Roundup
Centaurs win thriller over Wheeler
The elusive first win. It always looms larger as the season drags on.
It took a bit, eight games in, before the Woodstock Academy girls’ lacrosse team captured its first win.
The Centaurs held a three-goal lead over Wheeler when the Lions began to roar back.
“This game you can score in a matter of minutes, seconds actually, it’s a high-scoring game,” said coach Heather Miller.
When the Lions pulled within one with a minute and a half to play, Miller called a timeout.
“It was all about, ‘Let’s go.’ Do not lose this,” Miller said. “I told them the battle was now in our minds. It’s ours versus theirs and who wants it the most. I told them,’ ‘Don’t you dare lose it.’”
Senior keeper Bree Antaya made sure that didn’t happen.
With 1 minute, 17 seconds left. Wheeler sophomore Ava Gentes, who already had scored five goals, took a pass from Lucia Browne and shot it at Antaya.
Antaya, who is filling in for injured regular keeper Grace Audet, made the save.
“Not much was going through my mind except to watch that ball and make sure it goes in my net (on her stick) and not in the one behind me,” Antaya said with a laugh.
The save guaranteed the Centaurs the 12-11 victory as they improved to 1-6-1 on the season.
“It was nice to get this win. We’re about halfway through the season so, hopefully, we bring some of this momentum toward the back end and end on a good note.” said senior Vivian Bibeau.
Bibeau came in with eight goals on the season, she almost doubled that total, getting seven tallies against the Lions.
“I felt like shouting out ‘Unleash the Beast’ but I didn’t want to jinx anything,” Miller said.
In a manner of speaking, Miller did just that without saying it.
Wheeler dominated the draw early thanks to the height of Browne who won the first five and helped the Lions take a 3-0 advantage by scoring two of the first three goals.
That’s when Miller put Bibeau in to handle the draws.
“It was really just matching height with height which is a good strategy to have. Winning more draw control possessions is everything in this game. We had to shut down their draw and I admit, I was like ‘Why did I wait five draws?’” Miller said.
The change saw Bibeau began to dominate the draw and was able to get the ball over to Kaylee Saucier.
It produced results as Saucier scored off a free position and Bibeau tallied for a first time before the end of the first quarter to cut Wheeler’s lead to two goals.
Bibeau then put a five-spot up on the board in the second quarter and that handful of goals turned the Centaurs fortunes around as they led,8-6, at the half.
“I don’t know, it just felt really good. We were really excited before the game. We haven’t been winning and we knew we could win this one so we all came out ready. I kept cutting, my teammates kept getting me great passes, and it just happened,” Bibeau said.
Saucier had four of the goals including the game-winner in the fourth quarter with Baylee Rosinski getting the other.
Clara Dowdle had three assists in the win.
The 12 goals were a season-high effort for the Centaurs who put the ball in the net often against the Bacon Academy/East Hampton co-op earlier in the week, but came up short 15-7.
Saucier had three goals in that contest with Emma Forcier getting her first two of the season and Rosinski and Claire Anderson, who recorded her first career varsity goal, getting the others.
Boys’ Golf
It took a little time to get going because of the weather and then the boys’ golf team had to face a pair of the toughest teams in the ECC when it opened against Norwich Free Academy and Waterford.
But the Centaurs righted the ship a bit last week as they won all four of their matches, in four consecutive days, to improve to 4-2 on the season and 2-1 in Div. I of the ECC.
“It’s definitely special,” said senior Aidan O’Connor. “We got off to a slow start but we were able to come back, win four in a row, and it feels good.”
The Centaurs downed Stonington 5-2 to open the week.
O'Connor (37) and fellow seniors Alec Nunes and Blake Hudock all picked up victories against the Bears.
But the Centaurs had a tussle against Fitch.
The victory was by the thinnest of margins. The team medal, good for two points in a high school match, was decided by one stroke with the Centaurs coming out ahead 168-169 thanks to late missed putt by the Falcons.
Woodstock also received victories from Brady Hebert, who shot a 37, and O'Connor (39) and a tie from Nunes to account for the other 2 1/2 points.
Things got easier the remainder of the way.
The Centaurs navigated the quirky Old Lyme Country Club well and brought home a 6-1 victory over ECC Div. I foe, East Lyme.
