Sports Highlights 10.17.16

Led by Tri-Captain Tim Callahan’s 168 rushing yards and 13 tackles, First Football held on to win a physical battle against a competitive Berkshire squad on Oct. 15. The visiting Bears took an early lead when a defensive breakdown allowed the Berkshire quarterback to scamper 57 yards and post a 7-0 lead. Conor Brennan ’17 scored his first touchdown of the year on a 10-yard fumble recovery, and Delando Clarke ’17 caught a Jack Devlin ’19 pass for the two-point conversion and an 8-7 lead.

 

Late in the second quarter, Marshall Watts ’18 caught a seven-yard Devlin pass. Josiah Green’s ’18 extra points gave us a 16-7 lead that we took into halftime. Berkshire regained momentum after the intermission with a decisive three-and-out on defense and a sustained drive that culminated with a second scoring run by their quarterback.

 

Early in the fourth quarter Callahan took an inside run 59 yards for a score and a 22-14 lead. Berkshire came back with a long touchdown pass, but fortunately for Westminster an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty pushed the Bears back for the ensuing conversion and Callahan was able to come up with the interception to stymie Berkshire and keep the lead. Westminster converted a couple of first downs on the next drive but came up literally inches short on a fourth-and-one and had to give the Bears one last chance with about four minutes remaining. Berkshire converted a couple of first downs and got as far as the Westminster 33 yard line, but key tackles by Clarke and Tasso Housakos ’18 and a good pass rush by the front line stopped the drive. The Martlets knelt on the ball three times and then executed a perfect punt by Tri-Captain Dom Cirillo ’17 and an open field tackle by Alex Londal ’17 on the final play of the game sealed the victory.

 

Second Boys’ Football had an incredible game against Kingswood-Oxford. In the first quarter, the Wyverns started strong, taking the opening kickoff 70 yards for the first score of the game. Their spread offense, which included great play from their quarterback, kept the Martlet defense on its heels. Westminster did tighten up at the goal line and stopped Kingswood’s extra point attempt. On the ensuing kickoff, Mason Horrigan ‘17 grabbed the ball on a short kick and burst through the KO line and ran 65 yards for a Martlet touchdown. Souley Ballo ‘19 took the ball for the extra point and put the Martlets ahead. Still in the first quarter, KO was not to be denied as the team started driving down the field again. Fortunately Jack Detwiler ‘19 smashed the KO quarterback, causing a fumble that Horrigan scooped and rumbled 40 yards for the score. This time the extra point failed.

 

In the second quarter, both teams moved the ball, and Westminster got close, but an interception at the goal line stopped the drive. KO started moving the ball again, but the Martlet defense stood tall. Westminster immediately fumbled and KO made no mistake driving the ball in the end zone and scoring the extra point for a tie game going into halftime.

 

In the third quarter, Westminster took the ball on the opening kickoff and drove the length of the field. The last play was a reverse for 17 yards by Ballo. Drew Brownback ’19 and Horrigan did a solid job running on this drive. Joe Patrina ‘18 and Shane Wahlberg ‘19 were particularly solid on the offensive line. At the end of the period after another defensive stand, the Martlet offense drove the length of the field and on a halfback option, Will Livingston ’19 threw a perfect strike to Detwiler.

 

In the fourth quarter, KO came rolling back. After a couple failed drives, Westminster had to punt and Jack Schopp ‘19 pinned Kingswood in as Westminster downed the ball at the three-yard line. KO was tough and over the next five minutes the team drove the length of the field to narrow the gap. Kingswood tried an onside kick, but Westminster recovered it and did a great job killing the clock for the win. Tasso Housakos ‘18 sealed the win with a fumble recovery in the last 30 seconds. Great win for the Martlets.

