Each week, GOOD Morning Wilton will run news of weekend results and scores from Wilton Youth sports teams. Please send all stories and updates, along with a photo to editor@goodmorningwilton.com by noon on Monday of each week. Stories received after the deadline may not be included. Results write-ups will be grouped by sport and published in the order they are received.
Wilton Basketball Association
Wilton 8th Grade Girls Score Two Impressive Victories
Wilton 8th grade girls team, sponsored by Pinocchio Pizza, had two impressive victories last weekend. The first game against Ridgefield started as a strong defensive battle for Leah Martins, Ellie Coffey and Erynn Floyd. Wilton stepped up offense in the second half as Katie Umphred (9 points), Ellie Copley (6 points), Catherine Dineen (4 points) and Morgan Lebek (4 points) had game-critical baskets. Also, contributing offensively were Grace Williams, Bella Andjelkovic and Olivia Rossi. The two teams exchanged baskets in the fourth quarter with a score of 30-30 with under 1:30 minutes to go. Ridgefield couldn’t get a buzzer beater shot off. Dineen scored the game winning basket early in overtime and Wilton’s secured the 32-30 win.
In the second game against Wakeman, after a three pointer by Martins (8 points) and a short range jumper by Coffey (8 points) Wilton took the lead. With less than 10 seconds to go in the second quarter, Williams (5 points) converted with a layup, but Wakeman ended ahead at halftime with a deep three. Lebek (10 points) got a key offensive rebound and layup to tie the game in the third quarter. After two baskets by Coffey and a 3 pointer from Martins, Wilton held on for a 36-31 win.
Pictured, above: (Top row) Ellie Coffey, Bella Andjelkovic, Ellie Copley, Morgan Lebek, Erynn Floyd; (Bottom row) Katie Umphred, Olivia Rossi, Grace Williams, Leah Martins, Catherine Dineen
4th Grade Future Warriors Suffer Humbling Loss to Westport, 19-41
Coming off a strong win against New Canaan last week (31-15), the Wilton Warriors 4th Grade Future Warriors suffered a humbling loss (19-41) to a strong Westport PAL White team. The first half started as a defensive battle between both teams, with high energy play by Charlie Calabrese (2 steals), Liam Joy (1 steal), Joseph Aversano (1 steal), Theo Satrazemis (4 rebounds) and Kieran Wiseman (2 rebounds), keeping the score close, 6-14 at halftime. The second team substitutes provided a scoring boost, led by Curtis Jackson (10 points, 9 rebounds), Will Byrnes (6 points, 2 steals), Nolan Milhoua (2 points, 2 assists) and Charlie Roy (1 point, 5 assists). Blake Ongley led the second team in defense with 3 steals and 1 rebound. The Warriors showed great pride and hustle by never giving up and playing hard until the final whistle.
Wilton 7th Grade Girls Split Weekend Games, Beating Newtown Before Falling to St. Theresa’s
The 7th grade Wilton girls basketball team sponsored by True Value traveled to Newtown on Saturday to bring home a victory in a very close hard fought game that came down to the wire, winning 32-27. The offense was led by Kelly Holmgren, who had 12 points two steals and several rebounds. Also contributing to the offense were Ava Fasano, Heather Plowright, Mary Scally and Kendall Scholz. The girls also exhibited terrific defense from Lucy Corry, Molly McLaughlin, Charlotte Casiraghi, Hannah Fitzgerald and Anna Joy. All the girls played together with heart and determination.
On Sunday the girls fell at home to St Theresa’s of Trumbull, 27-387. The offense was led byHolmgren again with contributions from Casiraghi, Corry, McLaughlin, Fasano, and Joy. Defensively the girls had a total of eight steals .
Wilton 6th Grade Girls Bring Home Two Wins Over Fairfield (55-26) and West Haven (29-22)
The Wilton 6th grade girls, sponsored by Servco Oil, brought home two wins this weekend against Fairfield and West Haven.
On Saturday against Fairfield the 6th grade girls got back to business with a win against Fairfield. Ashleigh Masterson (12), Anisa Burrows (10) and Caroline Hage (10) led the team offensively with a combined 32 points for the team. Molly Hancock (8), Maddie Dineen (6), Riley Fitzgerald (4) and Marin Burke showed strong ball handling driving the ball down the court. Aggressive defense by Lauren Moe (2), Ella Mulfinger (1) and Julie Collias (2) held Fairfield from having many opportunities to score. Wilton triumphed, 55-26.
On Sunday the team played a nail-biter against a skilled and physical West Haven team. In a true team effort, all of the girls were essential in earning Wilton the win. Collias, Mulfinger and Moe (1) kept West Haven on their heels throughout the game. Showing some of their best defense of the season Masterson (4), Burrows (5) and Hage (2) rallied the team with rebounds and blocks. Hancock (7), Dineen (4), Burke (4) and Fitzgerald (2) also played strong defense and helped create scoring opportunities that helped the team secure the win, 29-22.
