The Lonesome Polecat (state variant): Hall rising and (many) other words
Hall had willingly run the ball through the first three games of the season.
Last Friday, the Warriors decided to commit to it a little more and play a bit slower to help them against then-No. 4 Southington.
Leo Perreira ran 34 times for 131 yards with two touchdowns as Hall shocked the Blue Knights 27-19, its first win over Southington since Oct. 19, 2013.
The Warriors also moved into the Top 10 of The Day's state coaches' poll at No. 5.
Hall ran it 43 times for 144 yards. And while 3.4 yards a carry isn't going to blow anyone away, it is enough to get a first down on four straight runs.
"We definitely wanted to keep the ball out of their hands," Warriors head coach Frank Robinson III said. "Part of the plan was to give them less possessions and slow it down. The offensive line did a great job and adding a tight end was a great move for us. It was definitely different. … The other thing is that we lost our really good receiver, captain William Gaumer, to an injury. That also helped with the decision.
"We don't (generally) go crazy fast, but we generally go faster."
Hall ran 69 plays to 50 for Southington. It was all made possible by seniors Benjamin Brockway (center), Colin Richard (tackle), Gabe Smith (guard) and Tommy LaSpada (tight end) and juniors Max Jewett (guard) and Dan Moleti (tackle).
Thirty-six carries was a season-high for Perreira although he had already been a workhorse. He's rushed 121 times for 607 yards with 12 touchdowns.
"Leo just runs really hard," Robinson said. "He's one of those guys who just wants to get yards. He isn't necessarily looking for the breakaway even though he's done that some. He just understands the position. He gets what he can get and gets right back in the huddle."
The Warriors often found themselves a new starting quarterback in senior Eli Salomons, who completed 18 of 26 passes for 202 yards with a touchdown. His 26 attempts were a season high.
Salomons has completed 71.8 percent of his passes this season (56 of 78) for 748 yards with five touchdowns.
"He's been so efficient with the ball," Robinson said. "He just makes decisions right away and puts the ball on target. We've been more than pleased with Eli and how he's running the offense. We ask our quarterbacks to do a lot. They set the protection. They call the run game."
Junior linebacker Hudson Holland leads Hall with 28 tackles (20 solo), senior linebacker Xavier Rodriguez has 23 tackles (11 solo) and LaSpada has 21 tackles (10 solo).
Southington has had its way with the Warriors the past six seasons as it has been the apex predator in the Central Connecticut Conference's top tier. It outscored Hall by a combined score of 262-68, including two shutouts. So it was a very big deal for the Warriors to take down the Blue Knights.
"They know that Southington is a great team," Robinson said. "They're really well coached. Mike Drury does a great job. Their kids play really hard. So, yeah, our guys were definitely excited. It's a great win."
Hall has a bye this week. It returns in Week 6 and, over a four-week period will play three 3-1 teams — Platt (Oct. 15), at Berlin (Oct. 22) and vs. Maloney (Nov. 5).
• • • •
A few other notable games from Week 4:
Greenwich 14, Fairfield Prep 7
Each team’s defense owned the other but in weird ways.
Then-No. 5 Prep gained more yardage than the then-No. 10 Cardinals (298-220).
The Jesuits defense allowed Greenwich 3.7 yards per play.
The Cardinals won, however, thanks to two big offensive plays and a defense that kept coming up with huge stops.
Prep had first down from the Greenwich 10, 22 and 5-yard line on three separate drives and couldn’t score.
The Cardinals offense, as previously mentioned, had two big plays. They had a third-and-8 at their own 34 when quarterback Jack Wilson was looking to pass before realizing he had a defender looking to clobber him from the backside.
Wilson scrambled away, then cut back down the Greenwich sideline for a 66-yard touchdown.
The Cardinals had third-and-17 at their own 32 with over eight minutes left in third quarter and the game tied at seven.
Wilson threw downfield to Charlie Dixon, who had a step on his defender, hauled in the pass, and took it 68 yards for a touchdown.
Wilson completed 17 of 29 passes for 157 yards and a touchdown for the Cardinals (3-1).
Connor Smith completed 15 of 42 passes for 248 yards and a touchdown for Prep (3-1).
Whoa.
Check it out — Norwalk trailed by three and had a fourth-and-18 from its own 42 with over three minutes left against the then-No. 6 Rams.
