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E. KILLINGLY — Leslie E. Grendell, 89, of Slater Hill Rd., formerly of Rocky Hill Rd., Woodstock, died Jan. 25, 2024, at Day Kimball Hospital.
He was the husband of the late Erlene (Powers) Grendell.
Born in 1934 in Maine, he was the son of the late Edwin and Etta (Braley) Grendell.
Mr. Grendell worked for many years as an injection molder at Nypro Manufacturing.
He enjoyed drawing, working on cars, fishing, and making hand-tied fishing flies.
Leslie leaves four sons, Brent Grendell (Cheryl) of Florida, Richard Grendell (Theresa) of Ashford, Stephen Grendell of Maine, and Dale Grendell (Melissa) of Massachusetts; his brother, Winston Grendell of Massachusetts; his long-time companion after the death of his wife, Edith Freyer of E. Killingly; grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
He was predeceased by his three sisters, Velma Paradis, Emily London, and Janice Nadeau.
Visitation is from 2 to 4p.m. Feb. 4 in the Gilman Funeral Home and Crematory, 104 Church St., Putnam.
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psa pg 6 2-1-24
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PSA: ‘In Justin
we trust’
“In Justin We Trust.”
That was heard more than once in the celebratory PSA locker room Saturday night, after Justin Johnson scored 25 of his 32 points in the second half, including six in a 13-second span late in the game, to rally the Prep basketball team to a rousing comeback 76-72 win over Bradford Christian Academy.
PSA trailed 68-67 when Johnson hit a 3-pointer from the right corner with 1:16 remaining, giving the Mustangs their first lead since 5-2. After Bradford missed a quick shot in transition, Moustapha Loum rebounded the miss and outletted to Imahri Wooten at center court. Wooten found a streaking Johnson along the left wing, and he used one dribble to beat the defender before taking a hard foul as he laid the ball in at the rim. Johnson converted the free throw and PSA led 73-68 with 1:03 to play.
“It was all of us,” Johnson said. “We won that game as a team.”
PSA trailed by 14 points at halftime and by 19, 48-29, just 90 seconds into the second half before mounting the comeback.
“First (part) of the year, we lose that game,” said coach Tom Espinosa, whose team dropped from No. 1 in the country to No. 15 after posting eight losses in its first 19 games. “But we’ve got a different feel to us now and we figured it out in the second half. We figured it out. I don’t think we played hard enough in the first half, Bradford just outworked us. They just kicked our butts.
“But guys really picked it up in the second half…Ben (Ahmed), Moustapha, Cris (McElveen) was really good, Fallou (Gueye). A lot of guys. And then of course Justin was terrific and hit those big shots at the end.”
Gueye finished with 16 points, seven rebounds, and four assists for PSA (17-9), while Ahmed had seven points and 12 rebounds, and Oswin Erhunmwunse added six points, 10 boards, and three blocks.
The win backed up two much different but equally impressive wins earlier in the week when PSA took down No. 5 South Kent Tuesday with a wire-to-wire 109-79 victory and a 98-72 dismantling of Brimmer & May Thursday, wins that sent a clear message to the rest of the prep basketball world.
“We’re the defending back-to-back national champions,” Espinosa said after the South Kent game. “That’s the message. We’re playing hard, we’ve got our rhythm. And I think we have some of our swagger back.”
Tuesday, Johnson continued his strong all-around play with 17 points, five rebounds, three assists, and a steal. Tony Williams had 12 points and five assists, Que Duncan had 12 points and five rebounds, and Ben Ahmed finished with 14 points and eight boards. Grant Randall added 10 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and three steals, and Imahri Wooten chipped in with 10 points for PSA.
Thursday, it was the Ben Ahmed show as the big man dominated play inside by scoring a career-high 34 points and pulling down 15 rebounds to lead PSA.
Gueye put together another solid performance running the point, finishing with 13 points, six rebounds, six assists, and just one turnover. Williams added nine points, six assists, and four steals, and Johnson scored 15 points for PSA (14-9).
PSA has now won six in a row by an average of 23.5 points.
Stephen Nalbandian
Sports Information Director
Putnam Science Academy
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PSA’s girls’ basketball team has endured more of a rebuilding season than it anticipated this year, losing more than it has won.
