By MARK JAFFEE

Pomperaug High senior Billy Regan is seeded first in both 200 individual medley (1:57.46) and 100 freestyle (38.12 seconds) and Panthers’ senior Colin MacKellar is seeded first in the 100 butterfly (53.38) and first in the 100 backstroke (54.37) for Monday’s CIAC Class M boys swimming championships at Wesleyan University in Middletown.

Torrington’s Viktor Nemesvari is seeded second in the 50 freestyle (22.14). The meet begins at 1:30 p.m. In the nightcap at Wesleyan, the Class S meet will take place at 6 p.m.

Holy Cross has come in second the past three seasons in the Class S team standings.

Holy Cross senior Jack Tucker is seed first in the 200 IM (1:56.61) and first in the 100 butterfly (42.04) and teammate Sam Mason, also a senior, is seeded first in the 50 freestyle (21.55 seconds) and 100 freestyle (47.47). Crusaders senior Chris Ford is seeded first in the 100 breaststroke (59.88).

Holy Cross’ 200 medley relay of Derek Fantano, Ben Bowler, Alex Ford and Chris Ford are seeded first (1:39.12). The Crusaders’ 200 free relay, featuring Mason, Alex Ford, Seamas Bowler and Tucker is seeded first (1:29.35) while Holy Cross’ 400 free relay is seeded second, featuring Mason, Derek Fantano, Alex Corona and Tucker (3:19.46).

In the 200 freestyle, Berkshire League champion Alex Beauchene of Northwestern is seeded first (1:43.15) and second in the 100 free (47.68).

In the 500 freestyle, Holy Cross’ Chris Ford (4:50.15) and teammate Derek Fantano (4:51.21) are seeded second and third, respectively. Fantano is defending Class S champion who transferred from Northwestern to Holy Cross.

The Class LL meet will be at SCSU’s Hutchinson Natatorium at 1:30 p.m. followed by the Class L meet at 6:30 p.m. In the class L meet, Cheshire’s Sam Hanke is seeded first in the 100 backstroke (52.85) and teammate Joseph Cannata is seeded first in the 100 breaststroke (58.47). Cheshire’s 20 medley relay is seeded first, consisting of Hanke, Cannata, Anit Sahasrabudhe and Andrew Lou (1:39.53).

The State Open diving is Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at Bulkeley High in Hartford.

Class S champion Marcas Racevicius of Holy Cross (379.05 points) and Class S runner-up John Courtemanche of Northwestern (370.90) are in the 24-diver field.

Also in the field are Chase Galayda of Southington (399.85) was fourth in the Class LL meet and teammate Emerson Suski (367.20). Suski was seventh at the Class LL meet.

James Gengenbach, Nonnewaug basketball

Q&A

• Funniest sports moment: AAU Tournaments
• Worst sports injury: Sprained MCL
• Pregame ritual: Listening to music
• Dream college: Endicott/RWU
• Intended major: Marketing
• Career ambition: Marketing executive
• Biggest wish: Wealth
• Biggest fear: Heights

• What do you want to be doing 10 years from now: Working a job I love
• Pet peeve: Being woken up while sleeping
• People would be surprised to know: That water isn’t wet
• Describe yourself in one word: Tall
• Three deserted island necessities: Food, water, shelter
• Foreign country you’d most like to visit: France
• Family athletic background: Dad raced motocross
• Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts: Dunkin’ donuts
• Shoutout: To my coaches and teammates

FAVORITES

• Opposing player: Josh Schibi (Lewis Mills)
• Sports team: Patriots
• Class subject: English
• City: New York City
• Athlete: LeBron James
• Celebrity (non-athlete): Kevin Hart
• Actor: Jack Black
• Concert: Migos
• TV show: The Office
• Movie: Nacho Libre
• Book: Hunger Games
• Animal: Dogs
• App: Snapchat
• Website: ESPN
• Music artist: Travis Scott
• Food: Wings
• Store: Nike
• Restaurant: Buffalo Wild Wings
• Pizza topping: Bacon
• Dessert: Chocolate Lava Cake
• Junk food: Donuts
• Car: Lamborghini
• Childhood memory: Disney World
• Video game: Red Dead Redemption 2
• Sports memory: Winning the Berkshire league freshman year
• Music genre: Hip-Hop/Rap
• Song lyrics: “You told the story like she was feeling you; she told the story like she split the bill with you”
• Quote: “You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take” — Wayne Gretzky, Michael Scott
• Vacation spot: Bahamas
• Ice cream flavor: Chocolate
• Breakfast: Pancakes, eggs and bacon

Marcas Racevicius, Holy Cross diving

• Nickname: Marky
• Class: Junior
• Age: 16
• His week: Won the CIAC Class S diving competition with a score of 379.05 points.

