Roundup
Centaurs qualify for state tourney; fall in ECC quarterfinals
It was a different kind of Senior Night for the Woodstock Academy boys’ basketball team on Tuesday night.
The team honored its seven seniors but its focus was elsewhere. The job was not finished.
Facing a win or see their season come to an early end, the Centaurs buckled down for the last four games and picked up their fourth straight victory, 71-54, over Waterford.
“They came in every day and worked the last couple of weeks. It’s hard to put together a stretch of winning games like that, especially when your back is against the wall. We started knocking them down and scratching them off. They played well, they performed, they deserved it,” said coach Donte Adams.
The Centaurs vaulted themselves into the Div. IV state tournament with the win.
They also leap frogged past the ECC tournament play in game and into a quarterfinal as the sixth seed.
They took on third-seeded Killingly on Thursday and lost a heartbreaker on the road, 58-49.
But there were plenty of smiles following the win over Waterford two days before.
“We knew coming into this that this was a big game,” said senior Brady Ericson. “We were at that point where we needed to win four to get into States and I told the guys after we won the first three, that we can’t let this slip away. ‘We haven’t come this far just to give it up.’ It was huge to get this.”
Ericson, as usual, had a lot to do with it. The 6-foot, 6-inch center scored eight of his game-high 25 points in the first quarter to help break the Centaurs out to a 20-13 first quarter lead.
Ericson stepped outside the 3-point arc and drained a couple. He started the season by making only one of 20 from beyond the arc. On Tuesday, he was four-for-five and in the past seven games, Ericson has made 9-of-15.
“It’s clearly just confidence,” Ericson said of his newfound long-range shooting touch. “The whole team is confident. Other people are hitting 3’s and that is contagious.”
The Centaurs extended the lead to nine points and then won an NBA-style shootout in the third quarter.
For the first 6 minutes, 48 seconds of the second half, the only field goals made were 3-pointers and Woodstock won that battle, 3-2, and led going into the final quarter, 54-40.
In all, for the second time in five games, Woodstock drained 13 3-pointers.
“As far as Brady individually and the team collectively, the guys are making shots and we’re a much better team when that happens. We defend harder, rebound more, and a little more swagger. The guys are out there, playing with confidence,” Adams said.
In addition, freshman Drake Abdullovski matched Ericson’s output with four 3-pointers and 16 points in total. He was the only other player in double figures for the Centaurs who had nine players in the scoring column. Lucas Quercia added nine points, all on 3’s.
Prior to the game, Ericson, Matt Hernandez, Gabe Luperon, Will Bushey, Garrett Bushey, Cam Nason and Carter Tosetti were recognized in Senior Night festivities.
“I was telling my family, it’s weird because I’ve always been the person setting up for Senior Night, now, I was the senior and I just enjoyed it as much as I could. After the game, I will tell you, I definitely enjoyed it. I’m going to miss basketball. Baseball is my thing but basketball has also been my thing,” Ericson said.
Adams did not change his starting lineup due to what was at stake.
But he was more than fond of the seven seniors whose likenesses adorned the gymnasium wall.
“I’m going to miss them. I’ve been coaching them for the last three years, we have built relationships on and off the court, it’s great to see them grow but you have to let them go and see the next guys come in, step up and build off of what they have left behind,” Adams said.
Ericson, however, came down with the same viral illness that has struck many in the school community recently and was unable to suit up for the game with Killingly.
Adams announced that to his team as they boarded the bus to head to the game.
“I told them before we got off the bus that if they were not ready to go to war then it’s a quick drive back to Woodstock. All guys got the off the bus so I took that as they were ready to play. They showed up,” Adams said.
Abdullovski came off the bus and just started shooting, scoring 13 of his game-high 23 points in the first quarter when the Centaurs opened a 23-13 lead.
Killingly rallied to tie the game by the half at 30.
But the defense kicked in after halftime as the Centaurs held their hosts to seven third-quarter points and took a 42-37 lead into the final quarter.
The “Quinns” came alive for Killingly, however, in the final eight minutes.
Center Quinn Sumner scored eight of his 19 points and guard Quin Crowley had seven of his 14 in the final quarter to lift Killingly, which made 7-of-8 from the free throw line in the final quarter, to the victory and into the ECC Div. I semifinals.
“A couple of plays didn’t go our way down the stretch but it’s alright. We learn and grow. Playoffs are a game of emotions and you have to be able to contain them and use them as a positive. It was definitely tough but we will learn from it,” Adams said.
Cam Nason added nine points in the loss for the Centaurs.
Woodstock (8-13) moves on to the Div. IV state tournament as the 24th seed where it will likely travel to Beacon Falls to play No. 9 seed Woodland Regional (14-6) in a first-round game on March 3.
“We’re looking at the draw now. It looks like a two-hour ride but whoever we get, we just want to make it a good game,” Adams said.
