Winter Sports Highlights for 1.29.18

 

The Knights of Salisbury played mistake-free basketball early, which was too much for the Martlets to handle. Several underclassmen, including Tavian Montanez '21 led the charge for the Martlets with nine points, three assists and three rebounds.

Jan 27: Basketball - First Boys’ 58 vs Avon Old Farms School 76

Westminster battled strongly, but a run in the middle of the second half put the game away in favor of Salisbury. Teddy Schellbach '20 started the game on fire and kept the Martlets close in the first half. Helped by teammate Riley Wood '19, Schellbach and Spencer Epps '18 hit a few three pointers to keep the Martlets in the game. At the break, the Martlets trailed 18-31. Wood sparked an early second half run that saw the Martlets close the gap to 22-31. But Salisbury proved to be too big and too talented. A 14-0 run by the Knights sealed the victory.

A strong start to the game welcomed the Martlets to their biggest tilt yet against the Avon Old Farms’ Winged Beavers. Bear “The Bear” Lockshin ‘19 came out in full force, stopping the ball as it came down the court like a bear hunting beavers in the creek. The Winged Beavers took full advantage of a string of fouls in the first half, beginning to build their dam and flowing into the first half at 7-28. As the river flows, so did the game, and the Martlets sought to soar over the Winged Beaver dam in the second half. Harrison “Ghost” Lehman ‘21 started the second half with the heart of a lion, bashing through the dam like it was a bundle of twigs. Putting up the first points of the second half was Ryan Messina ‘20, basking in the glow of both the crowd and his Martlet pride. He continued to make contact with the hoop for the next 16 minutes, leading the team in both shots and completions. At the end of the day, the Winged Beavers dammed the river, but the summer’s tides will be coming soon and both the water and the baskets will flow like the Nile.

 

“What do you need to take on a wild boar?” asked the Martlets on a warm winter day. The answer: a basketball, a pair of shoes and the will to win. The boys lit the fire in the first minutes of the game, with standouts Ryan Messina ‘20 and Roman Mitchell ‘20 stoking the embers for victory. A close first 16 minutes of play left the Martlets with 17 points to the Boar’s 19 at halftime. Jack Luppino ‘21 wasted no time tying the game up with just a minute passed into the second half. As play continued, the boars begin to resist. At the end of the day poultry may have been served for dinner, but whoever said the Martlet was vegetarian clearly didn’t know that the mythical creatures’ favorite meal is good ol’ fashion bacon, straight from the wild boar.

First Girls’ Hockey had a breakout game Jan. 24 as it hosted a very talented Williston team. The Martlets were put on their heels at the start, but kept focus and met the tempo. Sixth Form goalie Hannah Stone '18 was the backbone as Westminster found its confidence. At the midway mark, the team started to put on the pressure. Jenny Guider '20 pushed the puck forward and in a great indirect pass sent Lilly Holmes '18 in behind the defenseman. Holmes protected the puck as she drove to the net. She backhanded a shot that slipped through a sliding Williston goalie. Westminster protected its lead till the end of the period. The second period started with an increased pace and Westminster made things more difficult by spending some time in the penalty box. Defenseman Ashlee White '18 and Emma Lange ‘18 were instrumental in surviving the man-down situations. Westminster protected the lead again as the second period came to a close. In the locker room, the Martlets committed themselves to play a disciplined and aggressive third period to secure the win. They knew one goal would not be enough to beat this tough team. Sure enough, Williston got on the board in the first three minutes of the third. Instead of letting the momentum swing to the opponent, Westminster took it shift by shift to get back in it. Forward Jill Parsons '19 was relentless on the forecheck and defenseman Hannah Carbone '19 was smart with her pinches. It all paid off in with just two minutes left as Taylor Adams '20 walked out from behind the net and put the puck in the top corner. Westminster quickly found itself playing in a five-on-six scenario. Megan Rittenhouse '20 blocked a shot that ate some crucial time on the clock. Stone remained solid in the net. The clock finally reach zero time and Westminster celebrated a hard-fought win.

