Some field hockey wins,
fund-raising for team
POMFRET — October for the Pomfret School varsity field hockey team means fund-raising to support local breast cancer patients and bring awareness to the school community.
This year they raised more than $2,000 to support the good work at Day Kimball Hospital and allow the team a denim and pink dress down day Oct. 1.
Then the team wore pink in its Oct. 2 game against Canterbury School.
The field hockey team is 2-4 overall and 2-3 in WNEPSFHA. Wins over Hopkins School (New Haven) and Marianapolis (Thompson) earlier this week got the team in the win column before a close 2-1 loss to Canterbury (New Milford) over the weekend.
Grace Long ’23 leads the team with five goals and one assist while co-captains Cate Gallagher ’22 and Emma McLean ’22 have three goals and one assist in the young season. Brooke Zahansky ’22 (Pomfret) has two goals and one assist with goalie Keira O’Brien ’25 (Stonington) recording two shutouts in her first season for the Griffins and first playing in the goal.
The team heads to Kingswood-Oxford Oct. 6 and hosts Ethel Walker Oct. 8 in league match-ups.
By Louisa Gebelein Jones
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PMS soccer
team improves
PUTNAM — The Putnam Middle School boys’ soccer team fell to powerhouse Baldwin Middle School last week. Baldwin won 7 - 1 but the boys played much better this week than the score would indicate, according to Head Coach Adam Heath. The lone goal came off a beautiful set-up pass from Trevor Lamothe and header into the left side of the goal from Joao Victor Viera.
Goalies Benjamin Mayo and Logan Walker both spent time in net and played much better this week for the squad. Defense and mid-field tightened up their play anchored big time by Nikoli Kostovski, Lucas Carpio, Avery Cruz, Abdoulaye Mbye, and Devin LeBeau.
Heath said the team is very young compared to the others in the league but the boys are coming along nicely and working better and harder each day.
The next game is at 3:30 p.m. Oct. 7 at Ashford Middle School.
The Putnam’s record stands at 0-3.
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Get well soon. It has been the mantra of the Woodstock Academy volleyball team the past couple of weeks. Illness and injuries prohibited the Centaurs from playing two matches. But this week, the Centaurs have returned to the court. Barely. Only seven players and two assistant coaches have been available to participate.
“It’s not easy but we have adjusted," said assistant coach Alyssa Icart.
Icart was on the bench in place of head coach Adam Bottone who has also been sidelined.
But even facing those odds and playing two matches in two nights, the Centaurs did pull out a win. They improved to 1-1 in Div. I of the ECC, breaking a five-match losing streak, with a 3-1 victory over NFA. That followed on the heels of a 3-0 loss to Fitch the night before.
Annarose Avery and most of her teammates played the entire match. The only substitution the team was capable of making was at Libero.
It didn’t start all that well for Woodstock against NFA. The Wildcats jumped out to an early 11-point advantage in the first set, 14-3, and were closing in on the win at 20-10.
But the Centaurs rallied --- freshman Liliana Bottone delivered four consecutive service points including two aces to cut the lead to five, 20-15.
It was 22-19 when another junior, Jade Desmond, got the ball behind the service line and delivered three straight points to tie the match at 22. But the Wildcats rallied for the 25-23 win. Woodstock jumped out early in the second set as freshman Sophie Gronski broke a 6-all tie with three consecutive aces and added another later to put the Centaurs up, 13-6.
NFA tied the set at 20 but Gronski delivered three more of her 10 service points on the night and the Centaurs prevailed, 25-21.
It was sophomore Reegan Reynolds who delivered seven early service points in the third set, including a pair of aces, and helped Woodstock to an early 12-6 lead. The Centaurs went on to win the third set, 25-22, and won the match with a 25-22 fourth set victory.
Bottone has been rotating Avery and Gronski at setter early this season. With the lack of players, Avery remained at setter the entire game against NFA and finished with a season-high 32 assists.
The Centaurs saw a 3-1 loss to Ledyard to fall to 2-6 on the season. Boardman had 18 kills and 11 service points in the loss to the Colonels (6-3). Cassidy Chabot returned to the lineup and the freshman added 15 digs.
The Centaurs had a difficult time against undefeated Fitch on the road early in the week. Fitch captured the win in straight sets, 25-13, 25-22 and 25-13. Boardman had 12 kills in the loss, Gronski had 15 digs.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
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Sara Burke Laughlin
Sara Burke Laughlin, 69, died Oct. 1, 2021, in Providence.
Sara was the daughter of sculptor Ruth F. Laughlin and noted anthropologist William S. Laughlin. Born in Spokane, Wash., Sara was raised in Madison, Wisc., spending much of her time in exotic locales from an isolated camp in Idaho to islands in Alaska and even Copenhagen, Denmark.
She eventually settled on Quaddick Lake in Thompson where she worked tirelessly to support her community.
To each role in her life—from biology teacher, to WIC employee, to archeologist, to gestalt life coach, to mother—Sara brought kindness, commitment and compassion.
A lover of string figures, cooking shows and endless notetaking, Sara deeply valued her friends and her family and always made time for them. Throughout her 15 years with amyloidosis, Sara was unwavering in her positivity — inspiring all around her to be more present.
Predeceased by her parents and sister, Leslie Laughlin, she leaves her eldest son, Jonathan Garrison (Stephanie) of Portland, Ore., and her younger son Christopher Garrison (Hannah) Garrison of Providence; grandchildren: Ian, 15, son of Jonathan and his former wife Heather Garrison, and the children of Christopher and Hannah, Camilla, 11, and Isaac, 8.
The family will hold private services.
Donations: Thompson Together, 988 Quaddick Town Farm Road, Thompson, CT 06277.
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