The Bears went for it.
And had a backup quarterback, Ryan Gilchrist, who hadn't thrown in a game since his freshman year.
Gilchrist threw a 58-yard touchdown pass to Cam Edwards to give the Bears an 18-15 lead with 3:07 remaining.
Moments later, Mysonne Pollard had a pick six for 26 yards for Norwalk to ice the game. It was his second interception.
The Bears are 4-0 for the first time since 2011.
Edwards had four catches for 95 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 60 yards and a score. He has 13 TDs on the season.
It was a brutal day all-around for Cheshire (3-1). Running back Christian Russo, the Rams' offensive catalyst, was sidelined with an injury. Starting QB Matt Jeffery was knocked out of the game in the first quarter.
What.
Shelton ran over No. 10 Greenwich in Week 3, 35-14, to move to seventh in The Day's poll. Then Trumbull (2-1) did this to the Gaels.
Trumbull’s Corbin Smith caught six passes for 178 yards and two touchdowns and ran seven times for 52 yards and two touchdowns. Hunter Agosti also completed 20 of 28 passes for 354 yards and three touchdowns.
It's worth noting that Shelton rushed 56 times for 332 yards and five touchdowns in its rout of Greenwich.
The Eagles held the Gaels to 189 yards on 52 plays.
(Throws hands up in confusion.)
Ridgefield 10, No. 8 Newtown 7
Justin Keller threw a 47-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Colsey and Ignacio Brian added a 35-yard field goal for the Tigers.
The Nighthawks, meanwhile, couldn’t catch a break. They had penalties wipe out two long touchdowns and had what should’ve been a wide-open touchdown catch bobbled-and-dropped with about two minutes left. Ridgefield had an interception two plays later to ice the game.
Dylan Magazu completed 13 of 29 for 119 yards with a touchdown and interception for the Nighthawks and Andrew Jacobs ran 17 times for 103 yards.
Ethan O’Brien ran 20 times for 203 yards and three touchdowns as the Tigers got their first win of the season.
Seth Sweitzer had four catches for 61 yards and a touchdown, ran for a two-point conversion, had an interception and recovered a fumble for Hand and John Hayden (40 yards) and Sam Sisk (62) also scored on interception returns.
The Tigers’ schedule has been brutal as they opened the season with losses to No. 5 Fairfield Prep (29-17) and No. 3 New Canaan (28-18).
Reese Vanek led the Green Wave’s fourth-quarter comeback in last Friday’s win. His 46-yard touchdown run and John Balzi’s extra point cut New Milford’s deficit to 28-21 early in the fourth. He threw a 30-yard touchdown pass to Zach Lisee with 2:46 remaining and Jayden Alfano ran in the two-point conversion to put the Green Wave ahead for good.
Vanek completed 15 of 19 passes for 185 yards with two touchdowns and ran 16 times for 129 yards. Jeremey Santos added seven catches for 97 yards and a score.
Darnell Bronson threw touchdown passes for 45 and 53 yards to Nick Smith for the Hatters and Jayden Leroy scored on a 95-yard interception return.
Bristol Central 35, Farmington 29
The first thing to know is that UConn-bound Victor Rosa ran 20 times for 323 yards and five touchdowns for Central.
The second thing to know is that Central led 35-6 with over nine minutes left in the game. Then the Riverhawks went wild.
Kevin Ives threw touchdown passes of 50 and 57 yards to Luke Watson as Farmington cut its deficit to 35-22 with 1:21 remaining.
Next, the Riverhawks recovered an onside kick. A personal foul by the Rams helped set up an 11-yard touchdown pass from Ives to Ryan Parker with 48 seconds remaining. Adam Maselek’s kick cut the deficit to six.
Central’s Nik Salinas secured the ball and the game as the Riverhawks tried another onside kick.
Ives was 19 of 35 for 224 yards with four touchdowns and an interception for Farmington. Watson had four catches for a school-record 188 yards with two touchdowns and ran six times for 30 yards.
Kenny McMillan ran for a go-ahead 4-yard touchdown with over a minute left for the Spartans. He finished with two touchdown runs and had a sack on the final play of the game at midfield.
Angel Arce threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Tylee Flowers and scored on a 33-yard run for Maloney.