O'Connor, Max Kopp and Hudock all finished with 6-over par 41's and the Centaurs also took the two medal points for the match 165-178.
The stroke total continued to come down in a match at home against Montville at Quinnatisset late in the week.
The Centaurs finished with a 160 total and easily downed the Wolves, 7-0.
“I saw some improvement in my game this week. I think I shot in the high 30’s every match this week but I also saw a lot of improvement the other players, getting into the low 40’s and starting to put up some low scores,” O’Connor said.
O’Connor shot a two-over par 38 against Montville Thursday while Hebert carded a 40 and both Hudock and Kopp finished with 41 totals.
“The weather getting better certainly helps. Playing in the cold, especially in the wind, you have to account for every shot and play it differently. The warmer the weather, the more confident you play.”
It also helps as course conditions continue to improve,
Most courses aerated their greens in April leaving them bumpy and making putting more of an adventure than it already is.
“Greens will be getting a lot faster now as the grass starts to grow,” O’Connor said. “It was tough putting in that first week. The greens were slow, were aerated, really bouncy and it was hard to judge everything. You definitely lose a few strokes there.”
Girls’ Track
It was the one that the team had to get past. The Centaurs were expecting a pitched battle with Norwich Free Academy.
It didn’t turn out that way as the Centaurs rolled away from Norwich with a 90-60 victory.
“It was great to win on the road. We were really hoping to pull that one out because it looked like it was going to be a closer meet but we had some things turn in our favor and we walked away with it a little bit so it was cool – a good day,” said coach Josh Welch.
The Centaurs (3-0, 2-0 ECC Div. I) clinched at least a share of the Div. I title with that victory and now need a win over Fitch, at home on May 7, to claim it for themselves.
“I’m excited to see where we go. We have Fitch next. There are no guarantees but we have a very good shot to take that meet, win a regular season title and finish undefeated again. That leaves one gap in our run, the one loss last year, that one hurt a little bit, It’s good to get back on track,” Welch said.
The Centaurs took their first-ever Div. I title in 2023, repeated that feat in 2024, before the stumble a year ago.
Welch was expecting this team to make some noise.
“This is one of our strongest teams and we’ve carried that over for a few years in a row. I’m always waiting to see if the bubble will burst. It could happen next year where we may take a little step down before we build back up so I want to see these kids accomplish as much as they can while we have this stacked team,” Welch said.
Elise Coyle led the way as the junior accumulated 15 points of her own. Coyle got first-place finishes in the long jump and 400m and joined Claire Bruneaux, Emme Langevin and Bella Amlaw for a first-place finish in the 4x400m relay.
“(Coyle) had a great day. She is putting some excellent jumps. I think her 400m continues to get a little stronger each time and is approaching some really quick times there. She was a major contributor to the scoring,” Welch said.
Emma Weitknecht captured 13 points of her own by winning both the 100m and 300m hurdles and a second in 200m while Teagan Maloney also finished with 13 points with firsts in the 100 and 200m races and a second in the 300m hurdles.
“Before every meet I kind of score out where I think we will be and try to be pragmatic about it, not too optimistic or pessimistic. I didn’t have (Maloney) slated to win the 100 and 200 but she did and did so pretty well, running some of her fastest times ever. It’s cool to see her coming on and putting her best into it. That was a big piece of why we won like we did,” Welch said.
Emme Langevin placed second in the 1600m and was a member of the winning 4x800m quartet while Olivia Tracy and Nova Almquist were second and third in the 3200m.
Isabel D’Alleva-Bochain broke her own school record in the javelin by five feet with a first-place throw of 131-feet, 11-inches. She also took second in the high jump and third in the triple jump.
The Centaurs swept the shotput competition with Avery Plouffe leading the way in first (37-4) followed by Lily Morgis (35-4) who had a personal best in the event and Kiley Elliott (33-3). Morgis was also a winner in the discus competition.
“I know I can bank on a lot of points from javelin, shotput pulled through really well, discus was a little flat but it was enough to carry it with the first-place at least but they are always consistent and hard working,” Welch said.
The girls’ team also competed in the Middletown Invitational on Saturday and the throwers were, once again, front and center.