Q&A

• Pregame ritual: Listen to music
• Dream college: The one that wants me to dive there.
• Intended major: Business
• Career ambition: Entrepreneur
• Biggest wish: Our Holy Cross team to win Class S
• Pet peeve: “Would you like me to bring a kid’s menu?”
• People would be surprised to know: I’m not a freshman
• Describe yourself in one word: Humorous
• Three deserted island necessities: Fishing pole, music and a dog.
• Foreign country you’d most like to visit: The Bahamas
• Family athletic background: Mom is a Champion in Mountain biking, Xterra, Triathlon and Coaching.
• Starbucks or Dunkin’ Donuts: Dunkin’
• Shoutout: Connor Lautenschlager

[This post contains video, click to play]

FAVORITES

• Opposing player: Riley Clark (Woodland)
• Sports team: Yankees
• Class subject: Physics
• City: Boston
• Athlete: Jordan Spieth
• Celebrity (non-athlete): Tucker Carlson
• Actor: Zach Galifiankis
• TV show: Last Man Standing
• Movie: IT
• Animal: Manatee
• Music artist: Billy Joel
• Food: Japanese Food
• Restaurant: Sakura
• Pizza topping: Buffalo Chicken
• Junk food: Chips and Salsa
• Childhood memory: Snorkeling in the Florida Keys
• Sports memory: Throwing a 3 pitch inning
• Music genre: Pop
• Vacation spot: Maine
• Ice cream flavor: Caramel
• Breakfast: Fried Dough

Division I quarterfinals

No. 4 Sacred Heart (23-1) vs. No. 5 Trumbull (20-4)

• at Frank Sippy Gymnasium, Pomperaug High School, 7 p.m.

The skinny: Trumbull was the No. 1 seed in the FICIAC tournament, but bowed out in the semi … the Eagles boast the FCIAC’s player of the year in Timmond Williams, and another All-FCIAC player in Chris Brown … Brown was also selected an FCIAC defensive all star … Williams scored 28 in a first-round win over Wilbur Cross … Sacred Heart will have a much shorter bus ride to the quarters than the one-hour trip to Wilton last round … It was all about rebounding in the rugged win over Fairfield Prep, as Nate Tabor and Jamaal Waters combined for 22 of the team’s 37 boards … Waters leads the team in scoring at 21 ppg, and Tabor is at 18 … As point guard Lorenzo Washington said after the Prep win, when the Hearts started slowly, “We’ve got to come out ready to play. Every team is waiting for us.”

Division III

No. 6 Naugatuck (16-6) vs. No. 3 Farmington (19-4)

• at Farmington High School, 7 p.m.

“We are super excited to be playing on the last week of the season,” said Naugatuck coach Mike Wilson.

The skinny: The Indians were a CCC semifinalist this season, where they lost to East Catholic, the No. 1 seed in the Division I tournament … Senior guard Makhi Hawkins is the engine that powers Farmington … Indians were ousted in the second round last season … Naugatuck last played in a state final in 2015, in Class L … Since then the Greyhounds have suffered first-round round defeats, in Class LL in 2017, and Division II in 2018 … Now it is Division III. Can’t the CIAC make up its mind? … John Lukau was an All-NVL selection, and he leads team in scoring at 17.8 ppg … Coach Mike Wilson: “On every possession it is critical to do your job so we can have great execution on both ends of the floor. We have to limit mental mistakes, but in the same breath, we will play loose and enjoy the moment.”

Division III

No. 5 Torrington (18-6) vs. No. 13 West Haven (14-9)

• at Connie Donahue Gymnasium, Torrington High School, 6:30 p.m.

The skinny: The Blue Devils were knocked out of the SCC tournament in the first round, but played a few teams tough, like Fairfield Prep … the Westies lost to Prep twice, but in close games … Head coach Tyrese Sullivan was named the SCC coach of the year … Quanel Straughter and Mufee Cooper were named All-SCC first team players … The Raiders placed two on the All NVL team, in Tyreek Davis (18.1 ppg) and Dontae Thomas (14.5 ppg), but the team is here because all players contribute … Joel Villenueva is at 14.3 ppg … In the second-round win over Stratford, Torrington had five players in double figures … Raiders are 9-1 at home … This is Torrington’s second straight trip to the quarters … Coach Eric Gamari: “Having experienced the quarterfinals should help. For us to get to the semifinal we need to control West Haven’s pace and overall aggressiveness on both ends of the floor.”

Division V

No. 4 Nonnewaug (16-5) vs. No. 5 Valley Regional (17-6)

• at Ed Sadlon Gymnasium, Nonnewaug High School, 6:30 p.m.