But the Mustangs took out a season’s worth of aggression last weekend – particularly Saturday afternoon – to head into the new week on a high note. PSA drubbed Hyde School (Maine) 106-33, registering season-highs in points and margin of victory.
Carlota Lopez had 21 points, nine assists, and four steals, as PSA put it all together for the first time since early in the season. Carmen Plata had her best game, finishing with 10 points and seven rebounds. Five other Mustangs scored 10 or more points, including: Helin Yoztyurk (12), Alicia Jimenez (11), Alba Granell (11), Helena Kovacic (10), and Kate Lipatova (10). Elif Goskel finished with eight points and six rebounds, Tati Bell had eight points and five boards, and Lina Ostos chipped in five points.
“Everyone got involved,” coach Greg Canzater said. “We shared the ball, and good things happened for us. We didn’t waste the first half of this game, like we did last time out. We came out and played a full game.”
The previous game Canzater referenced was Friday’s 54-46 win over Hoosac. PSA led just 18-12 at halftime, as turnovers and bad shots limited the offense. But the Mustangs exploded for 21 points in the third quarter to open up an 18-point lead and were able to coast from there. Hoosac hit a couple 3-pointers late to make the score look closer.
Lipatova had six points, 12 rebounds, and three steals. Yoztyurk led PSA (7-14) with 11 points, while Lopez added nine, and Goskel finished with six points.
The boys’ Varsity team lost twice but also got a big win – 74-68 – over rival St. Thomas More Wednesday. Julien Ville was one of four PSA players to score in double figures, finishing with a game-high 22 points. Martyn Poliuchovic added 15 points, Ilan Da Silva-Alp knocked down four 3-pointers on his way to 12 points, and Amyas Hall-Chiari added 10 for PSA.
Hall-Chiari had 15 points, four rebounds, three steals, and two assists, and Shane Sebastian-Smalls added 19 points, but it wasn’t for PSA in a 75-65 loss to MacDuffie Monday. Vlad Vetrov finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.
PSA dropped a 77-63 decision to CATS Academy Thursday, despite 13 points from Ville and 12 more from Da Silva-Al. Sebastian-Smalls finished with 10 points, three assists, and three steals, Hall-Chiari had eight points and five rebounds, and Vetrov charted seven points and eight boards in the loss as PSA finished the week 7-7.
The boys’ Elite team started its week strong, posting a complete 88-73 win over South Kent Tuesday, as Javelle Epps led a balanced and team-wide effort with 21 points and 10 rebounds.
DJ Germann had 13 points, nine assists, five rebounds, and three steals, while Jalen Claude added a team-high 22 points for PSA, which led by just four at halftime.
Sebastian Fermin had 11 points, and Octavius Wheeler had 10. Carter Mungin finished with five points, 10 rebounds, and six assists. Tyler Hansen hit a pair of big 3-pointers, and Josh Ngobi and Jude Gonzalez played excellent defense for PSA.
PSA then struggled on offense Thursday night, scoring a season-low in a 66-60 loss to Mitchell College JV. Epps led PSA, which averaged 97 points over its previous six games, with 16 points. Wheeler and Claude both added nine for the Mustangs, who then gave up a season-high in points Sunday in a 110-89 loss to Winchendon. Mungin had 23 points and seven rebounds, but PSA fell behind early and could never recover in the loss.
Germann had 10 points, five rebounds, and six assists for PSA (13-5). Claude added 13 points, Fermin had 10, and Wheeler chipped in six points, six assists, and five rebounds. PSA trailed 22-8 about four-and-a-half minutes into the game, then went on a run to cut the deficit to seven a few minutes before halftime but could get no closer.
Stephen Nalbandian
Sports Information Director
Putnam Science Academy
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2 locals on ECSU track team
WILLIMANTIC — Eastern Connecticut State University’s men’s and women’s track and field teams recently began their winter 2023/24 seasons. The men’s roster consists of 37 student-athletes, while the women’s roster consists of 25 student-athletes.
Among the student-athletes are: Eric Phongsa of Pomfret Center, who participates in the sprints events for the men’s team. Phongsa is a junior who majors in political science; and Adam Schimmelpfennig of Pomfret Center, who participates in the hurdles events for the men’s team. Schimmelpfennig is a junior who majors in computer science and business information systems.
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