 

After running on the fastest course in the league last weekend, the Westminster thinclads traveled to the hills of western Connecticut to challenge themselves on the league’s hardest course at Salisbury School on Oct. 15. Emmett de Kanter ‘19 and John LePino from Kent, the reigning New England champion, separated themselves from the field, running together for the first half, after which LePino opened a gap that de Kanter could not close. De Kanter finished in a time of 18:15, which the Salisbury coach said was the third fastest time ever run on that course. The next finishers were over 1:30 back, and a string of black singlets allowed Westminster to claim victory. The team took second and then 6-10 and twelfth to beat the opponents. The crew of scoring runners was captain Jordan Gabbidon ‘17, Elliott Kennard ‘19, Teagan Stedman ‘18, Daniel Pinckney ‘20, Matt Norris ‘19 and Justin Schuster ‘19.

 

Oumou Kanoute ’17 placed second and was hot on the heels of the first runner for much of the race. Sarah Minella ’17 ran a great race and came in a comfortable third. Not far behind, in fifth place, was Abi Hovey ’18, followed by Bethany Winters ’20, seventh. Winters was in eighth for the last stretch but had a sprint finish, ultimately overcoming her Kent competitor. Liz Casey ’18 and Caroline Percival ’19 clinched the win with the ninth and tenth spot. The team doesn’t know who was who because Casey and Percival crossed the line together holding hands. Maggie Chaves ’19 and Alexandra Lin ’19 ran a great race stealing the fourteenth and fifteenth spots. Gabi Drumm ‘18, Alayna Tawney 19 and Martina Daniele ’19 all ran a solid race showing great strength and perseverance.

 

For those who do not know cross-country scoring, the low score wins, and the lowest score you can earn is 15 (1-2-3-4-5 places) and the most the other team can earn is 50. Westminster’s dominant performance on Oct. 15 against two larger schools said a lot about the depth of the program this year. This group of runners, from top to bottom, is uniformly committed to the goals of the team, and is proud of what they have accomplished. The Westminster harriers faced the toughest course they will run all year, and they showed grit in handling the hills and uneven footing to run ahead of their competition. John Kuzminskas ‘18 led Second Boys’ Cross Country with a time just under 22 minutes. The rising Third Form star, Alex Ellis ‘20, was only 10 second behind Kuzminskas, and stalwarts Andrew Doucette ‘18, Tim Harris ‘17 and Matt Cosentino ‘18 rounded out the scoring five. Cosentino had a particularly exciting finish, blasting through the finish a half step ahead of a competitor from Kent. Connor Seeley ‘18 and Chris Whipple ‘18 displaced a few scorers from the other team, and all of these runners, along with Vincent Wang ‘19 and Ryan Szykowny ‘18, were faster than an eight-minute pace on this challenging hilly track.

 

In the first 10 minutes, almost all play was offensive and Hotchkiss did well to keep the team out. Kendall Brown ’17 scored what many people thought was the best goal they’d seen at the high school level: an air dribble of 25 yards onto the left post with a reverse shot from chest height that hit the top netting. Hotchkiss leveled the score at half time with a nice corner and then scored a scrappy but effective goal to win late in the second half. Westminster played well.

 

The team started hard and scored three goals in the first half. Williston scored a nice goal to take the score to 3-1 after 10 minutes of the second half. Westminster came back 4-1 with a beautiful tip in off a corner from Madie Bologa ’17. The team’s energy and work rate were superb. Goal scorers included two for Kendall Brown ’17, one for Emma Lange ’18 and one for Bologa.

 

It was a tough day for the Second Girls’ Field Hockey team as it faced a very strong team from Hotchkiss. The Bearcats caught the Martlets on their heels for the start of the game and pumped in three quick goals before the Martlets were able to gain any momentum. After a timeout, the Martlets started playing more balanced field hockey, but the team was still unable to sustain any offensive pressure. In the second half the team played with more composure and had several shots on the Bearcats’ goal but none slipped by their keeper.

During the first half the team pulled together to score three goals, two scored by Sophia Gasser ‘18 and one by Abby Moss ‘20. The Martlets were prepared to continue to fight and work hard in the second half and came out strong. The team scored two more goals, one by Eliza Polukhin ‘19 and the other by Gasser giving her a hat trick for the game. Williston managed a couple breakaways requiring the defense and midfield to get back, and put tremendous pressure on the goalies. The goalies, Kyani Jemmotte ‘20 and Maddie Vanech ‘19, were able to stop the ball in most of the one-on-ones, however, Williston managed to score off one of the breakaways bringing the final score to 5-1.

