Category Archives: Newtown

November 25, 2014 · 11:28 pm

Julian Dunn leads undefeated Newtown past Masuk 28-7

Julian Dunn crosses the goal line into the Connecticut state record book with his 48th touchdown reception

Julian Dunn gets his 49th touchdown reception

(Newtown CT) “Julian Dunn has done some amazing things for Newtown football,” said Nighthawks coach Steve George on Tuesday night after the game.

It’s probably a line that the NHS coach has used regularly when asked about the talented senior.

Julian was key to the Newtown victory over Masuk, 28-7, in the rescheduled Thanksgiving Eve game.

In the midst of a terrific catching/kicking/defending performance, Julian slipped into the Connecticut high school record book. He entered the game tied with Aaron Hernandez (Bristol/Florida/Patriots) on the all-time list of touchdown catches with 47 but by game’s end had added two more to his total. With at least one more game left, and possibly two, his totals could increase.

Julian Dunn picks off pass intended for Joe Capodagli

The final score in this game was very misleading. At first glance you’d suspect that undefeated Newtown dominated 7-4 Masuk. You would be wrong……….at least during the first half. The second half? All Newtown.

Because Newtown was in the South-West Conference championship game on Saturday, they only had a few days to get ready for Masuk. The Panthers, on the other hand, had over a week.

“Joe Lato (Masuk head coach) is one of the best coaches in the state,” said Coach George. “We knew he was going to have some funky stuff going on.”

Nick Dellapiano (7) sweeps right for 7-yard TD

And sure enough he did. It seemed to me that Newtown spent most of the first half trying to figure out where to line up defensively against a variety of formations. Underdog Masuk was not only able to move the ball but also overwhelmed the Nighthawks defensively with an assortment of blitzes.

Things got so bad that after one lengthy first-half Masuk drive, their fans began to chant, “Over-rated, Over-rated.”

Jacob Burden leaves at halftime with trainer

In that dismal first half, Newtown QB Jacob Burden was sacked and injured. Sophomore Justin Dunn came on and his first pass bounced off of the normally reliable hands of his brother Julian. Things were that bad!

Masuk threatened to score in the first quarter but the drive petered out at the Newtown 19.

In the second quarter the Panthers took the lead. A fake punt by Newtown failed and the visitors from Monroe had a short field to work with. The big play in the scoring drive was a nifty 25-yarder by quarterback Zach Kaufman. Zach started left and then cut back across the middle of the field. Sophomore Nick Dellapiano finished the job for Masuk running a reverse to the right from seven yards out at 8:16.

Masuk coach Joe Lato

The second half was a whole new ballgame! Masuk’s 7-0 halftime lead vanished on Newtown’s first possession and the Nighthawks had answers for the Panthers “funky” formations thereafter.

Julian Dunn jumped ahead of Aaron Hernandez in TD receptions on that first series. Julian lined up on the right and slanted into the middle. His brother Justin’s pass hit him in full stride. Julian (6-3/230) bounced off safety Bryan Acevedo for the 16-yard record-setting tally and the score was tied after the extra point.

With the score now tied, Masuk took a huge chance on 4th down deep in their own territory. Coach Lato said afterwards that, “he saw the momentum changing and wanted to stop it.” Keeping a drive alive at the Masuk 34 on a 4th-and-one seemed do-able after a great first half, but after a timeout, an inside run was stopped cold.

Newtown quickly capitalized on the field-position gift with a nice run by sophomore Hunter Cobb setting up the Nighthawks at the Masuk 10. It wasn’t hard to figure out what would happen next: Julian Dunn slant over the middle. Newtown was now up 14-7 with 6:32 remaining in the second quarter.

Nick Rubino (34) gets 13th touchdown

Masuk had bad field position most of the second half. A short punt early in the final quarter, followed by a long Hunter Cobb run, had the Panthers on the Masuk doorstep. Two straight runs by Nick Rubino got him into the end zone for his 13th TD of the season.

Worse field position set up another punt for Masuk on their next possession. Senior Ethan Carpenter collected Bryan Acevedo’s punt at the Masuk 39 and shot straight up the wide-open middle. He was instantly alone and ended up with two blockers nearby, with no one to block, as he streaked across the goal line.

