The Woodstock Academy Centaurs softball team still hopes to qualify for the postseason.
But the opportunity was slipping away at the end of the week.
“We didn’t play very well,” said Woodstock Academy coach Jay Gerum. “It’s actually on us. We made a lot of errors, a lot of missed plays. There was just a lack of focus (last) week. At the end of the season, you hope to build up and peak, but we’ve been playing great softball all year, and we actually lost a little focus.”
In games against Fitch and Hale Ray, who both feature average to below-average high school pitching, the Centaurs could only produce one run in each game.
Woodstock Academy also committed more errors and missed more plays in those two games than it probably had all season, according to Gerum.
Not to make excuses, but there could be a common factor to both the lack of offense and the shoddy defense.
The weather.
“I think it affects it a lot,” Gerum said. “You want to get reps in, you want to stay sharp and to do that, you have to get out on the field every day together.”
The weather hardly was conducive to that with rain and unseasonably cold temperatures that did not allow fields to dry.
Woodstock Academy was dealt a double whammy because the softball team also was not allowed to practice inside due to a faulty fire alarm system on the North campus.
The Centaurs finally were able to use their pitching machine May 16 and practiced both hitting and defense.
“We had a good practice and hadn’t had one in weeks. I think it has a big effect when everyone else is practicing and you’re not, at least, in a gym,” Gerum said.
The Centaurs, however, were dealt another loss May 17 by Montville, 13-2.
The loss to the Indians means the Centaurs (7-12) have one more chance to qualify for the Class L state tournament.
They played host to Haddam-Killingworth (10-6) May 20. The game ended too late for this edition.
Amanda Bond drove in both runs for the Centaurs against Montville.
Megan Preston tripled in the fifth inning and scored when Bond doubled.
Hannah Chubbuck singled and later scored on a fielder’s choice ground out by Bond in the sixth inning.
Woodstock Academy traveled to Moodus May 15 and found Hale Ray to be a tough customer.
The Little Noises bats belied their nickname and Hale Ray rolled to a 10-1 win.
The Centaurs trailed 2-0 early but cut their hosts lead in half in the third inning when Julianna Nuttall reached on an error and Heather Converse walked. Mackenzie Leveille knocked in Nuttall.
It was to be the only bright spot for Woodstock Academy.
Hale Ray got the run back in the bottom of the inning and scored six more in the fourth to salt away the victory.
“That’s when everyone started to put the young kids in and the score actually got a little crazier. When everything was at full tilt with the starters in, it was really that one inning. We committed three errors and three other ‘mental’ errors, six errors in one inning gave them all those runs. That’s a game changer,” Gerum said.
Hannah Burgess was the only player with more than one hit for the Centaurs. The shortstop finished 2-for-3 at the plate and continued her strong offensive performance this season. She comes into the final game of the regular season with a .590 average (36-for-61). The Centaurs took the early lead against Fitch  May 14. Holding on to it was difficult. The Falcons scored three runs in the third and two in the fourth and posted a 5-1 win over Woodstock Academy in Groton. Converse walked in the second inning and later scored on a Preston single to account for the only run for the Centaurs. Converse, who is the third-leading hitter for Woodstock Academy at .400, had the only other hit in the game.
Marc Allard
Sports Information Director, The Woodstock Academy

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PUTNAM — After weighing out all of his options and enjoying multiple official visits, Putnam Science Academy’s Kareem Reid committed to the University of Gardner-Webb.
The 6-foot, 8-inch big man said: “I would like to thank my family for the support and guidance that they have always provided me with. I’m also thankful for my mentor Roberto Diaz who has pushed me to become a better person and player throughout this process… With that being said, I would like to announce my commitment to Gardner-Webb University!”
The lefty takes his talents to the Runnin’ Bulldogs to join former Putnam Science Academy Mustangs Jose Perez and Jaheem Cornwall. Gardner-Webb is coming off of arguably their best season in program history winning the Big South Tourney and making their first- ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament as a #16 seed before losing to eventual champs, Virginia Cavaliers.
Reid enjoyed plenty of success at Putnam Science Academy compiling a 76-6 record in his 2 years on the Prep team, including a 2018 National Prep Championship ring, the first in school history. Reid finishes his PSA career 24th on the all-time scoring list with 429 points and also got it done on the glass grabbing 273 career rebounds, which puts him in the top 20 all time at PSA.
Head Coach of the Boys' Prep Team and Athletic Director at PSA, Tom Espinosa said, “Kareem could be the best kid we have ever had on campus at Putnam Science Academy. We are so excited for Kareem and his family. Kareem has been here for 2 years and I have not met a nicer kid. Kareem will be missed very much next year but we wish him nothing but the very best as he takes on the next chapter in his life.”
Josh Sanchas
Sports Information Director
Putnam Science Academy

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Lacrosse team
at end of road
The regular season has come to a close for the Woodstock Academy boys’ lacrosse team.
Fortunately, for the Centaurs, there is a postseason to look forward to.
For the first time since 2016, Woodstock Academy qualified for the Class M state tournament.
“It was a goal, something we talked about all year. We wanted to get to those seven wins,” said coach Michael Noel.
The Centaurs went a little beyond that. They finished with a .500 record.
Woodstock Academy downed the St. Bernard-Wheeler cooperative, 12-7, May 18 to finish with an 8-8 mark.
Sophomore Guerin Favreau led the way with four goals and three assists.
It gave him 68 points for the season (41 goals, 27 assists) and 108 for his career.
Favreau cleared the career century mark in points earlier in the week in a loss to Norwich Free Academy.
Favreau got some help against the Saints. Senior Ethan Holcomb finished with three goals and an assist while Colin Smith added a pair of tallies. Gabe Geyer, Austen LeDonne and Seth Libby also scored.
The win was a good way to finish the week for the Centaurs who lost a heartbreaker to Fitch early in the week.
The Centaurs fought hard, but lost, 10-8, to the Falcons and ended a stretch of five games on the road.
Things didn’t get much better away from the friendly confines as the Centaurs fell to Norwich Free Academy, 9-6, May 16.
Favreau scored four goals and Ethan Haass added a pair but the Centaurs came up short against the Falcons.
Woodstock Academy never held the lead in the match, but kept it close throughout.
Fortunately for the Centaurs, they didn’t dispute those calls with the officials.
Favreau’s first goal of the game tied it at one midway through the first quarter.
LeDonne added another first quarter tally but the Falcons led, 3-2, after one.
Haass scored his first goal to tie the match briefly at three, but the Centaurs found themselves down, 5-3, at halftime.
Favreau was the only one to find the back of the cage in the third quarter, but goalie Alex Wojciechowski (13 saves) held the Falcons scoreless and it was a one-goal match going into the final quarter.
It was the first time that Wojciechowski played between the pipes.
The two teams traded goals with Favreau, Haass and Libby getting goals to tie the game at eight.
Fitch captured the win with a pair of goals over the final 2:57 of the game.
Favreau added two more goals in the loss to the Wildcats May 16.
The team had also been hampered by an injury to senior Ethan Holcomb (23 goals, 28 assists, and 51 points).
He finished with three assists against Fitch and had a goal and two assists against the Wildcats before the four-point game against St. Bernard-Wheeler.
Holcomb had been bothered by a tight hamstring.
Libby scored two goals against NFA and Sean McCusker had the other. The loss to the Wildcats meant the Centaurs finished 1-7 in Division I of the ECC.
Marc Allard
Sports Information Director
The Woodstock Academy

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