Cherif Diarra came to Putnam Science Academy with a name to uphold. His older brothers, Mamadou and Hassan, are two of the Mustangs’ all-time top players. While Cherif didn’t leave the school in that category, he did just fine for himself and the family name.
The 6-foot, 6-inch bully of a big man announced in late May that he was accepting a scholarship offer and committing to play basketball at Southern Connecticut State University starting in the fall.
“Cherif was a legacy player for us,” said PSA coach Tom Espinosa. “Honestly, when we were drawing it up before the season started, we thought he was going to be one of the last guys on our bench, not play a whole lot. But right from the start of workouts and practices, he changed what we thought we were getting. As soon as we got on the court, he made it clear that he was going to be a player for us. I think Southern is going to find out pretty quickly that they have someone who will help them right away too.”
Diarra said SCSU coaches quickly built a good relationship with him, his family, and his mentor, and that “I know this is where I belong. We talked about my role up there and that there are minutes to be earned. But that’s it; they’ve got to be earned. It’s all about my effort and how hard I work. That’s fine with me; I always want to work hard. It’s how you play the game.”
Diarra played every game, coming off the bench in all but four of them. Early on, Espinosa said, he earned the right to start but because he was so mentally tough, he could handle the bench role better than others might. He finished the year averaging 3.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game, the latter of which was second-best on a Mustangs team that went 18-3 in the start-and-stop pandemic season.
“Cherif’s contributions to our season go beyond his numbers,” Espinosa said. “He’s got a real high basketball IQ, which you have to watch to see that— one of the best in those terms that we’ve had. He brought us toughness, he was great in the locker room, he always did what we asked.”
Diarra said he has never really thought much about following in his brother’s footsteps. He said their paths are different and he has to do what he has to do. What he had to do was a little tougher than what they experienced on the recruiting trail. Because he rates so highly on the things that are easier to see in person than simply on film, Diarra’s recruitment had trouble gaining traction.
“It was tough,” he said. “I was getting a little frustrated at times because coming to PSA got me the best exposure and best opportunities, but coaches couldn’t come to practice or games and watch what I can do. It’s OK though. It’s all good now. I’m really happy with where I’m going. My emotions were just joy and happiness. I’ve waited a long time for this and now I’m ready to move on to the next chapter.”
By Stephen Nalbandian
Sports Information Director
Putnam Science Academy
.
caption:
The Pomfret School's School Building clock tower was removed by crane and is being restored. The original slate roof has been stripped and will be replaced. Linda Lemmon photos.
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
POMFRET — Shining new faces arriving at Pomfret School in the fall will be greeted by a couple shining new projects and two more to follow.
Ed Griffin, chief financial officer, said favorable market conditions inspired the school to refinance its debt of $14 million, add $10 million and have the debt service remain essentially the same.
That $10 million is going toward four projects to serve the 367 students and 85-plus faculty members.
First the original School Building is getting a new slate roof and a restored clock tower. That should be finished by August. According to Griffin, the slate roof is original, 120-plus years old. The roof project will cost about $1.3 million, he said.
The clock tower was removed and will be restored, according to Director of Facilities Brenda Bullied. A crane took down the 5,000-pound tower and it is in the facilities department being examined. “The clock is in worse condition than we thought,” Bullied said. “The outside is pretty damaged.” She said they are looking at what needs to be done. She estimated it will take two carpenters six weeks to fix. The clock was rebuilt 20-22 years ago. The timepiece was moved into the clock in the Reading Room. She said she’s not sure how old the clock is but it appears to be in the original blueprints of the School Building. She said the repairs needed “caught us by surprise.”
Griffin said the School Building houses academic and senior leadership space and is the “most nostalgic” of the school’s buildings (along with the chapel).
Second and to be finished by the time students arrive is the complete renovation of the Jahn ice rink. This is a joint project with The Woodstock Academy. Griffin said the academy is kicking in $1 million and Pomfret School is kicking in $3.8 million. Bullied said “basically everything” will be replaced. The chiller failed two years ago, she said, and much of the equipment is 50 years old. She said poor equipment made for poor-quality ice and a shortened ice rink season. It used to open in November. It will now be open from Sept. 1 to the end of April.
She said they will replace the ice machine, redo the siding and roof and add humidity controls to “condition the air” resulting in better quality ice. “No more ‘raining’,” she said.