The skinny: Valley Regional is a tourney perennial, and played into the Division IV quarters last season … There are only two seniors on a balanced team, but junior Gavin Grabowski puts up the big numbers in points and rebounds … Cade Ensinger distributes the ball, and scores too … The Chiefs were ousted in the Division IV first round last season by eventual state champion Kolbe Cathedral … The Chiefs were last in the quarters in 2011 when they lost, at home, to Sheehan … The Chiefs have four players who average in double figures, led by Jarrett Michaels, an All-BL pick, at 16.2 ppg … Coach DeVonne Parker: “It feels great to be in the quarters. Our players have come a long way since the beginning of the season, and we put in a lot of hard work. The key to being successful is to pay attention to details, rebound the basketball, and pay attention to defensive assignments.”

Division V

No. 10 Shepaug Valley (16-9) vs. No. 2 Somers (17-5)

• at Somers High School, 6 p.m.

The skinny: Somers was booted out of the NCCC tournament in the first round … The Spartans, that would be the Spartans of Somers, have some big dudes on the roster, with Egan Foye at 6-8 and Colin Watt at 6-6 … Like Valley Regional, there are only two seniors … The Spartans, that would be the Spartans of Washington, Conn., have been on a tear since the final week of the regular season, winning six of their last seven games and playing in the BL championship game … Owen Hibbard, selected All BL first team, at 16 ppg, and Ethan Hibbard, at 13.1 ppg, are the top scorers … Shepaug coach Matt Lefevre: “Our guys have worked very hard to get here, and we will continue to put forth our very best effort. We need to continue to play smart, poised, aggressive, and confident basketball as we have done in the latter part of the regular season and into the post-season.”

By JOE PALLADINO

The Mohegan Sun rises in the east, in Uncasville, and with the boys basketball finals looming on the weekend there are five area teams still playing ball.

This is it, and it is not complicated.

Sacred Heart senior Omar Rowe, the only player on all five rosters who has championship-winning minutes in the big arena (on the Class L title team of 2017), explained what must be done. “We got to bring it on, 100, 110,” Rowe said. “We’ve got to keep going, and going, and going.”

The final leg of this trip to the arena and a state final game is tantalizingly short. There is one game tonight, a quarterfinal. Win it and you play on Wednesday. Win again and you play on the weekend.

But this is the most rugged week of all, with the ultimate destination so close at hand. As Hearts coach Jon Carroll noted, “It’s the Division I tournament, and everyone is good.”

Previews

• Sacred Heart
• Torrington
• Naugatuck
• Nonnewaug
• Shepaug
• Who has best shot?

And it is the Division II, III, IV, and V tournaments — yep, plenty of Roman numerals to go around — and every team is good and hungry to bask in the warmth of the Sun.

“We are super excited to be playing on the last week of the season,” said Naugatuck coach Mike Wilson. “I tell the boys all the time, ball is not life. But, we are building a big family, which to me is life.”

It is time to play pressure games and contemplate a new world order as arranged in basketball brackets, and these brackets have at least one no-brainer and maybe a surprise or two.

It’s a no-brainer that Sacred Heart has reach the Division I quarters. The No. 1 ranked team in the polls, the Hearts entered the season as the team to beat in the top tier of the tourney.

The NVL’s second and third best teams, based on regular season records, play on as well, lending more credence to the belief that the NVL is as tough a league as any in the state. In Division III, Torrington is the No. 5 seed and Naugatuck is No. 6. The teams sit on either end of the geographical Valley and on opposite sides of the D III bracket, too.

Are you thinking what I’m thinking? They split games in the regular season, so let’s play the rubber in the Arena?

There are two Berkshire League teams alive in the Division V tournament, and if the CIAC had a clue there’d be more, but that’s a gripe for another day. The Nonnewaug boys, the BL runner-up, are No. 4; while Shepaug Valley, a BL tourney finalist, is No. 10.

Just so you know, the BL teams are also on opposite sides of the bracket. Nonnewaug won both regular season games, by a total of three points. Oh but what we wouldn’t give for a third meeting.

Send comments to jpalladino@rep-am.com

All four CIAC class boys swimming championships will be held today and tonight at two venues, Wesleyan University in Middletown and Southern Connecticut State University.

The Class M meet will be held at Wesleyan at 1:30 p.m. followed by the Class S meet at 6 p.m.

The Class LL meet will be held at Southern Connecticut State University’s Hutchinson Natatorium at 1:30 p.m. followed by the Class L meet at 6:30 p.m.

Here’s a breakdown by class of the are’s top swimmers based on Saturday’s time trials:

Class M

200 medley relay: 5. Pomperaug (Colin MacKellar, Eric Rosenhein, Ethan Waskiel, Aiden Hampton), 1:44.08. 200 free: 6. Connor Nee, Pomperaug, 1:51.77; 7. Drew Rosenhein, 1:53.10; 8. Steven Sullivan, Pomperaug, 1:53.37.

