Seymour gets back to Class M finals with win over Woodland

SOUTHBURY—Coming off an emotionally and physical draining 5-set win over defending state champion St. Joseph in the Class M quarterfinals, Seymour coach Cathy Federorwicz was worried her team might be a little flat coming into the semifinals against a Woodland team it had already defeated twice this season.

The Wildcats were the opposite.

They came out fired up, locked in and ready to pounce.

No. 1 Seymour jumped on NVL rivals, No. 12 Woodland, right away, never allowing the Hawks to breathe on the way to a 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-13) win in the CIAC Class M semifinals Tuesday night at Pomperaug High School.

Seymour (21-0) will face No. 18 Weston in the championship Saturday at East Haven High School.

“This means everything. I am so happy and so proud of this team. We worked so hard to get here,” Seymour senior captain Alyssa Cosciello said. “After losing in the finals of the NVL, we wanted to so much to get here and I am so happy. Now, we just have to finish it.”

Seymour last won the Class M title in 2016, losing a 5-set heartbreaker to East Haven in last year’s semifinal round.

For Seymour, Faith Rousseau had 14 kills; Kat Kucsera got down for 16 digs; Kolby Sirowich finished off 6 kills and Cathryn Ragaini finished with7 kills.

For Woodland, Steph Krebbs led the way with 9 kills and 6 digs; Alyssa Lukeski had 12 digs and 4 kills and Lexie Chabot finished with 6 kills.

Woodland coach Jim Amato said he was proud of how his team competed but Seymour is tough to deal with when it is locked in.

“Cathy (Federorwicz) always brings here girls ready to play and tonight was another demonstration of how well she has that team running,” Amato said. “(Woodland) didn’t let up, they stayed together as a team, they kept communicating with each other no matter what was going on. What more could you ask. They didn’t lose, they got beat.”

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Alyssa Cosciello, Seymour. The senior had 26 assists and was seemingly all over the court for the Wildcats.

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“I’m excited, they’re excited. They worked so hard this year and they just keep getting better and better. It is so nice to see how much they enjoy playing,” Federorwicz said. “I was afraid there would be a letdown after because they were so hyped up for St. Joe’s. The to go back and play a team we play a lot, I was afraid they were going to let down. The first two points were a little sluggish but the it started to roll. We have more than just one or two kids who can hit and we are always trying to attack the net.”

Sericson@stamfordadvocate.com; @EricsonSports

SEYMOUR 3, WOODLAND 0

WOODLAND 16 16 13

SEYMOUR 25 25 25

Records: W—17-6 S—21-0