D’Alleva-Bochain didn’t take long to break her own school record again as the senior took home a first-place finish in the javelin with a 132-feet, 3-inch effort.
Plouffe was first in the shotput and Morgis was best in discus.
Weitknecht ran a personal-best 46.28 seconds in the 300m hurdles to take home a first, she was also third in the 100m hurdles. Weitknecht also joined Coyle, Maloney and Ella Lidonde for a fifth-place medal in the 4x100m.
Other medalists included Coyle (fourth in long jump, fifth in 400m), Langevin (fifth in 1600m) and D’Alleva-Bochain (sixth in high jump).
Boys’ Track
The team had several reasons to celebrate on Wednesday. It was the seniors first and only home meet of the season and their last time competing on their home track.
They also captured a 102-48 win over Norwich Free Academy.
It also marked the first time the seniors on the team won a divisional meet at home.
“They were excited. None of the seniors had ever enjoyed a home win and we were very confident going in that we could win this meet. The early season schedule didn’t even have a home meet on it so being able to perform here in front of family and friends is always a fun time,” said coach Gerry LaMontagne.
A couple of Centaur athletes captured not one, not two, but three first-place finishes.
Senior Eli Manning won the shotput, discus and javelin and was second in the 110m hurdles.
Fellow senior Abe McGregor was best in the 100 and 200m races and the long jump and was a member of the winning 4x100m relay team.
“Abe stood out because NFA has some good sprinters and this was a good test for him in the 100 and 200m as well as the long jump,” LaMontagne said.
Owen Williamson won the 110m and 300m hurdles and ran the anchor leg of the winning 4x100m relay.
Collin Teal was best in the 400m and Sam Greene captured the 800m.
LaMontagne was also happy with Ronan Curran’s 4 minute, 38-second effort in the 1600m.
“Owen and Eli were also four-event scorers which is kind of the norm for them and it’s easy to assume they will just continue to perform like that. They have been rocks for us this season and deserve a lot of credit for their consistent excellence,” LaMontagne said.
The Centaurs are now 3-0 overall and 2-0 in Division I of the ECC but must down fellow undefeated Fitch when they meet in Groton this week.
The winner of that matchup takes the ECC Div. I regular season title.
“I’m as nervous as a long tail cat in a room full of rocking chairs about that meet. On paper, (Fitch) matches up really well with us. They have counters to many of our strengths and have a tremendous middle distance/distance runner that will test our crew. That said, it’s a good nervousness and excitement. These are the matchups that make things fun and we will be extra motivated with the regular season title on the line,” LaMontagne said.
The boys’ team also took home a first-place finish from the Middletown Invitational Saturday.
Ronan Curran, Sam Greene, Oliver Pierce and Jackson Durand won the 4x800m relay in 8-minutes, 24.01 seconds.
Other medalists included Thatcher Patterson who was second in the long jump with a personal best 21-feet, 2-inches; Williamson was sixth in both the 110m hurdles and the 300m hurdles and Manning was fifth in discus and javelin and sixth in shotput.
Boys’ Volleyball
The rich got a little richer last week. The volleyball team, which won its first 12 matches this season, were finally able to let senior setter Gavin Hecker step on the floor.
The transfer from Norwich Free Academy had to sit out half the regular season according to Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference rules.
But Hecker finally donned a jersey and got to play early last week.
“It was probably one of the nicest things of all time,” said Hecker with a smile about finally getting the chance to play. “Sitting for 10 games is a lot more than you think. It’s only three weeks but it feels like a long time.”
His debut was impactful. Hecker had six kills, 14 assists, and 15 service points as Woodstock Academy blanked Capital Prep, 3-0 (25-4, 25-6, 25-19) early last week.
“Not really,” Hecker said when asked if he was happy with that performance. “I was happy to be back on the court but I played like it was my first game back.”
Hecker has been able to practice with the team over the past three weeks which made it a little easier.
“The practices helped me adjust to playing with Brayden (Bottone), I had never played on a team with him before. So being able to set him in practice and setting a player like Weston (Mission) in practice on the right side (was different) because my right side on my club team is 6-foot, 4-inches and that’s a big difference. Being able to practice with them, helped a lot.” Hecker said. “Our practices are really competitive with seven players who play club volleyball and (Capital Prep) doesn’t.”