Wilton 8th Grade Boys Went 2-0, Beating Milford and Westport
The Wilton Warriors 8th grade boys team, sponsored by Pinocchio Pizza, went 2-0 over the weekend with victories over Milford and Westport.
On Saturday night at Milford’s home gym the Warriors came out flying with a high speed attack and offensive precision by hitting their first 10 of 11 shots. Wilton was paced in the first quarter by Connor Cummings (10 points, 10 rebounds, 3 blocks), Craig Hyzy (13 points, 4 rebounds), Will Murphy’s breakout game of the year (9 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and a block), and Kevin Hyzy (3 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals). Wilton led 24-5 after one. The second quarter featured hustle fever with multiple steals, full court sprinting, and diving for loose balls. Leading the attack heading into the half was Parker Woodring (10 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals), Max Andrews (12 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals), and Grant Masterson (4 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists). This balanced pressure opened up a 19-point lead over Milford at 38-19 to end the first half. It was Zarius Eusebe’s play (6 points, 5 assists, 3 steals) to start the third quarter that sparked the Warriors. Speedy Z pushed the pace that allowed Wilton to get easy buckets. Wilton expanded its lead to 26 at 58-32 to end the third quarter. In the final quarter it was time for Jack Lynch (2 points, 2 rebounds, 2 Blocks) to show off his hustle skills with four straight plays that forced turnovers by Milford. The hustle plays allowed his wingman, Max Silva (3 points, 2 assists), to nail a long bomb from the top of the arc, which pushed the score over a 30-point lead. Final score Wilton 72, Milford 39.
Game two on Sunday was against arch rivals from Westport. The game featured a fast-paced attack with defensive intensity throughout as Wilton’s eight grade boys team won 43-32. In the first quarter the Warriors had numerous good looks at the hoop but just couldn’t find the bottom of the net on most of them. Woodring (7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists) and K. Hyzy (4 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals) led the way as Wilton took a 12-9 lead. Diversified scoring off of fast breaks and locked-down defense in the second quarter allowed the dubs to open up a nine point lead at 25-16. Eusebe (4 points, 4 assists, 2 steals), C. Hyzy (6 points, 2 rebounds), Cummings (6 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks), and lightning Andrews (7 points, 11 rebounds, 3 steals)–who had a monster game wiping off the glass–led the second quarter effort. The Warriors came out a little sluggish to start the second half and Westport climbed back in the game and cut the lead to 1. But a long bomb by Silva (3 points, 2 assists), the constant hustle by Masterson (3 rebounds, 3 assists), and defensive pressure by Murphy (2 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 blocks) allowed Wilton to maintain the lead at 29-27. In the fourth quarter, once again, it was Lynch (6 points, 3 rebounds) with two consecutive and-1s and key free throws by C. Hyzy down the stretch to seal the victory 43-32.
5th/6th Grade Boys Have Tough Weekend, Winning One of Four Games
With four games and a developmental scrimmage on the schedule, this was a jam-packed weekend for the Wilton 5th/6th Boys Travel Basketball team, sponsored by Servco Oil.
Following Friday night’s scrimmage, the action began on Saturday with a two-game tournament in Trumbull.
In the first game, the Warriors faced a formidable team from Andover, MA. Patrick Heffernan opened the game with a strong drive that resulted in a quick two points, and both Brody Hess and Stefano Cross stood out for aggressively breaking through big defenders. Despite being down 33-9 at the start of the second half, Declan Brokaw got the crowd going by draining a three-pointer. In the end, Andover prevailed 19-55.
Next up was a pressure cooker against the tournament’s host team, the Connecticut Elite 11. The Warriors led at the end of the first half thanks in part to a power layup from Tucker Farrell, four points from Jack Williams, and Brokaw’s second “trey” on the day. However, despite second-half scoring from Justin Kammerman, Luke Dirocco, Cole Galante, and Patrick Heffernan, the Elite 11 tied things up at 19-19 with 3:50 left in the game. A series of time outs, intentional fouls, and free throws ensued. After being fouled, Hess sunk one of his free throws to regain the lead (22-21) but the Elite 11 came back quickly when #22 hit a three-pointer and two subsequent foul shots to help his team beat the Warriors, 22-26.
After a couple hours of rest, the Warriors headed south to face the Stamford JCC. The boys worked well together to amass 32 points in the evening–with impressive assists from Mason Andrews and Henry Soojian–yet not enough to beat the host team. Despite a dramatic three pointer from Hess at the end of the game, Stamford pulled it out 32-43.