Ethan’s TD was at 7:29 and put the Newtown at the final score of 28-7.

Running back Jaret DeVellis was in uniform for Newtown but didn’t play. “Jaret could have played but we wanted to do the right thing with him and give his ankle more time to heal,” said Coach George. I watched Jaret in pregame and, despite his best efforts, he still wasn’t running without limping.

QB Jacob Burden didn’t return after his injury to his non-throwing left shoulder in the second quarter. “Jacob could have come back,” added Coach George.

Julian Dunn and Zach Kaufman after the game

Good to see the players from both teams interacting pleasantly after the game.

Coach George downplayed Julian’s record breaking by saying that, “the type of person he is is even more important as far as I’m concerned.”

Weather was cold but with no wind.

The impending snowstorm led to the game date change. Coach George broke the news to his team afterwards that there wouldn’t be any school Wednesday.

I continue to be very impressed with the performances of the Newtown dance team and cheerleaders. Their state-wide recognition is well deserved.

(This blog is easily corrected. Let me know.)

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Touchdown signaled

halftime show

Bryan Acevedo (3) and Ethan Carpenter (1) sky for a pass

Nick DeLorenzo (34) breaks free early

Chris Lindquist

Coach Steve George and Ethan Carpenter

Ethan Carpenter finishes a punt-return touchdown

jump ball

Tim Krapf and Jake Lambert lower the boom on QB Zach Kaufman

Hunter Cobb (30) finds daylight

Newtown defense makes crucial stop

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Filed under Masuk, Newtown

October 24, 2014 · 11:30 pm

Undefeated Newtown knocks off Brookfield 21-14 in South-West Conference football

Action in the trenches at the Newtown-Brookfield SWC game

Julian Dunn hauls in what turned out to be the game winner

(Newtown CT) Losing the first one is always tough.

Two Friday nights in a row highly regarded, undefeated teams have squared off against Newtown at Blue and Gold Stadium. Both teams (Ansonia and Brookfield) left the stadium unhappy and no longer undefeated.

On this night it was Brookfield’s turn. The Bobcats (6-1) certainly made things interesting but fell short, 21-14, to the undefeated (7-0) Newtown Nighthawks on a cool Friday night.

With numerous reasons to be happy afterwards including; control of the South-West Conference, winning 28th straight regular season game, and winning 29 of last 31 games, NHS coach Steve George was under-happy afterwards. Why? In the closing minute, with Newtown in possession and Brookfield out of timeouts, a skirmish broke out after a play in front of the Newtown bench. According to reporters closer to the action, Newtown’s Jared Pearson was ejected and there was some pushing and shoving between the teams.

(Just before the controversial roughing the passer call late in the game.

“What happened at the end was not characteristic of my team,” said Coach George. “I’m a little upset with them now.”

Meanwhile back at the game I was intending to describe! Newtown scored three straight touchdowns after Brookfield converted a fumble into an early score. Newtown had what I thought was a commanding 21-7 halftime lead. Brookfield, however, had the only score in the second half (8:56 of the 4th quarter) but never had a real threat for more, thereafter.

Both teams benefited from opponent miscues in getting their first TDs. Ethan Carpenter tried to return a punt in heavy Brookfield traffic and ended up fumbling. Matt Biondi recovered for the Bobcats.

Bobby Drysdale (9) gets into the Newtown secondary

Later, Bobby Drysdale (118 yards/1 TD) reached the Newtown end zone from five yards out for his 13th touchdown of the season at 8:14 of the first quarter.

Consecutive turnovers led to the first Newtown score. First Hafeez Yussuf intercepted a Jacob Burden pass intended for Julian Dunn at the Brookfield 16. Bobby Drysdale, however, fumbled the ball back to Newtown (Ryan Shaw) on the next play setting the Hawks up in terrific field position.

Less than a minute later (5:02) Nick Rubino rolled left untouched for a 4-yard TD. Bryce Mather added the kick to tie the score.