Darrion Williams completed 9 of 14 passes for 82 yards with a touchdown and interception and ran 18 times for 69 yards and a score, Jayden Fields had nine catches for 102 yards and a TD and Nate Evans had four catches for 77 yards and a score for the Hornets.
Newington 56, Middletown 34
Middletown led 22-6 after the first quarter.
Newington then rattled off seven touchdowns, including four in the second quarter.
Padraig Brown completed 18 of 30 passes for 331 yards and six touchdowns for Newington (4-0). Austyn Howe ran 12 times for 51 yards and two touchdowns, caught four passes for 80 yards and two scores and ran for two conversions.
Colin Skene completed 8 of 19 passes for 168 yards and three touchdowns, Shaun Gaskins ran seven times for 68 yards and two touchdowns and had eight solo tackles, and Eddie Strong had three catches for 83 yards and two scores for the Blue Dragons.
Plainville 21, Bristol Eastern 20
Plainville scored twice in the fourth quarter, including Michael Bakaysa’s 5-yard touchdown pass to Cameron Lamothe that gave it a 21-14 lead with 1:22 remaining in the game. The extra point was no good.
The Lancers scored 21 seconds later on a 46-yard touchdown pass from Brady Brown to Nate Shorette. Their two-point attempt failed.
Bakaysa completed 17 of 26 passes for 196 yards with a touchdown and scored on a 4-yard run for the Blue Devils.
Alex Marshall was a busy man as usual for Eastern as he ran 35 times for 169 yards and a touchdown.
Woodstock Academy 30, Waterford 29
Waterford had taken a 29-23 lead with 2:35 remaining on Justin Saad's 3-yard run.
The Centaurs got the ball back and raced downfield. Ethan Davis threw a 33-yard touchdown pass to Jackson Goetz with 1:06 left in the game and Goetz’s kicked the go-ahead extra point.
Davis completed 17 of 28 passes for 262 yards and ran 12 times for 76 yards and Goetz had six catches for 121 yards and three touchdowns and kicked a 36-yard field goal.
Nathan Hynes completed 12 of 27 passes for 132 yards with a touchdown and interception and ran 14 times for 123 yards and two touchdowns for the Lancers. Saad had 21 carries for 90 yards.
Notre Dame-West Haven 36, Wilton 35 (OT)
Robert Torres and the Green Knights had a reversal of fortune last Friday.
Some of you may remember that ND lost to Branford in Week 3, 15-12. Torres caught a 21-yard pass at the Hornets’ 1-yard line as time expired but was wrapped up by John Frawley and dragged down backwards to end the game.
Wilton scored first in overtime to go up, 35-28.
The Green Knights’ Jacob Staton answered with a 2-yard touchdown run and head coach Joe DeCaprio opted to go for two.
Torres caught a Matt Piechota pass in the right corner of the end zone and managed to get his feet down in bounds for the win.
Staton ran 27 times for 192 yards and two touchdowns for ND while Piechota completed 15 of 27 passes for 190 yards with a touchdown and interception and scored on two 4-yard runs.
Grant Masterson completed 13 of 20 passes for 202 yards with three touchdowns and ran for another for Wilton.
• • • •
In a time of change — new members of the coaching staff, new players after the pandemic-related hiatus — Thames River coach Craig Sylvester knew exactly where to point the finger to identify his team’s 4-0 start.
“Our seniors,” he said. “There aren’t many of them. But kids like Jackson (quarterback Jake Brenek), Dom (Martinez), Cam (Topkin), Alex (Whittle) and Jake (Darras) have been great.”
They all contributed to Saturday’s 22-20 victory, but none more than junior running back Seth Cunningham, who ran for 251 yards and two scores.
Cunningham talked about a great problem the Crusaders are experiencing.
“There’s more stress,” he said, “because there are more eyes on us now.”
Thames River has a half-game lead atop the Connecticut Technical Conference over Cheney Tech (3-0) and Quinebaug Valley (3-0). The Crusaders play at Cheney Oct. 29 and at Quinebaug Valley Thanksgiving Eve.
“Our motto with these kids is one practice and one game at a time,” Sylvester said. “I’m glad we have a bye week. We have a lot to clean up.”
Thanks to TEAMDAY~! member Mike DiMauro for this here note.