The third project, new faculty residence, should be complete by March. A new building is in the planning stages and $1.2 million is earmarked for that. It will have one- and two-bedroom apartments. It will allow the school to attract and retain good faculty, Griffin said.
The fourth project funded with $6 million of the debt-refinance, is renovating the auditorium. That is slated to be finished by April 1, 2022, said Griffin. Bullied said the stage will remain, and they will try to retain some architectural features. “Telescoping seating” will be added which will allow flexibility for performances/gatherings of different sizes. New lighting and a new sound system will be added. While that project is underway, Griffin said the school is considering alternatives including technology and using the chapel.
Griffin said the biggest need is a new science center. The cost for that would be between $16 and $18 million, he said. A capital campaign will raise money for that, “with no distractions” of other projects. Bullied said the committee for a new science center has been in an “intensive planning process” for two months. They intend to tour science centers at other schools. Current and incoming science teachers are adding ideas. If the planning/fund-raising goes well, Pomfret School hopes to christen a new science center in the fall of 2025, Griffin said.
Griffin and Bullied are both excited about the changes happening now, coming soon and coming later. “We’ve been planning since last summer,” Griffin said.
Bullied noted the school is also outsourcing to local sources. “It’s the hallmark of what we try to do here,” she said.
..
caption, page 7:
Aspiras Award
Senior Ethan Aspiras proudly sports the All-State medal he earned for finishing sixth last week in the CIAC 3,000-meter boys’ steeplechase championship. Photo by Pete Lusa.
captions, page 8:
Finishes Eighth
2133- Sophomore Bella Sorrentino in shotput, finished eighth in the CIAC girls’ heptathlon championship last week. File photos by Marc Allard.
Honored
Senior Guerin Favreau was selected as a Class M second team All-State performer in boys’ lacrosse by the Connecticut High School Lacrosse Coaches Association recently. Photo by Marc Allard.
Roundup
2 Centaurs
excel at
season-ending
track events
Woodstock Academy girls’ track coach Josh Welch got a couple of athletes interested in participating in the postseason outdoor track events sponsored by the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference and sophomore Bella Sorrentino and senior Ethan Aspiras were glad they did.
Both finished in the top 10 in their events.
Aspiras, in his final time in a Centaur uniform, finished sixth in the CIAC boys’ 3,000-meter steeplechase while Sorrentino placed eighth in the CIAC girls’ heptathlon championship.
Aspiras finished the steeplechase in 10 minutes, 13.12 seconds. Prior to the meet, he had worked on hurdles, something he didn’t do during the track season, at a lower height and placed approximately at the distance that Aspiras would face in the event. Woodstock Academy coach Pete Lusa also improvised a water jump using a plyometric box which he had the senior jump on and off of.
It worked. “On the way home from the meet, Ethan expressed pleasure in finishing this event as his last high school event. He was close to breaking the school record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase — only a few milliseconds away really — but he felt that breaking the 3,200 record was more important and satisfying. He didn’t realize that coming in sixth also meant he was an All-State performer in the steeplechase,” Lusa said.
The afternoon didn’t start all that well for Aspiras. He came to the event with a very sore back so the Centaurs coaching staff put him through some stretching exercises after which he said he felt better, at least, a little better.
It led to some anxious moments, not only for Aspiras, but for Lusa.
“It was exciting to see an athlete of Ethan’s caliber attempt a difficult challenge and succeed,” Lusa said. “He has a drive and determination that sets him apart from other athletes. He began slowly, and built a rhythm, picking off other runners until he was in 5th place. With two laps to go, he was passed by the last athlete that he had passed which bumped him back to sixth.”
Sorrentino’s goal was pretty simple going into the heptathlon. Get enough points to be eligible to participate in the second day of the eight-event competition.
She did that and more as she was one of only two underclassmen to finish in the top 10.
Sorrentino finished fourth in the shotput (8.62 meters); 10th in the 100-meter hurdles (17.27 seconds); 11th in the 200-meter (27.7 seconds) and 17th in the high jump (1.38 meters) on the first day of the competition.
It was her hurdles performance that had Welch excited. “She dropped almost three seconds and three-stepped the whole way for the first time. That was a great moment and let me know she was ready for a great day,” Welch said.
Sorrentino moved up to sixth place in the competition after the first event of the second day when she nailed her long jump, exceeding her personal best by 10 inches, with a leap of 15-feet, 9 ¾ inches to finish fourth in the event.