200 IM: 1. Billy Regan, Pomperaug, 1:57.46; 5. K.C. Green, Pomperaug, 2:03.26; 50 free: 2. Viktor Nemesvari, Torrington, 22.14; 4. Sai Quesenberry, Pomperaug, 22.33; 7 John Moran, Pomperaug, 22.44.

100 butterfly: 1. Colin MacKellar, Pomperaug. 53.68; 7. Nathanial Crane, Pomperaug, 55.06.

100 free: Blly Regan, Pomperaug, 48.12; 5. Viktor Nemesvari, Torrington, 48.95; tied 7.Sai Quesenberry, Pomperaug, 49.73.

500 free: 3. Timothy Regan, Pomperaug, 4:58.96; 5. Nathanial Crane, Pomperaug, 5:02.88.

200 free relay: 8. Pomperaug (Drew Rosenhein, Timothy Regan, Quincy Moran, Steven Sullivan), 1:34.93.

100 backstroke: 1. Colin MacKellar, Pomperaug, 54.37.

100 breaststroke: 5. K.C. Green, Pomperaug, 1:01.97; 6. Connor Nee, Pomperaug, 1:02.60.

400 free relay: 4. Pomperaug (Drew Rosenhein, Connor Nee, K.C. Green, Bill Regan), 3:24.44.

Class S

200 medley relay: 1. Holy Cross (Derek Fantano, Ben Bowler, Alex Ford, Chris Ford), 1:39.12; 3. Seymour (Jack Crocamo, Aleksej Cupic, Cyrus Gagaza, Ethan Mabasa-Hamilton), 1:43.74.

200 freestyle: 1. Alex Beachene, Northwestern, 1:43.15.

200 IM: Jack Tucker, Holy Cross, 1:56.61; 4. Alex Ford, Holy Cross, 1:59.94; 7. Jack Pesce, Shepaug, 2:03.67.

50 freestyle: 1. Sam Mason, Holy Cross, 21.55; 2. Jack Crocamo, Seymour, 21.27; 5. Victor Falkowski, Ansonia, 22.79.

100 fly: 1. Jack Tucker, Holy Cross, 52.04; 4. Alex Ford, Holy Cross, 53.66; 7. Aleksej Cupic, Seynour, 55.17.

100 free: 1. Sam Mason, Holy Cross, 47.47; 2. Alex Beauchene, Northwestern, 47.68; 5. Jack Crocamo, Seymour, 48.57.

500 free: 2. Chris Ford, Holy Cross, 4:50.15; 3. Derek Fantano, Holy Cross, 4:51.21; 5. Alex Corona, Holy Cross, 5:03.97; 6. Daniel O’Leary, Litchfield, 5:04.61; 7. Ashton Morrell, Northwestern, 5:08.23.

200 free relay: 1. Holy Cross (Sam Mason, Alex Ford, Seamus Bowler, Jack Tucker), 1:29.35. 4. Seymour (Cyrus Gazaga, Jack Crocamo, Ethan Mabasa-Hamilton, Alekej Cupic), 1:33.14. 5. Woodland (Greg Aldrich, Noah Scott, Joe Flaherty, Jeffrey Varesio), 1:34.82. 7. Litchfield (Daniel O’Leary, Jonathan Dieck, Sage Sabek, Carson Mello), 1:35,.84; 8. Northwestern (Ryan Perschino, Kelly Stotler, Ashton Morrell, Alex Beauchene), 1:36.69.

100 backstroke: 3. Derek Fantano, Holy Cross, 54.23; 4.Jack Pesce, Shepaug, 55.99; 5. William Tucker, Holy Cross, 56.86; 8. Alex Pillis, Sacred Heart, 1:00.05. 100 breaststroke: 1. Chris Ford, Holy Cross, 59.88; 5. Ben Bowler, Holy Cross, 1:01.58; 6. Aleksej Cupic, Seymour 1:01.96; 7. Greg Aldrich, Woodland, 1:;02.27.

400 free relay: 2. Holy Cross (Sam Mason, Derek Fantano, Alex Corona, Jack Tucker), 3:19.46. 4. Northwestern (Ryan Persechino, Cassidy Stotler, Ashton Morrell, Alex Beauchene), 3:30.48. 5. Woodland (Jeffrey Varesio, Zach Arisian, Joe Flaherty, Greg Aldrich), 3:32.64. 6. Litchfield (Will Rodriguez, James Kelleher, Sage Sabek, Daniel O’Leary), 3:34.30; 7. Watertown (Mateo Raidhi, Robert Guerrera, Gianni Spiotti, Matteo Perugini), 3:35.56. 8. Shepaug (Jack Pesce, Jack Kennedy, Gabe Taranto, Zachary Tibbatts), 3:36.93.

