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Honored
Clara Siegmund with her Dad, Kurt and mom, Diane, during Senior Day on the Bentley Complex tennis courts. Photo courtesy of Ann Rathbone.
Clara Siegmund cannot believe her high school years are rapidly coming to an end.
May 9 the Woodstock Academy girls’ tennis program celebrated Senior Day during their last scheduled home match at the Bentley Athletic Complex.
Siegmund was one of those honored.
“So fast, so insanely fast,” Siegmund said of the last four years of her young life. “I was, literally, just thinking about that. Senior Day is here, it’s just crazy.”
Siegmund, the No. 1 singles player for Woodstock Academy was talking after she had just handed Killingly’s Julia Massey a 6-1, 6-0 defeat and helped the Centaurs to a 6-1 victory over the Redgals May 10.
“It’s such a good feeling to win on Senior Day. You feel accomplished for your whole season even though we have a couple of weeks left, it’s such a good feeling to know that you are ending at home on a good note,” Siegmund said.
Woodstock Academy coach Ann Rathbone said Siegmund has been a rock for the Centaurs.
“Clara has just been the heart and soul of the team for past couple of years,” Rathbone said. “She wears her heart on her sleeve and is very passionate about tennis and her teammates. She has endured the highs and lows of playing at the No. 1 singles slot and has represented The Academy with great class on and off the court.”
Siegmund will be headed to Rhode Island College in the fall and plans to continue to play tennis.
“I’ve been texting coach (Adam Spring) about my season, his season. He’s such a great guy. I could not be more excited,” Siegmund said.
The Centaurs also boast two other seniors in the girls’ starting lineup, Ellie Chervenkova and Sam Sheldon.
“Ellie is like the (silent) assassin. She’s quiet but can be quite deadly to her opponents as she is a hard-working, steady player who has been an integral part of the team for the past four years. Sam has turned herself into a good little player. She is great at working with the younger players and showing them the ropes. Sam is just such a positive, kind presence and such a pleasure to have on our team,” said Rathbone.
There is still plenty more to look forward to over the next couple of weeks.
The Centaurs girls program still has four matches to come this week, all on the road, at St. Bernard, Ledyard, Montville and Stonington.
Next week, some of the squad will take on Northwest Catholic May 15 while those like Siegmund will be playing in the Eastern Connecticut Conference championship tournament.
“I think we’re ready,” Siegmund said of the ECC championship which will take place in Stonington. “I think myself and (No. 2 singles player) Mari (Ruggeri) will go pretty far. I really think I have a chance of making the final. I was No. 4 last year in the ECC and had to play (Stonington’s) Gabby (Dellacono) in the semifinals. I can really see myself being No. 2 in the ECC, it’s one of my goals.”
Siegmund got a taste last week of what she is in for should she get that far.
The Centaurs hosted Stonington and lost to the Bears, 7-0, at the Bentley Athletic Complex. Siegmund fell to Dellacono 6-0, 6-1.
“I think it was the most beneficial match I played all year, Siegmund said. “I feel like I left everything I had out there and I got one game. That’s more than I was expecting.”
Rathbone agreed with Siegmund saying the tough competition, especially at this time of year, can only be beneficial.
“I do believe it makes us more battle-tested heading into the post-season and what doesn’t kill the kids, makes them stronger and they need that mental strength come tourney time,” Rathbone said.
The Bears clinched a tie for the ECC Division II title with that win. They clinch the title outright if they can beat the Centaurs again, in Stonington this time, on Friday.
The Academy did rally after that loss.
It posted wins over New London, Killingly and Fitch to raise its record to 11-3.
Boys’ tennis
The boys tennis team had similar results.
It lost to Stonington, 6-1, which gave the Bears the Division II championship.
Matt Tiffany and Aidan Stewart scored a 6-4, 6-2 win over Quinn Hamilton and Ben Anderson at No. 1 doubles to account for the Centaurs only win.
The boys’ team also downed Killingly and Fitch by the same score, 5-2, to raise its record to 7-6.
Marc Allard
Sports Information Director
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Tees Off
Mason Stewart tees off on the 12th hole during the Wildcat Invitational Golf tournament at the Norwich Golf Course. Photo by Marc Allard.
It’s a different mindset.
For the first time this season, the Woodstock Academy golf team had to compete for 18 holes at the Wildcat Invitational at the Norwich Golf Course rather than the nine holes that is traditionally played in a high school match.
