By Ron P. Coderre

This week’s RPC sporty shoutout is sent along to good sport Roland Moulin of Putnam.  A noted sailor and skier, Moulin remains active in retirement.  In his spare time he enjoys fine dining with his wife and an occasional card game with his buddies.

The past week was very active for many area athletes and teams.  All the athletes carried themselves with pride and came home with satisfying results.  

The Putnam girls’ soccer team came home with a Constitution State Conference championship while a Killingly High School female runner came back to northeastern Connecticut with a spot in the New England cross country championships.  The Killingly football team solidified its spot in the CIAC Points Rankings with a lopsided win over East Lyme.

Individually, a former Killingly Redgal basketball player started her college hoop career on a positive note.  A long time long distance runner proved he still had what it takes to finish in the Top 10 of a prestigious road race.  And finally a former basketball official who started a game timing company landed another big client.   

In summary it was a reminder that although northeastern Connecticut is referred to as the Quiet Corner, we can still make noise when it comes to competing.

Lady Clippers Claim Final 

CSC Soccer Title…

Conference or State titles are a rare occurrence at Putnam High School since the glory days of Clipper football and basketball teams.  The impending breakup of the Constitution State Conference means that any league championships are out of the picture as Clipper teams search for a venue in which to compete.

The recent victory by the Putnam girls’ soccer team gives fans in Clipperland something to cheer about.  Ranked #2 going into the CSC championships the Lady Clippers of coach Molly Panteleakos surprised #1 seed Capital Prep, winning the title game 2-1.

The victory came on a goal by Kira Clinksdale with 13 minutes remaining in the game.  Putnam received some solid goalkeeping from net minder Megan Sessums, who was tough in net all season for coach Panteleakos.  

Other key performers in the title game and throughout the season included Captain Maria Fredette, Aly Morris, and Morgan Foucault.  Morris tallied the first Putnam goal with only 30 seconds to play in the opening period of the title contest.  Putnam enters the State competition sporting a 14-3-2 record.

Putnam’s Energized Runner…

Putnam long-distance runner Scott Deslongchamps put another notch in his running belt as he finished third in the prestigious Electric Boat Athletic Club Challenge.  Deslongchamps, who’ll go anywhere within a reasonable distance to find a race, posted a time of 28:57 in the 4.75-mile race.  The winner of the EBAC Challenge was Paul Gennaro of New London with a time of 25:45.

Deslongchamps, who never stops running, was seen the next day trekking his way around Putnam.  He works out regularly at the Hale YMCA Youth and Family Center as he occasionally competes in triathlons.  He’s a regular at the former Deary Memorial Road Race, the O’Putnam and races in Worcester.

College Transition…  

The past four years, Meagan Bianchi has been the backbone of the Killingly High School girls’ basketball team.  Since her graduation, Bianchi has moved on to college at UConn-Avery Point.  College life appears to be agreeing with the hoop standout.

Bianchi had adapted to her new environment and after three games is averaging a dozen markers per contest for the Pointers.  She’s teaming with Stonington High School grad Tatyana LaFrance-Boyce to give Avery Point a solid one-two scoring punch.

Cross-Country Open…

The recently concluded girls’ State Open Cross-Country meet at Wickham Park in Manchester produced only one local runner who moved on to the New England Championships.  Killingly High School runner Kaitlyn Stevens who is coached by running great Joe Banas finished 16th in the Open with a time of 19:39.  Stevens was less than a minute behind the winner, Morgan McCormick of Wilton who posted a time of 18:43.  Stevens moves on to the New England’s, which are being held this year at nearby Ponaganset High School in Rhode Island.

Timing For a New Client…

Dave Boland, who started an official basketball timing company in the past few years, has witnessed a marked growth in the number of clients his group is handling.  The group’s signature client is the UConn men’s and women’s basketball.

Recently the Boland conglomerate took on the job of timing the Holy Cross Crusaders basketball program.  Boland was at courtside on the clock for the recent preseason exhibition game between Assumption College and Holy Cross.

He related another amazing fact, when he noted that his son Matt, a National Basketball Association referee, is entering his 14th season in the professional league.

Football Standings and Stats…

Killingly High School football under coach Chad Neal solidified its position in the CIAC Football Playoff Points standing with its recent win over East Lyme.  The Redmen are currently in 4th place in Class M with a 7-1 log good for 113.75 points.  The top team in Class M continues to be Valley Regional/Old Lyme with 123.75 points.  The top eight teams in each division moves on to the postseason.

The race for the top rusher in the area tightened considerable following the performance of Killingly’s Spencer Lockwood who had 199 yards rushing against East Lyme.  He now has a total of 1,393 yards in eight games.  The leader is Kameron Janice, who posted only 79 yards in his last outing, a loss to Griswold.  Janice has 1,424 yards in eight games.

Woodstock’s Jared Bouten is the area’s top passer with 924 yards through the air.  He’s followed by Killingly’s Kyle Derosier with 788 yards.  The top receiver in the area is Woodstock’s Eric Preston with 310 yards.

Soccer All Stars…

The Eastern Connecticut Conference recently named its all star teams for the boys and girls in the recently completed fall season.

Boys All Stars: Division II – First Team, Ryan Black and Ethan Liscomb of Woodstock Academy; Honorable Mention, Cole Hackett and Joseph Thompson of Woodstock Academy and Jared Gosper of Killingly.  Sportsmanship, Alex Leblanc of Killingly and Patrick Houlihan of Woodstock Academy,

Division III – Honorable Mention, Evan Ware of Tourtellotte.  Sportsmanship, Jake Coutu of Plainfield and Mike Falco of Tourtellotte.

Girls All Stars: Division II – First Team, Kennedy Davignon, Ivy Gelhaus, Linda St. Laurent and Irene Askitis of Woodstock Academy and Hanna Russo of Killingly.  Honorable Mention, Payton Fitzgerald and Jamie Jax of Killingly.  Olivia Perry and Makara Sorel of Woodstock Academy.  Sportsmanship, Heather Converse of Woodstock Academy and Morgan Hariott of Killingly.

Division III – First Team, Shannon Sweeney, Morgan Savageau and Marissa Flores of Plainfield. Maegan Roy of Tourtellotte.  Honorable Mention, Hannah Dagenais, Kate and Cassie Carleson, Lexi Price, Madelynne Collins and Sophie Mercer of Plainfield.  Katie Kwasniewski of Tourtellotte. Sportsmanship, Kwasniewski of Tourtellotte and Patty Theriaque of Plainfield.

RPC’s Closing Thought Of The Day: Why is there an expiration date on my sour cream container?

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