Hawks look to run after losing post presence
BEACON FALLS — The Woodland boys basketball team was going through the paces of preseason scrimmages looking forward to making it six straight seasons of qualifying for the state tournament when the Hawks hit a brick wall.
Low post player Eric Beutel, a 6-foot-5 junior, came down awkwardly going for a rebound and broke his leg. The loss was a huge blow for the Hawks’ presence on the boards and in the paint. Head coach Tom Hunt along with assistant coaches Mike Kingsley and Steve Croce went back to the drawing board to devise a new plan of attack.
“When Eric got injured we lost our only true inside presence,” Hunt said. “As a coaching staff we got together and decided that our best chance would be to create an up-tempo style of play.
“Losing Eric was huge but we knew we had a solid group of seniors who would be able to get us over the hump. Just like everybody that has ever worn the Hawks uniform, we refuse to be outworked and will play the entire 32 minutes.”
That example is quite evident through the first two games of the season. The Hawks have rung up 61 points in the fourth quarter alone and have thrown down 20 three-pointers to make the most out of their offensive opportunities.
“As a coaching staff we have preached that we would win games in the fourth period when teams stop getting out on our shooters. That came to fruition when we outscored the Wolverines 35-17 [in the fourth] to win the season-opener,” Hunt said.
Woodland opened up the season Dec. 17 a little sluggish no doubt missing the presence of Beutel in the paint. Oxford led 42-29 at the half before the Hawks took off.
A 21-15 third period had Woodland trailing by just seven heading into the final period. Then in the last eight minutes of the game the Hawks put on a flurry that staggered Oxford as Woodland poured 35 points through the net to pull out an 85-74 win.
“We were down by 13 points at the break,” Hunt said. “I’m so proud of how hard we worked for the entire 32 minutes and it was that nonstop effort that put this game in the win column.”
Seniors Austyn Brown (33 points, five three-pointers) and Sam Merriman (22 points, four three-pointers) sparked the wild comeback. Sophomore Rich Rousseau (12 points) and senior Kyle Soisson (10 points, two three-pointers) made sure this game landed in the win column. Juniors Jon Scirpo (five points) and Tyler Collodel (three points) each added a three-pointer to account for the long range Hawks attack.
The Hawks had the unfortunate task of taking on the run-and-gun Kennedy Eagles Dec. 19 in the second game of the season and fell by a 99-64 margin.
“We ran into a very good Kennedy team who will be in the upper echelon of the league after starting out beating Holy Cross,” Hunt said. “The score wasn’t indicative of our effort as we went out and played hard right till the final buzzer.”
Kennedy (2-0) held a 10-5 advantage in rebounds in the opening period but raced down the floor like they were at a track meet with every board converting fast break buckets.
Darryl Flowers scored 26 points and pulled down eight rebounds to lead the Eagles with Jaivaun McKnight (18 points) and Don Jarrett (17 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists) keeping Kennedy out in front.
Joe Overby and Guy Massimo battled on the boards for the Hawks (1-1) as Merriman and Brown threw down 19 points each. Rousseau netted 10 points with Scirpo adding four and Jack LaPerriere coming off the bench to hit a three-pointer.
“Brown and Merriman have been great leaders as captains,” Hunt said. “We will continue to play the Woodland Way and leave it all on the court every night.”
Once again it was a fourth-period flurry as the Hawks threw down 26 points in the final eight minutes as they tried to close the gap. Opponents better not be banking on the Hawks to throw in the towel or they just might see a few fourth-period comebacks that will turn the tide.
The Hawks are back in action Dec. 29 when they host Platt Tech before traveling to Wilby on Dec. 30. Woodland won’t be back at it again until after the New Year.
