Above and below are recent photos and results from contributing sports photographer Gretchen McMahon.
Girls Lacrosse
Saturday, May 8: Above, Wilton’s Gwynn Sullivan had four goals in the 13-4 win against the Cheshire Rams at Lilly Field. Molly Snow had three goals and two assists for the victory. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Of note: US Lacrosse Magazine included WHS girls lacrosse in its Top 25 National Rankings (at #22) and at #10 in the Northeast region, saying: “The Warriors’ only two losses this season are to teams ranked above them in the Northeast top 10 — New Canaan and Darien. Since a tight 8-6 loss to the Rams, the Warriors have put together consecutive wins, including a 10-8 victory at Staples. Lucy Corry scored four goals, Molly Snow had three assists, Gwynn Sullivan scored twice, Emerson Pattillo added one goal, one assist and five draw controls, Ashleigh Masterson chipped in one goal and five draw controls and Amelia Hughes made 11 saves. Previous: NR”
The following write-ups on WHS girls lacrosse were submitted to GMW:
Wednesday, May 5
The Wilton High School girls varsity lacrosse team beat a previously undefeated Fairfield Ludlowe team by the final score of 17-11. Freshman Addison Pattillo scored the opening goal at the 20-second mark of the contest, off of a nice pass by Molly Snow, that ignited an early offensive onslaught, allowing the Warriors to jump out to an 8-0 lead within the first 12 minutes of game time. Facing an uphill challenge, Ludlowe did not quit and went on to score the next six goals of the contest, to cut the Warrior lead to two, behind tremendous play from the Falcon’s offense.
Wilton started the second half like it did the first and pushed its lead to 13-7 before Ludlowe began its second comeback of the game, cutting the Wilton lead to 15-11 with five minutes to play. A turnover in Wilton’s offensive end led to a fast break scoring opportunity for Ludlowe; however Catherine Dineen and Gwynn Sullivan raced the entire length of the field to stop the threat and cause a Ludlowe turnover. The hustle play of Dineen and Sullivan seized momentum back for the Warriors and led to a Morgan Lebek left-handed laser to push the Wilton lead to five and thwart the Falcon’s chance of a comeback.
Wilton was led offensively by Lebek (6 goals), Sullivan (2 goals), Snow (3 goals, 4 assists), Emerson Pattillo (3 goals), Ellie Coffey (1 goal), Lucy Corry (1 goal) and Addison Pattillo (1 goal).
Season Update
The Wilton High School girls varsity lacrosse team is off to a solid start to its season, sitting at 7-2 (as of May 11), having played some of the top competition in the state early on.
The Women Warriors started off their season with a 9-5 win over an experienced Greenwich Academy team that included multiple Division I committed players. Led by junior goalie Amelia Hughes, the Wilton defense played strong all game and held the high caliber GA offense to just five goals. Offensively, Wilton was led by Gwynn Sullivan and Morgan Lebek, along with sophomores Molly Snow and Emerson Pattillo, highlighted by a backhanded shovel shot by fellow sophomore Lucy Corry, scored off a pass from Snow.
Wilton’s next game was against state power and nationally-ranked (#6 at the time) Darien Blue Wave, where they lost a hard fought game 5-10. Wilton held close throughout the first half but a Darien goal at the last second before halftime, gave them a 4-2 margin at the break. Despite strong defensive play from Catherine Dineen and Maureen Campbell, along with outstanding goalkeeping by Hughes, Darien’s defensive front was too much for Wilton to overcome. The Warriors will face the Blue Wave again on Thursday, May 13, at Darien at 4 p.m.
Next up for the Warriors was arch-rival Ridgefield. Wilton came out on fire, starting with a pretty pass from junior Ellie Coffey to a cutting Snow, to get the Warriors on the board early. Pattillo scored the next two goals for Wilton, followed by a goal from Lebek and another from Snow, to bring the Warriors to an early 5-1 lead. Other goal scorers on the day included juniors Sullivan and Grace Williams, who helped lead Wilton past Ridgefield 14-6. Pattillo led the Warriors with five goals and one assist on the day.
Wilton’s next opponent, coming off of a 7-5 upset win over top ranked Darien, was New Canaan. Currently ranked #10 in the US (according to Lacrosse Magazine), the Rams are a senior-heavy team that plays outstanding defense, with a high powered offense that jumped all over Wilton and led 4-0 early in the contest. Following a timeout, Wilton clawed its way back into the contest and was led offensively by sophomores Snow and Isabel DiNanno, along with juniors Lebek and Coffey. Wilton’s draw team, led by freshman Ashleigh Masterson, played very well on the day to help control possession, while the defense, behind numerous saves from goalie Hughes, was able to hold New Canaan to its second-lowest scoring output of the season. But Wilton came up just short, losing 6-8. Despite the loss, the Warriors have proven they can go toe-to-toe with some of the best teams in the state and country.
Wilton faced Stamford next and put together its most complete game of the season, ending with a decisive 19-5 victory. The defense was led by seniors Hailey Smith and Alexis Castaldi, along with junior Sophie Essig, sophomore Maddie Ratcliffe and freshman Josie Goldman. The offense was led by senior Caroline Luciano (3 goals, 3 assists) and Alessia Cawley; juniors Coffey and Sophia Polito; sophomores Jemma Peterkin (1 goal), Sammy Slough (2 goals, 1 assist) and Corry (2 goals, 1 assist); and freshman Addison Pattillo. The game ended off of a great save by senior goalie Mairead Kehoe who sent a pass upfield to Whitney Hess (on her birthday), who ran the entire length of the field and assisted defender Ratcliffe, who scored her first career goal for Wilton.
