Champs

Pomfret Community School girls basketball team celebrates QVJC Tournament championship. Courtesy photo.

 

 

 

By Ron P. Coderre

In the sports world the term “three-peat” is frequently thrown around especially with professional and college teams.  The term became popular when Michael Jordan was in his prime and leading the Chicago Bulls to National Basketball Association titles.

Northeastern Connecticut now has its version of “three-peat” plus two.  The Pomfret Community School girls’ basketball program, a member of the Quinebaug Valley Junior Conference Small Division recently recorded its fifth consecutive conference title.  That’s correct, five championships in five years.

That probably qualifies as a dynasty, similar to the old Boston Celtics or the New York Yankees of the past.

Pomfret Community, under coach Karen Clarke, captured its latest title Feb. 12 when it bested an upstart Putnam team 42-35 in a game that was close throughout.  The contest saw 10 lead changes or ties in the first three periods.

Putnam, which got to the championship game by virtue of an upset win over Eastford in the semifinals, entered with a 6-7 record but playing its best ball of the season when it mattered most.  The initial stanza was a preview of how the game would be contested as the teams were knotted 11-11 after one quarter.

The teams battled evenly in the second period with Pomfret enjoying a slim 22-19 halftime edge.  Pomfret maintained its three point lead closing at 32-29 after three quarters of play.  The difference in the outcome came in the final period, when Pomfret led by Ariana Koivisto outscored Putnam 10-6 for the final margin.

Koivisto, an eighth grader headed to Woodstock Academy next season, was the game-high scorer, finishing with 20 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists in a brilliant performance.  She wasn’t alone on the floor for Pomfret as Julianna Nuttall turned in her top performance of the season, tallying 10 critical points.  The duo received support from Natalie Low who was a monster off the glass with 16 caroms.

Putnam was paced by sixth grader Alex Hutchins who had 11 points, with three of her shots coming from three-point land.  Aislin Tracey also had 11 points for Putnam to go along with 10 steals.  Molly McKeon chipped in five markers for Putnam, which is coached by Jon Miller.

In winning its fifth consecutive QVJC title, Pomfret completed a perfect season, finishing at 14-0 on the year.  Putnam closes at 6-8.

 

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