my apologies
I've been very lazy with this lately, and at the worst time. Spring season is the busiest of the year, and should elicit more posts than any other. As many of you know I've been around the area a lot, enjoying the weather and the sports. I just haven't gotten around to writing some of my thoughts at all.
So, I'm going to try an extra-long post here about all the spring sports and what I've seen so far both in person and from the scores. Amazingly, I've seen almost all the baseball and softball teams so far, have seen all the volleyball teams, and I'm working on the other sports. I love Spring.
So, sport by sport, here goes.
BASEBALL
I continue to say the baseball teams are superior to the softball teams this year. Primary among them are Berlin and Plainville, who played what, by all accounts from my colleague Matt Straub, was a great game last Friday. Berlin got the upper hand, but I'm willing to bet Plainville won't go quietly in the conference race.
It's too bad we didn't see a Matt Carasiti-Andrew Perbeck matchup. I've been hearing buzz about them from even opposing coaches. Both are upperclassmen who have earned the respect they get. Hopefully next time around they will go against each other.
Wethersfield has been a surprise so far, still undefeated. But as coach Bagdasarian pointed out, they've been getting their fair share of lucky bounces. I still think they are a title contender. You don't beat both Bristol schools and Glastonbury without having talent, and as we've seen before Class L is always wide open.
I love what I see from some of the youngsters at New Britain and Newington in particular. Chris Linares (NB) looks like a future star and Armando Soler (NEW) the same. Should be a lot of highlights in the coming years.
SOFTBALL
I know the Southington Blue Knights have lost twice, but I'll admit I'm still voting them in the top ten of the state poll. I simply don't believe they would lose head-to-head to some of the schools being voted below them. The Knights have started slow offensively the past couple of years, but once the bats get going, this team can score runs.
Now, scoring runs against the elite opponents (Masuk, Bristol Eastern, Trumbull, etc.) is another story. But this is still a top ten team in my opinion.
Best story in softball is Berlin, which has only one loss since its ugly opener against NFA (also a top ten team). The Redcoats are among the top of the NWC, but I don't think they're the best, mostly because of what I've seen from RHAM. Molly Rathbun is undoubtedly the best pitcher in that conference from what I've seen, and the Sachems are tough to beat.
Plainville has also been much better than I expected, but clearly a step down from last year. However, they can hang with anybody in the league, and should be near the top as well.
The biggest reason is Missy Jandreau and Katie Treado have shown they are up to the pitching task after Sara Forcella was there for four years. They aren't as good as Forcella yet, but they are capable.
VOLLEYBALL
I already blogged about how dominant Southington looks. That hasn't changed. They haven't dropped a game yet, and with their upcoming schedule that shouldn't change for a while. This team is good. That's an understatement. Get out and see them if you are a volleyball fan.
But I was impressed as well with the dramatic improvement at Wethersfield, a team that could not compete well for several years. They've grown up, and are now a gritty team that wins close matches. They are not on a level with Southington, but are competitive against the teams they play.
Newington's Spencer Parker is awesome up front, dynamic. He's worth watching. Same goes for Ryan Cunningham at Farmington. These are all competitive teams.
LACROSSE
I've only seen the Newington girls, but they are doing quite well. They have a lot of senior leadership and I think new coach Selina Quirion is having a huge impact on the team.
GOLF
Wow, is all I have to say about the scores being posted on a regular basis by Farmington, Berlin and Southington. I'll be surprised if at least one of these teams doesn't win the state championship.
I'm also very interested in the now three-way challenge for top local girls player between Sarah Sideranko (NB), Kirsten LaPointe (NEW) and the new entrant Erica Barnes (Berlin). The Barnes-Sideranko matchup last week was exciting, and the girls seemed to play off each other in a good way. Sideranko, who is usually very laid back after a match, actually seemed quite excited to have pulled out the one-stroke victory, and why not. Barnes made her earn it to say the least. Meanwhile, Barnes' teammates would come up to check the scores, see her 39, and be amazed. Then they would find out she lost the match and be even more amazed. This is competition.
Wethersfield girls got a win the other day, and that's an accomplishment for the program. Gone are the days (I hope not just temporarily) when this team shoots over 300 combined, as they did sometimes last year. The team is solidly below or around 250, and getting better. I hope Cristin Carey can continue to improve and get in the 40s consistently by the end of this year.