• • • •
Behold, The Day's Top 10 state coaches’ poll: 1. St. Joseph (4-0, seven first-place votes); 2. Darien (4-0, four first-place votes); 3. New Canaan (4-0); 4. Greenwich; 5. Hall; 6. Norwalk; 7. Ridgefield; 8. Ansonia (4-0); 9. Fairfield Prep; 10. Southington. Cheshire, Shelton and Newtown all dropped out.
The only weekend we could think of that was comparable to this one was Week 6 in 2013 when four Top 10 teams all fell out of the poll after losses. The common denominator between that weekend and this one — it was the last time Hall beat Southington (49-37, Oct. 19)
• • • •
The GameTimeCT/New Haven Register/Hearst Inc. Monolith Top 10 media poll: 1. Darien (18 first-place votes); 2. St. Joseph (four first-place votes); 3. New Canaan; 4. Greenwich; 5. Hall; 6. Norwalk; 7. Ridgefield; 8. Fairfield Prep; 9. Killingly; 10. Southington.
Killingly is 12th in the coaches' poll. Ansonia is 12th in the media poll.
• • • •
Ned Freeman’s cold, calculating computer rankings for CalPreps.com: 1. St. Joseph; 2. Darien; 3. Greenwich; 4. New Canaan; 5. Hall; 6. Fairfield Prep; 7. Ridgefield; 8. Norwalk; 9. Hand; 10. New Fairfield (3-0).
Hand’s schedule continued to be rated the state’s hardest among teams that have played than one game (Westhill, which has played just once, had a tougher-rated schedule), and no doubt played a part with it being ranked ninth.
Southington is 11th, Ansonia 21st and Killingly 28th (assuming the latter two aren't rated higher because of their respective schedules).
Hand is 20th and New Fairfield 21st in the coaches' poll. Hand is 20th and the Rebels 24th in the media poll.
• • • •
Before we reveal the ballot Polecat HQ filed for the filed for the aforementioned media poll, please allow us to go over all the reasons why voters in both polls struggled:
(Clears throat)
Staples 27, Trumbull 20 (Sept. 10).
Greenwich 42, Ridgefield 34 (Sept. 18).
Cheshire 42, Staples 14 (Sept. 24).
Shelton 35, Greenwich 14 (Sept. 24)
Ridgefield 10, Newtown 7 (Oct. 1).
Trumbull 41, Shelton 7 (Oct. 1)
Greenwich 14, Fairfield Prep 7 (Oct. 2)
Norwalk 25, Cheshire 15 (Oct. 2).
Every one of those teams that lost is or has been ranked in the Top 10 other than Trumbull.
Oh, there’s more such as Fairfield Prep needing a late touchdown to pull away from winless Hillhouse in Week 2 (20-13).
Masuk did awful things to Hillhouse the following week, 53-14, to go to 3-0.
Highly-touted Hand, meanwhile, started the season with losses to Prep (29-16) and New Canaan (28-18).
Hand, as you read earlier, blew out Masuk last Friday. Between that win and its challenging schedule, four coaches voted for the Tigers this week (none were from the SCC in which Hand is a member).
Our first opinion on why things have been so unpredictable is because the cancellation of last season. Nearly everyone is playing catchup other than the schools that chose to play independent league football. Dudes who were sophomores on JV two seasons ago are now starting seniors. One coach agreed with this take.
The number of crossover games as part of the Connecticut High School Football Scheduling Alliance is also matching up teams of equal size and success level. The Class LL (and L) teams from the FCIAC and SCC have been knocking one another off. Newtown, the defending LL champion, has also lost two Alliance games.
All that said, how would YOU vote these one or two loss teams?
Sure, one could simply vote all the unbeaten teams first but that’s taking the easy way out. That and how many people believe some of the smaller unbeaten programs could beat large school programs such as Greenwich, Newtown, Prep, Ridgefield, Southington?
It’s not to say that smaller schools can't beat the larger ones, but the Alliance was formed out of necessity because so many of Class M and S schools within the ECC, FCIAC, SCC and SWC were complaining and/or threatening to leave their respective leagues because they no longer wanted to play their larger peers.
The FCIAC and most especially the SCC Tier I teams also have it tougher than most because the amount of depth results in them cannibalizing one another within league play. It’s gotten even tougher now that they’re playing Alliance games.