 

It was a challenging afternoon for Westminster. After a long bus ride to Tabor, the Martlets were able to net the first goal on a surprising bounce that got past the Tabor goaltender. The goal was scored by Taylor Adams ‘20 and assisted by Megan Rittenhouse ‘20. Tabor came back with a vengeance and was able to score the next three goals unanswered to round out the first period. Westminster continued to fight hard throughout the game, but unfortunately the Tabor offense was on fire and was able to end the game with a 7-1 victory. Hannah Stone ‘18 made 30 saves.

Westminster had a great showing of support at home Jan. 22 for the always-exciting match-up with Avon Old Farms from down the road. The rink was packed before the puck dropped, and both schools had fans in tow. After a few disappointing losses, it was good to see the Martlets rekindle a little of their tenacity and grit to bring home a win. The game was played tightly throughout and Ian Shane ‘20 captured a little momentum when he stopped a breakaway in the early part of the first period. Shane came up with 18 saves in the game to complete the shutout. Jagger LeClair ‘18 scored late in the third, and Jake Monroe ‘20 earned another point scoring Westminster’s second goal. Avon would not go quietly, and the Martlets finished the game on a five on three penalty kill that was a six on three after Avon pulled its goalie with over a minute left. Westminster was able to hang on and earn a victory.

 

The Martlets earned a gritty win Jan. 24 against a physical Deerfield team. The rink was not as electric as Jan. 22 against AOF, but Westminster was able to play an up-tempo game from start to finish. The first period was a little loose despite the fast pace with lots of broken plays and pucks bouncing. The Martlets eventually broke through late in the period when Jake Monroe ‘20 beat the DA goalie. A few minutes later Westminster tallied its second of the period when Nate Pane ‘19 scored a shorthanded goal. The first ended 2-0. The second period was a little more consistent, but DA eventually cut the lead to one. Iggy Belov ‘20 tipped a screen shot past the goalie to make the game 3-1, but DA was not done. They scored a power play goal late in the second period to make the score 3-2 heading into the third period. Will Gilson ‘20 wasted little time in the third, scoring just 18 seconds into the period. Deerfield would cut the lead to one midway through the third, and continued to keep the pressure on. DA pulled its goalie in the final minute of play, and a huge effort by Cam Scott ‘18 sealed the deal when he beat the DA defenseman to a loose puck behind their net and stuffed it in the corner. Ian Shane ‘20 stopped 28 shots, with many key saves to help capture momentum.

 

This was a great way to cap a busy week, winning all three contests at home against strong opponents, Avon, DA and Kent. Against Kent the Martlets set a great tempo early in the first, and carried the play throughout the majority of the game. Kent was coming off an extended break, and they were rested and came hard at Westminster. Their physical play was matched by Westminster’s speed, and the Martlets capitalized on turnovers in all three zones. Ryan Doolin ‘18 opened the scoring in the first period, and the game would remain 1-0 until the third period despite many excellent chances for Westminster. The puck bounced over sticks, and Westminster could have been more precise with their shooting. After Kent tied the game, Patrick Dawson ‘18 scored, but Kent would even the game again. With six minutes remaining Jake Monroe ‘20 capitalized on a loose puck in front and put Westminster up 3-2. Tasso Housakous ‘18 would score again one minute later to close the door on Kent. Ian Shane ‘20 had a great day in net stopping 22 of 24.

The Martlets faced the bulldogs in a fast-paced scrimmage Jan. 23. Julia Krys ’19 recorded an impressive 38 saves. Casey and Betsy Winslow ‘21 came down from First Girls’ Hockey to help the team out. Casey Winslow scored the first two goals off of breakaways and Susie Mahoney ’20 scored a third with assists from Natalie Rubin ’19 and Annabelle Smith ‘21.