Some early awards:
Best teams: Aside from Southington volleyball, an elite unit, this would have to go to the aforementioned golf teams. They seem to be in the 150 range every time out, right around two-over-par as a team average for nine holes. That's awesome.
I'd give an honorable mention nod to Berlin and Plainville baseball, with apologies to the unbeaten Wethersfield team. All three are very good, but the NWC teams are better I think.
Best individuals: This is tough. I'll just list a bunch that stand out.
Brendan McGourn (Southington volleyball)
Spencer Parker (Newington volleyball)
Sideranko
LaPointe
Barnes
Ryan Carroll (Newington baseball)
Steve Popp (Farmington baseball)
Alex Bulger (Plainville baseball)
Athalia and Chantaul Smith (NB track)
Monika Szwed (Farmington tennis)
Biggest surprises: Wethersfield baseball being unbeaten so far, as much as we thought they'd be a good team before the season. I don't think anybody saw this record so far.
Plainville softball has been a surprise as well, staying near the top of the league.
Barnes getting this good so quickly is somewhat surprising as well, but maybe I just didn't pay enough attention to her last year.
And a big surprise to the Wethersfield volleyball team for getting where they are. It's great to see their hard work pay off finally.
Alumni Report:
I ran into the Perillo family at a Newington softball game a few weeks ago. They told me that their son, Jeff, one of the best people around, is tearing it up for Mitchell College in New London after moving from shortstop to third base (probably a better fit for him) for the baseball team. No kidding.
Jeff is currently batting .438 through 23 games. He has two homers, 20 RBI, 13 doubles, 19 walks, only seven strikeouts and is a perfect 5-5 on stolen base attempts. Not too bad.
Found out this week that Brent Paladino of Kensington placed second at the Colonial Athletic Association golf tournament. This is no surprise to anybody who's ever seen him play.
I've run into a lot of other athletes at games recently, and in particular saw a lot of Wethersfield Eagles out to watch the baseball team this week. Several of the boys soccer team members were there, and they're all good guys and excellent athletes. It's nice to see the camaraderie between sports and students.
Keep up the good work everybody.
So, I'm going to try an extra-long post here about all the spring sports and what I've seen so far both in person and from the scores. Amazingly, I've seen almost all the baseball and softball teams so far, have seen all the volleyball teams, and I'm working on the other sports. I love Spring.
So, sport by sport, here goes.
BASEBALL
I continue to say the baseball teams are superior to the softball teams this year. Primary among them are Berlin and Plainville, who played what, by all accounts from my colleague Matt Straub, was a great game last Friday. Berlin got the upper hand, but I'm willing to bet Plainville won't go quietly in the conference race.
It's too bad we didn't see a Matt Carasiti-Andrew Perbeck matchup. I've been hearing buzz about them from even opposing coaches. Both are upperclassmen who have earned the respect they get. Hopefully next time around they will go against each other.
Wethersfield has been a surprise so far, still undefeated. But as coach Bagdasarian pointed out, they've been getting their fair share of lucky bounces. I still think they are a title contender. You don't beat both Bristol schools and Glastonbury without having talent, and as we've seen before Class L is always wide open.
I love what I see from some of the youngsters at New Britain and Newington in particular. Chris Linares (NB) looks like a future star and Armando Soler (NEW) the same. Should be a lot of highlights in the coming years.
SOFTBALL
I know the Southington Blue Knights have lost twice, but I'll admit I'm still voting them in the top ten of the state poll. I simply don't believe they would lose head-to-head to some of the schools being voted below them. The Knights have started slow offensively the past couple of years, but once the bats get going, this team can score runs.
Now, scoring runs against the elite opponents (Masuk, Bristol Eastern, Trumbull, etc.) is another story. But this is still a top ten team in my opinion.
Best story in softball is Berlin, which has only one loss since its ugly opener against NFA (also a top ten team). The Redcoats are among the top of the NWC, but I don't think they're the best, mostly because of what I've seen from RHAM. Molly Rathbun is undoubtedly the best pitcher in that conference from what I've seen, and the Sachems are tough to beat.