For that reason, the Centaurs were able to substitute at will in the match in Hartford which also presented its starters with new challenges.
Evan Chernik had 18 service points in the win, half of them were aces while Bottone led the team with eight kills.
But even the addition of Hecker was not enough against Farmington.
Coach Adam Bottone had thought the River Hawks (9-1) would be tough customers and that played out.
It was close but Farmington pulled out the first set, 25-20, only to see the Centaurs rally and post a 25-23 second set victory.
The River Hawks were able to go home happy when they followed with 25-22 and 25-17 wins in the last two sets.
Hecker finished with 26 assists in the contest, feeding Owen Budd, who finished with 15 kills, Brayden Bottone (12) and Chernik (12).
Chernik also delivered 11 service points while Libero Christian Hart had 18 digs and 10 service points including three aces.
The week ended in much easier fashion as the Centaurs hosted Hartford Magnet Trinity College Academy and rolled to the 3-0 victory (25-11, 25-3, 25-1) to remain undefeated in the Connecticut Volleyball League.
Hecker had 11 assists in the match with Brayden Bottone getting nine kills and Vaughn Buzak adding 13 service points including five aces.
Boys’ Lacrosse
Slow down. That was the demand of the coach Jason Tata to his team going into Saturday’s match with St. Paul Catholic.
Not because his team is too fast but quite the opposite.
“I love our team but it may not be the fastest team on the Eastern side of the state but we have quality stick skills, great shooters, we have lethality across that offense so I want us, once we get that ball down to our offensive half to settle down and run the offense that we want to run as opposed to running a tracking-type style which leads us to playing more defense than we want to,” Tata said.
The Centaurs bought in against the Falcons.
Passing around the perimeter was more the rule than the exception as the Centaurs waited for the shot they wanted to show and that patience helped them produce a 12-10 victory over St. Paul Catholic.
It was a necessary win after Woodstock suffered an 8-7 loss to the Montville co-op early last week and a 12-4 loss to St. Bernard/Wheeler on Thursday.
“We needed this so bad,” said senior Dylan Phillips. “We’ve had two rough games where we haven’t been able to put things together. Losing to Montville was definitely a big downer but we had a great practice (Friday) and this is what we needed – a bounce back game.”
Phillips was an integral part of the victory. He scored six goals including one with 34 seconds left that gave the Centaurs the two-goal win margin.
“I knew I just had to get it in the back of the net so that we could have some cushion. To keep it in the box is always hard so I wanted to get the extra goal and keep the game out of reach,” Phillips said.
But Tata may have had other ideas.
He was yelling “settle” from the sideline, urging his team to run some clock.
Phillips had other ideas.
“I was a little surprised that he shot it but the M.O. of these attackmen are, ‘I’m going to take my possession and I’m going to shoot. More times than not, they beat the goalie so it’s hard to get mad at them, but usually, I just want us to hold on to that ball,” Tata said.
Holding on to the ball was something the Centaurs did well during the game.
“We definitely have had some difficulty in the offensive zone, we haven’t been able to move the ball around quickly and get everyone involved and (Saturday) we did that,” Phillips said.
The Centaurs trailed only once in the game after St. Paul scored the first goal of the contest, but never enjoyed much breathing room either.
Their biggest lead was 6-3 with 3 minutes, 3 seconds left in the second quarter and the Falcons (3-6) reduced that to a one-goal lead at the half.
St. Paul’s did tie the game twice in the third quarter but never took a lead.
“That was huge,” Tata said. “That has been our Achilles’ heel. If we have even a one-goal lead and lose it, it turns into us feeling that we have to fix everything all at once. The fact that were able to play settled and even though we felt them chomping at us, we stayed composed.”
That was especially true of keeper Quan Sangasy, who had to weather a nine-shot assault in the fourth quarter where he did not allow a ball to find the back of the net.
“One hundred percent that is tiring for both the goalie and the defense to hold the lead for the offense,” Sangasy said. “It’s a lot of pressure but we worked hard and it meant a lot for us to win this game.”
Patrick Griswold had three goals, Jackson Aleman had two and Corey Lafond had the other.
The win gave the Centaurs a 4-6 record, three wins away from qualifying for the state tournament.
