New London — It was Oct. 1 and Norwich Free Academy was 1-2, having just had just been kicked around by defending CIAC Class LL champion Darien.

Enough was enough for the Wildcats.

“After the third week, we said we have to suck it up and that we’re not getting beat down by teams anymore,” NFA senior Miles Joyner said.

The Wildcats proceeded to roll off seven straight wins, its latest a 13-0 win over New London on Thanksgiving that earned it a Class LL playoff berth.

Fifth-seeded NFA (8-2) will play at No. 4 Southington (10-0) in Tuesday's quarterfinal round.

New London (9-1), ranked 10th in The Day's Top 10 state coaches' poll, had a chance to be the top-ranked team in Class L but instead fell to third. It will host sixth-seeded Notre Dame of West Haven (7-3) on Tuesday at Cannamela Field.

The Valley Regional/Old Lyme co-op (9-1) is the top seed in Class M. The Warriors will host No. 8 Berlin (8-2) on Tuesday in Deep River.

The higher seed will play host to both a quarterfinal and semifinal (Monday, Dec. 5).

The state finals will be played on Saturday, Dec. 10 at sites and times to be determined. The seeds will be made official Friday by the CIAC football committee.

NFA was only guaranteed six games by the Eastern Connecticut Conference, forcing it to schedule four non-league games. It lined up contests against fellow LL teams.

The Wildcats managed just 27 yards offense against Xavier in a 36-0 beating to start the season (Sept. 9). They lost at Darien three weeks later, 45-6.

NFA regrouped a week later and knocked off Staples, then ranked seventh in The Day's poll, 33-14, turning its season around.

The Wildcats also played Stamford, and Joyner said they greatly benefitted from their non-conference schedule.

“I think it helped big time at the end of the season,” Joyner said. “It got us ready for the end. Other teams don’t have what we have, a luxury, I’d say, of playing teams like that to get you ready for the playoffs.”

n.griffen@theday.com