It was another great win for the Martlets on Jan. 24 against Loomis. Midway through the first period, Cecily Carter '21 was the first to score off of a rebound. In the second period, Susie Mahoney '20 put away another with an assist from Natalie Rubin '19. The Pelicans were able to respond with only 41 seconds left in the period, but Mahoney didn't let them get very excited as she scored again just a few seconds later with a great breakout pass from Greta Baker '19 and another assist from Rubin. Rounding out the score of 4-1 was Caroline McDermott '20 with the final goal of the game. Julia Krys ’19 remained stalwart between the posts, letting in only one goal and blocking 25 others.

 

The Martlets headed to Berkshire to face the Bears. Both teams were down a few players, which gave some of the novices a great chance at ice time. On the first shift out, Annabelle Smith '21 scored her first goal of her Westminster hockey career. The rest of the first period went scoreless, but Abby Moss '20 put one away in the second to bring Westminster up 2-0. Berkshire was able to squeeze one past Julia Krys ’19 in a scuffle in front of the net in the third, but Susie Renehan '19 rounded it out to be 3-1 tucking it in behind the goalie. Krys made five saves and Westminster put 28 shots on net.

 

Second Boys’ Hockey traveled to Northampton, Mass. to take on Williston and came back with a 5-2 road win. Brett Daubert '20 got the visitors on the board during a power play opportunity by banging home a puck delivered by Steve Bray '18 and Peter Sanger '21. Williston tied the game shortly after. In the second period a good hockey play occurred when Wyatt Pastor ’20 dropped the puck to Daubert, who shot it on net, and Bray cleaned up the rebound for a 2-1 lead. The Martlets gained a two-goal cushion on another power play in which Peter Hall's ’18 shot ended in a scrum in front of the goal. Jack Murdock ‘19 slid the puck to Alec Paro '19, who jammed it in. Williston countered with one on a weak defensive shift to make the score 3-2 going into the third period. In the final frame, Westminster dominated territorially as it did all game long. The black and gold were finally rewarded when Quinn Armstrong '20 jumped into the rush started by Paro and Zach Papapetros '20 and slid the disc past the Williston netminder. Westminster sealed the deal with an empty net goal by Sanger, assist going to Daubert (completing a three-point afternoon). Much credit goes to the Williston goaltender who made 47 saves on the day. The coaches were encouraged by the team's ability to move and pressure the puck and play better defense.

Second Boys’ Hockey faced the Lions of Kent at home and lost in OT 5-4. Westminster got off to a strong start by producing a two-goal lead after the first period. On the power play, Noah Kaplan '20 cleaned up a rebound from a Darion Benchich '20 shot. Peyton Knauf '19 also earned an assist. Three minutes later Quinn Armstrong ’20 put the hosts up 2-0. The Martlets struck first in the second period when Steve Bray ’18 jumped on a loose puck in the crease and banged it home for a 3-0 lead. Unfortunately, Kent took advantage of a defensive lapse late in the middle frame and scored two goals in one minute to narrow the lead to 3-2. However, the Martlets countered quickly when Will Rizzo '21 found the back of the net with hard-working assists from Josh Cosentino '18 and Hunter Johnson '21. In the third, Kent scored on the very first shift, which set a bad tone for the period. Kent tied the game on a breakaway with less than four minutes remaining and got the game winner on a scramble in front on the first shift of the overtime period. This was a very disappointing loss for the Martlets particularly at home in that Kent trailed the hosts the entire game. Unfortunately, a pesky Kent team outplayed the Martlets down the stretch and captured a big win on the road. A strong commitment to defense remains a problem for this team.

Third Boys’ Hockey was not ready to compete Jan. 22 against in-town rival Simsbury High School. Although SK Lee'18 had two nice goals, the overall team effort and compete level just weren't there.

 

Third Boys’ Hockey squared off against an always-talented Chief's team on Jan. 26 in Jackson Rink and played their best hockey of the season for two and one-half periods in a fast-paced, back and forth style of game. The Martlets showed better structure and discipline in all three zones and pressured the Chiefs with its relentless power play several times during the game. Willie Noble '20 led the scoring with two goals, the second coming off a feathered Rex Flinn '21 pass that set Noble up for an upper shelf finish. SK Lee '18 would tally his own and have a couple of other great looks in the closing minutes. Unfortunately, a series of late penalties in the final frame took the team out of its tenacious rhythm, and the Chiefs were able to secure the win. William Scott '20 played very well between the pipes and provided more than a few key saves throughout the game.

