Montville girls share ECC Division IV basketball title with Putnam

Montville — Lauren Velazquez scored 19 points as Montville earned a share of the Eastern Connecticut Conference Division IV girls' basketball championship on Monday night with a 46-32 victory over Tourtellotte.

The Indians (12-8 overall) finished 7-1 in the division and shared the title with Putnam. Montville and Putnam split a pair of regular-season meetings.

It was the first ECC divisional title for Montville since 2001.

Maya Hillman added eight points, 15 rebounds and seven steals for the Indians while Kara Beaupre finished with eight points, five assists and five steals. In other games:

• Tai Pagan had 15 points and 11 rebounds as No. 2 New London completed its regular season with a 55-36 victory over East Lyme in ECC Division I. Joniyah Bland-Fitzpatrick added 14 points and seven assists for the Whalers (18-2, 6-0) while Spencer Roman finished with 11 points and four assists, Xaryia Melendez had 10 points and seven rebounds and Jayden Burns had six assists. Sophie Dubreuil scored 14 points for the Vikings (12-8, 2-4).

• Waterford qualified for the Class L state tournament with a 58-50 win over Ledyard in an ECC Division II game. The Lancers (8-12, 4-4), who finished the regular season with three straight wins, were led by Julianna Bonilla's game-high 22 points, including four 3-pointers. Samantha Money scored 18 points to lead the Colonels (6-14, 1-7) while Tajean Winston added 10 points and seven rebounds, and Katie Krupinsky and Jade Langworthy each added 10 points.

• Norwich Free Academy vaulted out to a 19-5 lead after one quarter and rolled past Woodstock Academy 60-35 in an ECC Division I game. Sarah Ericson and Carsen Keith scored 13 points apiece for the Wildcats (10-10, 3-3) with Ericson making three 3-pointers while Riley Ellington added 10 points.

• St. Bernard ended its regular season with a 50-29 ECC Division IV loss to Putnam. Taryn Bellinger scored 12 points for the Saints (7-13, 2-6) while Lindsey Clement added 11 and Amber Caldwell had 13 rebounds.

• Old Lyme cruised to a 52-9 win over Hale-Ray in the Shoreline Conference. Grace Lathrop scored nine points and Emily DeRoehn eight for the Wildcats (14-5, 10-5).

• Samarie Delgado scores seven points as Grasso Tech won its second game with a 20-12 win over Metro Learning Center. The Eagles are 2-17.

• MacDuffie outlasted Williams School 51-39 despite 16 points by Olivia Kaplan, including a pair of 3-pointers. Anna Mae Saunders added 11 points and Mary Surprenant 10 for the Blues (5-9).

Boys' basketball

• JoJo Beltran scored 17 points and went 6-for-6 from the foul line in the fourth quarter as St. Bernard held off New London 51-46. The Saints (15-3) went 13-for-14 from the line in the final eight minutes, including 4-for-4 by DeAndre Williams, who finished with 10 points. Tayeshawn Cunningham-Pemberton scored a game-high 27 points for the Whalers (7-11).

• Kiev Lucas scored 14 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, as Fitch outlasted Ledyard 51-49. Ajia Brown also had a pair of 3-pointers and finished with 12 points for the Falcons (10-7) while Ken Turner led the Colonels (7-10) with 16 points, Seamus McGrath added 14 and Syncere Gray 11.

• Aeden Using had 21 points and 11 rebounds as Old Lyme cruised to a 66-47 victory over Hale-Ray in the Shoreline Conference. Quinn Romeo added 16 points and six steals for the Wildcats (15-1, 13-0) while Connor Hogan finished with 12 points.

• Scott Pion scored a game-high 20 points to highlight Wheeler's 52-41 win over Norwich Tech. Bowen Baker added 14 rebounds and eight assists for the Lions (5-12) while Michael Warren finished with 11 points.

• Metro Learning edged Grasso Tech 60-58 in overtime. Silus Wiggins scored 20 points to lead the Eagles (5-14) while Jacob Cortes added 12 points and Luis Doran finished with 11.

• Zain Alam scored a game-high 33 points as Williams defeated Oxford Academy 52-39 at home. Nick Bonner added 11 points for the Blues.

Men's basketball

• Holyoke Community College rallied to defeat UConn Avery Point 73-70. Mitchell Holdmeyer led the Pointers (9-18) with 14 points and eight rebounds while Trevor Yeomans added 12 ponts, JR Gandenberger and Maloyid Perkins each had 11 and John Domijan had 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Schedule changes

• Tuesday's forecast calling for a wintry mix of snow, sleet and rain has forced the postponement of several events, including An Evening with Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi at Mohegan Sun Arena. The event, Connecticut Sun officials said in a release, will be rescheduled for a later date.

In addition, three high school boys' basketball games were moved from Tuesday to Wednesday: Williams at St. Thomas More, 4 p.m.; NFA at Bacon Academy, 7 p.m.; and Stonington at Montville, 7 p.m.

College honors

• Connecticut College goalie Bailey Mertz was named New England Small College Athletic Conference Player of the Week in women's hockey. The senior did not allow a goal in two games at Bowdoin, stopping all 57 shots she faced as the Camels won 1-0 and tied 0-0.