As much as some folks outside of Fairfield, Middlesex and New Haven counties are tired of hearing about FCIAC and SCC superiority, the proof is on the field — the FCIAC has won 13 of the 40 state titles handed out over the past 10 seasons while the SCC has won 10. The CCC and NVL are the next closest with five each (Ansonia won four of the five for the NVL).
Here, then, is the catastrophe Polecat HQ submitted to GameTimeCT:
1. Darien
2. St. Joseph: It’s made us second-guess our vote for numero uno because its played a better schedule than Darien and wiped everyone out. No big deal as they’ll get to decide it on the field on Oct. 30.
3. New Canaan
4. Hall
(EVERYTHING GOES TO HELL HERE)
5. Greenwich: We’re not comfortable voting a team fifth a week after it lost by 21 points. It has, however, beaten two Top 10 teams in Prep and Ridgefield.
6. Ridgefield: Can only wonder what might have happened had the Tigers started fast against Greenwich instead of falling behind by 28 points and scoring 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. Course we can only wonder what it would be like to be a billionaire. With a log cabin on a lake in the woods. Lawd, what did we do to our life?
7. Fairfield Prep: Not going to punish it for a seven-point loss to the No. 4 team.
8. Norwalk: We were more confused about where to place the Bears as any of the other teams ranked fifth-on-down. Their first three opponents are a combined 2-10. They also played Cheshire when it was missing its offensive catalyst (Russo) AND lost its starting QB. We’ll play devil’s advocate and point out that a backup quarterback (Gilchrist) threw the go-ahead touchdown for Norwalk. And, hey, we love a feel-good story as much as anyone. So good on the Bears. Their eighth and we’ll see how they fare on Oct. 15 when they play host to New Canaan.
9. Trumbull: The Eagles will admit they didn’t play well in the Staples loss. You clobber a team like Shelton by 34 points, though, and you’re generally going to get our vote.
10. Southington
11. Cheshire
12. Shelton: Ranked it eight spots below Greenwich, even though it ran over the latter, because the Cardinals have two wins over Top 10 teams to one for the Gaels. Still not sure if we should’ve voted them higher, though, but that goes for a lot of teams here.
13. Maloney
14. Newtown: Cutting it some slack as its losses were to Darien and Ridgefield with the latter being so close. Its offense hasn’t caught up to the defense, though.
15. Killingly: Team RPO got an unscheduled bye week because East Haven opted to postpone last Saturday’s game over concerns of the health of its many players coming out of quarantine that caused it to postpone games in Weeks 2 and 3.
• • • •
Week 5 is a bit light with many teams on a bye, yet there are still games YOU should attend.
Berlin (3-1) at Maloney (3-1), Friday, 6:30 p.m.: Always refreshing to see quality interdivision matchups given how many teams across the state bristle at playing up (Berlin is a CCC Tier 2, Maloney Tier 1). The Redcoats, as usual, have leaned on their running game with senior Jamie Palmese (47 carries, 540 yards, 9 TDs) and sophomore Toby Lavender (44 carries, 319 yards, 4 TDs) getting the bulk of the work. Junior Lorenzo Miele has completed 36 of 68 passes for 588 yards with six touchdowns and one interception. Maloney has a quality QB of its own in senior Angel Arce, who quarterbacked the 2018 team to the CIAC Class L final. The Spartans' defense has played big through four games even in defeat (they lost to Southington, 13-7, on Oct. 10).
New Fairfield (3-0) at Fitch (3-0), Friday, 6:30 p.m.: The Rebels take a near four-hour round-trip southeast to Dorr Field for a swank nonconference game. This game is Polecat approved as there shan't be many forward passes because that's not how New Fairfield or the Falcons roll. The Rebels like to pound away with the run led by senior Jason Caswell (75 carries, 583 yards, and six touchdowns). Junior linebacker Tom Leary leads the defense with 24 tackles (13 solo). Fitch wants to keep your defense guessing with the option. Its offense didn't click during its first two games but got a boost last Friday when senior Shawn Beebe returned on that side of the ball after being hobbled by a preseason hip flexor injury. He ran 13 times for 166 yards and four touchdowns in a 40-0 win over Bacon Academy. Sophomore Ben Perry also completed 5 of 8 passes for 121 yards and a TD and senior Aiden Greaves added three catches for 102 yards and a score.
