Searching for its first win of the season, the West Haven co-op hockey team played its best game of the season. Unfortunately, it was not enough.
Onyx King’s goal with 1:03 left in overtime lifted Notre Dame-Fairfield to a 2-1 victory over the Westies at the Wonderland of Ice. With the loss, West Haven fell to 0-5.
With the game scoreless after two periods, the Lancers took a 1-0 lead after a West Haven turnover with 6:41 remaining in the third.
The Westies, who had controlled play in the middle period, then mounted the pressure once again in the final four minutes. With a man advantage and an extra skater, a perfectly designed play allowed Marcus Burrows to set up Jayden Spreyer, who ripped a shot from the point in for the equalizer with 0.5 seconds left in regulation.
After Javed Ullah stopped a two-on-none breakaway just 43 seconds into the extra session, the Westies picked up the play once again. Shots by Thomas Porto and Mike Madera were turned aside, Yousaf Ullah’s power play shot just went over the net, and Spreyer hit the post with 2:10 remaining.
With the Westies still pressuring, the puck cycled out of the zone, leading to King’s breakaway goal.
West Haven played its best in the second period, outshooting the Lancers 14-5, with Notre Dame goalie Colby LaSalle stopping each shot.
LaSalle denied Madera with a shoulder save 53 seconds in, turned aside Porto in front 1:33 later, and denied Madera once again with a glove save 3:04 in. LaSalle was the difference in the second period as he denied Yousaf Ullah’s point shot with 11:03 to go, denied Brady Price from the slot 30 seconds later, and Spreyer from the slot a short time after.
The Notre Dame goaltender continued to thwart the Westies, stopping Madera in close with 9:30 to go, and Burrows from the slot with 7:09 remaining in the middle period.
LaSalle then denied Jason Alling with 7:34 remaining in the third of a scoreless game, and Porto from the slot just 13 seconds after the Lancers took the lead.
Javed Ullad made 29 saves in the loss and was particularly impressive in the opening period when he turned aside all 12 Notre Dame shots.
Then it happened. the team won tough match-up, putting it in the win column.
Led by 37 saves from Kyril Astravukh and two goals by Burrows, the Westies topped East Haven 3-2 Wednesday evening at Dilungo Rink in East Haven. With the victory, West Haven, which has played significantly better in its last three games, improved to 1-5 on the year.
Astravukh was stellar throughout the contest, making clutch saves the entire game. The West Haven goaltender was at his best in the final period.
Astravukh denied a breakaway by East Haven’s Michael Savo, who scored twice, with 2:10 gone by and the Westies leading 3-1. He then denied John D’Albero in front with a pad save with 9:47 to go, and Cameron Greene from the right faceoff circle with 7:01 to go.
After Savo cut the West Haven lead to 3-2 with 6:35 to go in the third and East Haven increasing the pressure, Astravukh denied East Haven the rest of the way.
Astravukh also came up with a pair of huge saves 1:15 apart with less than five minutes to go in the second period to preserve a 2-1 lead.
East Haven took a 1-0 lead with 5:21 remaining in the first period as a Savo shot was deflected past Astravukh, but the deficit was short-lived. Off a feed from Spreyer, Madera evened the game from in front 1:06 later.
The Westies continued to pressure, but shots by Burrows, Price, and Porto were denied in the final 3:18 of the opening period.
West Haven had a pair of odd man rushes to start the second period, but Spreyer was denied off a feed from Madera, and Burrows was denied off a feed from Price.
Burrows finally gave the Westies the lead they would not relinquish when he ripped a shot off the crossbar and in off an assist from Price with 4:47 remaining in the second.
The Westies scored the eventual winner early in the third. After a point shot by Josh Rodrigue was covered up, Price won the faceoff to Burrows, who rang a shot to the top left corner for a 3-1 lead with 1:52 gone by in the third.
The West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy girls hockey team won its fifth straight contest and improved to 6-1 with a 2-0 victory over Hamden.
Isabelle Desrosiers was solid in net, making 24 saves to post the shutout. Desrosiers was particularly effective in the third period with 10 saves to preserve the shutout.
While Desrosiers made seven saves in each of the first two periods to keep Hamden off the scoreboard, the Westie Sharks scored the only goal they would need in the second period as Olivia Twarowski scored off assists from Kelly Manfield and Rachel Harrison at the 5:50 mark.
The Westie Sharks picked up an insurance goal when Anne Plunkett scored off an assist from Geena Montano at the 14:36 mark of the third period for a 2-0 advantage.
Then things went sour. After a 4-0 loss at Avon, WH/SHA dropped its second straight contest with a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Guilford. Despite a solid defensive effort and clutch goaltending from Desrosiers, the Westie Sharks could not pull out the victory.
Desrosiers was tough in net as she stopped 18 shots for the Westie Sharks, including nine in the third period. Unfortunately for the Westie Sharks, Guilford goaltender Kadence Epke was equally impressive, turning aside 29 West Haven / Sacred Heart Academy shots, including 14 in the second period.
Trailing 1-0, the Westie Sharks got the equalizer with 6:34 remaining in the contest as Twarowski scored off an assist from Ashley Welch.
The tying goal would hold up for 3:08, before Guilford scored the winner when Julia Crisci scored off an assist from Isabella Jackowicz.
The Westie Sharks had just seven shots in the final period, with Epke coming up big in goal for Guilford.
West Haven / Sacred Heart Academy continued the rough going.. Unable to score the equalizer in the final nine minutes, the Westie Sharks fel,l 3-2 ,at Simsbury.
The loss was the third straight for the Westie Sharks and dropped their record to 6-4 on the season.
Desrosiers made 18 saves in the contest as the team played solid defensively. Desrosiers made 11 saves combined in the first two periods and seven in the third.
