Pictured: After Middletown’s Abby Johnson (right) scored the tying goal in Friday’s CCC South match against Plainville, teammate Victoria Diakomanolis (8) is the first teammate to rush to her in celebration. (Photo by Paul Augeri)
Bella Latina’s crossing pass from the right side found the foot of Abby Johnson, who converted from 20 yards in the 60th minute to help Middletown rally to a 1-1 tie against Plainville on Friday at Rosek-Skubel Stadium.
Middletown played the final 17:53 of the CCC South match with 10 players. Goalkeeper Layla Pini was sent off after handling a shot outside the box.
But the Blue Dragons answered the challenge with good defense down the stretch. A minute after losing Pini, substitute Tessa Labbadia batted away a shot that would have given Plainville (5-5-2) the lead.
“They knew that we needed a result today,” Middletown coach Rachel Lemke said. “If it was a W, or if it was a tie, they knew what was on the line.”
Plainville grabbed the lead with 7:38 left in the first half on a goal by Julia Carlina, who was assisted by Marissa Miller.
Cromwell 4, Hale-Ray 0
Highlights: Riley Arsenault scored 2 goals and Cameryn Hickey and April LeBlanc also tallied to lead Cromwell (7-0-5) to a Shoreline Conference win over Hale-Ray. Hickey had 3 assists and Panthers keeper Lily Kenney had 5 saves in the shutout. Caroline Bonadies had 10 saves for the Noises (1-10-0).
Next Match: Cromwell at Bolton, Monday, 3:45; Hale-Ray hosts Westbrook, Monday, 4.
Boys Soccer
Xavier 1, Notre Dame-West Haven 1
Highlights: Brady Stevenson was assisted by Jack Polke for their Falcons’ only score in their SCC showdown at Larry McHugh Field. Xavier keeper Spencer Misenti had 5 saves, while the Green Knights’ Zack Benson finished with 10. Xavier is 9-0-2, Notre Dame is 6-2-3. “Notre Dame came out ready to play and we didn’t match their intensity until the final 20 minutes,” Falcons coach Brian Fitzgerald said. “We need to play with more urgency now that we are down to our last five games.”
Next Match: Xavier at Amity, Monday, 3:45.
Morgan 1, East Hampton 0
Highlights: Alex Gallardo scored in the 29th minute from a feed by Griffin Ranaudo as the Huskies won at Indian River Complex. Morgan improves to 10-2-1. Keeper Bailey Goss had 4 saves for the Huskies. Drew Distefano had 7 saves for the Bellringers, who were outshot 13-5.
Next Match: Morgan hosts H-K, Tuesday, 6:30; East Hampton (5-5-1) hosts Portland, Tuesday, 6.
Old Lyme 1, Hale-Ray 0
Highlights: David Evers’ goal in the 71st minute, off an assist from Mason Bussman, gave the Wildcats their margin of victory in Moodus.
Next Match: Old Lyme (4-8-0) hosts Valley Regional, Tuesday, 3:45; Hale-Ray (4-6-0) at Westbrook, Tuesday, 3:45.
Volleyball
Old Lyme 3, Cromwell 0 (25-10, 25-13, 25-4)
Highlights: For the Wildcats, Whitney Barbour had 4 aces and 15 service points, while Maggie Curtis had 3 kills.
Next Match: Old Lyme (9-6, 8-6 Shoreline) hosts East Hampton, Monday; Cromwell (0-14) hosts Valley Regional, Monday, 4.
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Bristol Eastern 3, Middletown 0 (25-13, 25-13, 25-9)
Highlights: For Middletown, Nicole Koval had 4 aces and Tori Minor had 4 digs.
Next Match: Middletown (1-11) at Platt, Monday, 6.