westies had five second place finishes. The 200 medley relay team of Brendon Paucar, D’Inzio, Jacob Eairheart, and Shane Taulty was second in 2:04.08, while Eairheart was second in the 200 IM in 2:35.64.

The 500 freestyle saw Anthony Catillo place second in 6:16.30, while the 200 freestyle relay of Gorske, Castillo, Christopher Olsen, and Mustansir Jamalee was second in 1:49.35. The 400 freestyle relay team of Eairheart, Jamalee, D’Inzio, and Gorske also placed second in 4:02.43.

Throw away the records when the West Haven and Notre Dame football teams meet. Friday night was no exception.

Using a late score, Notre Dame rallied to defeat the Westies 41-35 in the Soderman Bowl at Veterans Field.

With the game even at 35, Notre Dame quarterback Jackson Zelinsky hit Aiden Stankiewicz for a 32-yard touchdown. Zalinsky threw for 288 yards and four touchdowns in the contest.

In the high-scoring affair, West Haven got on the scoreboard first when Andre Rentas scored from 1-yard out with 7:14 left in the opening quarter. The Green Knights responded with 11 ticks left in the quarter to take a 7-6 lead as Zalinsky hit Austin Pieck from six yards out.

Rentas hit Justin Medina for a 33-yard scoring strike 2:09 into the second for a 14-7 advantage, but the Green Knights evened the game with 5:57 left in the first half on a 9-yard touchdown run by Damian Blount.

The game continued its fast pace in the third quarter as Zalinsky hit Robbie Oliverio from six yards out, but the Westies took a 27-21 lead to the fourth quarter after Rentas scored on a 53-yard run 1:19 later, then ran in from 56 yards with 1:27 to go in the quarter.

Bliount ran in from 26 yards out 47 seconds into the fourth for a 28-27 Notre Dame lead, before the Green Knights increased their lead to 35-27 when Zalinsky hit Tommy Candelora from 51 yards out with 7:20 to go.

When Jaden Grant ran in from nine yards out and Rentas and Jordan Berrios connected on the conversion, West Haven evened the game at 35,

Rentas ran for 147 yards in the contest.

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The West Haven volleyball is riding into the postseason on a positive wave. Winners of four of their last five matches, the Westies are 12-7 on the year.

West Haven won its third straight match and seventh in its last eight contests with a 3-1 road victory over Hamden. With the 25-23, 18-25, 25-17, 25-23 victory, the Westies improved to 11-6 on the year.

“We started off kind of slow again tonight, but were able to pull it together to get the win,” West Haven coach Kate Coldren said. “We really need to figure out a way to start off these games with more intensity and energy and play more consistent volleyball, starting with our serving. Getting this win was very important and we played well in general, but I know we’re capable of much better. We need to finish off the regular season strong and keep the momentum going for playoffs.” 

Involved in a tough match from the start, the Westies won both the first and fourth games by two points each. After losing the second game, West Haven pulled away for a third game victory, before edging Hamden in the fourth game.

“Collectively our serve receive and defense was very good,” Coldren said. “We struggled a bit in the front row against some tough blockers, but we found a way to make it work. Bria (Stanley) and Noelle (Noble) played well in the front row and came up with some big hits when we needed them the most. For the third and fourth games, we served tough and that made all the difference.”  

Noelle Noble and Neve Krajcir led the defensive efforts with 11 and 10 digs, respectively. Giliana Santaniello added eight digs, eight assists, and four aces, while Bria Stanley had six kills and five digs, and Savannah Lopez had seven assists and five digs.

Noble also had six kills, and Krajcir finished with four aces and three kills.

West Haven posted its fourth win in five matches with a 3-1 victory over North Haven. The 19-25, 25-13, 25-18, 25-22 victory allowed West Haven to improve to 12-7 on the year.

“They played so much better and seem to be back on track with a solid team effort,” Coldren said. “We got off to a slow start, but they put everything together by the second game.  We were able to run our offense because our passing was on point.”

Stanley led the way with 17 kills, seven digs, and three blocks, while Krajcir had nine kills, four aces, and four digs. Lopez had nine assists, four digs, three aces and three kills, Noble had six digs, three aces, and two kills, and Santaniello had 16 assists, four kills, three aces and two digs.

“Noelle (Noble) and Savannah (Lopez) played very well on defense and really got the rest of the team motivated to work hard.  Bria (Stanley) and Neve (Krajcir) were unstoppable at the net and really made some smart plays when we needed them the most. I can’t say enough about how well they played, and it was good to get a win over North Haven.”

West Haven girls soccer coach Pete Trenchard enforced the importance of entering the postseason on a positive note. Winning two of their last three matches, the Westies were able to do so.

With a 0-2-1 stretch staring in its face, West Haven looked for a way to get out of its slump. Facing a tough Hand-Madison squad, the Westies turned to its defense and goalkeeping, along with timely scoring to post a 2-0 victory in West Haven Monday evening.

The win improved West Haven’s record to 5-5-4 and qualified the Westies for the state tournament.