“I want more than three and we have a favorable schedule coming up. Our next real test is Bacon Academy and we want to carry this momentum into practice on Monday and into the game on Tuesday and we just want to keep rolling,” Tata said.
Girls’ Golf
The girls’ golf team is pretty much assured of one thing every match.
Their number one player will likely finish No. 1 when the final scores are tallied.
It happened three times last week and, while the Centaurs did suffer their first loss of the season, the two wins they put up were arguably more important as they came against ECC foes.
“Reagan is working hard and becoming more consistent with her scores. She knows that she can compete with any of the best golfers in the State,” said coach Earl Semmelrock.
Scheck broke 40 twice this past week.
She carded a 39 in a 186-258 win over the Putnam/Tourtellotte Co-op.
She finished with the same total on the road to finish the week when the Centaurs lost to Coventry in a non-league match at The Windham Club, 177-185.
“Coventry had its best score of the season by a lot (Thursday). Hats off to them. They played well and we struggled a bit on the fast greens but still finished with a 185,” Semmelrock said.
The loss dropped the Centaurs to 5-1 overall but they are 4-0 in the ECC after a 184-208 win over East Lyme last Wednesday.
Scheck led the Centaurs to the win but missed going sub-40 again by just one stroke. Semmelrock was ecstatic to see Lily Moran (47), Brianna Beck (48) and Colbie O’Connor (49) also break 50 in the match.
“No complaints about the girls coming in under-40. We almost had five so that was encouraging to see. Everybody is on board and trying to get better,” Semmelrock said.
The Centaurs have another busy week ahead beginning with the Wildcat Invitational at the Norwich Golf Course on Tuesday.
“The Wildcat will be a really good test for Reagan,” Semmelrock said. “Hopefully, we will have another good week overall. We have only one practice next week but I’m looking forward to that so we can work on a few things,” the coach said.
Baseball
It just seemed to be apropos for the evening. The baseball team celebrated Youth Night and invited some Little League players to watch their game with Plainfield on Friday.
The Centaurs delighted the onlookers with an 11-2 win over the Panthers while the stars of the game for the night turned out to be a pair of freshmen.
Pitcher Trey Ramos came on in relief of starter Colin Ericson and struck out 10 Panthers in five innings while his battery mate, catcher Jameson Costa, went 3-for-4 with two runs batted in at the plate.
“I think there was something to that,” Woodstock Academy coach Connor Elliott said of the connection between his young players and those that were in attendance. “I think some of the kids who were watching might have been teammates with Jameson and Trey when they were 12 years-old and younger siblings were there, too. It was very cool on Youth Night to show the youth and talent that we have and show everyone that there is an opportunity here to come in, play, and contribute right away.”
Ramos threw 76 pitches, walked only one and allowed just two hits.
“He threw strikes. That’s his job and that’s what we told him to do, pound the zone and see what (Plainfield) can do with it. The 10 strikeouts showed he was around the plate for five innings. He has quality breaking stuff to go along with a pretty live fastball. It was really great to see it in person against varsity bats,” Elliott said.
The Centaurs brought Ramos up from the JV program as they had some tired arms on the staff after playing five games in nine days.
“Jameson has just been phenomenal behind the plate all year. As a freshman, we haven’t been concerned about him all year defensively. It shows how bright the future is for us,” Elliott said.
Caleb Simoneau added two hits and two runs batted in for the Centaurs in the win.
It was a victory that the team needed.
They were coming off a stretch where they had lost three of their last four games including 3-0 to Fitch and 11-5 to Killingly last week prior to the win over Plainfield.
“It was a tough week,” Elliott admitted. “We went into the week thinking we had a decent chance to get back to .500, maybe even better but it, obviously, didn’t work out that way. It’s always good, though, to end the week on a win. You go into a day off feeling better about yourself. It was needed.”
The Centaurs are now 5-7 on the season.
“We’re trying to find a little more consistency and I think we’re headed in that direction. We just have to see it again and again and again. Baseball is a sport where you have to do it every time. The one time that you are not down and ready, the baseball is hit to you. The one time you don’t get the lead off second base, that’s when the single comes that you could have scored on. Having that kind of mindset means one win can lead to two. That’s our goal, that’s our hope moving forward,” Elliott said.