 

For the second straight match, the girls were unable to solve the challenge posed by a more experienced team. Choate won all of the matches at #s 2 through 6 in three games — more than enough to secure the team win. Valeria Osorio '19 put up a good fight at #1, taking a game by mustering gritty, determined defending and applying effective pressure when she found openings. Lucy Noel '18 prevented the sweep by rallying from two down to win a five-setter at #7, including a gutsy 13-11 game four. Adding to the bright side of the ledger, Rebecca Sargent '20 won her exhibition match, rebounding from a game three loss to close it out at love in game four.

 

Led by 3-0 wins from Sixth Formers Katie Kosior (#4), Caroline MIller (#5) and Lucy Noel (#7), the girls earned a 6-1 victory over RCD. Continuing the domination at the bottom of the ladder, Natalie Fay '19 added a four-set win at #6. (Rebecca Sargent '20 also won her exhibition match in three.) Things were tighter at the top, but the Martlets managed to take two of the three remaining matches. At #3, Caroline Kelter '19 gritted out a five-setter, splitting her first two games, then showing the mental toughness to prevail 12-10 in both the third and the decisive fifth. At #2, Ellie Bailey '21 could not solve the clever short game of her opponent, falling in four after taking her second game 12-10. The last match on, #1, was the most exciting, as Valeria Osorio '19 rallied from two games down to earn the comeback win. Shrugging off the pressure, she eventually wore her opponent down, but still needed all of her determination in a very tight fifth game ((7), (9), 9, 7 11).

 

Without their top two players, CSH was still able to sweep the Martlets. Five of the seven matches were decided by 3-0 scores. Of those, the closest contest was at #7, where Lucy Noel ’18 almost took her second game, taking it to 14-12. Katie Kosior '18 found some traction at #4, splitting her first two games at 11-9 before falling in the last two, 8 and 4. The best chance for a win was at #1, and it looked good after Valeria Osorio '19 chalked up gritty 11-9 wins in each of her first two games. The long day seemed to take its toll, however, as she ran out of steam and could not close out against a strong player with dangerous finishing skills.

 

A young Deerfield team with no seniors and three freshman gave the Martlets more than they could handle Jan. 24, but the Martlets fought hard and made their opponents step up. Although nobody won a game in the bottom seven matches, Sean Ryan '18 and co-captain Andrew Doucette '18 came the closest. Ryan lost his third game 12 -14 and Doucette the first 9-11. Both boys tied for the most points earned with 22, far exceeding the totals of other players. Aly Tolba '18 won his match by default, making the final score 1-6. The boys were not discouraged. Rather they saw that doing the small things well, like hitting to good length and good width, creates pressure. They are encouraged that small improvements can have large effects.

 

What a match! Coach Peter Doucette cannot remember a better match. Two five game wins, a five game loss, a four game loss and two three game wins later, the Martlets emerged victorious 4-3 over Millbrook School in the first dual match between the schools. There were so many bright spots. The boys shone even in defeat. Co-captain Chanler Miller '18 lost two games in tiebreakers before losing in three. Nate Swift '19 lost in four in his first team debut, making some good adjustments to take game three. Sean Ryan '18 lost 9-11 in the fifth but more on that later. Aly Tolba '18 continued his winning ways, winning in three games. Co-captain Connor Seeley '18 also won in three, exploiting weaknesses of his opponent and working the ball left and right. Khalil Walker '19 won a five-game match. Walker improves every day, his mobility, power and determination evident on every point. With Walker's win in round one the match stood 2-1 for the black and gold. When Swift and Tolba finished it was 3-2. It seemed as though everything would rest on the matches on court seven where Ryan trailed 1-2 because co-captain Andrew Doucette '18, after losing game one 12-14, had lost game two. Doucette had more to say, however. In game three he was down match ball 0-2, 9-10. Four match balls later, Doucette took game three 16-14 and breathed extraordinary life into the match. Doucette won game four and entered the fifth game confident that his opponent was flagging a bit. Meanwhile Ryan won game four as well and was neck and neck with his opponent all of game five. Doucette was up big early and looked to close out the match. The Millbrook player had other ideas and stormed back with some fierce winners to tie the match 9-9. Ryan was also at 9-9 at the same moment. Ryan's opponent hit a dead nick and then finished the match 11-9. Thirty seconds later Doucette placed his opponent under pressure and forced a tin for the 11-9 win and a 4-3 team win. What a match!