Granby/Canton (3-0, 3-0 Pequot Uncas) at Ellington (4-0, 3-0), Friday, 6:30 p.m.: The number of unbeaten Pequot teams whittled down fast. Junior Luke Maher has carried the bulk of the running game (55 carries, 305 yards, four TDs) for G/C while Will Migliaccio has completed 32 of 57 passes for 348 yards and a score. Senior Malik Brown-Smith has led the defense with 32 tackles. Seniors Philip Vrakas (35 carries, 221 yards, three TDs) and Dominic Mangiafico (25 carries, 260 yards, two TDs) have split up the rushing yards for the Purple Knights while Zach Killoran has completed 30 of 58 passes for 491 yards and eight TDs. Senior Mike Bontempo has been the primary receiver (11 catches, 249 yards, six TDs). Senior linebackers Zach Abbruzzese (21 tackles, five sacks) and Mangiafico (34 tackles, four sacks) head up a defense that's allowed just 18 points.
Sheehan (3-1) at Hand (1-2), Friday, 7 p.m.: YOUR defending Class S champion, plays up a tier against one of the most successful programs in the SCC's Tier I. The Titans try to mix it up a little bit with senior Jacob Shook (46 carries, 391 yards, five TDs) and sophomore Paul Gorry (31 of 53 passing, 477 yards, five TDs). Sheehan has only given up 34 points with a defense led by senior linebacker APOLLO Dubuc (22 tackles) and junior linebacker Shaine Salvador (25 tackles). The Tigers are trying to get back on track after losing their first two games and may not be able to absorb another loss in their pursuit of a Class L playoff berth. Senior Patch Flanagan has completed 34 of 73 passes for 440 yards and four touchdowns and rushed 34 times for 263 yards and two TDs. Classmate Ethan O'Brien has rushed 37 times for 240 yards and four TDs while fellow senior Seth Sweitzer has done a lot of everything for Hand (20 catches, 284 yards, four TDs; two interceptions; averaged 35.1 yards a punt.)
• • • •
NOTABLES~!
St. Joseph: Maxwell Warren had six carries for 37 yards and two scores and caught three passes for 74 yards for the Cadets, who led 35-0 at the half. Matt Morrissey completed 10 of 16 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown and Mark Morrissey had six solo tackles, teamed with Tyler DaSilva on a sack and had an interception.
Darien: Miles Drake completed 8 of 11 passes for 188 yards and three touchdowns in the first 15 minutes of Friday's 49-7 rout of NFA. He was then given the rest of the night off. Tighe Cummiskey had seven carries for 139 yards and a touchdown and had three catches for 46 yards and a score, all in the first half, for the Blue Wave and David Evanchick had two sacks.
New Canaan: It showed again that (sigh) time of possession just ain’t what it used to be. Henry Cunney completed 12 of 13 passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns in the Rams’ 21-7 win over North Haven last Friday. The latter had the edge in both plays (49-38) and time of possession (29:35-18:25) because it runs GOD’S FATHER’S OFFENSE. New Canaan also outgained North Haven, 281-181.
Nick Armentano and Ryan Thompson, Staples: Thompson threw four touchdown passes and scored on a 55-yard run as the Wreckers downed Wilbur Cross last Friday, 57-12. Armentano caught three TD passes.
Jack Barnum, Southington: Completed 13 of 25 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns and kicked a 45-yard field goal for the Blue Knights in the Hall loss.
Many dudes from Berlin: Where even to begin? Jamie Palmese ran for 171 yards and four touchdowns. ... on five carries in last Friday’s 66-27 rout over Enfield. Lorenzo Miele completed 12 of 14 passes for 208 yards and three touchdowns, Jon D'Amore ran four times for 145 yards and two touchdowns with a sack and interception on defense and Williams Gomes scored on a 60-yard interception return and added a sack.
Shawn Beebe, Ethan Sisson and Tate Scherer, Fitch: Ran 13 times for 180 yards and four touchdowns as the Falcons blanked Bacon Academy last Friday, 40-0. Sisson and Scherer both recovered fumbles as the Fitch D allowed just 74 yards.
Joe Booska and Tristen Pena, Stratford: Booska threw three touchdown passes and Pena ran 15 times for 164 yards and a score as the Red Devils dropped Bridgeport Central last Friday, 34-6.