Jaret DeVellis scores

Early in the second quarter (11:14) Jaret DeVellis (7th TD) finished a long Newtown drive bouncing off Austin Reich to score from 3 yards out. The kick gave Newtown a 14-7 advantage.

Because Newtown was content to run the ball, and did often, fake handoffs gave QB Jacob Burden plenty of time to throw. Ethan Carpenter and Julian Dunn were spread wide to either side most of the game. Julian (6’3″) was being covered one-on-one by Hafeez Yussuf (5’9″).

Early in the game Julian’s passing route was straight down the right sideline. On Newtown’s 3rd TD drive, Julian ran an up-and-in and was wide open for a long gain. Later in the same drive, Julian had the time to add an “out” to the pattern and ended up alone in the right side of the end zone from 17 yards out at 5:27 of the second quarter. The completion to Julian was Jacob Burden’s 10th touchdown pass in 2014. The kick put Newtown further in front, 21-7.

Johnny Roscigno finds the end zone

Punting dominated the early going in the second half. I thought at the time that Newtown had the horses to get a few more scores and also could keep the visitors off the board the rest of the way.

The Brookfield defense, however, surprised me. It gave up yards and first downs but came up big when they needed to. Certainly Newtown penalties helped put the Nighthawks in bad field position in the second half.

One Newtown penalty (Jake Lambert – roughing the passer), was key in Brookfield’s fourth quarter TD drive. A heavy dose of Bobby Drysdale moved Brookfield to the Newtown 15. From there, QB Johnny Roscigno faked a handoff to Bobby going right and instead rolled left. There was a still a Hawks defender in the left side of the secondary but Johnny faked outside and then cut inside for a free lane to the end zone at 8:56 of the final quarter.

The Bobcats would get the ball back but there wasn’t time to grind with Bobby Drysdale and there also wasn’t enough time for QB Johnny Roscigno to find receivers.

BHS coach Rich Angarano questions the roughing the kicker call

The Bobcats burned timeouts late and would have gotten the ball back one last time with a minute left but Andrew Collins collided with punter Julian Dunn. The penalty gave the ball back to Newtown for the rest of the game.

Brookfield has now lost five straight times to Newtown. The talk afterwards by BHS coach Rich Angarano to his team was that, “We can play with this team,” and “We could face them again in the SWC championship game.”

Newtown defeated the Bobcats, 28-7, in last year’s title game. Julian Dunn caught two TDs in that one while Bobby Drysdale was limited to 43 yards.

Brookfield had only allowed 53 points in their first six games.

Bobby Drysdale (1 TD – 118 yards)

Bobby Drysdale (6’1″ – 200) is obviously the key to any team’s defensive schemes versus Brookfield. He had 27 touchdowns in 2013 and rushed for 2,096 yards. Gang tackling Bobby is essential as he added extra yards several times when in the grasp of one tackler. Bobby’s presence also set up the second Brookfield TD because the Newtown defense followed him and gave QB Johnny Roscigno plenty of room the other way.

I’ve seen Newtown twice now and can see why it is so hard to prepare for their offense. They are very content to take what a defense allows. NHS coach Steve George said afterwards that the play calling (many runs) may have looked conservative but, “It was just too tempting to run the ball.”

Ethan Carpenter was the blocker near punter Julian Dunn. His block on Andrew Collins may have had something to do with Andrew’s running into the kicker. Julian did a pretty good job of selling the hit.

Excellent Homecoming crowd as well as the usual spectacular halftime show.

(I can edit this blog so if there is an error please let me know so that I can correct it.)

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Julian Dunn makes a reception

Peter Manesis

pumpkin wager

Jaret DeVillas (1 TD - 21 carries - 109 yards)

Jaret DeVellis (1 TD – 21 carries – 109 yards)

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Filed under Brookfield, Newtown

Tagged as Bobby Drysdale, Brookfield High School, Coach Rich Angarano, Coach Steve George, Jaret DeVillis, Johnny Roscigno, Julian Dunn, Newtown High School, Nick Rubino, rysdale, South-West Conference

October 18, 2014 · 7:30 pm

Undefeated Newtown ends Ansonia’s streak 14-8 in Connecticut showdown

Jared Pearson finds a huge hole in the Ansonia defense for an easy touchdown.

