green pg 7 4-6-23
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Ella Musumeci, left, and Maya Orbegozo. Photos by Marc Allard.
The smiles were evident on the faces of Woodstock Academy seniors Ella Musumeci and Maya Orbegozo.
Here the two were, in the final week of March, and instead of sitting in the classroom learning the rules of the game or trying to chip on the common in front of the school waiting for the snow to melt- they were getting ready to tee off for a practice round at the Woodstock Golf Course.
“No snow,” Musumeci said. “We’re back at it and can open up a little earlier this year than last year. It feels great to be back out here again. I just love to golf. Sitting in class, it’s like, ‘Oh wow, I have practice later and I have to work on these shots,’ and it’s something I just love.”
Orbegozo took a year off from golf as a junior to get a little more club soccer time in.
She decided after her senior soccer season that she wasn’t going to play soccer again in the spring and would turn her attention back to golf.
Centaurs coach Earl Semmelrock is glad she did. The senior will likely be his top player this season and it’s not like she should be all that rusty. Orbegozo has been playing golf, in a manner of speaking, all winter long.
“I’ve been playing at Bears Virtual Golf in Danielson this winter, big shout out to them; they have helped me a lot with my game. I’ve been taking lessons. I’m happy to be back with the team. It’s going to be a great season,” Orbegozo said.
The Centaurs finished with a 6-9 record last season and finished third in the ECC championship match.
It’s a good thing the Centaurs were able to get outside quickly.
Their first match of the season is scheduled for Wednesday in East Lyme and then they travel to Waterford on Thursday before taking a week off for spring break.
That includes Orbegozo who was the sixth player on the Centaurs team that won a Division II state championship in 2021.
Add to that Musumeci, fellow senior Shannon Cunniff, junior Isabella Siwiko and sophomores Lily Bottone and Sophie Gronski who had solid debuts as freshmen a year ago. Sophomore Isabel Mawson and freshman Lilly Moran will also likely see varsity play.
There are several other players, giving Semmelrock his biggest turnout in a while.
The varsity players will work and play at the Quinnatisset Country Club with the JV staying at Woodstock.
“I’m excited about what we can do and when I look at the other teams in the league and see who has graduated from last year, I think we will be in a pretty good spot,” Semmelrock said.
Speaking of those teams, there are more of them this season in the ECC.
In addition to the Centaurs, Norwich Free Academy, East Lyme and Bacon Academy, Waterford will field a team again this season, Stonington returns to the fray and Killingly will have a co-op team with Ellis Tech for a first time.
“I don’t know what to expect as far as how they will play because I haven’t seen a couple of teams in the past. It’s all good. We’re trying to grow the sport and this bodes well for us. The Killingly/Ellis Tech co-op has a good player. We also won’t have as much travel since we have matches around here and won’t be going out west as much. That’s good,” Semmelrock said.
Semmelrock said the goal is to retake the title.
Woodstock, going into last year’s championship match, had won five of the last six titles. Unfortunately, NFA wrested it away from the Centaurs a year ago for the Wildcats’ first title since 2014.
“We missed it last year for the first time in a while and I think the girls have that as a goal and it’s within reason. It’s really up to them how they do and how they want to attack the season,” Semmelrock said.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
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simmons pg 7 4-6-23
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Darryl Simmons walked into a classroom at Putnam Science Academy about a month ago, just wanting to talk to anyone within earshot about his new favorite song lyric. He wanted to make sure everyone understood exactly what the line “When that bag touch down, I scream ‘hallelujah!’” was about, that when the blessings come in, he has to give thanks to God.
That line was on Simmons’ mind last week during an official visit to Gardner-Webb University, where before he even left the North Carolina school, he told the coaching staff that he “was all-in and committing to play there.
“It’s been a long journey,” said the Mustangs’ undersized point guard, who will be the sixth PSA player to head to Gardner-Webb. “It felt real good to be honest, knowing that all the things I’ve been through had gotten me to this moment. This recruitment process was hard, but everything happens for a reason. It’s always God’s timing. When you want to do things your way and have it on your time, there are always obstacles throughout the process. I knew something special was going to happen, because all these things were happening to me, all these things that I did not want. I knew there was going to be a spirit in the making that was going to make something work out for me in the long run.
“I’m thrilled, I’m blessed. As soon as I set foot on campus, I felt welcomed and felt like I belonged there. They were definitely tears of joy when I knew this was it.”
Simmons, from Norwich, enrolled at PSA as an eighth grader in 2017. He played on the Mustangs’ second team for most of his first three seasons, joining the Prep team for good as an end-of-bench player toward the end of the 2019-20 season, when they won their second national championship.
Generously listed at 6-feet tall, Simmons had his next season cut in half by COVID. He opened the 21-22 season as the starting point guard (ahead of Desmond Claude, who was recently named to the all-Big East Freshman Team) before injuries cost him seven games and forced him into a bench role where he helped the team go undefeated in another championship run.
But the summer of 2022 was difficult, as his last AAU season to show college coaches what he could do was ravaged by a foot injury, which also slowed him down at the start of this past PSA season.
“He went through a lot and people really backed off of him after the injury,” coach Tom Espinosa said. “He had to prove himself all over again. We learned in that 2020-21 season that we could count on him to win games at this level. There were a lot of times the last two seasons that we couldn’t afford to take him off the court, that’s how good and impactful his game is.
“So this is a special one for me. Darryl is like a son to me, and I couldn’t be more proud or happy for him and his family. People see all the things he isn’t when you look at him. But when you watch him…he has a great feel for the game, he plays hard, his teammates love playing with him. He’s a leader. And he’s a winner. There is so much that he does bring, and Gardner-Webb is going to love him.”
Simmons leaves PSA with his name amongst the greats. He is the only player to win three national championships; his 94 games played is second all-time (again, having lost between 15-20 to the Covid season); he is seventh in career points (914), fourth in assists (336), third in steals (137), and first in made 3-pointers (147).
Stephen Nalbandian
Sports Information Director
Putnam Science Academy
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named pg 8 4-6-23
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DAYVILLE — Nancy Blake earned the Employee of the Month award at Country Living at Westview Commons in February. Nancy is an administrative assistant and activities specialist.
In addition to her professional background in corporate settings, Nancy possesses a personal passion for singing in group choirs—and she and several residents at Westview Commons have developed this concept to form their own choral cohort.
During this past winter holiday season, Nancy and the Westview Commons Choir delivered their gift of song to audiences at Westview Commons as well as Westview Health Care Center.
They look forward to performing their spring concert at both locations in the coming weeks.
Nancy grew up in Danielson and graduated from Killingly High School.
She holds a certificate from Quinebaug Valley Community College in Business and Accounting Software.
She has also worked as a Therapeutic Recreation Director in a skilled nursing facility.
Nancy and her husband Richard have two sons and three grandchildren.
She enjoys reading Christian books, gardening, decorating and arts and crafts projects.
Executive Vice President of Westview Commons, David T. Panteleakos, said, “Nancy is so kind and caring as she fulfills her role here at Westview Commons, and is especially creatively considerate in her work with our choir of residents.”
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police pg 8 4-6-23
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The following charges were listed in the Putnam Police Department logs. The people charged are innocent until proven guilty in court. The Town Crier will publish dispositions of cases at the request of the accused. The dispositions must be accompanied by the proper documentation. The Putnam Police Department confidential Tip Line is 860-963-0000.
March 30
Justin Adams, 38, homeless, Putnam; creating a public disturbance.
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