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By Shawn Bates
PUTNAM — It’s that time a year again. Fall leads to winter and for the young student athletes of the Putnam High School and Putnam Middle School, it‘s time to lace up their sneakers and jump back onto the hardwood.
For the coaches this year at the high school they are playing an Independent schedule means one thing: Make the states and win as many games as they can for seeding in the CIAC state tournament. This year those tasks come down to the dedicated coaching staffs of the two high school programs for the men, lead by Shawn Deary, and for the ladies, Mandi Hogan. They are both well-established coaches in the northeast corner.
The men’s coaching staff includes assistant coaches Dennis Deary who serves as the JV coach and varsity assistant, and Dino Porcic, the freshman coach who will also be on the bench during the varsity games. All three coaches are Putnam alumni with Porcic a 1000+ scorer for the Clippers.
Coach Hogan’s staff is a bit smaller but comes to the Lady Clippers with some needed basketball pedigree. Coach Hogan Ashley Espinosa leads the JV program and will be on the bench with coach Hogan during varsity play. Espinosa is one of the former elite Lady Clippers who continued to play in college at Worcester State
For the men, the rosters shape up thusly:
Top losses: Senior center Austin Harmon, forward/center Lucas Basilio and the senior guard/Captain Zachary Cutler
Key returnees: Jr. point guard Sebastian Ramos, senior forward Connor Holloman, senior guard Scott Davagian, senior guard Aiden Ciquera, senior guard Mitchel Baryalski , junior forward /center Jeffrey Reed, junior pg/guard Hunter Touchette ,junior center Tyion Harris and junior guard Kobie Bates.
Season Outlook: This team can be fast at times. They transition the ball up the court well. They play that hard nosed Clipper defense that all the teams hate. Ramos runs the point and the tempo of the game. The question is can they get the inside scoring done with the loss of Basilio in the paint?
Tyion Harris and Jeffrey Reed have some big shoes to fill in the center position. Holloman can be a scoring leader and also, in a pinch, run the point. Touchette is another option at the point guard spot. Davagian, Baryalski and Ciquera are the wild cards — all three hustle and when hot can shoot lights out from the perimeter. Bates also isn’t afraid to throw the rock up from anywhere in back of the three-point line. With a deep bench in all positions it should be a coach’s dream to throw the supporting cast in when they are needed without losing a beat.
The schedule is not gravy. Putnam opted to secure games against opponents they will face next year in their return to the ECC conference which include Wheeler, Montville ,Griswold ,Tourtellotte, St.Bernards, Lyman and, of course, Killingly in the Clipper Classic . Also they will play the local tech teams and rival Parish Hill.
For the Lady Clippers:
Top Losses: Forward Maria Fredette, center Olivia Braithwaite, center Alyssa Frederick, guard Alyssa Espinosa.
Key returnees: Senior guard Ashley Burke, junior forward Lauren Blackmar , sophomore guard Haley Cutler, sophomore guard Jillian Grey and freshman guard Emma Braithwaite.
Newcomers: Freshman point guard Alex Hutchins, freshman guard Laylah Chavez, sophomore guard Molly Mckeon and freshman center Abby St. Martin
Season Outlook: What does Hogan do when you lose 5 out of 11 players on last year’s roster? Hopefully reload. The middle school team produced some talent and made a run in the QVJC tournament only to lose in the finals.
With one senior on the squad, leadership will be key for this young team. Last year they relied on their senior’s for their scoring. This year is considered a rebuilding year for the Lady Clippers but this task shouldn’t be an issue with the talented coaching staff. The bright spot of the year is that they started off on the right foot by performing well against Killingly and Bartlett (Mass.) in their first two scrimmages of the year, according to coach Hogan.
The schedule follows the same format as the men’s with local tech schools and Bartlett for fillers. All schedules can be found on the CIAC website at the following address: www.ciacsports.com