Wrestling- Finishing the season with a record of 16-10, Coach Chris Gamble says that his favorite meet of the season was an away meet at Ledyard High School on January 31. The meet was expected to come down to the last match of the night to decide the winner, and it did. The Lancers lost the first 6 out of the 7 matches, but the coaches decided to switch the line up in order to pull out a win. Getting a win against Ledyard was special for Coach Gamble, given the fact that he is a Ledyard alumni.
The biggest struggle for the team this season was losing their wrestling room and being moved to the old weight room. It is a smaller space, with four pillars in the middle of the room. The smaller space along with the bigger team this year made for a challenging season.
Gamble had a few distinct goals for the team at the beginning of the season, for everyone to improve week to week and to place better at ECC and Class S tournaments. The team had a Class S state champion in the 150 pound weight class, Lucas Gannotti, the first Lancer wrestling state champion since 2018. Coach Gamble is proud of how his new wrestlers worked hard and listened to their coaches, which led to the overall progress and success of the team.
Indoor Track- Head coach Jay Criscuolo was pleased with the indoor track and field team’s performance this season. His favorite meets were the ECC and Class M Championships.
Developing throwers for the team was one of the struggles of the season, with there only being two main throwers for the team. The season went how Coach Criscuolo had hoped it would, with an all-state athlete, state qualifying relays, and several school records broken in the 600m, 1600m, 4×400 relay, and pentathlon. Another highlight of the season was a first and second place finisher at the Class M championships. The team improved well throughout the season, and peaked at the perfect time for ECCs, States and State Opens.
Boys Swim and Dive- Captain Alex Startz says the teams favorite meet of th e season was the ECC Invitational, with Ethan Jones ending up as ECC champion for diving.
New coaching, as well as getting used to working together were a few challenges for the team. Startz is proud of how the team performed this season, and a highlight of the season was the senior meet. The team had everyone drop time throughout the season, and had three Class L qualifiers: Alex Startz, Ethan Jones, and Niko Vajdos.
Competitive Cheerleading- Captain Rebecca Roarke says the favorite, but most nerve-racking competition was ECCs, which was also the most rewarding and the highlight of the season. The Lancers won 1st place in Division 2, making it their 6th year in a row.
The biggest struggle for the season was sickness and absence, if one person is missing, the whole team is affected. Roarke says she had hoped the team would hit their stunts more consistently, but overall the team had a great season. The team had great progression, and girls with little experience were able to perform elite skills.
Boys Basketball- Despite being some of the closest wins and losses, Coach Bill Bassett says his favorite games to coach were against Fitch, NFA, and Woodstock because the team came together and fought for victory. Coach Bassett has seen great progression throughout the season, and says that the team definitely performs better now than at the beginning of the season. It is often difficult to figure out how all the new players work together, but the Lancers were able to win the ECC Division 2 title.
Fencing- Captain Kyijong Tenzin says her favorite competition was the Inigo Montoya Novice Tournament, and Captain Aidan DuPont and Coach Hugh Teel say their favorite competition was ECCs. The team struggled with staying competitive, which was affected by many members of the team getting Covid and other illnesses. The team progressed well over the course of the season, and the novice fencers performed exceptionally. The team was able to finish 1st place in Division 1 men’s epee, women’s epee, and women’s foil.
Girls Basketball- Captains Cate and Emma Smathers agree the home game against Ledyard was their favorite of the season, with a score of 59-50.
The young team struggled this season, with only three upperclassmen. It was also hard at times for the team to come back from tough losses and keep high spirits. The team had a goal to compete in the ECC and state tournaments, which were both reached, and they did better than last season.
Another highlight of the season was beating the rival school, East Lyme, three times in a row. The team grew as the season progressed, gaining a new player a quarter of the way through the season. It took lots of adjustments, but eventually everyone was able to understand their roles on the court and work well together for an overall great season.
Unified Sports- Coach Brett Arnold says all games of the season are different and fun, but the ECC game is usually the best of the season. A struggle for the team has been incorporating all three sports seasons into Unified. The team has many student helpers already, but the team is always looking for more help. The team performed exactly how Coach Arnold had hoped, and he wanted to give a big Lancer shout out to all the paras and student helpers. The highlights of the season were seeing the friendship development throughout the team, as well as senior day for Alivia and Dareen.
