Woodland boys fall short against Ansonia

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BEACON FALLS — In a make-up of last week’s snowed-out contest between Ansonia and Woodland, the Chargers (7-4, 4-2 NVL Brass) downed the Hawks (6-5, 3-2 NVL Brass) Monday night, 65-56, at Woodland.

The Chargers jumped out to a 10-6 lead halfway through the first quarter on senior Christian Abdul’s second three-pointer of the game, and never trailed in the game.

After the two teams traded baskets, Woodland sophomore Rahmi Rountree sank a layup to cut it to a 12-10 deficit with 1:57 to play in the quarter.

That was the closest the Hawks would come the rest of the night, as Ansonia senior Keyshawn Graham drained a three on the Chargers’ final possession of the frame, propelling a 9-0 run that overlapped into the second quarter, aided by three of Woodland’s seven first-half turnovers and some strong work on Ansonia’s offensive glass by junior Jake LaRovera and senior Tarell Vargas.

The Hawks cut the deficit to 28-19 heading into the locker room after Woodland junior Dan Giacomazzi was fouled on a layup, and added the free throw.
Woodland junior Ryan Angeloszek hit a three-pointer to cut the deficit to 28-22 just 12 seconds into the second half.

A pair of baskets by senior Yahmad Rountree, sandwiched around two free throws from freshman Tanner Kingsley, gave the Hawks a 6-0 run in the final 1:32 of the frame, and some momentum heading into the fourth down by six.

After a layup from Ansonia senior Reggie Finney on the opening play of the fourth quarter, two more baskets from Yahmad Rountree cut the deficit to 43-39 for Woodland after coach Tom Hunt pressed the Chargers to force a pair of turnovers.

The four-point deficit was the closest the Hawks had been since the 1:57 mark of the first quarter.

But, the Chargers answered with an 8-0 run to extend the lead to 51-39 with 4:03 to play. The lead ballooned to 13, and after the two teams traded baskets, Rahmi Rountree hit a three from the top of the arc off an inbound with 1:19 to play, making the score 58-48. The Chargers would then ice the game from the line, leaving Beacon Falls with the 65-56 victory.

Hunt was disappointed with the letdown performance in the key Naugatuck Valley League Brass Division contest and said that Ansonia “didn’t get our ‘A’ game tonight.”

“We came out flat tonight,” Hunt said. “The result would have been different if we gave them our ‘A’ game.”

The Hawks rebounded Tuesday by cruising to a 64-49 win in Wolcott. Woodland led 19-5 after the first and 39-15 into the half en route to only its second division win in over a month.

Yahmad Rountree led all scorers with 22 points while Ryan Angeloszek added 14, including four 3-pointers, and Rahmi Rountree tacked on 11.

Woodland is 7-5 overall and 4-2 in the NVL Brass, trailing division-leader Watertown (8-4, 6-1) and St. Paul (10-3, 5-2). The Hawks have a crucial test Friday when they host the Indians at 7 p.m.