Running up the score isn't part of the game plan
By GERRY deSIMAS, JR.
Collinsville Press.com
CANTON, Jan. 25 – It’s not a problem that the Canton High boys basketball typically deals with – running up the score. In the wake of a Texas high school girls basketball team beating another team 100-0 earlier this week, questions have been raised on how stronger teams can manage the score.
Canton has a pair of 56-point victories this year. The Warriors (9-0, 4-0 NCCC) beat Portland by 56 points in December and added another 56-point victory with an 81-25 victory over winless East Windsor on Friday. Canton had a 43-6 lead at halftime against East Windsor.
“Once we get up by 20 and if I can tell (the opposition) isn’t that good, I’ll take off the full court press,” Canton coach Eric Deegan said. He said his response depends on the opposition. Canton had a 22-point lead on Tolland earlier this year and the Eagles rallied to force overtime before Canton eventually prevailed, 77-74.
With a big lead, Deegan substitutes freely and lets his athletes play. “We won’t full court press, run a trapping defense or any special plays,” Deegan said. In the waning minutes of Friday’s game, the Warriors were holding the ball against East Windsor but the Panther coaching staff asked Canton to put the ball back into play.
Deegan and the Warriors are looking forward to more competitive games. They face undefeated Windsor Locks (11-0, 5-0 NCCC) on Tuesday in Canton. “We’re going to have our hands full,” Deegan said. “But the kids are really looking forward to it.”
Canton beat Bolton in a competitive game on Saturday, 64-57, with 24 points from Andrew Crowley, including four 3-point shots. Chris Robitalle added 20 points and seven blocks.
“We got by eight or 10 early and we had a chance to extend the lead,” Deegan said. “But we let them back and it was a battle. We had some defensive breakdowns and they were a quick team.” The Warriors got into foul trouble but were able to pull out the victory with James Rosshirt scoring a key 10 points.
Against East Windsor, Connor Smyth had 15 points while Crowley led the way with 16. Last Tuesday, Canton rolled to a 78-46 win over East Granby. Robitaille had 22 points and 14 rebounds while Smyth added 11 points, 12 rebounds and six blocks.
Canton’s 9-0 start is the second 9-0 start in school history. The Warriors began the 1963 season with a 12-0 mark. And the 56-point win isn’t a school record. Canton beat Bacon Academy in 1955 by a 66-point margin, 91-25.
The Warriors have also been on the other side of lopsided contests. They lost by 80 points in a game in 1921 to Simsbury, lost by 74 points to Wolcott Tech in 1961 and were 66 points behind E.O. Smith in a 1990 loss.
Indoor track
League meet is Wednesday
CANTON, Jan. 25 – Over 50 athletes will compete Wednesday for Canton at the NCCC championship meet at Hillhouse High in New Haven. “This is it for the league,” Canton coach Tim O’Donnell said. “In basketball, you have 20 games. We have one meet. It’s the one sport where all of your eggs are in one basket.”
Tolland, Suffield and Ellington are the three traditional track powers in the league but the Warriors hope to turn in a respectable showing for such a young team.
On Thursday, four more athletes qualified for the Class S championship during a developmental meet in Glastonbury. Colin Glasson qualified in the shot with a throw of 41 feet and nine inches, Ryan Gallagher qualified with a time of 7.0 seconds in the 55 meters and Brian Magna qualified in the 300 meters with a time of 41 seconds.
Rachel Schwartzmann qualified for the shot put in Class S by snapping her own school record for the second time this season with a throw of 28 feet, 4 inches. She threw 27 feet, 7.75 feet at the Haddam Killingworth Invitational earlier this month.
Canton has 12 girls and 15 boys who have earned qualifying times for the Class S meet and O’Donnell hopes a few more can qualify at the NCCC meet.
Girls basketball
Canton earns 10th victory
CANTON, Jan. 25 – For the first time since 2004, Canton has won at least 10 games in the regular season. The Warriors (10-2, 5-2 NCCC) won a pair of games last week with victories over East Granby, 50-39 and East Windsor, 33-19.
Canton picked up the defensive intensity against the Panthers taking a 21-10 halftime lead. Sarah Benedetti scored 18 points to lead Canton while Megan Roux added eight. Earlier in the week, Roux had 15 points in the win over East Granby while Sarah Getz added 13.
White takes 3rd at Eagle Classic
By GERRY deSIMAS, JR.
Collinsville Press
MANCHESTER, Jan. 24 – Matt White went 3-1 to finish third at 103 pounds and highlight Canton’s top 10 finish at the 15th annual Eagle Classic tournament at East Catholic. White beat Berlin’s Don Cirullo twice in the tournament, earning a 13-4 decision in the quarterfinals and a 8-3 decision in the consolation final.
White lost to eventual champion Tyler Keane of Glastonbury in the semifinals, 12-0. White also beat South Windsor’s Hunter Rich by tech fall.
Canton's Nate Getler (135) dropped his first match of the year in a 6-5 semifinal loss to Berlin’s Roger Moss, who caught Getler in a cradle and took a 5-0 lead in the first period. In the second period, Getler had a pair of takedowns and an escape to cut the lead to 6-5. But Moss was able to ride out Getler in the third period.
Getler pinned East Windsor’s Mike Musanti in 1:09 and beat Newington’s Kyle Nunez, 6-3 in the quarterfinals.
Brandon Leach (140) won a pair of matches including one by pin in 14 seconds before dropping a 14-5 semifinal decision to eventual champion Justin Roncioli of Berlin. No other Canton wrestler won more than one match. Steven Carpenter (119) missed the tournament after getting hurt during gym class earlier in the week.
Canton finished 10th in the tournament – its best finish since taking fifth in 2002.