Tim Krapf tries to wrap up Tyler Bailey

(Newtown CT) No doubt Ansonia’s 48-game win streak was a motivator as Newtown prepped for the game.

That “motivation” ended after the Nighthawks dropped the Chargers, 14-8, on a mild Friday night before a cast of thousands (three at least).

Asked about the significance of the victory afterwards, NHS coach Steve George dropped, “We won,” and, “We’re 6-0,” on the gathered media.

The week of media attention repeated the size of Ansonia’s streak and how one more win would enable the Chargers to tie Cheshire for the state record. Lost in that concentration was the fact that Newtown (6-0) had won 27 of their last 29 games including 26 straight regular season games.

The point? These were TWO good teams both used to winning whether a streak was involved or not.

Julian Dunn (15) signals the end as the clock winds down

When the game ended Newtown celebrated as if they had won something more than a regular season game while Ansonia fans/players wept in disappointment.

Newtown moved to a 14-0 lead late in the third quarter and you wondered if they might double that score in the final frame against the tiring Chargers.

But Ansonia (5-1) quarterback Jai’Quan McKnight tossed a terrific TD spot-pass to Tyler Bailey with ten minutes left. When Jai’Quan squirmed in for two extra points the Chargers were in position to make things interesting the rest of the way.

But the Newtown defense, despite (“way too many mistakes/penalties” – Coach George) prevailed in Ansonia’s final two possessions to get the win.

JaiQuan McKnight

For certain, the Nighthawks defense kept the visitors from running organized offense most of the evening. Ansonia QB Jai’Quan McKnight, however, seemed at times to be more comfortable improvising than running set offense.

Jai’Quan paid a heavy price several times dropping back to pass getting nailed by Ben Mason and Nick Samuelson on separate occasions. Nick’s hit ended the first half.

Two keys to the Newtown win: (1) depth, and (2) team speed. Most of the Chargers played both ways including all their playmakers. There was no rest for them. The media during the week attempted to describe the matchup as Newtown’s size versus Ansonia’s speed. Chargers coach Tom Brockett wasn’t buying it, “I thought coming in that man-for-man they might be faster than us. They never let us break anything big.”

To back up Coach Brockett’s point, I had several pictures of Chargers breaking down sidelines with no Newtown defenders in front of them. Each time Newtown players closed fast from the middle to angle the Ansonia players out-of-bounds before there was a breakaway.

No question Ansonia missed having Arkeel Newsome in their backfield. Arkeel ended his Chargers career with the Connecticut state record in rushing yards. He is now at UConn.

Nick Samuelson ends the first half with a hard hit on JaiQuan McKnight

Those planning to attend this game were warned to get there early and many bought into it. I was there an hour early and ended up parking behind the high school. Leaving afterwards? I was on the field afterward recording interviews for at least a half hour. When I returned to my car none of the cars around me had yet moved.

The Chargers didn’t arrive until 35 minutes before game time………at least I thought it was all of them. I was talking to an Ansonia fan and he asked me where the rest of the team was. The second bus didn’t arrive until about 20 minutes before game time. The “arrive early” word didn’t reach Ansonia?

The Nighthawks scored in the first quarter. Jared Pearson caught a pass to get Newtown to the Ansonia 20. Several plays later Jared took a direct snap and, instead of following the flow to the right, shot straight up the middle. The Ansonia defense bit for the flow and Jared ran nearly unnoticed into the end zone at 1:13. Bryce Mather’s kick was good.

Nick Rubino put together two straight solid runs deep in Ansonia territory in the third quarter to notch Newtown’s second score. Nick, who was in the game in place of starter Jaret DeVellis, carried a defender into the end zone. Bryce Mather had his second PAT.