 

Within the first few minutes of the game Georgia Swank ‘19 struck a one timer from outside the 18-yard box into the upper corner of the far side of the net. The game was back and forth with Hotchkiss winning the majority of the 50/50 balls both on the ground and in the air. Westminster was able to have contribution from the bench to continue to push through Hotchkiss’ possession. Hotchkiss was able to answer back scoring two goals in the first half. The second half brought lots of heart and a great overall team effort. Louisa Essuman found the back of the net for her second goal, which was the icing on the cake for the Hotchkiss team. Westminster fought to the very end with a great second hand effort by Blake Cote ’19 and Katherine Eckerson ‘17 when they were able to beat the goalie and a Hotchkiss defender and save the ball off of the line.

 

Both teams played a very tight first half, exchanging opportunities and good possession. Deerfield would counter with two minutes to go in the first, and score an in-tight goal that Max Powers ‘17 had no chance at. The visitors would catch the home team again with sloppy play in the middle of the field and make the score 2-0 early in the second half. The Martlets then had good pressure, having two chances inside the six-yard box but did not find the back of the net. Finally, Riley Wood ‘19 would place a great free kick into a dangerous area that Alex Semler ’17 would knock home to cut the lead to 2-1. Playing an extended formation late, the Martlets would concede two late goals. Powers would finish with a solid eight saves.

 

Second Boys’ Soccer dropped a heartbreaker Oct. 12 against visiting Deerfield on Wilbraham Field. Westminster led 2-1 into the final 12 minutes off splendid goals by SK Lee ‘17 (assisted by Walker Stevens ‘19) and a breakaway goal by Stevens (assisted by Porter Girty ‘18). Deerfield’s pace and skill forced the home team to play its best soccer yet, and Malcolm Kleban ‘20 was spectacular in goal to keep the Martlets alive. Unfortunately, a defensive clear ricocheted off the back of a Deerfield player and into the net in the 68th minute to even the score at two apiece. Deerfield scored twice more in the closing minutes to close the door. Henry Mitrano ‘19 and Brett Daubert ‘20 played nicely on the right side, and Lukas Dudzik ‘19 and Aly Tolba ’18 were solid under constant pressure in the midfield. The defensive line of Girty, Myles Hamm ‘17, Kyle Forsyth ‘17, and Mitrano brought their play to a new level. It was a tough outcome after smelling victory, but there was no shame in this loss to a quality opponent.

Second Boys’ Soccer won a barn burner Oct. 15 with a last-minute goal (literally) by Walker Stevens ‘19. Stevens received the ball on the right side during a fast-paced counterattack and turned it in toward the middle along the top of the 18-yard box. With three defenders standing firm, he cut it back and gained just enough separation to send a looping right-footed shot into the upper left corner of the goal, breaking a 2-2 tie for the Westminster win. Westminster struck first when Stevens gathered the ball in the penalty area and laid it off to SK Lee ‘17, who touched it past the keeper in the 16th minute. Salisbury evened the score in the 24th before Aly Tolba ’18 hit a vicious bender from 25 yards out to regain the lead just seconds before halftime. Salisbury struck again with a goal early in the second half off a loose ball in front of the net, and the two sides battled back and forth for the next 30 minutes to no avail, until Stevens hit the game-winner in the 80th minute. Brett Daubert ‘20 and Wick Carter ‘19 played nicely on the wings, connecting with central midfielders Ryan Pineault ‘20, Lukas Dudzik ‘19 and Tolba. Alex Biedron ‘18, Kyle Forsyth ‘17, Zach Tarazi ‘18 and Henry Mitrano ‘19 were a solid back four and Malcolm Kleban ‘20 was once again a rock in goal for the Martlets on a small field where jailbreak counterattacks were trending.