“It’s a different animal,” said Woodstock Academy coach Rich Garceau. “It’s an endurance test. It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon, and so it does help the guys develop that mental toughness. You can see, sometimes, the guys mentally fatigue.”
Another difference from a normal day on the course was that teams were limited to four players and all scores counted. There was no opportunity to throw out the high score.
The Centaurs went into the tournament with a goal.
Garceau wanted to have four players under 90.
The Centaurs came close.
Jack Gelhaus finished with a 79, Mason Stewart carded an 88 and Eli Child came in just under the red line at 89.
Those numbers meant the Centaurs finished ninth as a team with a 350-stroke total. That was well behind the winner of the 46th annual event, Xavier, which finished with a 297.
“It wasn’t too bad,” Gelhaus said of his round. “The greens were pretty hard and hard to read and I had three three-putts which isn’t good. But it was a hard course and we were playing from the tips (the blue tees). It’s never going to be an easy day.”
Gelhaus also had another handicap.
The senior had to wear a back brace after suffering another injury playing soccer the day before the tournament.
Gelhaus was forced to miss the season-opening match this year after taking a soccer cleat to the face.
“It didn’t hurt too bad except on the drive, the drivers killed me,” Gelhaus said of his latest injury.
It has not been the easiest of seasons for Gelhaus, not only because of the injuries.
Going into the Wildcat, he had only broken 40 once.
“It’s been a tough year, my irons haven’t been there, but (Woodstock’s home course) Quinnatisset hasn’t opened its range yet (that happened late last week). It’s always tough without the range open,” Gelhaus said.
The team total said to Garceau that the Centaurs were “OK” right now.
“We still have a little bit of work to do,” Garceau said.
He, like Gelhaus, was excited to know that the driving range at their home course had opened so the team could get some work in.
“It’s not often that I’m excited about going to the driving range or the putting green, but that’s what we need,” Garceau said. “We’re close, but we’re not where should be or want to be. We’re not where the guys want to be. Hopefully, we can work some of the kinks out in practice and get to where we need to be to make the (Eastern Connecticut Conference) tournament (on May 31) more competitive for us especially since it’s at Quinnatisset.”
The Centaurs returned to the course May 9 and suffered a 7-0 loss to Killingly, which finished second at the Wildcat Invitational.
Despite the loss, the practice showed.
Gelhaus shot a season low 37 and Stewart also had his best effort of the year, a 39.
The Centaurs (9-5, 3-3 Eastern Connecticut Conference Division II) also got a 41 from Child and a 45 from Robert Maheu.
The Centaurs had three matches scheduled for this week with one at home against Montville May 15 before going on the road to East Lyme and Bacon Academy on May 16 and May 17.
Girls’ golf
A little practice is starting to make for better things for the young Centaurs girls’ team.
They shot their lowest team total of the season, a 199, against Glastonbury May 9 at Quinnatisset.
It didn’t produce a win as Glastonbury shot a 187, but it did show the team’s potential.
“A little practice time goes a long way especially for the new players,” coach Earl Semmelrock said. “The practice time is what everyone needed. The away scores are still higher than we would like but many of the new girls with limited experience on the course are seeing these new courses for the first time. You can tell them what to expect but once they get out on the course it is in their hands to navigate the course and post the best score possible. I am really proud and pleased with the effort from all the girls.”
The Centaurs started last week with a second-place finish at the girls’ Wildcat Invitational. Unlike the boys, the girls played only nine holes. Instead of the 16 schools and 21 teams that showed up for the boys, only four teams were on hand for the girls at the Norwich Golf Course.
The Centaurs finished with a 226 total, 12 strokes behind the winner, Waterford, in the first meeting of the week with the Lancers.
Caroline Eaton and Linda St. Laurent both shot a 57 for the Centaurs.
Those numbers got better May 9.
Eaton shot a 46 and St. Laurent a season-best 49 in the loss to Glastonbury. The low scores came despite newly aerated greens at Quinnatisset.
While that didn’t bother them in that match, it came into play May 11 when the Centaurs traveled to the Great Neck Country Club in New London.
“When you go from aerated greens, full of sand, to fast non-aerated greens like we had (Friday), it’s hard to adjust to the drastic change in speed. That certainty had an effect on our score,” Semmelrock said.
The Centaurs were back over 200, finishing with a 228, well shy of Waterford which captured the ECC regular season championship with a 197 total.
“They have a very strong top of the lineup. Three girls that usually score in the low-to-mid 40’s and can go lower than that. Their No. 1 player is very talented,” Semmelrock said.