Nick Rubino scores in the third quarter for Newtown

The Chargers cut into the 14-point deficit early in the final quarter. In pregame I watched quarterback Jai’Quan McKnight throw pass after pass to a spot near the corner of the goal-line. No question in my mind that he had the arm and accuracy. The trouble during the game was lack of time to even look to throw most of the time. Somehow, early in the 4th quarter Jai’Quan found the time and sure enough passed to the spot near the goal line. Teammate Tyler Bailey ran under the ball closely defended by Joe Santella. The ball arrived as Tyler and Joe collided. Down went Joe as Tyler caught the ball and finished the yard or so into the end zone.

Jai’Quan improvised his way into the end zone over the right side to get Ansonia within six points with plenty of time (ten minutes) remaining. But on this day the Newtown defense took charge the rest of the way and ran their regular season streak to 27.

Newtown nearly scored a razzle-dazzle TD in the second quarter. QB Jacob Burden rolled left and handed off to Jared Pearson running to the right. Jacob kept on running around the left end while Jared suddenly stopped and tossed a pass in Jacob’s direction. Jacob was as wide open as you’ll ever get in a football game but Jared’s throw was high.

What a show at halftime! It was twenty minutes of wonderfully choreographed and executed performance that you should have to pay extra for……..it’s that well done.

I can make changes in this blog so if I have been inaccurate please let me know and I’ll do the necessary editing.

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

JaiQuan McKnight converts 2-point conversion

Ben Mason wrapped up by Larry Cafaro

Jaret DeVellis

battle in the trenches

JaiQuan McKnight down the sidelines

Joe Santella

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Filed under Ansonia, Newtown

Tagged as Jacob Burden, Jai'Quan McKnight, Jared Pearson, Jaret DeVellis, Joe Santella, Nick Rubino, Tyler Bailey

September 16, 2014 · 8:26 pm

Bethel takes girls soccer opener 3-2 over Newtown

Bethel goalkeeper Sophia Corbo shut out Newtown in a very busy first half

Annie Bedore (2 goals) and Jess Keller (1 goal)

(Newtown CT) The Bethel girls soccer team opened their season with a 3-2 win over Newtown on Tuesday afternoon in South-West Conference action.

Newtown (0-1-2) fell behind 2-0 in the first half before tying the score midway through the second half. The Nighthawks looked to be heading for their third tie of the season before a dreaded “own” goal gave the visitors the lead late for good.

Sophomore Annie Bedore netted two goals for the Wildcats. Jess Keller (penalty kick) and Makenna Cerney cashed in for Newtown.

The key to the Bethel win was the amazing first-half goaltending of junior Sophia Corbo. The Nighthawks were held scoreless but believe me it wasn’t for lack of chances. Let the pictures tell the story:

Julie Shugrue in close

Makenna Cerney in close

Julia Schoeni shoots

Julia Schoeni collides with Sophia Corbo

GK Sophia Corbo robs Julia Schoeni

The Wildcats (1-0) had few chances in the first half but made the most of them. Annie Bedore was able to get in very close on both her scores. One of them came off a rebound of Alex DeLuca’s shot from the right.

Jess Keller fires a penalty kick in the second half

Newtown dominated most of the second half. Their chances weren’t as golden as in the first half but they tied the score. Senior Jess Keller drove a penalty kick to Sophia Corbo’s left for the first goal. On the second Nighthawks tally, Makenna Cerney dribbled in close and then finished off her own rebound.

Makenna’s goal made it 2-2 with plenty of the second half left. The Bethel defense began to limit Newtown’s opportunities. Most of the play was in the middle half of the field for quite a while.

A deflection off a Newtown defender gives Bethel the eventual game winner

Eventually Bethel earned a corner kick from the left. Alex DeLuca took the shot and got it into the middle in front of the net. The ball hit a Newtown defender and suddenly changed direction whizzing past Newtown GK Megan Doyle. That “own” goal ended up the game winner.

Nice setup at Treadwell Park for soccer and soccer viewing.

Both teams return to action on Thursday. Newtown visits New Fairfield while Bethel hosts Pomperaug.

I am able to add or subtract from this write-up. So if I missed something or need to add something let me know and I will do it.