She remained in sixth after an eighth-place finish in the javelin which she threw 21.24 meters in her first-ever competition in the event.
Sorrentino capped off the day with a 15-second personal record by finishing in 2-minutes,46.89 seconds in the 800-meter. It was good for 19th and dropped her back two places to her eighth-place finish with a more than respectable 3,466-point total.
“The best thing about working with Bella is her commitment and focus. She is already thinking about what she can accomplish next year. I look forward to helping her prepare for that but right now, we’re all just incredibly proud of what she accomplished this season,” Welch said.
Welch was also happy that Aspiras also chose to attempt something a little out of his comfort zone.
“It was great to see our athletes stretching out into the multi-event meets and steeple. I think it shows a high level of commitment to continue the season and I hope we will see more in the future,” Welch said.
State, ECC recognize Centaur Athletes
Woodstock Academy senior Guerin Favreau was recently chosen as a Class M second team All-State performer by the Connecticut High School Lacrosse Coaches Association.
Favreau finished his final boys’ lacrosse season for the Centaurs with 71 goals and 35 assists for 106 points this past spring.
The senior will play lacrosse at the next level for Endicott College.
Numerous Woodstock Academy athletes received recognition from the ECC for their efforts this past spring season.
Honored were:
Baseball: All-Stars: Hamilton Barnes, Kaden Murphy; Honorable Mention: Jacob Hernandez, Jon Smith; Scholar-Athlete: Trey Ayotte
Softball: All-Stars: Mackenzie Leveille, Lexi Thompson. Madison Martinez; Honorable Mention: Sarah McArthur; Sportsmanship: Marissa Mayhew; Scholar-Athlete: Meg Preston
Boys’ Lacrosse: All-Stars: Guerin Favreau, Colin Liscomb; Honorable mention: Jonah Libby; Scholar-Athlete: Ethan Bove; Sportsmanship: Gabe Geyer
Girls’ Lacrosse: All-Star: Rachel Canedy; Scholar-Athlete: Emma Auker;
Sportmanship: Sierra Bedard.
Boys’ Golf: All-Star: Kyle Brennan; Sportsmanship: Kyle Brennan; Scholar-Athlete: Adam Thompson
Girls’ Golf: All-Stars: Mia Dang, Kaily LaChapelle, Alex Vaida, Ciara MacKinnon; Scholar Athlete: Ciara MacKinnon; Sportsmanship: Alex Vaida.
Boys’ Tennis: All-Stars: Stefan Chervenkov, Gabrial Viau, Asier Ruiz; Honorable mention: Evan Haskins; Sportsmanship: Connor Quinn; Scholar-Athlete: Connor Quinn.
Girls' Tennis: All-Stars: Addy Smith, Jackie Trudeau, Ellie Bishop-Klee, Logan Reynolds, Morgan Bentley, Sara Cotillo; Scholar-Athlete: Addy Smith; Sportsmanship: Logan Reynolds
Boys’ Track: All-Stars: Adam Schimmelpfennig (4x100 relay, 110 hurdles, 300 hurdles),Carter Saracina (4x100), Matt Marshall (4x100), Eric Phongsa (4x100), Ethan Aspiras (3200m), Keenan Lamontagne (discus); Scholar-Athlete: John Peabody; Sportsmanship: Keenan LaMontagne
Girls’ Track: All Stars: Linsey Arends (4x800, 800m), Leila MacKinnon (4x800), Lauren Brule (4x800), Iris Bazinet (4x800), Carah Bruce (3200m), Magdalena Myslenski (discus); Scholar-Athlete: Linsey Arends; Sportsmanship: Iris Bazinet.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
...
Arrested on drug charges
PUTNAM — In April the Putnam Police Department assisted the Plainfield Police Department with the execution of a search and seizure warrant at 3A Walnut St. related to an unrelated criminal investigation.
During the execution of that warrant, items were observed that were indicative of the illegal manufacture of THC products, according to Putnam Police Captain Justin Lussier. Putnam police officers obtained an additional search and seizure warrant for the residence at 3A Walnut St. related to the illegal manufacturing and seized numerous items of evidentiary value including contraband, packaging materials, manufacturing equipment and U.S. currency. Arrested June 7 were: Jaden Williams, 18, 3A Walnut St., Putnam and Stacia Sotiropoulos, 18, 3A Walnut St., Putnam. Both were charged with illegal manufacture of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
..