FCIAC

Ludlowe shuts out town rival Warde to advance

FAIRFIELD — Goalkeeping is basically instinct.

See the play develop, follow your gut feeling and try and make the stop.

Ludlowe’s Nicholas Tenreiro did that — twice — and because he did, the Falcons are advancing into the FCIAC boys’ soccer semifinals.

First, Tenreiro slid out to block a shot in close from Warde’s Daniel Villabla, and then lunged to his right to punch away a curving shot from Jacob Deck. Two potential game-changing plays that kept Ludlowe in front and sparked them to a 2-0 win in the FCIAC quarterfinals on a chilly Friday night at Taft Field.

“I was just thinking that I have to make the saves for my team,” Tenreiro said. “I just kept my eye on the ball and reacted accordingly. I just did what I had to do, and I was there for it.”

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Danbury boys work overtime to win in FCIAC quarterfinals

DANBURY — There were several instances, earlier in Friday’s FCIAC quarterfinal game, when Danbury High School boys soccer player Malamin Jallow came agonizingly close to scoring a goal but couldn’t quite capitalize.

With the fate of the Hatters’ season hanging in the balance, Jallow had one more opportunity in overtime.

And he nailed it.

Jallow, a dynamic senior forward, booted home a low shot off an assist from Tiago Dos Reis with less than four minutes remaining in the first of two 10-minute overtime periods to lift the top-seeded Hatters to a 3-2 victory over Brien McMahon, the upset-minded eighth seed.

“We were up two and we let it slip, so we couldn’t let it go down any more,” Jallow said. “It feels good to put one in the net and be moving on.”

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Trinity Catholic goes to the Wing-T, beating Westhill for first win

STAMFORD—Thinking he was going to be leading his team into a game Saturday smack dab in the middle of a nor’easter Saturday, Trinity Catholic coach Donny Panapada dusted off some old playbooks when game planning for Westhill.

The contest was moved to Friday afternoon to avoid playing in the storm but Panapada stuck with the new, old, game plan, busting out the Wing-T offense at J. Walter Kennedy Stadium.

The plan worked to perfection as Trinity got two touchdowns on the ground, pounding the ball all afternoon en route to a 22-7 win over rival Westhill.

It was Trinity’s first win of the season and Panapada could barely contain himself after the final whistle as he spoke about what it meant for his seniors.

“I get emotional because of my seniors. They fought like hell today. We fought all year but we have been overmatched and today we fought and…I just feel so good for these kids,” Panapada said. “We switched up the offense and went back to my old days with some Wing-T. It was some old-school football we played.”

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Girls soccer: Ridgefield tops Trumbull, 4-0, in FCIAC quarterfinals

Scoring two goals in each half, the Ridgefield High girls soccer team began the postseason with a 4-0 win over Trumbull in an FCIAC quarterfinal game Thursday evening at Tiger Hollow. Ridgefield, the third seed in the eight-team field, will now play second-seed St. Joseph in the semifinals on Monday (5 p.m.) at Wilton High … Read more

Ridgefield girls top Trumbull in FCIAC soccer quarterfinals

RIDGEFIELD — The Ridgefield High School girls soccer team has prided itself all season long on its stellar defensive play — and rightfully so, as the Tigers allowed only three goals in the regular season and posted 14 shutouts in 16 matches.

On Thursday night in the FCIAC quarterfinals against Trumbull, Ridgefield showed off its offensive firepower as well its defensive prowess.

Caitlin Slaminko tallied two goals and an assist, freshman phenom Julia Bragg added a goal and two assists and Tasha Riek scored a goal as the third-seeded Tigers defeated sixth-seeded Trumbull 4-0. Lauren Castle made four saves to preserve the shutout.

“We’re definitely happy with the win,” Slaminko said. “We played pretty well, and we finished our chances. We’re moving on now, and we have to focus on getting better and being prepared for what’s ahead.”

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Greenwich cruises to Homecoming win over Ludlowe

GREENWICH — Fairfield Ludlowe responded to Greenwich’s first touchdown of Thursday night’s football matchup with a score of its own in the opening quarter.

Yet like the Cardinals’ previous foes, the Falcons learned that keeping pace with them is a monumental task.

Effectively mixing its running and passing attack, No. 2 Greenwich lit the scoreboard for 35 first-half points and cruised to a convincing 56-7 Homecoming night victory over Ludlowe at chilly Cardinal Stadium.

The Cardinals ran their record to 6-0 with the win, which saw senior Stephen Bennett catch a pair of touchdown passes from Gavin Muir and sophomore Hunter Clark run it into the end zone twice in the first half. Senior linebacker Jack Feda intercepted two passes, one which he returned for a score for the unbeaten Cardinals.

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St. Joseph holds off McMahon to advance

TRUMBULL — Barely holding off an upset-minded Brien McMahon team for most of the first half, St. Joseph needed a momentum swing in a big way.

That turn came 34 minutes into the first, as Jessica Mazo connected with Maddie Fried on a textbook two-on-one chance to break the scoreless tie.

The second-ranked Cadets would go on to defeat No. 7 McMahon 2-0 at home in the FCIAC quarterfinals Thursday.

“For 20 minutes in the first half I really thought they were playing better than us,” said Cadets coach Jack Nogueira, whose team will play the winner of No. 6 Trumbull and No. 3 Ridgefield in the semis on Monday. “Once we scored the first goal I thought we weren’t as nervous and started playing a little bit better. Today we finished our opportunities. They had a couple opportunities they could’ve finished that they didn’t, we found a way to win a game that was very tough for us.”

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Westhill volleyball sweeps Ridgefield

STAMFORD — Taking care of business and reaping the rewards.

The Westhill High School girls volleyball team continued their magical 2018 season Wednesday night as the Vikings swept Ridgefield High, 25-20, 25-11, 25-22 before a thrilled home crowd at the J. Walter Kennedy Athletic Center.

The victory, Westhill’s third straight and seventh in its last eight matches, left the Vikings at 17-2 overall.

“The girls are playing together. They are communicating well on the court,” said Westhill coach Marianna Linnehan. “They are playing aggressive when it’s called for. And making the smart play when it’s called for.”

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Stamford tops Trinity Catholic

STAMFORD — One side was looking to the road ahead. The other side looked back at a hard road traveled.

The Stamford High School boys soccer team closed out its regular season Tuesday by downing intracity rival Trinity Catholic High School, 6-3, at the Crusaders’ Gaglio Field.

“It was a regular season filled with ups and downs. We had some brilliant moments. But our ledger was filled with inconsistency,” Stamford High’s veteran coach Mario Caminiti said. “Closing with a victory is nice. And we got the opportunity in the second half to play a number of junior varsity kids and look ahead to next season. The JV kids displayed some nice fluidity with the ball. And their composure was very good.”

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