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Hannah Booth looks to shoot as the Newtown bench watches

Renata Navarro and Julia Shugrue

Lauren Bradshaw

Sofia Orrico

Alex DeLuca

Makenna Cerney gets into position to score the first Newtown goal

Annie Bedore (#2) gets a great look

Alex DeLuca (#7) shoots from the right. Annie Bedore (#2) will get a tasty rebound off the shot

chasing a loose ball

Marissa Thill

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Filed under Bethel, Newtown

Tagged as Alex DeLuca, Annie Bedore, Jess Keller, Julia Schoeni, Julia Shugrue, Makenna Cerney, Sophia Corbo

February 1, 2014 · 12:31 am

Newtown holds off Joel Barlow 58-56 in South-West Conference action

Mike Davis (14 points) converts a rebound to give Newtown the lead for good.

Julian Dunn (22 points) shoots over Bryce Fey

(Newtown CT) There was a tie and three lead changes in the last two minutes but at the end it was Newtown (8-5) hanging on to a 58-56 win over Joel Barlow (6-8) on Friday night in South-West Conference action.

The Falcons carried a 56-55 lead into the final 1:24 but had a missed shot, two turnovers, and a desperation heave at the very end to show for the rest of the game.

Meanwhile, the Nighthawks were able to take the lead when Mike Davis (14 points) put back his own missed shot. After a JB miss, Julian Dunn (22 points) made one of two free throws with fifty-five seconds left. That resulting two-point bulge (58-56) turned out to be enough despite Newtown failing to ice the game by missing four free throws in a row after Julian’s made free throw.

Both teams had their moments before the exciting finish.

Newtown jumped ahead 14-7 in the first six minutes riding two 3’s by senior Brian Leblanc.

Will Menapace (15 points) launches a three

Then it was Joel Barlow’s turn to get carried from long range as Will Menapace (15 points) connected four times before halftime. The outside accuracy was part of a 25-11 Falcons’ run that put the visitors from Redding in front 34-25 at the half.

The Nighthawks rallied early in the second half to get within four (37-33). You had to think that Newtown’s luck might have changed for the better when the last three points were off a 3-pointer off the backboard by Troy Frangione.

However this was a game where the direction you thought it was heading could quickly change. Instead of wilting under the Newtown charge, the Falcons put nine unanswered points together. Meanwhile, the Nighthawks put a string of turnovers together (four) and trailed 46-33 with 1:43 left in the third quarter.

Newtown certainly looked to be in trouble but over the next 4+ minutes of playing time, stretching into the final quarter, it was their turn to be in control. The Nighthawks constructed a 16-4 segment, led by two 3’s (Brian Leblanc) and eight points on the inside by Julian Dunn.

When that dust cleared, Newtown had taken the lead, 49-48, with 4:25 to go in the game.

Will Bracken

But credit Joel Barlow. Before you knew it the momentum had changed and they were back in front, 56-55, with 1:24 left after three-point plays by Will Bracken and Will Menapace.

That set up the exciting finish.

Key to the win was the blanket defense Troy Frangione put on first-half shooting star Will Menapace in the second half. Will had trouble getting the ball never mind shooting it. He did, however, make a huge three that gave JB it’s last lead.

A key basket in Newtown’s second-half, 16-4, burst came after a wild 3-point attempt by Brian Leblanc ended up in the layup-producing hands of teammate Julian Dunn. Trust me, there was no assist involved.

Junior John Tucker had eleven points for Joel Barlow.

Jake Ball only scored four points for Newtown but both layups came in the final three minutes of the game.

Newtown has now won eight of their last nine games after an 0-4 start.

Troy Frangione double-teamed

Joel Barlow had now lost four of their last five games.

JB will host Weston on February 4th (Tuesday 7PM) while Newtown visits New Milford on the same day and at the same time.

Joel Barlow was 7-13 last year missing the Class M tournament by one game.

I tell people that they need to come to a Newtown home basketball game just to see what their cheerleaders and dance teams can do. Tonight was no different although I suspect both squads were hedging their bets in this game because of serious competitions tomorrow.

Is there a good reason why programs aren’t produced?

Mike Davis and Julian Dunn ran some excellent give-and-goes for Newtown.