Both teams defeated Bacon Academy.
Caitlin Cannon was best for the Centaurs with a 53.
The Centaurs have a 4-6 overall record and a 2-2 mark in ECC play and head into a pretty busy week.
”With four matches this week, our goal is to close out the season with a winning record,” Semmelrock said. “We actually get an entire week and a few days of practice before the ECC Championship (ay 29) that we host at Quinnatisset. If all the young ladies play up to their potential we could be right in the mix for the tournament title.”
Marc Allard
Sports Information Director
By Shawn Bates
PUTNAM — After an upset in Griswold last week the Clippers ran into some road blocks when Killingly came to town and outscored the Clippers 11-1 for the mercy.
May 7 the Clippers (5-7), short on pitching for a long week of baseball, threw Kobie Bates on the hill for 3 and 1/3 and took the loss to Woodstock Academy. The Clippers did come out swinging and had the lead going into the third, but the Academy bats came alive.
Scott Davagian came in to stop the bleeding but the Academy would continue to put the ball in play. Luke Mathewson would take to the hill and would be the game changer and limited the Clippers active bats. The win put Woodstock Academy into the State Tourney. Mitchell Barylski would drive in the Clippers runs with two RBIs.
May 9 the Clippers played at Dodd Stadium to face Parish Hill where Tommy Lehoux hit the game-winning, two-run double for the Pirates (9-4) in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Kyler Zaimoff also went 2-3 with a double and an RBI and scored two runs for Parish Hill.
Kobie Bates got two hits and scored three runs for the Clippers (5-8).
May 10 the Tigers of Tourtellotte came to town where freshman Colby Livingston would take to the hill and get a win 7-1 over the cross-town rival and snapping the Tigers’ two-game winning streak. That put an end to the three-game losing slide for the past week.
The Clippers are now 6-8 going into their last six games, all on the road. They started with a tough Bacon Academy (13-3) team May 14 then St. Bernard (7-9) who are coming off a 2-1 win over Woodstock May 11 and Windham (0-16) May 19 who have been outscored by an incredible 264 runs to Windham‘s 31 runs.
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Honored
Veronica Hibbard was honored recently on the occasion of her 100th birthday. Left to right: Judy Walberg, Veronica Hibbard and Representative Pat Boyd at Westview Health Care Center. Courtesy photo.
DAYVILLE — In 1918 Veronica “Von” Hibbard was born. A century later, she celebrated her 100th birthday at Westview Health Care Center. For such a momentous occasion, she received lots of attention within the halls of Westview and a Centenarian Citation from the halls of Connecticut’s State Capital.
Veronica is the youngest of four siblings; a position which she claims made her the “spoiled one” of the bunch. Yet this special status didn’t last long, because she grew up on a farm, and in addition to livestock, crops, and dairy, farms develop hardiness. “We broke in the calves, or maybe they broke us in!” Veronica delivers this line as if the triumphs and tribulations of cow-rearing happened yesterday. “Have you ever tried to break in a calf?” she asks. “Oh, you’ve got to hang on tight, because they’re slippery. They’ll dump you and take off!” Perhaps Ms. Hibbard can credit this teaching of tirelessness in her youth for her longevity later in life. Veronica spent her whole life in Woodstock. She, and her family, gave back as much if not more than they ever claimed from the community.
The Hibbard family name has been associated with Christmas tree plantations and dairy farms for generations, and now their name also represents over 100 acres of protected forest in N. Woodstock.
In addition to contributing to a local agricultural legacy, she served as “Judge Hibbard”, presiding over probate cases from 1970-88, and from 1974-88 she simultaneously held the title of Woodstock town clerk. During Veronica’s tenure as town clerk she had an assistant town clerk named Judy Walberg. Judy is now the town clerk of Woodstock, and the two colleagues had a wonderful reunion on April 16 at Westview. They smiled as soon as they saw each other again, and this expression remained throughout the presentation. At one point Judy said “You sound just the way I remember you when we were in the office together!” Later, she elaborated: “Von is such a wonderful mentor, a wonderful community member, and a wonderful friend.” Veronica’s ability to interact with people on a lighthearted level is profound. Whether it is a longtime friend or a completely new acquaintance, she insists on finding a way to connect, and it will often be humorous. Connecticut State Representative Patrick Boyd (D-50th District) presented Hibbard a Citation from the Connecticut General Assembly. The officially-sealed document praises her for 100 years of life, the important things she did, and the wonderful impact she continues to have during a century of life.