Mackenzie Gardner made six saves, Jessica Robinson and Selena Izzo found the back of the net, and a solid defense which held Hand to just seven shots, helped West Haven get back on track.

“Overall, we played very well tonight,” Trenchard said. “We bounced back from the loss to Sheehan in our last game, and got a big win against a good team. The win qualified us for the state tournament, which is always the endgame.”

Both West Haven goals came as a result of hard work as Robinson scored on a penalty kick and Izzo scored on a free kick after a foul was drawn by Maya Bermudez.

“Defensively we were solid, and we weathered their attacks and didn’t give them many quality chances,” Trenchard said.

Trenchard wanted to close the regular season on a high note as the postseason approached. Winning two of three games to close the regular season had the Westies enter the postseason with a 6-6-4 record.

West Haven ended the season in impressive fashion with a 2-0 victory over Wilbur Cross on Saturday.

“It was nice to finish the regular season with the win,” Trenchard said. “Cross played well and made it tough on us, but we found a way to score and to finish the season with a .500 record. Now, we take a couple of days off to rest and recuperate, and then get back to work to focus on the state tournament. ”

Gardner picked up her eighth individual shutout of the year with six saves.

The Westies had 10 shots in the contest and took a 1-0 lead when Emma Walker scores from Alexia Guerrero at the 23:37 mark. 

Cross battled and gave West Haven all it could handle before Julia Tsakonas scored from Robinson at 76:04.

The West Haven boys soccer team is looking to get back on track. With a tough stretch to end the regular season, the Westies are working to get back to their winning ways.

In the midst of a 3-1-1 stretch, West Haven was looking to keep the season rolling along. Unfortunately for the Westies they ran into a tough North Haven team and fell 6-0 on the road Monday evening. With the loss, West Haven fell to 6-5-2 on the year.

North Haven held an 18-12 shot advantage in the contest with West Haven goalkeeper John McLaughlin making 10 saves. North Haven’s Matt Casey finished with eight saves.

Kasey Mongillo scored three goals for the Indians, who jumped out to an early lead 6 minutes, 9 seconds into the contest on a goal by Mongillo. Mongillo scored at the 13:02 mark to sandwich a tally by Jack Pollard for a 3-0 advantage.

While the West Haven boys soccer team is still searching for its first victory in a handful of games, the Westies took a step in the right direction Saturday afternoon with a 1-1 draw against Jonathan Law.

The draw, which moved the Westies to 0-3-2 in their last five games, and 6-6-3 overall, was in comeback fashion.

After Law’s Marcus Dostal scored at the 35:56 mark for a 1-0 advantage, West Haven pressured. That pressure finally paid off when Derick Meza scored at the 62:11 mark off an assist from Aldo Barragan. 

West Haven held a 13-10 shot advantage in the contest. 

McLaughlin made three saves and Brian Carew made four saves in the draw for West Haven. 

Danici Malkut made nine saves for Law.

The West Haven girls swimming team fell to 1-8 with a 98-80 loss at Hamden Monday evening. The Westies had two first place finishes, including the 100 backstroke by Madison Hobart in 1 minute, 10.86 seconds, and the 400 freestyle relay team of Morgan Falanga, Alana Orecchio, Kaelyn Falanga, and Hobart in 4:21.68.

The Westies also had four second place finishes. The 200 medley relay team of Hobart, Molly Wilson, Victoria Acuna, and Kaelyn Falanga had a time of 2:09.57, Morgan Falanga was second in the 200 freestyle in 2:20.22, Kaylee Taulty was second in the 1 meter diving with 175.50 points, and the 500 freestyle had Kaelyn Falanga place second in 6:04.54.

The Westies had a competitive meet against Jonathan Law Thursday afternoon, but fell in a home meet 94-84. With the loss, West Haven fell to 1-9 on the year.

West Haven had two first place finishes as Taulty won the 1meter diving with 180.45 points, and Kaelyn Falanga was victorious in the 500 freestyle in 5 minutes, 52 seconds.

The Westie shad five second place finishes, with three of those outcomes coming in the relay events. The 200 medley relay team of Hobart, Wilson, Acuna, and Kaelyn Falanga was second in 2:07.63, the 200 freestyle relay team of Morgan Falanga, Wilson, Orecchio, and Sofia Shubin placed second in 1:58.15, and the 400 freestyle relay team of Acuna, Kaelyn Falanga, Morgan Falanga, and Hobart was second in 4:23.36.

The 50 freestyle saw Kaelyn Falanga place second in 28.22, while the 100 butterfly had Hobart second in 1:11.79.

The West Haven boys and girls cross country teams participated in the Class LL division championships Saturday afternoon at Wickham Park.

The top runners for the boys were senior Sebastian Villanueva in 17 minutes, 29 seconds, sophomore Eric Owen in 19:21, and junior Allen Aldrich in 19:35. The top runners for the girls were freshman Amanda Gullo in 26:14, senior Rowanne Mustafa in 27:35, and senior Daelle Coriolan in 28:40.

For all of your West Haven sporting news all season long, including game articles, photos, videos and more, visit www.westieblue.com.