Playing in their third game in a row last week, the Warriors faced a strong 4-1 Staples team. After Wilton jumped out to an early 5-1 lead, Staples tied the game at 7-apiece late in the second half, before Wilton scored three in a row to hold on for the 10-8 win. Junior goalie Hughes was stellar in the cage, stopping five of the last six Staples shots on goal to close out the win. Freshman Masterson dominated the draw controls, winning 15 out of 20 on the day and also contributing a buzzer-beating goal, assisted by Snow at the end of the first half. The offense was led by Corry (4 goals), Sullivan (2 goals), Emerson Pattillo (1 goal, 1 assist), Snow (1 goals, 2 assists) and Addison Pattillo (1 goal).
Wilton’s game against Norwalk High School featured the Warriors playing another fantastic game, winning 17-1. The defense was led by senior goalie Kehoe, Kira Howard and Catalina King, along with junior Halley Costello, sophomore Hess and freshman Morgan Breakey. The offense was led by juniors Meghan Chapey (2 goals) and goalie Hughes (1 goal), senior Maya Snider (1 goal) along with sophomore Sammy Slough (2 goals) and freshman Goldman (1 goal).
Boys Track
The Wilton High School boys track team is the only varsity sport or team this season with an undefeated record. They’ve achieved this big accomplishment despite the school’s outdoor track being unavailable to them due to the replacement project underway. The team has practiced on tracks in neighboring towns and they’ve competed as the away team all season.
Tuesday, May 4: Below, Captain Davis Cote ran the final leg on the winning 4×400 relay team at Fairfield Ludlowe with Jack Meyers, Malcolm McCormick and Connor Healy. Davis also won the 800 meter race. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Monday, May 10: Below, Wilton’s Cote, Malcolm McCormick and Garret Moe finish 1-2-3 against New Canaan in the 800 meter race. (photo Meppy Cote)
Girls Track
Tuesday, May 4: Below, Leah Martine finished second in the long jump at Ludlowe. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Below, Wilton’s Shelby Dejana won the hurdles at Fairfield Ludlowe Tuesday with Jill Roberts a close second finisher. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Boys Lacrosse
Saturday, May 8: Below, Jack Rosen circles the net looking for an opportunity in the game at Darien High School. Despite the loss, 11-15, Rosen scored one goal, along with Ben Calabrese (3), Grant Masterson (2), Will Hughes (3), Josh White (1), Caleb Rath (1) and Charlie Rath (1). Goalies: Colin Lenskold had 14 saves. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Baseball
Friday, May 7: Sean Lengyel makes the out at second against a tough Fairfield Warde team. Wilton was shut out, 0-11. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Monday, May 3: Below, Wilton’s Cole Silvia makes the play at second base and throws to first. Wilton went eight innings against Norwalk last night and finished with a loss, 9-10. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Friday, May 7: Before the start of Friday night’s varsity baseball game there was a community presentation of a permanent plaque erected at the field in memory of WHS athlete George DiRocco. George, a junior who was a standout baseball player–as well as a kind person and loyal friend–died suddenly last September.
Close to 200 people attended the dedication ceremony. Below right, head baseball Coach Tim Eagan honored George before introducing two of his best friends and teammates, Nevin Belanger (far left) and Chris Drummond (second from left), who shared their memories and tributes about their friend. With them is announcer Franey Donovan. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Below, George’s parents Deb and Artie DiRocco, are flanked by Donovan, Belanger, Drummond and Egan. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Artie DiRocco, George’s father, threw out the first pitch to WHS catcher Chris Calderone at Friday night’s game following the presentation of the new plaque honoring George. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Boys Tennis
Friday, May 7: Wilton High School boys varsity tennis defeated Greenwich, improving to a stellar 12-1 record and winning 4-3 overall at the WHS home courts. At number-one singles, junior Dylan Koziol efficiently defeated Matthew Luzzi 6-1, 6-0. Senior Will Jarvie at number-three singles effectively fought off a third set, defeating Yuta Kawamura 6-1, 7-5. And sophomore Jackson Carbonier at number four singles finished strong over Matthew Hunt 6-4, 6-0. Finally, in a barn-burner third set, number-three doubles senior duo Mike Gruseke and Mason Chrabolowski clinched the match for Wilton, winning 6-2, 2-6, 7-5 over Conner Sobieri and Seth Bier.
Below, Dylan Koziol (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Below, Mason Chrabolowski (L) and Mike Gruseke (R) won in three sets. (photo: Gretchen McMahon Photography)
Line scores:
Koziol (w) d. Luzzi (g) 6-1, 6-0
Atkinson (g) d. R.Vallabhajosula (w) 6-2, 6-0
Jarvie (w) d. Kawamura (g) 6-1, 7-5
Carbonier (w) d. Hunt (g) 6-4-6-0
Fikre/Speaker (g) d. Gioffre/Becraft (w) 3-6, 6-3, 6-3
Jain/O’Brien (g) d. Lee/A.Vallabhajosula (w) 6-1, 6-4
Gruseke/Chrabolowski (w) d. Sobieri/Bier (g) 6-2, 2-6, 7-5
Gretchen never misses – great shots!