Softball
The softball team was cruising along on Killingly’s home field Saturday. Then the host Trailblazers woke up and rallied for a 14-13 victory over the Centaurs.
Woodstock had built a 12-6 lead going into the bottom of the sixth inning.
Ellary Sampson, who was 4-for-5 at the plate, hit a three-run homer and added an RBI double. Caroline Ethier had three hits and drove in two runs and Maci Corradi added a trio of hits.
But Killingly pulled to within one run when it scored five times in the bottom of the sixth on a double, single, four walks and an error.
Campbell Favreau gave the Centaurs back the two-run advantage with an RBI single in the top of the seventh.
Killingly captured the victory on a pair of singles, an RBI fielder’s choice, a walk and a walk-off, two-run double.
The loss dropped Woodstock to 1-12 overall and 0-4 in Div. II of the ECC.
The Centaurs were also in their matchup with St. Bernard on the road on Friday.
Sampson went 3-for-3 with a home run for the softball team but the roundtripper was the only run the Centaurs could produce in a 3-1 loss to St. Bernard.
Kaylee Ziarko did not allow an earned run in six innings of pitching and struck out six for the Centaurs.
Earlier in the week, Favreau tripled and scored on an error and Ellary Sampson had an RBI double to give the Centaurs softball team a two-run lead in the top of the third over Norwich Free Academy.
The Wildcats. however, responded with three runs in the bottom of the inning, two in the fourth, five in the fifth and four in the sixth to walk away with a 14-2 victory.
Olivia Bourdon hit a home run and drove in three runs for NFA and Sophie Miner added two hits and three RBI.
The two third inning hits were the only ones in the game for the Centaurs.
Girls’ Tennis
The week didn't start out on the best of notes but things got better for the tennis team.
The Centaurs improved to 7-1 overall and 3-0 in Div. II of the ECC with a 4-3 victory over Ledyard Friday.
First and third doubles came up with convincing wins as the tandem of Delilah Kesselman and Sophia Aguilar Del Olmo downed Skylar Butts and Addie Lacosse, 6-1, 6-0.
Maria Oliinyk, paired with Lillian Gregorzek at third doubles, posted a straight set, 6-1,6-1 victory over Joyce Lin and Caitrin Cassidy.
The second doubles team of Emma Mairson and Jayda Ngibuini only had to battle a bit more as they outlasted Danna Vera Cox and Emma Dean, 6-3, 6-1.
The Centaurs needed that success in doubles as Wynter Worth was the only player to capture a victory in singles.
Woodstock was coming off a convincing non-divisional win against previously undefeated Lyman Memorial Thursday as it blanked the Bulldogs, 7-0.
Gianna Musumeci, Worth, Kerrigan Reynolds and Catherine Trudeau not only swept Lyman Memorial in their girls’ tennis singles matches at Pomfret School, they were dominant in doing so. The four Centaurs lost only one game in the eight sets between them to spur the team on.
The first match of the week was also the first that Woodstock did not see itself in the win column.
The Centaurs lost to undefeated East Lyme, 6-1.
Worth picked up the only victory of the night with a 6-3,6-2 win at second singles.
Boys’ Tennis
Rodrigo Diez, Ryan Chabot, Dan Jameson and Heath White all posted victories in singles for the team early last week and it’s a good thing they did.
The four victories were necessary as Woodstock prevailed over Norwich Free Academy in Norwich, 4-3, to retain first place in Div. II of the ECC.
The Centaurs are 3-0 in divisional play.
The Wildcats' Ty Maurice and Ben Burchman took the first doubles match and NFA also won the next two to make it close at the end.
The doubles troubles continued on Wednesday versus Lyman Memorial as the Bulldogs recorded a 4-3 win on their home courts.
Diez, Chabot and White all posted victories again but the Bulldogs slipped one away in singles as Aaron Rodriguez outlasted Dan Jameson in three sets, 3-6, 6-1, 6-1.
Lyman Memorial then swept the three doubles matches for the victory.
The loss dropped Woodstock Academy to 4-3 on the year.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
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IMG 7829: Members of the Woodstock Academy boys track team were all smiles on Saturday after earning medals at the Middletown Invitational track meet (Photo by Gerry LaMontagne/Woodstock Academy).
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