Plainville has also been much better than I expected, but clearly a step down from last year. However, they can hang with anybody in the league, and should be near the top as well.
The biggest reason is Missy Jandreau and Katie Treado have shown they are up to the pitching task after Sara Forcella was there for four years. They aren't as good as Forcella yet, but they are capable.
VOLLEYBALL
I already blogged about how dominant Southington looks. That hasn't changed. They haven't dropped a game yet, and with their upcoming schedule that shouldn't change for a while. This team is good. That's an understatement. Get out and see them if you are a volleyball fan.
But I was impressed as well with the dramatic improvement at Wethersfield, a team that could not compete well for several years. They've grown up, and are now a gritty team that wins close matches. They are not on a level with Southington, but are competitive against the teams they play.
Newington's Spencer Parker is awesome up front, dynamic. He's worth watching. Same goes for Ryan Cunningham at Farmington. These are all competitive teams.
LACROSSE
I've only seen the Newington girls, but they are doing quite well. They have a lot of senior leadership and I think new coach Selina Quirion is having a huge impact on the team.
GOLF
Wow, is all I have to say about the scores being posted on a regular basis by Farmington, Berlin and Southington. I'll be surprised if at least one of these teams doesn't win the state championship.
I'm also very interested in the now three-way challenge for top local girls player between Sarah Sideranko (NB), Kirsten LaPointe (NEW) and the new entrant Erica Barnes (Berlin). The Barnes-Sideranko matchup last week was exciting, and the girls seemed to play off each other in a good way. Sideranko, who is usually very laid back after a match, actually seemed quite excited to have pulled out the one-stroke victory, and why not. Barnes made her earn it to say the least. Meanwhile, Barnes' teammates would come up to check the scores, see her 39, and be amazed. Then they would find out she lost the match and be even more amazed. This is competition.
Wethersfield girls got a win the other day, and that's an accomplishment for the program. Gone are the days (I hope not just temporarily) when this team shoots over 300 combined, as they did sometimes last year. The team is solidly below or around 250, and getting better. I hope Cristin Carey can continue to improve and get in the 40s consistently by the end of this year.
Some early awards:
Best teams: Aside from Southington volleyball, an elite unit, this would have to go to the aforementioned golf teams. They seem to be in the 150 range every time out, right around two-over-par as a team average for nine holes. That's awesome.
I'd give an honorable mention nod to Berlin and Plainville baseball, with apologies to the unbeaten Wethersfield team. All three are very good, but the NWC teams are better I think.
Best individuals: This is tough. I'll just list a bunch that stand out.
Brendan McGourn (Southington volleyball)
Spencer Parker (Newington volleyball)
Sideranko
LaPointe
Barnes
Ryan Carroll (Newington baseball)
Steve Popp (Farmington baseball)
Alex Bulger (Plainville baseball)
Athalia and Chantaul Smith (NB track)
Monika Szwed (Farmington tennis)
Biggest surprises: Wethersfield baseball being unbeaten so far, as much as we thought they'd be a good team before the season. I don't think anybody saw this record so far.
Plainville softball has been a surprise as well, staying near the top of the league.
Barnes getting this good so quickly is somewhat surprising as well, but maybe I just didn't pay enough attention to her last year.
And a big surprise to the Wethersfield volleyball team for getting where they are. It's great to see their hard work pay off finally.
Alumni Report:
I ran into the Perillo family at a Newington softball game a few weeks ago. They told me that their son, Jeff, one of the best people around, is tearing it up for Mitchell College in New London after moving from shortstop to third base (probably a better fit for him) for the baseball team. No kidding.
Jeff is currently batting .438 through 23 games. He has two homers, 20 RBI, 13 doubles, 19 walks, only seven strikeouts and is a perfect 5-5 on stolen base attempts. Not too bad.
Found out this week that Brent Paladino of Kensington placed second at the Colonial Athletic Association golf tournament. This is no surprise to anybody who's ever seen him play.
I've run into a lot of other athletes at games recently, and in particular saw a lot of Wethersfield Eagles out to watch the baseball team this week. Several of the boys soccer team members were there, and they're all good guys and excellent athletes. It's nice to see the camaraderie between sports and students.
Keep up the good work everybody.
posted by Ryan Pipke at
2:31 PM
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