The winter season has many components to it as the local sports team comes down the stretch. While the boys and girls hockey teams will play in the postseason, the season has come to an end for both the boys and girls basketball teams as neither qualified for the league or state tournaments.
The West Haven / Sacred Heart Academy girls hockey team improved to 4-0-1 in its last five games with a 5-0 victory over Masuk at the Edward L. Bennett Rink last Tuesday evening. With the victory, the Westie Sharks improved to 13-4-1 on the year.
Megan Froehlich led the offense with two goals and an assist, while Celina Condon and Veronica Lynn each added a goal and an assist in the win.
The Westie Sharks took a 1-0 lead in the opening period when Francesca Criscuolo scored off an assist from Celina Condon at the 7:40 mark.
West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy took a 2-0 lead when Froehlich scored off an assist from Lynn 8:06 into the second, before Condon scored off an assist from Froehlich 3:55 later for a 3-0 advantage.
Froehlich’s second goal of the game off an assist from Taylor Nowak with 3:41 left increased the lead to 4-0. Lynn capped the scoring 54 seconds later for a 5-0 advantage.
Tatum Courtmanche stopped all eight shots she faced in the shutout. The Westie Sharks held a 61-8 shot advantage.
After a mini slide, the Westie Sharks won their fifth game in a row with a 3-0 road shutout over Branford/North Branford/East Haven Thursday evening. With the win, West Haven /Sacred Heart Academy improved to 14-4-1 on the season.
Courtmanche was stellar in goal, finishing with 17 saves in the shutout, while Froehlich led the offense with one goal and one assist.
The Westie Sharks scored the only goal they would need at the 5:44 mark of the opening period when Mia Celentano scored off an assist from Froehlich. West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy increased the lead to 2-0 when Celina Condon set up Francesca Criscuolo at the 8:48 mark of the middle period.
The Westie Sharks, who had a 50-17 shot advantage in the game, increased the margin to 3-0 at the 1:55 mark of the third period when Froehlich scored off assists from Nowak and Jianna Cohrs.
The Westie Sharks closed the regular season with a dramatic 4-3 overtime road victory over East Catholic Friday evening. With the win, the West Haven/Sacred Heart Academy concluded the regular season at 15-4-1.
Veronica Lynn scored twice in the contest, including the game-winner in overtime with an unassisted tally at the 1:55 mark.
Trailing 1-0 in the second period, the Westies got the equalizer when Cohrs scored off assists from Celentano and Brooke McNabola. Lynn evened the game at two with 3:13 left in the second, before Nowak gave the Westie Sharks a 3-2 advantage 6:47 into the third.
East Catholic evened the contest with 1:15 remaining, but Lynn gave the Westie Sharks the win early in overtime.
Kyleen Crowe made 25 saves in the win for the Westie Sharks.
The West Haven girls basketball team saw its season come to a close on Senior Night as the Westies had only a handful of victories this season.
West Haven senior Amanda Carr was not going to leave the court with any regrets. In her last game in a West Haven uniform, Carr picked the right time to have one of her best games of the season.
Scoring 10 points, grabbing 20 rebounds, and blocking five shots, Carr helped lead West Haven to a 46-42 victory over Sacred Heart Academy on Senior Night at West Haven High Monday evening.
The win was West Haven’s second in the last four games against Sacred Heart Academy and allowed the Westies to finish the season at 5-15.
West Haven jumped out of the gates quickly, taking a 10-point lead. The Westies led 32-18 at the half, but had to battle in the second half.
The Sharks cut the West Haven advantage to 38-30, but could not pull ahead in the final minutes.
Ally Kirck drained three 3-pointers for the Sharks and finished with 13 points, while Elena Farquharson added 12.
Natalia Frazier led West Haven with 11 points, Ebonie Jones finished with nine, and Ny’Aire Serrano and Savannah Gray each scored four.
Both teams struggled from the free throw line with the Sharks converting on just 5-of-12 opportunities, and the Westies hitting just 6-of-15.
After falling at home to Career last Friday evening, the West Haven boys basketball team knew the deal. The Westies needed to win their final two games of the regular season if they had hopes of playing in the postseason.
That run did not start exactly the way the Westies had hoped as they fell in New Haven Monday evening against the Governors 85-52. The loss dropped the Westies to 6-13 on the season.
West Haven was hurt in the second and fourth quarters where it was outscored 45-21. The Westies trailed by four after eight minutes of play, but the Governors quickly pulled away with an 18-8 run in the second quarter to take a 37-23 lead.
Josiah Steinman led West Haven with 18 points, while LaRon Holmes added 10. Marquel Bookert and Saban Richardson each scored six in the loss for the Westies. William Antrum led three Governors in double figures with 22 points, and Kwane Taylor finished with 12 points and 13 assists.
The Westies fell against Career last Friday evening, dropping a 62-47 decision at West Haven High. West Haven was again hurt in a specific time frame as Career used a 23-5 run in the second quarter to take control of the contest.
Steinman and Bookert each scored 15 points in the loss for West Haven, while Richardson scored six points. Jordan Williams led Career with 20 points.
As the final two weeks of the regular season approached, the Westies were in position to play for a postseason berth. That position never solidified.
Closing the season with five straight losses, West Haven failed to qualify for the postseason. As a result, the Westies finished the year at 6-14 after a 71-49 loss to Amity on Senior Night at West Haven High Friday evening.
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