Finally, the fourth game of the weekend proved just as exciting as the AFC Championship that was occurring at the same time, with the Warriors pulling out a victory over Westport’s PAL 6B. Some of the best action came in the second half, including an And-1 from Dirocco, and a finger roll off the back door from Galante. In the end, the Warriors took home the “W”, 40-34, including 10 points from Heffernan and seven boards from Brokaw.
Wilton 7/8th Grade Boys Win Both Weekend Games
It was a great weekend for the Wilton 7/8th Grade Boys’ basketball team, sponsored by Caraluzzi’s. On Saturday the team worked hard for a 46-42 win over a tough opponent. Defense led the way with multiple steals from Sean Wiseman, Connor Lillis and Dillon Mannix, along with strong rebounding from Connor Robertson, Tm Martin and Jefferson Mitchell, and consistent pressure from Colin Tsai, James Minnich and Will Sullivan. Scoring highlights included timely three pointers from AJ Preisano and Dylan Smith, along a couple of clutch free throws from Harrison Lent.
Sunday the team won an exciting game 68-61 that included a buzzer beater from Martin to send the contest into overtime, lights out shooting from Mannix (4 treys), confident free-throw shooting (20 points from seven different players) and a monster day on the boards, led by Robertson, who collected 20 rebounds.
Wilton 7th Grade Boys Team Bests Norwalk, 42-40
The Wilton 7th Grade Boys team, sponsored by Wilton Hardware, bested a tough Norwalk 7th Grade Youth team by a single basket in a thrilling battle in front of an enthusiastic and lively home crowd at Middlebrook. Character, grit and a never-say-never attitude propelled Wilton against a fast and imposing Norwalk team. The Wilton boys, who led virtually the entire game, summoned their warrior pride and courage to hold off a furious fourth-quarter surge by Norwalk. The bigs, including centers Bailey Finn and Nick Walden and forwards Jackson Duncan, Alexander Reyes and Griffin Turner, crashed the boards with a vengeance. Finn, with his relentless and dominant play down low, led the team with 15 points and 15 rebounds. Similarly, point guard Tommy McKiernan, with his calm, Zen-like disposition, tallied nine points, including a clutch 3-pointer towards the end of the game, handed out three assists and collected four offensive boards.
In the first quarter, Wilton came out ready to play as McKiernan’s on-the-money passes produced two lay ups for Walden, and Wilton jumped out to a 15-9 first-quarter lead. Walden played a solid-all-around game scoring eight points and grabbing five rebounds. In the second quarter, Spencer Liston, Ryan Preisano, Andrew Roth and Tommy Walsh’s stifling defense held Norwalk to only seven points. Liston’s sharp, long-range shooting was on display as he nailed a 3-point shot on a pass from Roth and the team held onto a 21-16 half-time lead. In the third quarter, Liston made a Curry-esque, no-look pass to Turner under the basket for an uncontested lay-up. Finn took the ball strong to the basket while Reyes played tough defense—four steals and two rebounds—and ignited the fast break. Wilton held onto a precarious 32-26 lead going into the fourth quarter.
The final quarter was as exciting a quarter of basketball as the boys have played all season. Norwalk went on an 11-3 run to start the quarter, tying the game, 35-35, with 3:20 to go in the game, and taking the lead, 37-35, with three minutes left on the clock. However, Wilton’s grit, character and mental toughness permeated throughout the gym. Indeed, the boys did not panic. McKiernan dialed long distance and drained a timely 3-pointer with 2:42 to go in the game to retake the lead, 38-37. Norwalk, to their credit, fought hard and took a 39-38 lead with less than two minutes to go in the game. Finn then made it 40-39 Wilton as he scored off one of his nine offensive boards with 1:10 to go in the game. Preisano capped off the scoring with two clutch free throws with 32 seconds to go in the game to make the final score 42-40. In the words of Anthony Preisano, “the boys played hard and figured out a way to hold on and get the win.” The team improved its record to 8-1 in league play and 14-2 overall.
From L-R: Alexander Reyes, Bailey Finn, Nick Walden, Spencer Liston, Ryan Preisano, Jackson Duncan, Griffin Turner, Tommy McKiernan, Tommy Walsh and Andrew Roth.
Wilton 5/6th Grade Girls Push for Overtime Win Over Norwalk, 30-27
After losing to a very tough New Fairfield team on Saturday, the Girls 5/6 travel basketball team bounced back with a big overtime win against Norwalk on Sunday. Down 14-7 at the half, the girls cranked up the defense in the second half, tying the game late and winning in overtime. The team was led by Addison Dobson with 10 points and several key rebounds. Other key contributors included Maddie Phelan with 6 points; Emma Kelly with 6 points; Mary Kate Doyle and Grace Guglielmo each with 3 points, and Riley Casey with 2 points. Caroline Luce provided key defense along with Kaitlyn Sullivan, Mallory Tomasulo, Grace O’Connor and Teagan Stengrim, resulting in Norwalk turnovers which keyed the comeback.