HK Boys Lacrosse Game Write-Ups

in  a dramatic and championship caliber game, the No.1 seeded Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse team defeated No.2 seeded Valley Regional 11-9, capturing the school’s first ever boys lacrosse Shoreline Conference Championship. HK finished the season a gaudy 13-5, 13-1 in conference.   Despite the Cougars being in control and leading for the entirety of the contest, HK fans would not and could not exhale until the final whistle — given the recent history of the rivalry. For those privileged enough to have witnessed the two regular season contests between these teams, the drama of this latest and final tilt came as no surprise. HK and Valley split during the regular season in two highly competitive and narrowly decided bouts. While the Cougars seemed in control for most of those games as well, each ended in dramatic fashion. One resulting in HK’s only conference loss on the season. In the first game, HK rallied from a two-goal deficit in the fourth quarter to win. In the...

  5/25/2021 The Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse took their first step toward capturing the Shoreline Conference Championship Tuesday evening, defeating North Branford by a score of 9-8. The game was attended by a raucous and supportive contingent of Cougar fans. For those spectators who appreciate competitive, exciting, and heart pounding lacrosse, the game did not disappoint. Sales for antacid tablets likely spiked at the local Nutmeg pharmacy in the hours after the contest. The first quarter was a back-and-forth affair, with both sides creating scoring opportunities, but neither able to close the deal. Finally, late in the first period, attack Nolan Braren broke the seal with a smooth dodge and dink from X, giving HK the early 1-0 lead. At the start of the second quarter, middie Cooper Savoy broke free over the middle, spinning and dodging two d-poles to bang one in from the top left, giving HK a two-goal advantage. Attack Ryder Wink then dished to a cutting Aiden Colem...

  NOTE: THERE WILL BE NO SUMMARY FOR THE ST PAUL GAME. THIS IS THE LAST OF THE REGULAR SEASON. LOOKING FORWARD TO TONIGHT!! 5/22/21 Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse closed out their regular conference season on Saturday with a 14-3 win over Lyme Old Lyme. With the win the Cougars finished the 2021 regular season with an overall record of 11-5, 11-1 in conference. This is the best regular season record and finish in the history of the HK boys lacrosse program. Given the success on the season it is no surprise that the team was well represented at this year’s Shoreline conference awards for boys lacrosse. Head coach Lauren Braren was recognized as Coach of the Year, and middie Cal Braren was named Shoreline Conference Player of the Year. In addition, middie Cal Braren, attack Aiden Coleman, LSM Jack Insalaco, and d-pole Matteo Piacenti were all named First-Team All-Conference. Middie Cooper Savoy and Dan LaRosa were named Second-Team All-Conference. Well-deserved accolades f...

  5/20/21 Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse went on the road Thursday evening to beat Cromwell in convincing fashion, 17-1. The Cougars are now 9-4 on the season, 9-1 in the Shoreline Conference. Given the lopsided victory, HK Coach Lauren Braren was able to go a little deeper into the bench, giving some of the younger players valuable playing time. Attack Tyler Gagliardi, Middie Aron McLeod, and D-Poles Niel Scheppach and Nathan Kelly all saw quality minutes. Both McLeod and Gagliardi notched their first goals of the season. Cromwell struck first in the game, taking a 1-0 advantage. The Cougars seemed a little flat on offense in the beginning, taking some time to find their flow. Midway through the first quarter middie Cooper Savoy equalized with a side-arm 15 yards in front of the cage. From that point forward HK rolled. On the next possession middie Cal Braren found Ryder Wink who bounced one in for the 2-1 lead. In the second quarter Wink returned the favor, finding C. ...

  Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse lost a difficult game Wednesday night against out-of-conference foe Trumbull Eagles, 18-8. The Cougars are now 8-4, 8-1 in conference. The HK team should be proud of their efforts against a much deeper squad. The Trumbull team is ranked 25th in the state of Connecticut. Scoring summary: Goals: Attack Ryder Wink 2, Attack Nolan Braren 2, Attack Aiden Coleman 1. Middie Cooper Savoy 2. Assists: Coleman 1, Cal Braren 4, Daniel Larossa 1, Alex Phipps 2. Saves: Braden Civiello 2, Ethan Wright 3.

  In a game that was never close, the Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse team rolled over Old Saybrook Tuesday night, winning 16-3. The victory pushed the HK record to 9-3 on the season. In addition to the offensive fireworks, the Cougars demonstrated solid defense as well, holding the Rams scoreless until the fourth quarter. The convincing victory coincided with the team’s celebration of Senior Night, where those players who will be graduating at the end of the season were honored on the field. These are: #38 Team Captain Aiden Coleman. Aiden was escorted by his mother Nancy and father Dan. Aiden will be attending the United States Merchant Marine Academy this fall where he plans to study Marine Engineering. Aiden will also be playing lacrosse. His favorite HK lacrosse memory is beating Morgan in the state playoff’s his sophomore year. His advice for the younger teammates is to “work hard and enjoy it, time flies and it will be over faster than you think.” #40 Team Captain ...

 Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse lost a heartbreaker Saturday afternoon in an out-of-conference game against the RHAM Raptors, 7-6. The Cougars led for most of the game, taking a 6-2 advantage into the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, a questionable illegal stick penalty was called against the Cougars, giving RHAM a two-minute locked-in man-up advantage. During the penalty time the Raptors were able to score three goals, significantly turning momentum in their favor. The HK squad, on their heels and gassed on defense, was unable to recover. The loss dropped the Cougar record to 8-3, 8-1 in conference. Of note, HK was penalized nine times in this game, more than any other time this season, and by a significant margin. This was unusual. In addition, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty called on a Cougar player was assessed incorrectly, as it was a RHAM player who committed the infraction. 

Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse got back in the win column Thursday evening with a 12-6 victory over conference foe North Branford. The Cougars are now 8-2 on the season.   It was a sloppy first quarter for both teams, with lazy passes leading to unforced turnovers. North Branford scored early with two quick strikes to take a 2-0 lead. HK responded when middie Aidan Coleman dropped one in on the doorstep, assisted by attack Ryder Wink.  Soon after Coleman scored again to tie it 2-2 during an HK man-up situation.   On the next possession middie Cory Phipps found middie Cooper Savoy slicing down the lane for the pretty one-timer, giving the Cougars their first lead of the night, 3-2. North Branford responded with a shot in front to tie it again, 3-3.   The Cougars used some good ball movement late in the second quarter to gain the advantage again, 4-3. Coleman fed middie Cal Braren up top for a lightning shot that found the top right corner of the cage. ...

  Sometimes the sequel is even more dramatic than the original. While the first game between conference rivals Valley Regional and Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse was exciting, Tuesday night’s second game was a heartstopper. Trailing by two goals late in the fourth quarter, the visiting Cougars staged yet another dramatic rally, tying the game with literally seconds left on the clock. Unfortunately for HK, however, the magical comeback bid stalled in sudden death overtime. The Warriors won the faceoff and scored quickly on a fast break. Final score, Valley 12, HK 11. This was the first conference loss for the Cougars, and their second overall. They are now 7-2 on the season.     Before the game started a moment of silence was held in honor of Boone Miller. Both teams wore a special decal on their helmets in honor of Boone, a young man who tragically passed away earlier in the year. Boone was a friend and former youth lacrosse teammate to players from both s...

HK-EAST CATHOLIC GAME WRITE UP final score: 13-7 east catholic HK's record after game: 7-1   Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse suffered their first loss of the season Monday night, falling 13-7 to out-of-conference foe East Catholic. Unfortunately, the final score does not do justice to the competitiveness of this contest.  The Cougars went toe-to-toe with their opponents for most of the game. It was not until late in the fourth quarter, when fatigue appeared to become HK’s biggest nemesis, that East Catholic was able to secure the win.   Perhaps there are no such things as moral victories in sports. Perhaps. For those who watched this contest, however, it certainly appeared as though the HK Cougars may have come away with one. This was a very good East Catholic team. They came into the game with a record of 7-2, having lost only to Xavier by one goal and Hamden Hall by two. They had dominated most of the other schools they had faced, many from much larger school ...

 VALLEY-HK GAME WRITE UP 5-8-21 written by Michael Kelly In what was perhaps the most dramatic and exciting game of the season, Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse rallied from two goals down in the fourth quarter to beat conference foe Valley Regional, keeping their undefeated record intact. The Cougars are now 7-0 on the season. The game was a rollercoaster affair, with both teams trading momentum and leads throughout. HK got the scoring started midway through the first quarter, as Senior Middie Cal Braren rolled right 12 yards in front of the crease and buried a shot, putting the Cougars up 1-0. Shortly thereafter Braren struck again with a heater to the bottom right corner, giving HK a two-goal advantage. An ill-fated turnover by the Cougars on their side of the field resulted in Valley’s first score, ending the quarter 2-1. Six minutes into the second quarter, Senior Middie Aiden Coleman, directing traffic from behind the cage, fed cutting Sophomore Attack Cory Phipps fo...

 HK VS MORGAN boys lacrosse game write up 5-6-2021 final score: 11-6 HK HK's record after game: 6-0 summary written by Michael Kelly On Thursday night the Haddam Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse team traveled to conference foe Morgan School and notched their sixth victory of the year, defeating the Huskies 11-6. The Cougars are now 6-0, matching their best start to a season in 10 years. This was the Cougars second victory over Morgan this season, having defeated them 10-4 on April 13th at home. While the victory was decisive in the end, for long periods the game was closer than the final score would indicate. At halftime Morgan led 3-2. It was not until late in the fourth quarter that HK finally put the game away. Morgan scored first with a goal early in the first quarter, but HK responded quickly. Senior Attack Ryder Wink curled deftly from X on an inside roll to find the back of the cage. On the next possession HK went up 2-1, when Wink dropped a dime to Senior Midfielder Aiden...

 HK VS OLD LYME 5-4-21 game summary final score: 12-5 HK's record after game: 5-0 Summary written by Michael Kelly Haddam-Killingworth Boys Varsity Lacrosse scored a significant win Tuesday evening against Shoreline Conference rival Old Lyme, winning 12 to 5. With the win the Cougars moved to 5-0 and remain undefeated on the season. Strong defense, efficient scoring and hustle plays on both sides of the ball defined the victory for HK, reflecting a true team effort. The Cougars also dominated at the faceoff X, winning 70% of its draws. Goalie Ethan Wright had three saves. The Cougars took the lead early with three unanswered goals, two by Sophomore Attack Corey Phipps, and one by Senior Attack Ryder Wink with an assist from Senior Midfield Cal Braren. Old Lyme was able to slow the Cougar charge somewhat early in the second quarter, scoring two unanswered goals to close the gap to one goal. HK quickly responded, however, gaining control of the match with three consecutive scores to ...