Class L

200 medley relay: 1. Cheshire (Sam Hanke, Joseph Cannata, Anit Sahasrabudhe, Andrew Lou), 1:39.53. 200 free: 4. Sam Hanke, Cheshire, 1:45.74; 200 IM: 2. Joseph Cannata, Cheshire, 1:57.39;

Shane Wynne, 2:00.11; 100 fly: 5. Shane Wynne, Cheshire, 53.94. 100 free: 7. Andrew Lou, Cheshire, 49.64; 8. Peter Levens, Cheshire, 50.02. 200 free relay: 2. Cheshire (Sam Hanke, Andrew Lou, Shane Wynne, Joseph Cannata, 1:29.71. 100 backstroke: 1. Sam Hanke, Cheshire, 52.85. 100 breastroke: 1 Joseph Cannata, Cheshire, 58.47; 6. Richmond Le, Cheshire, 1:01.83; 400 free relay: 6 Cheshire (Peter Levens SR 2) Shane Wynne, Vincent Zhu, Evan Levine), 3:24.76.

Class LL

200 freestyle: 8. Tyler Heidgerd, Southington, 1:47.51.

Note: Complete seedings at https://content.ciacsports.com/tc/

By JOE PALLADINO

SOUTHBURY — Tell them down at Mohegan Sun, the Hearts aren’t coming this year.

In a shocker in Southbury, No. 5 Trumbull derailed No. 4 Sacred Heart’s attempt to get back to a state title game for a sixth straight season with a stunning 73-66 victory in a Division I quarterfinal at a packed-to-the-hilt Sippy Gymnasium at Pomperaug High.

“It took a lot of heart and dedication, and that’s what we had,” said Trumbull’s Timmond Williams, the FCIAC player of the year who scored a game high 31. “This means a lot. It showed that we’re one of the top teams in the state, and we’re looking forward to going to Mohegan.”

The Eagles, now 21-4, play top-seeded East Catholic in the Division I semifinal on Wednesday. The Hearts are finished at 23-2.

“For me to complain about it would be disingenuous,” said Hearts coach Jon Carroll when asked about falling short of playing for a state title. “At the end of 32 minutes, we got out-scored tonight.”

It doesn’t take much analysis to know why. The Hearts were 9-of-16 from the foul line, and many of them were clangers. The Eagles sizzled from the stripe, making 26 of 33, and no, it was not about inequity from officials.

The Hearts dominated Trumbull on the glass, until late in the third quarter, when the Eagles simply took the game over. And the typically patient Sacred Heart offense went from poised to panicked. The Hearts started launching shots of an ill-advised variety, and that’s something we did not see this season.

“In between the third and the fourth we told them to focus on the paint, but our first three shots were jump shots,” Carroll said of some poor decisions on the floor. “Trumbull played great, take nothing away from them, but we failed to execute in the clutch and we got burnt this time.”

The Hearts led by six points, 59-53, with five minutes to play, but the Eagles went off on an 8-1 run as Evan Gutowski hit a jumper, Chris Brown converted a steal into a hoop, and then after a Brown block Williams converted at the other end.

It was simple: Trumbull outscored the Hearts 20-5 in the final five minutes.

That was a really big wow.

“It was a mental thing,” Williams said. “We wanted it more.”

Along with 31 points, Williams added 11 rebounds. Mileeq Green scored 10 with five boards, and Brown had 21. Nate Tabor led the Hearts with 20 points, and Jamaal Waters and Omar Rowe added 13, Rowe with 13 boards and Waters with seven, but all of those were in the first half.

“It stinks not being there (at Mohegan Sun),” Carroll said. “We couldn’t quite get there this year.”

