Important Games Played, Despite Week of Rain

There were some games played between the raindrops this week. Not many but some and many of those that were played were important.

None was more important than the North Central Connecticut Conference meeting between Suffield and Somers on Wednesday.

Meghan Maliga outdueled JoJo Meunier 1-0 as Suffield (15-2) seized a one-game lead in the race for the conference championship. The Wildcats have two conference games remaining, Avon on Sunday and Enfield on Monday. A win in both clinches a share of the regular-season title. Suffield beat these teams earlier in the season by a combined scored of 27-2, although Avon is dangerous.

But if Maliga continues her fine pitching and offensive contributions continue to come from the likes of Alyssa Wagner, Kacey Gifford and Anna Boucher, it will spell at least a share of the title for Suffield.

Ellington and Granby are tied in the loss column with Suffield. The two teams meet Monday, part of three games this week (Windsor Locks on Sunday and Plainville on Tuesday) for the Purple Knights. Granby beat Ellington 6-5 earlier in the season. Ellington has won four straight games behind the pitching of Morgan McPartland and an offense keyed by Ali Larew, Kenzie Whiting, Samantha Anthony and Danielle Pare. The Knights, it should be noted, have a chance at a share of the title despite having only two seniors, McPartland and Christine Spartz.

Somers (14-3) responded to the loss with a 9-0 victory over Canton.

The Spartans will need wins against Windsor Locks and Tolland in the week ahead and a stumble by Suffield to share the title.

The scoreless streak of the East Catholic softball team and pitcher Allyson Fournier reached nine games this week as she shutout South Windsor on Friday. The last time East Catholic allowed a run was in a 5-2 victory over Glastonbury on April 27.

The two teams meet again today at 2:30 p.m. in Manchester (provided our daily dose of rain doesn’t intrude) in a game that will likely decided the Central Connecticut Conference North division championship.

East Catholic (15-4) leads the Tomahawks by a full game and has a game-and-a-half lead over East Hartford and Wethersfield (two in the all important loss column). The Eagles have games next week against Manchester and Windsor. A win today will make them tough to catch.

Rockville has a chance to lock up the CCC East division this week. The Rams (12-4, 10-0) will play for the first time in 10 days Sunday afternoon (weather permitting) when they meet RHAM in Hebron at the start of a busy week. Rockville will Fermi, Tolland and Hartford Public on consecutive days in an effort to lock down the division title. Rockville has a two-game lead over Tolland and Rocky Hill. If the Rams clinch, it will be a remarkable accomplishment. Fairfield-bound Brianna Levick is the only senior on Frank Levick’s team.

East Windsor (6-11) is not thinking about conference titles but simply qualifying for the state tournament. The Panthers got a crucial win over Windsor Locks Friday. The Panthers meet Avon, Bullard Havens and O’Brien Tech on consecutive days beginning Monday and need two wins to propel Briana Matteson and seniors Kelly Lemay and Lashanda Hilson into the tournament.

EXCEPTION NOTED

The CIAC has allowed Sunday games due to the extended stretch of rain. For the record, the forecast calls for at least a 20 percent chance of rain all the way through Wednesday.

Teams such as East Windsor, who are on the bubble of the state tournament, can’t afford any more rainouts. Why? To qualify for the state tournament you need a .400 winning percentage. In a 20-game season, you need 8 wins. Unfortunately, in a 19-game season, you still need 8 wins.

The last day to play regular-season games is May 31 but many conferences have tournaments, which would make such a late scheduling impossible. So the sun needs to shine for those teams on the bubble.

AROUND AND ABOUT

If all Somers and Ellington did was play each other in girls lacrosse it would be an entertaining season. Back on May 11, Ellington defeated Somers 13-12 behind the excellent work of Julie Gage, who scored seven goals. This week, Somers got its revenge. The Spartans beat Ellington 16-13 behind the work of Elizabeth Poitras, who scored six goals and Karen Trescott, who scored three goals and had two assists.

Gage actually outdid herself in this game. She scored eight goals and had three assists but it wasn’t enough.

Neither team seems destined for the state tournament. Somers is 3-11 and Ellington is 4-9 but when they play each other it’s worth seeing… One area lacrosse team that will be around for the tournament is Windsor (10-4), which is ranked 8th in Class M, after wins over Berlin and Capitol Prep. The Warriors attack is led by Meagan Self, Katie Wenner and Rachel Dowgewicz and gains experience from seniors Kathryn Zeugner, Jamie Wakefield, Devonne Petgrave, Katrina Zawasky and Nicole Hughey, among others.

Tennis and rain are not usually compatible but somehow they managed to find a way to play some matches this week. Fermi (3-9) got a win on Friday as Faye Kornigsmark led the way.

Tolland has a busy week with four matches on successive days starting with Berlin on Monday and concluding with Fermi on Thursday. The Eagles are in the middle of the pack in terms of seeding for the Class M tournament.

A good week could move them ahead and make things easier for Sarah Anischik, Katie Rhodes, Jessi Rhodes and company.

One of the matches in the middle for Tolland is against E.O. Smith, which has put together a fine 10-3 record in part because of the depth of quality play from Sabiha Madosualla and Katie Brevnik among others.