Jan. 27: Squash - First Boys’ 1 vs Phillips Academy 6
The boys traveled to Andover and played in the new 12-court facility against a deep Andover team. Although there were some close games at the top of the ladder and Aly Tolba '18 won his match in three games, the team only won one other game. Khalil Walker '19 won his second game and had game points in the fourth game to force a fifth game on the dark blue show court. Playing with a white ball, Walker was quick and smart. He hit many good rails to nice length and width. His shot making was outstanding. Unfortunately, he lost in four, but earned the nail for the match. Co-captains Chanler Miller '18 and Andrew Doucette '18 both had personal fans at the match. They fought and kept their matches close. Doucette had game points in his second game and Miller lost in a tie-breaker in the third game.

 

Second Girls' Squash traveled to Wallingford reeling just a little bit from a difficult 4-3 loss at home against Deerfield on Jan. 20. With redemption in mind, the Martlets set out to play a more aggressive and attacking style of squash. Westminster took control of the match with 3-0 victories at numbers four, five and six by Blake Cote '19, Anna Veber '21 and Maddie Dwyer '18. Annabel Bradley '19 won in four as did Georgia Swank '19 and Elaina Comia '19. Game captain Isabelle Niles '18 earned the respect and admiration of her opponent as she battled valiantly in the deciding game before falling by an incredible score of 22-20. That game featured spectacular rallies, rails, drops and nicks.

 

The Martlets squared off against a talented, undefeated squad from Deerfield Academy Jan. 24 at the Kohn Squash Pavilion. The boys battled valiantly but lost the match 0-8. In fact, the Big Green won every game of the match although the black and gold pushed their opponents in many of those games, earning 7, 8, 9, even 10 points. Scott Lee '20 gets the "nail" for scoring 24 points in his match out of a total of 58 points.

 

The Martlets took on the Fighting Daisies of Porter's on Jan. 27, and came out with an impressive 7-0 win.

 

The boys traveled down to Wallingford to take on the squad from Choate Jan. 24. The coaches decided to score the top eight players on the ladder, with the remaining five playing exhibition-style best of three matches. As it turned out, Westminster swept those five matches, as John Clofine '21, James Chun '19 and Carter Henshaw '20 all won in two straight, and William Mell '21 and Memo Tejapaibul '20 needed an extra game to secure the victory. Meanwhile, the top eight did not fare as well, with only Quoc Truong '20 and Spencer Organ '18 coming out on top. Truong was in trouble after the first game, losing 11-5 while looking lethargic. Somehow he manufactured the energy to turn the tables and win the next three games. Organ split his first two games, and then entered the zone in winning the next two to clinch the match. Dinh Truong '19 played a courageous five-set match, winning the first two games and getting to within a few points of closing out the match in three. However, his opponent had other plans and stormed back to reel off three consecutive games.

 

 

The Martlets turned in a number of fast times and personal bests on the road Jan. 24, but Williston was stronger in all but two of the 12 events. Alex Lin ‘19 won the 200 Free with her season best time, and Jane Ogden ‘19 won the diving with her best score of the season. Sydney Schuster ‘21 swam personal bests in the 200 and 500 Freestyle events, and Alex Wolf ‘19 swam her best-ever 100 Free, while Cecilia Raymond ‘20 and Ally Marenco ‘18 set new personal high scores in diving.