Cole Brisson, Owen Brunk Teddy Williams, Cromwell/Portland: Brisson completed 14 of 21 passes for 286 yards with two touchdowns and an interception scored on a 2-yard run in last Friday's 41-3 rout of Haddam-Killingworth. It was the PANTHERLANDERS first game since their season-opener on Sept. 10. Williams added three catches for 110 yards and scored and Bunk had 10 tackles, and interception and scored on an 11-yard run.
Jeffery Burke and Tanner Leo, Crosby: Leo completed 16 of 23 passes for 277 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions in the Bulldogs' 33-21 loss to city rival Holy Cross. Burke had three catches for 77 yards and two touchdowns and
Frederick Camp, Gilbert/Northwestern/Housatonic: Ran 15 times for 255 yards and three touchdowns and returned a blocked punt for a 72-yard touchdown in last Friday’s 29-18 win over North Branford.
Donovan Campbell and Diego Ortiz, New Britain: Campbell completed 5 of 11 passes for 95 yards and three touchdowns in the Conard loss. Ortiz ran 36 times for 180 yards and two touchdowns.
Matt Castigliuolo, Will French and Josh Mooney, Stonington: Castigliuolo ran for a game-high 92 yards and a touchdown in last Friday’s 55-7 rout of Montville. French and Mooney both ran for two touchdowns.
Bailey Coleman and Jailon Denny, Notre Dame-Fairfield: Denny ran seven times for 128 yards and a touchdown, completed 4 of 9 passes for 135 yards and two touchdowns and had an interception as a defensive back in last Friday’s 36-13 win over Rocky Hill. Coleman had two catches for 91 yards and two scores.
John and Pat Coughlin and John Neary, Amity: Neary caught an 80-yard touchdown pass from Pat Coughlin and scored on an 85-yard kickoff return in Monday's 28-7 win over Westhill. John Coughlin also scored on a 50-yard interception return.
Seth Cunningham, Thames River: Ran 35 times for 251 yards and two touchdowns as the Crusaders held off Northwest United last Saturday, 22-20.
Matthew DeStefano and Tyler Robinson, Brookfield: Robinson ran 23 times for 268 yards and three touchdowns in last Friday’s 34-26 win over Law. DeStefano added two interceptions.
Brayden Dill, Ethan Laguardia and Anthony Maddox, South Windsor: Laguardia completed 6 of 13 passes for 204 yards with two touchdowns and ran for a score in last Saturday’s 33-7 win over E.O. Smith. Maddox had three catches for 84 yards and two touchdowns and Dill had seven carries for 35 yards and two scores and 12 tackles.
Caden Drezek, Caleb Nimo-Sefah and Dylon Ospina, Seymour: Drezek completed 18 of 31 passes for 216 yards and three touchdowns in last Friday’s 31-20 win over Watertown. Ospina had three catches for 122 yards and two touchdowns and Nimo-Sefah added 18 carries for 151 yards and a score.
James Duhancik, Chris Jeudy and Tristen Pena, Stratford: Duhancik and Jeudy each had two sacks in last Friday’s 34-6 win over Bridgeport Central. Pena added 14 carries for 154 yards and a TD.
Anthony Edmond and Joe Gaetano, Foran: Edmond ran 17 times for 191 yards and three touchdowns and added three catches for 46 yards in last Friday’s 41-37 loss to Barlow. Gaetano had eight catches for 132 yards and a score.
Jordyn Eggleston and Theodore Lanham, Bunnell: Lanham ran 16 times for 162 yards and three touchdowns and completed 5 of 7 passes for 87 yards as the Bulldogs edged Hillhouse last Friday, 27-26. Eggleston added 13 carries for 111 yards and a touchdown.
Some dudes from Ellington: Mike Bontempo had four catches for 100 yards and two touchdowns and scored on a 50-yard punt return in a 45-0 rout of Windsor Locks/Suffield/East Granby. Jack Griffith had two interceptions, Zach Abbruzzese had five solo tackles, including two sacks, and a forced fumble and Dominic Mangiafico added eight solo tackles for the Purple Knights.
Raysean Emrie, Wilcox Tech: Ran 15 times for 186 yards and two touchdowns in last Saturday’s 42-14 loss to O’Brien Tech.