Holy Cross senior Jack Tucker took first place in the 100-yard butterfly (51.75) and second in the 200 IM (1:56.34) to lead the Holy Cross boys swimming team to an elusive Class S state title with a team score of 709 on Monday at Wesleyan University.
Brookfield was second (542.5).
The Crusaders, who were the state runner-up the past three seasons, have won the Naugatuck Valley League crown the past five years.
Haddam-Killingworth was third (407) followed by Berkshire League champion Northwestern (368).
The Crusaders’ 200 freestyle relay of Tucker, Ben Bowler, Alex Ford and Sam Mason took first (1:28.95).
Mason, a senior, took second in the 50 freestyle (21.68).
Sophomore Derek Fantano took third place in the 100 backstroke (53.63). Fantano, the defending Class S champion in the 500, took second in the event (4:47.22) and teammate Chris Ford was third (4:51.69).
The 200 medley relay of Fantano, Ben Bowler, Alex Ford and Chris Ford took silver with a 1:38.79. The 400 free relay team of Tucker, Fantano, Chris Ford and Mason took first (3:13.45).
Seymour junior Jack Crocamo came in first in the 50 freestyle (21.52) and 100 freestyle (47.12). The Wildcats’ 200 medley relay team of Crocamo, Aleksej Cupic, Cyrus Gagaza and Ethan Mabasa-Hamilton placed third (1:40.50).
Cupic took third in the 100 butterfly (52.17) and 100 backstroke (58.71).
The 200 free relay of Cyrus Gagaza, Crocamo, Ethan Mabasa-Hamilton and Cupic took second (1:29.10).
Sophomore Alex Beauchene of Northwestern won the 200 free (1:42.69) and was second in the 100 free (47.61). Daniel O’Leary of Litchfield was fifth in the 500 (5:03.83).
Holy Cross’ Alex Corona was sixth in the 200 free (1:50.47) and sixth in the 500 (5:06.62).
Sacred Heart’s medley relay of Zulqarnain Abdulla, Jesse Swartout, Alex Pillis and Adam Taylor was sixth (1:49.62).
Woodland’s 200 free relay of Joe Flaherty, Noah Scott, Greg Aldrich and Jeffrey Varesio was sixth (1:34.64).
Aldrich was sixth in the 100 breaststroke (1:01.78).
In the 100 backstroke, Jack Pesce of Shepaug (55.82) was fourth and William Tucker of Holy Cross (57.66) fifth.
Northwestern’s 400 free relay of Ryan Persechino, Cassidy Stotler, Ashton Morrell and Beauchene (3:29.91) was fourth followed by Woodland (Varesio, Zach Arisian, Flaherty and Aldrich, 3:31.25) and Litchfield (Wll Rodriguez, James Kelleher, Gage Sabek and O’Leary (3:32.69).
Rams 3rd at Class L finals: Cheshire finished third in the Class L finals with a team score of 519.5 at Southern Connecticut State University.
The Rams’ Joe Cannata won the 200 IM (1:54.71). Sam Hanke placed second in 100-yard backstroke, lowering his previous school-record to 51.80.
Cheshire’s 200 medley relay of Sam Hanke, Joe Cannata, Ankit Sahasrabudhe and Andrew Lou took second (1:38.04).
Sam Hanke, Andrew Lou, Shane Wynne, and Joe Cannata took second in the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:28.38). Cannata took second in the 100-yard breaststroke (58.47).

BY STEVE BARLOW
TORRINGTON — What was the key to the Torrington High boys basketball team’s 73-58 victory over West Haven on Monday night in the Division III state quarterfinals?
“Old man’s basketball,” said senior guard Dontae Thomas, who scored a game-high 18 points. “That’s what we said in the locker room.”
“Coach said we’ve got to play old man basketball,” agreed senior forward Joel Villanueva, who added 17 points.
Informed of this, Red Raiders coach Eric Gamari smiled perhaps his biggest smile of the night.
“Yes! I’m happy they’re listening,” he beamed. “I said, ‘You guys are so great when you pass, so bad when you dribble. Why don’t we just pass and cut, keep it simple, and dribble when you need to.’”
The last Naugatuck Valley League team left standing in the postseason, the Raiders (19-6) followed Gamari’s game plan to reach the state semifinals for the first time in 10 years.
No. 5-seeded Torrington will face No. 9 Amistad, a 68-59 winner over Shelton in their quarterfinal, on Wednesday night at a site and time to be determined.
West Haven (14-10), the 13th seed, switched from the stall it used near the end of the second quarter to a press after halftime. But it played right into Torrington’s hands.
The Raiders poured in 29 points in the quarter to stretch their 25-21 halftime advantage to 54-35 going into the final period.
“(West Haven) tried to press us and get us to go up-tempo,” Gamari noted. “As long as we didn’t turn the ball over, it looked like practice. When we get that balance, we get comfortable and confident, and away we go.”
Senior center Kevin Dixon had 10 of his 14 points in the third period. His follow basket less than a minute and a half into the period gave Torrington a 33-23 lead. West Haven called timeout.
It didn’t help. Senior guard Tyreek Davis had 10 of his 16 points in the third period. He nailed a 3-pointer with 1:51 to go for a 48-31 lead. Forty seconds later, he cut to the basket and dropped in a feed from Zach McLaughlin for a 52-33 lead and another West Haven timeout.
“With our ball movement, we were getting movement all over the place,” said Dixon. “Once we do that, we’re a really good team.”
Malcolm Duncanson had 14 points to pace West Haven, and Tyrese Hargrove added 13.