 

The girls' stumbled out of the gates as all three Westminster medley relays disqualified for false starts in the first event. Alex Lin '19 righted the ship by swimming to a convincing win in the 200 Free with her best time of the season, while Simonne Ponce '21 took third with her best time ever. Katherine Ashe '21 and Angelesia Ma '20 both swam best times in the 200 IM to place first and third, respectively. Alex Wolf '19 set a new personal record in the 50 Freestyle, good for second place, while co-captain Dallis Alvarez ’18 took fifth with her season best time. Cecilia Raymond '20 and Jane Ogden '19 took the top two spots in the diving, respectively, with solid scores on some new and difficult dives. Ashe and Michelle Wu '21 took second and third in the 100 Fly, and Lin and Wolf took second and fourth, respectively, in the 100 Freestyle (Wolf broke a minute for the first time!). Sydney Schuster '21 took third in the 500 Free, shaving eight seconds off of her personal best time, and Ma, Dorka Nagy '19, Wolf and Lin teamed up for a second place finish in the 200 Freestyle Relay. Ma took third in the 100 Breast (another best time), and Ashe, Alvarez, Wolf and Lin went on to win the 400 Freestyle Relay and the meet. Also swimming personal best times were Wu (500 Free), Alvarez (100 Back), Ponce (50 Free, 100 Free), Schuster (50 Free), Jennifer Jerand '19 (100 Breaststroke) and Clea Guerrand-Hermes '19 (50 Free).

 

The boys kept their momentum up this week with a host of best times and fantastic finishes in a decisive win on the road. Co-captain Albert Gao ‘18 won the 200 Free with a best time, co-captain Matt Norris ‘19 won the 200 IM, and Liam Seeley ‘20 won the 50 Free in a personal best time. Hayden Cathcart ‘18 won the diving with his best score ever, and Norris won the 500 Free. The 200 Free Relay team of co-captain Teagan Stedman ‘18, Eddie Shin ‘21, Norris and Gao reeled in their opponents in the last two legs and Gao made the pass on the final lap for the win. Other lifetime best were swum by Layton Harmon ‘21 (200 IM and 100 Fly), Stedman (50 Free, 100 Free, 200 Free), Daniel Pinckney ‘20 (100 Fly), Justin Schuster ‘19 (50 Free, 100 Free), David DeFronzo ‘19 (50 Free, 100 Free), Grant McCargo ‘21 (100 Free), Cathcart (100 Breast) and Emmett de Kanter ‘19 stepped up in his first-ever 500 Freestyle to round out a Martlet sweep behind Norris and Kieran Haug ‘21 which turned the tide of the meet in Westminster’s favor. It was a great afternoon of fast swimming and diving.

 

The Martlets were up against a strong Canterbury team at home Jan. 27 where, despite the loss, they turned in another personal record-setting day. Co-captain Albert Gao '18 lowered his best time in the 200 Free en route to a narrow second place finish, with Kieran Haug '21 finishing fourth with his best time. Co-captain Matt Norris '19 took second in the 200 IM, and co-captain Teagan Stedman '18 and Liam Seeley '20 took second in the 50 Free, the former with a lifetime best. Hayden Cathcart '18 took second in the diving, and Layton Harmon '21 placed third in the 100 Fly, joined by Hudson Stedman '21, and Daniel Pinckney '20 and Emmett de Kanter ‘19, who all swam best times in that race. Teagan Stedman, Eddie Shin '21 and Seeley all lowered their personal records in the 100 Freestyle, and Norris took second in the 500 Free with a fast finish. Harmon led off the 200 Free Relay team with a lightning-quick 50 Free and J-C Lane '21 dropped another two seconds in his 100 Backstroke. Shin swam a best in the 100 Breast, as did Hudson Stedman and Justin Schuster '19; and Harmon, Pinckney, Lane, Schuster and Grant McCargo '21 all had best-ever splits in the 400 Freestyle Relay. It was a fast day for the Martlets and a solid finish to the January segment of the season.