Tabor Engle, Avon: Ran 31 times for 259 yards and three touchdowns as the Falcons FINALLY got to play their first game of the season and beat Northwest Catholic last Friday, 20-15. Their first three games were either postponed or canceled due to too many players being in quarantine.
Zyaire Ettson, Carmelo Mojica and Jio Vargas, Waterbury Career Academy: Ettson ran 13 times for 75 yards and two touchdowns and completed 3 of 5 passes for 93 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in last Friday’s 38-0 shutout of Wilby. Mojica had 10 carries for 79 and two scores and Vargas added two sacks.
Christian Garcia, Trai Hodge and Todd Minor, Hartford Public: Garcia completed 14 of 24 passes for 231 yards and three touchdowns, ran 17 times for 75 yards and added two interceptions on defense in the Owls' 39-28 loss to Tolland last Saturday. Hodge had four catches for 82 yards and a score and Minor added 17 tackles (six solo).
James Green and Justin and Ryan Outlow, Ledyard: Ryan Outlow ran 24 times for 214 yards and three touchdowns in last Friday’s 33-20 win over Lyman Hall. Green ran seven times for 112 yards and two scores and intercepted a pass. Justin Outlow had five carries for 76 yards and a touchdown. Ledyard ran 40 times overall for 432 yards. APPROVED.
Christian Irizarry and Rhodia Perry V, New London: Perry had 68 yards receiving a touchdown and blocked a punt and returned it for a score in last Friday's 26-7 win over Griswold/Wheeler. Irizarry threw for 144 yards and two touchdowns.
Eric Izzo and Mason Provencher, North Branford: Provencher completed 11 of 22 passes for 158 yards with three touchdowns in the loss to Gilbert/Northwestern. Eric Izzo had three catches for 72 yards and two scores.
Chris Kaminski and Darell McKnight, Ansonia: Kaminski threw two touchdowns and ran for another in the second quarter of last Friday’s 35-0 shutout win over Wolcott. McKnight also ran for two touchdowns in the first quarter.
David Kacpryzski and Thomas Ligi, Holy Cross: Kacpryzski was an economical 7-of-13 passing for 186 yards and three touchdowns in last Thursday's win. Ligi ran 24 times for 129 yards and a score.
Braden Lankarage and Chris Progano, Coginchaug/Hale-Ray/East Hampton: Lankarge completed 9 of 18 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns, including a go-ahead 28-yard pass to Prograno in the fourth quarter, in last Friday’s 21-14 win over Stafford/East Windsor/Somers. Progano had seven catches for 151 yards and two touchdowns and Lankarge also ran 12 times for 80 yards and had an interception on defense.
Jamel Lee, Wilbur Cross: Ran 18 times for 160 yards and two scores in the Staples loss.
Israel Lopez, Conard: Completed 16 of 30 passes for 200 yards and four touchdowns and ran 10 times for 152 yards and a score in last Friday’s 39-38 overtime win over New Britain.
John Mairano, Simsbury: Had 23 carries for a career-high 216 yards with three touchdowns in last Friday’s 27-19 win over Glastonbury.
Mark McLaughlin, Stafford/Somers/East Windsor: Ran 32 times for 168 yards and completed 8-of-15 passes for 61 yards and two touchdowns.
Rowan Mundell, East Lyme: Ran seven times for 55 yards and two touchdowns, had five catches for 102 yards and added 10 tackles (including eight solo) with a sack in last Friday’s 26-23 loss to Windham.
Tyler Semonich, Torrington: Threw four touchdown passes as the Raiders handed Woodland its first loss last Friday, 36-33. We’re not particularly pleased that Torrington threw the ball that many times as it’s a run-heavy team that uses GOD’S FATHER’S OFFENSE, but, hey, it won. Just don’t make this a habit please, Raiders.
Danny Shaban, Barlow: Ran 21 times for 122 yards and FIVE touchdowns in last Friday’s 41-37 win over Foran.
Jacob Shook, Sheehan: Ran for 29 times 215 yards and two touchdowns in last Friday’s 32-14 in over Weston in a matchup of 2019 state champions (Sheehan won Class S, Weston Class M).
Jermaine Smalls, Branford: Ran 14 times for 90 yards and two touchdowns and added an interception in last Friday’s 35-7 win over Bethel.
Trevor Tompkins, West Haven: Ran 18 times for 141 yards and also had an interception on defense.
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Thanks for reading. More sometime.
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