 

The effort displayed over 80 minutes, on a very large pitch, against a team with 10 subs, was outstanding. Westminster had only two field-player subs available. The Martlets took an early lead when Abby Davis ‘20 finished off a nice sequence, taking a pass from Eve Cathcart ‘20 inside of the box and making no mistake in burying her shot. The hosts evened the score around the 30 minute mark on a play most noteworthy for the courageous save made by goalkeeper Alison Kijanka ‘20, who left her net to smother a breakaway attempt. Unfortunately, the ball ricocheted off another player and into the net, sending the teams to halftime evened up. The second half again saw the ball all over the pitch. This time the Bearcats took the lead, finding open space at the top of the box to gather in a cross and place their shot. The other Martlet keeper, Jenny Guider ‘20, also had a shining moment, also by bravely stuffing what looked to be a sure goal to keep the Martlet hopes alive. Sure enough, in the 78th minute, Susie Mahoney ‘20 took a pass near the top of the box and beat two defenders before nailing a left-footed shot into the side netting for the equalizer. Once again, very strong performances were turned in by central players, including Maddie Dwyer ‘18, Cathcart, and McKenzie Roller ‘20, all of whom were indefatigable.

After being kept out of the win column for two weeks, Second Girls’ Soccer got back on track with a good win against a strong Williston squad on Oct. 15. What the Wildcats lacked in numbers, they made up for in toughness and skill. Both teams showed a willingness both to possess the ball and to strike on the counterattack. The Martlets got on the board in the 11th minute on just such counterattack. Natalie Rubin ‘19 took a ball on the left flank and cut inside, sending a ball into the box intended for a cutting Susie Mahoney ‘20. Mahoney and the Williston keeper arrived at about the same time, and in the ensuing confusion the ball found its way into the net. Although the ball would be worked into dangerous positions at both ends, the half would end with just the one goal. The second half unfolded in a similar manner, with both teams threatening, although it became clear that playing with just two substitutes was taking its toll on the home side. With eight minutes left to play, a nice series of passes led to an Abby Davis ‘20 cross that Becca Gavel ‘18 got her head on to extend the Westminster lead to two, a much more comfortable margin, and one that would hold up. As she has been all season, Maddie Dwyer ‘18 was a rock at central defense, aided by strong play from Dallis Alvarez ‘18 and McKenzie Roller ‘20 who contained well on the outside. Ridgely Green ‘20 added a bunch of nice touches in midfield, Mahoney was frequently dangerous on attack, and Caroline McCausland ‘19 applied effective pressure on the Wildcat defense.

 

After the Martlets jumped to an early 1-0 lead, the Winged Beavers gnawed their way back to tie the game late in the first half. The Beavers continue to chop away at the Martlets and eventually snuck in a late goal to take the victory 2-1. Cameron Jury ‘19 was once again solid in the net. Tucker Wieber ‘18 began the scoring chance with a splendid cross to James Plumb ‘18, and Plum played the ball to Elton Paintsil '18. Paintsil returned to Plumb and Plumb put the ball in the net past a diving Beaver goalie. Willie Noble ‘20 and Ned Blanchard ‘20 kept the pressure on the Beaver defense. The Martlets had several chances. Carl Ekholm ‘19 and Kai Edmonds ‘19 played outstanding defense as they chopped down many Beaver chances. Jacob Monroe ‘20 showed great speed as he cut through the Beaver’s defensive dam on several occasions.

 

 

The Quad Squad played its best soccer of the year beating Gunnery 4-2. Charlie Flam ’20 had two goals with Aidan Wood ’20 and Jeevan Palaniyandy ’19 each scoring one. Dinh Truong ’19 was great at stopper. Will Scott ’20 had an assist and Scott Lee ’20 had great midfield play. Utility player Kevin Kuang ’19 contributed on offense, defense, and in the midfield.

Charlie Flam ’20 scored a goal when he plucked the ball from the goalie’s hand and tapped it in. Aidan Wood ’20 scored from in close on a great cross from Flam. Dinh Truong ’19 was strong at the stopper position and Scott Lee ’20 was superb at center mid.