BY JASON LEVY
FARMINGTON — The Naugatuck boys basketball team made a state tournament run in 2019 that went further than any time since making the Class L final in 2015.
But the sixth-seeded Greyhounds ran out of gas Monday night, falling to No. 3 Farmington, 76-55, in the Division III quarterfinals in front of a packed house at Farmington High.
“We played as a team,” senior John Lukau said. “We work together and we did everything possible in our power for each other to get here — sadly to end right now — but that’s part of basketball.”
Naugatuck (16-7) lost in the first round in 2018 (Division II) and 2017 (Class LL) and missed the postseason in 2016.
Derrick Jagello led the Greyhounds with 16 points — the only Naugy player to break double figures. Lukau was held to eight points and Andrew Robertson scored nine. Makhi Hawkins scored a game-high 25 points and Grayson Herr added 19 for Farmington (20-4), which will play No. 2 Prince Tech in the semifinals Wednesday night in New Britain.
Lukau hit a buzzer-beater at the end of the first quarter that initially looked like a 3-pointer, but the refs ruled his foot was on the line and said it was a 2-pointer to cut the Naugy deficit to 14-11 after eight minutes.
But the Indians turned it up in the second quarter, outscoring the Greyhounds, 22-9, to pull away for good. It became a bittersweet night for seniors like Lukau — along with Robertson Gwayne Fisher and Shane Carey — as their times as Greyhounds came to an end.
“It might sound bad, but losing this game is my standout memory for three years at Naugatuck,” Lukau said. “It’s because we got this far. When I got here as a sophomore, we always got out in the first round. So just coming in here and playing around this crowd is the best.”
Lukau’s time on the high school court may not be over. He is considering a post-grad year at a prep school, mentioning Notre Dame-West Haven as a possibility.
“(This game) helps me see what I can improve upon for next year,” Lukau said. “Another year in high school is possible so I just have to get better.”
But many of the core players from this year’s team should be back for the 2019-20 season. Two starters, Ese Onakpoma and 6-foot-5 big man Avery Hinnant, were key contributors as freshman. If they improve over the offseason and remember the lessons from this season, Naugatuck could be a big player in the NVL and beyond
“We have to stick together as a team and get ready for next year,” Jagello said. “I’m just glad to be a Greyhound.”

BY MARK JAFFEE
WOODBURY — The Valley Regional boys basketball team scored 24 fourth-quarter points to erase an eight-point deficit and edge host Nonnewaug, 58-56, in the Division V quarterfinals Monday night.
Chris Sparaco scored a game-high 17 points for the fifth-seeded Warriors (18-6) and Gavin Grabowski added 15, including two free throws that upped the margin to 58-54 with 18.6 seconds. Kevin Fasulo added 10 of his 14 points in the third quarter.
Junior Colby Steinfeld had a team-high 15 points for the Chiefs (16-6) and made a baseline move and layup at the third-quarter buzzer to give the Chiefs a 42-34 lead.
Junior John Khazzaka added 14, including two free throws that had given the Chiefs a 52-51 lead with 2:14 left in regulation. J.D. Gengenbach chipped in with 10 and reserve Anthony Bambino scored six points off the bench.
Though the season ended, the Chiefs may have gained something really invaluable for next season, said coach DeVonne Parker.
“Experience,” noted Parker of playing in the postseason. “They played in a lot of close games this year, and won some of those (including a 44-43 decision over Division V quarterfinalist Shepaug on Feb. 8). We had a very successful season.”
Nonnewaug had only three seniors this year: co-captains Jarrett Michaels and J.D. Genenbach, and Justin Southard.
Parker praised his co-captains, saying “They were the generals. You can’t replace their leadership or basketball knowledge. But the way they carried themselves has rubbed off on the rest of the team.”
The Valley Regional coaching staff installed a pressured defense Sunday to combat the offensive abilities of Michaels, Gengenbach and Steinfeld.
“In the second half, we started making some shots, had some defensive stops and rebounded really well,” said Valley coach Kevin Woods. “Nonnewaug is a very good team.”

TORRINGTON 73, WEST HAVEN 58
West Haven (14-10): Quannel Straugher 2 0 4, Mufee Cooper 4 1 10, Malcom Duncanson 6 1 14, Laron Holmes 1 0 2, Shante Gause 0 3 3, Tyrese Hargrove 4 2 13, Jamel Lowery 1 0 2, Tariq Johnson 1 0 2, Javaun Calhoun 1 0 2, Shea Sheffield 2 0 6. Totals: 22 7 58.
Torrington (19-6): Dontae Thomas 7 4 18, Nick Balducci 0 0 0, Tyreek Davis 6 3 16, Ivan Aybar 0 0 0, Joel Villanueva 5 4 17, T.J. Calabrese 0 0 0, C.J. Root 3 0 8, Justin Mattiello 0 0 0, Zach McLaughlin 0 0 0, Kevin Dixon 6 2 14, Adam Vanotti 0 0 0. Totals: 27 13 73.
West Haven 14 7 14 23—58
Torrington 17 8 29 19 —73
3-pointers: WH—Cooper 1, Duncanson 1, Hargrove 3, Sheffield 2. T—Davis 1, Villanueva 3 , Root 2.