Girls’ Basketball
It was the final game of the regular season for the girls’ basketball team and it didn’t bring a lot of pressure with it.
The Centaurs were assured who they would be playing in the ECC tournament. They had also clinched a Class MM state tournament berth and were playing a team they had already downed handily on their opponent’s home floor.
It meant coach Will Fleeton could afford to give his seniors and reserves a little more playing time which is especially nice considering it was also Senior Night.
Those festivities were taken care of first and then the Centaurs went out and posted a 59-25 win over Plainfield at the Alumni Fieldhouse to finish with a 14-6 regular season record.
“It’s unbelievable that in a month from now that I’m not even going to be playing this game again. That’s crazy to me because this sport has been a part of me for the last seven to 10 years. I don’t know what I’m going to do but it’s crazy,” said senior Sophia Sarkis.
Sarkis, Madison Bloom, Abby Converse and Macy Rawson were all recognized prior to the contest and most played at last half the game with Sarkis leading the team with 12 points and eight rebounds. Converse contributed six points, Rawson four and Bloom three.
“The four seniors have made it through the program from start to finish and all in a different way. I have a bond and connection with each one in a different way. To see this group go, like every other one, pulls on the heart strings a little bit. They all traveled different routes to get to the varsity level, which is unique because they all started on the same day, and all will end on the same day and that’s something special,” said Fleeton of his four seniors.
Fleeton is one who believes the high school experience is something special. “I think it’s great that they receive the recognition from their peers, their parents, the fans, me. I’ve said many times to them that these moments and these high school athletic contests and the values and friends that they make are a once-in-a-lifetime situation and I remind them to embrace these moments and enjoy them. Senior Night is one of those. You are a senior one time, you get that one night when the spotlight should be on you and you deserve that.”
The Centaurs did start a little slow due to the odd combination on the floor and trailed 7-4 at the end of the first quarter.
But they made up for it in the second as they outscored the Panthers, 24-6.
Isabel D’Alleva-Bochain came on the floor to score all seven of her points and Kaylee Saucier had six of her nine to help put the Centaurs up, 28-13, at the half.
Fleeton was then able to go back to his bench and substitute at will.
“I’m really happy with how our season has turned out and how we’ve turned it around. I’m excited for the next three weeks, I’m happy with the (14-6) record, very happy,” Sarkis said.
Unfortunately for the Centaurs, the stay in the Eastern Connecticut Conference tournament was a short one.
The Centaurs met up with a determined New London team and fell to the Whalers, 54-37, in a league quarterfinal game on Wednesday.
New London set the tone from the start as it outscored Woodstock, 17-2, in the first quarter.
The Whalers extended that to a 19-point advantage at halftime, 29-10.
The Centaurs did try and come back midway through the fourth quarter, cutting the deficit to 12, 48-36, with just over four minutes to play but the Whalers were able to hold them off.
Saucier led the Centaurs with 13 points while D’Alleva-Bochain added eight.
Nyarah Dudley led the Whalers (12-9) with 15 points while three players, Jaidelis Rivera, Jazin Torres, and Kymiyah Willis all added 11.
Woodstock is now off until March 3 when it will host a Class MM state tournament first-round game.
Gymnastics
The gymnastics team found itself in a battle at the Class M state championship meet. The Centaurs came in as the second seed and found that spot to be in jeopardy as they were challenged by both Ellington/Tolland and New Milford.
No one could catch ECC champ, Ledyard/St. Bernard/Waterford, which finished with a 144.125 total, to take home the state championship.
But the Centaurs (136.55 total) were caught by Ellington/Tolland which took second place with a 136.65.
“I did not see that one coming,” said coach Kasey Tocchio. “And finishing within a tenth of them is so hard but (Ellington/Tolland) had a great meet.”
New Milford finished just behind Woodstock with a 136.525 mark. The Centaurs finished first as a team in the vault competition with a 35.675 total but were tied for fourth-best in floor routines. Their beam and bars competitions were third-best among the teams participating.
Although individual awards were not given out, Trumbull’s Ana Pepin was best in the All-Around individually with a 37.49 total, just better than ECC champ, Alyssa McLeod, who finished with a 37.35.
Woodstock senior Olivia Aleman was in the conversation with a 37.3 total for a third-place finish in the All-Around. “Olivia dominated (Saturday) which was awesome to see,” Tocchio said.
Aleman was third in the vault (9.4), sixth in bars (9.5) and floor (9.3) and eighth on beam (9.5). Freshman Anyah Oatley finished with a 34.05 All-Around performance.
“She had her best vault, bars and floor of the season and fought to stay on the beam,” Tocchio said. “I was just pleased overall. It was a fun meet. They kept the energy up and really had a great day.”
As one of the top four teams in the division, the Centaurs did earn a spot as a team in the State Open championship on Saturday.