Trailing 1-0, the Westie Sharks evened the contest when Rachel Harrison scored an unassisted goal in the second period.
Simsbury scored late in the second and early in the third for a 3-1 lead, but the Westie Sharks battled back. Julianna Picard scored off an assist from Plunkett with 9:02 remaining, but the Westie Sharks could not get the equalizer.
The West Haven girls basketball team improved to 4-3 with a 66-32 victory over East Haven. The Westies had seven players in the scoring column and were led by Amani Abuhatab with 22 points.
Kassidy Carrano and Ciara Harp each scored 14 points, while Dealyce Howard scored eight. Carrano finished the contest with four 3-pointers and Harp drained a pair.
The Westies were on their game from the start with 20 points in the opening quarter and 38 in the first half. Carrano drained a pair of 3-pointers in the opening quarter and Abuhatab scored four points.
Abuhatab and Harp did the damage in the second quarter as Abuhatab knocked down four field goals for eight points, while Harp hit two 3-pointers and a field goal for eight points of her own.
Carrano hit two more 3-pointers in the third quarter and had eight points, while Abuhatab connected for five more points in the third.
West Haven improved to 5-3 with a 72-49 victory over Hillhouse at home. The victory was West Haven’s second straight and third in its last four games.
Abuhatab led the Westies with 30 points, while Carrano finished with 16, and Howard had eight. Carrano was solid from the outside, draining four 3-pointers.
West Haven put the game away early, leading by 11 after one quarter, and 42-19 at the half. Despite an evenly played second half, the 23-point deficit was too much for Hillhouse to overcome.
Abuhatab scored 11 of her team’s 22 first quarter points with Carrano, Isabella Fiorillo, and Harp all draining 3-pointers in the quarter.
Carrano and Abuhatab helped put the game away in the second quarter with Carrano scoring seven and Abuhatab six.
Abuhatab added six more in the third to go along with five from Howard and four from Arianna Titus, before Abuhatab helped close the game by scoring seven of her team’s 12 fourth quarter points.
West Haven improved to 6-3 with a 79-47 victory at Guilford Tuesday evening. The win was the third in a row for the Westies and fourth in five games.
Abuhatab and Fiorillo led the way for West Haven with 16 points apiece. Abuhatab added 10 rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks, while Fiorillo had five assists.
Harp scored 15 points and had two steals, Carrano scored nine points, along with 10 rebounds and two assists, while Howard added eight points in the win.
The Westies came out of the gates running as Abuhatab scored five points and Noelle Lawrence drained a 3-pointer in a 12-point first quarter. West Haven continued the quick scoring in the second quarter as four players combined for 24 points, led by Harp’s nine points on three 3-pointers, eight points from Fiorillo, four from Ella Morgan, and three from Howard.
The Westies pulled away with 22 points in the third quarter. Carrano scored nine points, and Abuhatab and Fiorillo each scored six.
West Haven is starting to heat up. With three players in double figures, the Westies topped Lyman Hall 65-47 Friday evening at West Haven High.
Abuhatab led the Westies with 14 points, Carrano had 12 points, and Howard scored 11 as the Westies won their fourth straight game to improve to 7-3.
Abuhatab also added 12 rebound, seven assists, three steals, and three blocks, while Carrano had seven rebounds and five assists. Arianna Titus was solid on the boards with 11 rebounds, while Ella Morgan pulled down 10.
The Westies trailed by three points after one quarter, before turning the game around with a 21-10 run in the second quarter to take a 32-24 lead at the half. West Haven increased the lead to 12 in the third, before pulling away in the fourth quarter.
Howard led the way in the third quarter as she scored seven of the team’s 21 points, while Lawrence added five and Carrano four.
Abuhatab and Harp heated up in the third quarter as Harp scored eight points, Abuhatab had seven, and Carrano and Lawrence each drained 3-pointers.
Five different players scored in the fourth quarter with Isabella Fiorillo leading the way with four points.
The West Haven boys basketball team fell to 2-4 on the season with a third straight loss. The 92-70 home defeat against Wilbur Cross followed a nail-biting loss at Jonathan Law two days earlier.
Against the Governors, the Westies fell behind early and tried several times in the second half to make a comeback. West Haven was denied each time.
Trailing by 17 points in the third quarter, baskets by Bernett Scott and Bryan Tillman got the Westies within 51-38. A steal and basket by Tillman had the Westies within 53-40, before Cross increased the lead to 58-42.
Tillman then led an 8-2 run with a basket and two free throws to get the Westies within 60-51, but Cross nailed a 3-pointer with one second left in the third quarter to take a 63-51 lead.
Trailing by 14, Tillman drained a 3-pointer, but despite baskets by Isaiah Jackson and Scott, West Haven could not get within single digits again.
West Haven fell to 3-5 with a 60-50 loss to Fairfield Prep at West Haven High Wednesday evening. The loss was West Haven’s fourth in its last five games.
The Westies jumped out to an early lead, but trailed by three points at the half. After taking a double- digit lead, the Westies could not hold on and Prep pulled away to win by 10.
West Haven took an 11-8 lead in the opening quarter as Adam Elkharraz scored five points. The Westies added 14 points in the second quarter as Jayce Perry scored seven points and Elkharraz scored five points.
Five different players scored in the third quarter as West Haven trailed 45-38. Perry scored four points and Elkharraz drained a 3-pointer. Joseph Williams scored five of his team’s fourth quarter points, while Scott added four.
Elkharraz led the Westies with 14 points, while Perry added 11, and Scott finished with 10 points.
For all your West Haven sporting news throughout the year, including game articles by Mike Madera, highlights, photos and more, visit www.westieblue.com.