TRUMBULL 73, SACRED HEART 66
Trumbull (21-4): Mileeq Green 3 3 10, Chris Brown 7 6 21, Jack Therriault 0 0 0, Timmond Williams 7 14 31, Evan Gutowski 3 1 7, Quentar Taylor 1 2 4. Totals: 21 26 73.
Sacred Heart (23-2): Nate Tabor 7 4 20, Omar Rowe 4 2 13, Connor Tierney 4 0 9, Caleb Sampson 1 0 2, Jamaal Waters 6 0 13, Lorenzo Washington 3 3 9, Tre Duncan 0 0 0, Steve Alseph 0 0 0. Totals: 25 9 66.
Trumbull 25 11 17 20—73
Sacred Heart 24 19 13 10—66
3-point goals: T—Green 1, Brown 1, Williams 3. SH—Tabor 2, Rowe 3, Tierney 1, Waters 1.

FARMINGTON 76, NAUGATUCK 55
Naugatuck (16-7): Derrick Jagello 7 2 16, Gwayne Fisher 3 1 7, Avery Hinnant 3 1 7, John Lukau 2 4 8, Ese Onakpoma 2 1 5, Keywan Edwards-Garris 0 0 0, Andrew Robertson 3 3 9, Justin Barth 0 1 1, John Mezzo 0 0 0, Robert Sanders 1 0 2. Totals: 21 12 55.
Farmington (20-4): Tristan Grande 1 0 2, Tyler Cortland 0 3 3, Makhi Hawkins 8 5 25, Niko Bouzakis 0 0 0, Clark Strauss 1 0 2, Jake Dunst 0 1 1, Nicholas Duncan 0 0 0, Jacob Smith 5 3 14, Grayson Herr 9 1 19, Jeff Sytulek 0 0 0, Bube Momah 4 2 10. Totals: 28 15 76.
Naugatuck 11 9 12 23—55
Farmington 14 22 20 20 —76
3-point goals: F—Hawkins 4, Smith 1. N—Jagello 1.

SOMERS 75, SHEPAUG 49
Shepaug (16-10): Michael Perachi 1 0 2, Cole Donaghey 2 0 4, Owen Hibbard 5 2 13, Jack Schneider 3 1 8, Cole Davenport 1 0 2, Jayden Cornwall 0 0 0, Dominic Perachi 1 1 3, Tiernan Crossley 0 1 1, Joseph Brunelli 2 2 6, Noah Levine 0 0 0, Ethan Hibbard 4 2 10, Will Granata 0 0 0, Matt Sheedy 0 0 0, Bram Gattie 0 0 0. Totals: 19 8 49.
Somers (18-5): Dimitri Sanchez 1 2 4, Brady Palazzesi 3 1 7, John Whiteley 0 0 0, Aiden Miller 5 2 12, Cody Palazzesi 0 0 0, Colin MacLeod 0 0 0, Derek Hostetler 5 0 12, Kyle Yvon 0 0 0, Alexander Barresi 6 0 12, Terieze Naylor 0 0 0, Colin Watt 10 2 22, Egan Foye 3 0 6, Tyler Watt 0 0 0. Totals: 33 7 75
Shepaug 11 5 20 13—49
Somers 24 23 17 9—75
3-point goals: SH—O. Hibbard 1, Schneider 1. So—Hostetler 2.

VALLEY REGIONAL 58, NONNEWAUG 56
Valley Regional (18-6): Ryan Shasha 0 0 0, Jake Grow 1 1 3, Gavin Grabowski 5 3 15, Brian Rankin 2 0 4, Chris Sparaco 8 1 17, Kevin Fasulo 5 4 15, Cade Ensinger 2 0 4, John Tibbets 0 0 0, Drew Kelly 0 0 0. Totals: 23 9 58.
Nonnewaug (16-6): Colby Steinfeld 5 3 15, Jackson Baker 0 4 4, Tyler Lindberg 0 1 1, John Khazzaka 5 3 14, Jarrett Michaels 1 4 6, J.D. Gengenbach 5 0 10, Anthony Bambino 3 0 6, Ryan Tomkalski 0 0 0. Totals: 19 15 56.
Valley 10 9 15 24—58
Nonnewaug 14 22 6 14—56
3-point goals: VR—Grabowski 2, Fasulo 1; N—Steinfeld 2, Khazzaka 1.

The Shepaug boys basketball team fell to No. 2 Somers, 75-49, on Monday in the Division V boys tournament quarterfinals in Somers.
Owen Hibbard scored a team-high 13 points and Ethan Hibbard added 10 points.
The Spartans closed out their season with a 16-10 record.

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