Pictured: Coginchaug’s Todd Salva (center) and the Blue Devils, who presented their coach with a commemorative ball after his final home game Tuesday night. (All Photos by Jennifer Penney)
Tuesday night’s Shoreline Conference boys basketball game between Old Saybrook and Coginchaug had special significance for both squads.
The Rams defeated the Blue Devils 55-44 to clinch a 14-6 season and the No. 3 seed in the Shoreline tournament, which begins Saturday with quarterfinal games. Old Saybrook will host No. 6 Portland.
For host Coginchaug, and on Senior Night, the evening marked the final home game for Todd Salva, who is retiring after 31 seasons as coach. The occasion came with a proclamation and visits from former players. Salva’s final game comes Wednesday when the Blue Devils visit Hale-Ray.
Aaron Tolve led all scorers with 26 points and Ryan Stratton finished with 18. The Rams won 9 of 11 and 5 of their last 6 to end the regular season to guarantee themselves of a high seed.
“Winning five of six just shows that when guys step up, good things happen,” Old Saybrook coach Chris Perras said. “It takes a lot of guys being great teammates, keeping things loose and maintaining focus. And we’ve had a couple of injuries, and whenever I turn to the bench, they come in and give us quality minutes and that put us in a position to win.”
Cromwell is the top seed entering the Shoreline tourney and defending champion Morgan is second. East Hampton lines up as the 4 seed with a win Wednesday over Valley Regional, with Hale-Ray at 5, Portland at 6, Valley at 7 and Old Lyme at 8.
Perras said the third seed is special for his squad.
“There isn’t one team in this tournament that anyone can take lightly,” he said. “On any given night, anyone can win. So to be in the top half of the standings, the next team below the two giants, being in the small division (of the SLC) in the regular season, is a huge accomplishment for our guys and our coaching staff.
“But as good as it feels, it’s over. Now we get to start a new season on Saturday.”
OLD SAYBROOK (14-6)
Jake Butler 0 0-1 0, Riley Lawson 2 3-6 7, Ryan Stratton 7 4-9 18, Aaron Tolve 7 9-10 26, Bradley Kulmann 0 0-0 0, Adjin Cecunjanin 1 0-0 2, Brayden Cody 0 2-4 2. Totals: 17 18-30 55.
COGINCHAUG (3-16)
Sam Whittle 1 0-0 2, Connor Willett 2 3-5 7, Mekhi Watson 0 0-2 0, Colin Murphy 2 0-0 4, Jayson Penney 4 5-9 15, Adam Schaffer 1 0-0 2, Francesco Marrota 2 2-2 7, Jeremy Mangiameli 3 0-0 7. Totals: 15 10-18 44.
Score By Quarters
Old Saybrook…13 15 13 14–55
Coginchaug…….0 22 11 11–44
3-pointers: Old Saybrook–Tolve 3; Coginchaug–Penney 2, Mangiameli 1, Marrota 1.
In other boys basketball games Tuesday:
Portland 70, Old Lyme 46
The Highlanders secured the No. 6 seed in the Shoreline tournament with their road rout of the Wildcats.
Eli Evison led all scorers with 22 points as Portland finished the regular season with an 11-9 record, winning 3 of its final 4 games. The Highlanders have battled through the loss of senior guard Evan Johnson to a knee injury for the remainder of their season.
“The boys have never looked better,” coach David Bradbury Jr. said after the Highlanders’ win. “Losing Evan has been tough, but the boys responded tremendously to finish the season strong. Over a 20-game season we’ve never looked better going into a Shoreline tournament.”
PORTLAND (11-9)
Joe Rusczyk 4 0-0 8, Harrison Collins 8 7-7 24, Jake Thompson 3 2-2 10, Ben Fecteau 0 1-2 1, Eli Evison 8 2-3 22, Teddy Williams 1 0-0 3, Aidan Peterson 0 2-2 2. Totals: 24 14-16 70.
OLD LYME (8-12)
John Almy 3 0-0 8, Jacob Ritchie 1 0-2 2, Frank Sablone 2 1-2 5, Caden Monte 7 4-7 18, Calvin Monte 1 1-2 3, Mav Swaney 5 0-0 10. Totals: 19 6-13 46.
Score By Quarters
Portland….18 18 14 20–70
Old Lyme..14 11 11 10–46
3-pointers: Portland–Evison 4, Thompson 2, Collins 1, Williams 1; Old Lyme–Almy 2.
East Hampton 67, SMSA 63
EAST HAMPTON (12-7)
Brady Lynch 6 1 13, Drew DiStefano 1 7 10, Miller Koziel 1 0 2, Jye Lynch 9 0 18, Jack Blakey 3 1 7, Nate Ireland 8 1 17. Totals: 28 10 67.
SMSA (16-4)
King Shaw 8 2 18, Nizayiah Bogar 3 0 7, Abijah Miller 4 0 8, Kemani Thompson 6 2 15, Daniel Hernandez 3 7 13, Tomar Tillman 1 0 2. Totals: 25 11 63.
Score By Quarters
East Hampton..14 14 20 19–67
SMSA……………14 15 20 14–63
3-pointers: East Hampton–DiStefano 1; SMSA–Bogar 1, Thompson 1.
Middletown 66, Lewis Mills 58
MIDDLETOWN (14-6)
Chace Petgrave 7 3-4 19, Matt Steuerwald 0 0-0 0, Tim Vaughters 2 0-0 4, Elijah Wilborn 12 5-10 29, Marshall Butler 3 2-2 8, Drake Dariyon 2 0-3 4, Nasir McDaniel 0 2-2 2. Totals: 26 12-18 66.
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LEWIS MILLS (11-9)
Jon Schibi 1 3-4 6, Charlie Joiner 2 1-4 5, Colby Cables 5 3-3 14, Brice Waldron 9 4-8 23, Connor Evans 2 2-4 7. Totals: 19 13-23 58.
Score By Quarters
Middletown….8 11 19 26–66
Lewis Mills…11 16 19 12–58
3-pointers: Middletown–Petgrave 2; Lewis Mills–Cables 1, Schibi 1, Waldron 1, Evans 1.