Indoor Track
Junior Avery Plouffe came home from New Haven with a little bonus — a school record.
Plouffe threw the shotput 37-feet, 2-inches on Saturday at the CIAC State Open championship to finish sixth in the event. It also bettered the previous school record held by Alex Barner.
“Avery really responded well to pressure (Saturday) and brought out her best in the shotput. That was a long-standing record she took out and she’s got plenty more to go so I’m excited to see that,” said indoor track coach Josh Welch.
She also qualified for the New England Championship on Saturday in Boston.
Plouffe will not be going alone. Senior Juliet Allard will be joining her as she finished fifth in the 300m in 41.56 seconds.
“Juliet is coming back to form in the 300m and I think her New England’s should be great,” Welch said.
Senior Christian Menounos put up his best time to date, bettering his own school record and recording a top 100 time in the country as he crossed the line in 1:23.85.
Unfortunately, it was only good for eighth place and he did not qualify for the New Englands.
“He was painfully close to making New Englands but he picked a stacked event to try and pull it off. It’s pretty uncommon to have 13 of the top 100 all come from Connecticut in any one event. He fought it out, though,” Welch said.
Fellow senior Colton Sallum finished ninth in 4:30 in the 1600m race.
Boys’ Hockey
Everyone always wants to see Senior Night end the way it began – on a positive note. But the visiting team doesn’t always get that message.
The boys’ hockey team hosted Senior Night festivities prior to the game with the Eastern Connecticut Eagles and the Eagles skated away with the 2-0 victory.
The Centaurs were able to celebrate prior to the game, however, as nine of them including Henri Bessette, Seamus Coleman, Keegan Covello, Sam Desmond, Jayden Fuller, Devlin Mansolf, Tim Mozzi, Brady O’Brien and Logan Rawson, were recognized.
It was a group that has seen the ups and downs that a high school career can bring as being members of a team that had competed for a state championship two years ago, a state semifinal last year and then having to deal with the harsh reality of the cyclical nature of high school athletics this season.
“This year we will say good-bye to nine seniors that have played a crucial role in leading the team through a year of transition, demonstrating remarkable growth and effort on the ice. This group has been with me since my first year as a coach and it has been a tremendous experience seeing their development as players and as individuals,” coach Mark Smolak said of his nine seniors. “Throughout the season, they were asked to carry our team in all aspects and to instill in our younger players what it takes to compete at a varsity level. Their leadership was especially vital on offense and in goal, consistently stepping up to generate scoring opportunities and set the pace for the team as well as supporting an extremely young defense. They have worked tirelessly to battle through adversity and work together as a team. We wish them nothing but success and happiness in their future endeavors. I want to thank them for all they have done.”
The Centaurs and Eagles skated to a scoreless first period tie. But the Eagles broke through in the second period when Parker Pazzaglia scored at the 9 minute, 21-second mark. That held through to the third period when Gavin Besssenaire added a little insurance for the Eagles with a goal with just 3:17 left to play in regulation.
Mansolf made 35 saves in net for the Centaurs. The Centaurs saw their record slip to 3-14-1 Saturday as they hosted the Green Wave of New Milford.
Fuller, who also added an assist, scored the first of his two goals just about nine minutes into the contest to tie the game at 1 as Jonathan Deroberts, who finished with a hat trick for the Green Wave, had scored just two minutes into the game.
Deroberts scored two more first period goals as New Milford scored four times in the final six minutes to take a 5-1 lead into the second period.
Fuller and Seamus Coleman did score early in the second period to give the Centaurs some hope but New Milford put together another late flurry with three goals in the last four minutes for the insurmountable 8-3 advantage going into the final 15 minutes.
Cameron Perrault had a third period goal for the Centaurs while Carlos Rodriguez Camacho had three assists in the contest and Landon Murdock added an assist.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
IMG 4748: Senior members of the Woodstock Academy boy’s basketball team were recognized during Senior Night festivities at the Alumni Fieldhouse prior to their final regular season home game versus Waterford. (Photo by Collin Singleton/Woodstock Academy)
IMG 4061: The Centaurs celebrated Senior Night prior to their game with the Eastern Connecticut Eagles last week at the Jahn Ice Rink at Pomfret School. (Photo by Sam Clark/Woodstock Academy)
1000009273: Woodstock Academy senior Juliet Allard (left) and junior Avery Plouffe were all smiles after both qualified for the New England Indoor track championships thanks to their performances at the State Open track championship at the Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven Saturday. (Photo by Josh Welch/Woodstock Academy)
IMG 4739: Macy Rawson, Sophia Sarkis, Madison Bloom and Abby Converse were all smiles during Senior Night activities last week for the Woodstock Academy girls’ basketball team prior to its game with Plainfield. (Photo by Collin Singleton/Woodstock Academy)
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