Newtown box

Joel Barlow box

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Julian Dunn and Zach Pompea

Adam Koubeck in heavy Newtown traffic

Brian Leblanc (12 points)

Mike Davis

Zach Pompea breaks ahead

Newtown performers

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Filed under Joel Barlow, Newtown

Tagged as Adam Koubeck, Brian Leblanc, Julian Dunn, Mike Davis, Troy Frangione, Zach Pompea

November 21, 2012 · 11:10 pm

Newtown stuns Masuk 21-14 to take SWC football championship

Cooper Gold of Newtown scores the eventual game-winner through the tackle of Fabio Romano (23).

Cooper Gold (222 yards) holds his MVP plaque.

(Newtown) It would have taken a pretty significant dose of optimism to favor Newtown in a football game with powerhouse Masuk.

But there was Newtown (10-0) defeating the Panthers, 21-14, before a huge crowd (3000) at Blue and Gold Stadium on Wednesday night. The victory gave the Hawks the SWC championship.

Newtown pulled this off with Dan Hebert (arguably the Hawks best player) on the sidelines out of uniform wearing a cast.

I’ll admit I was leery of Newtown’s chances after absorbing some of the Newtown hype before last year’s 46-7 blowout.

But this time around the Hawks (9-1) weren’t the defensive sieves Masuk, led by QB Casey Cochran, made them look like in 2011. In fact, they shut out the Panthers (#1 in the state in total offense) in a second half in which they would rally from a 14-7 halftime deficit and get two touchdowns of their own. Masuk averaged 49 points per game during their first nine games.

Game MVP Cooper Gold (222 yards) ran around and over people all night and tallied two touchdowns including the game winner early in the final quarter.

Hawk QB Drew Tarantino tossed his 20th touchdown pass of the season (to Julian Dunn) and had no interceptions.

Thomas Milone (22) follows blocker Frank Bacarella for a thirty yard touchdown late in the first half.

Thomas Milone (165 yards) surely scared the Newtown faithful half to death every time the ball was in his hands. The talented senior raced in for two first-half scores and was a threat to do almost anything when he lined up to punt.

Thomas has committed to Uconn for a baseball scholarship.

I was impressed with the execution of Newtown on the touchdown pass to Julian Dunn. The Hawks had run the play earlier with the pass going high. On the one that connected, the ball was in the air from QB Drew Tarantino long before Julian reached the end zone. Julian made a leaping catch over Kyle Fontneau and landed on his back.

Masuk QB Malik Cunnings suffered two interceptions in the second half. He had only two interceptions during the first nine games.

This was a battle for the SWC title.

Terrific field with wonderful lighting. That still doesn’t explain why there were no programs available but maybe everybody knows everybody?

The halftime show put on by Newtown was simply awesome.

This was the first time Newtown entered the final game of the season undefeated since 1996.

Both football teams are in the playoffs and should be hosting quarterfinal games.

(The pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Dan Hebert

Chris Devaney (3) goes high for a pass

loose ball

Julian Dunn still has the ball in the end zone after colliding with Kyle Fontneau (21)

Jack Kearney (31) prepares to intercept a pass intended for Thomas Milone (22).

Justin Devellis of Newtown closes out Masuk with this interception in the last minute.

Bryan Monaco

Newtown QB Drew Tarantino chases a bad snap.

Thomas Milone (22) plows in for the first Masuk touchdown.

Cooper Gold gets outside Masuk defender Brad Swain on his way to a 9-yard touchdown run

Cooper Gold runs free

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Filed under Masuk, Newtown

Tagged as Cooper Gold, Dan Hebert, Drew Tarantino, Julian Dunn, Justin Devellis, Malik Cummings, Thomas Milone

December 23, 2011 · 12:15 am

Newtown Overcomes Fast Pomperaug Start 62-47 in Boys Basketball

Mike Daubert heads for the basket after a steal.

Kyle Wilcox – 23 points including 18 in the second half

(Southbury) Pomperaug (0-2) came out red hot but flamed out after a quarter and visiting Newtown (2-1) was able to catch up and pull away in the second half for a 62-47 win on Thursday night at Pomperaug.

The Panthers connected on four long ones in the first four minutes to bolt ahead 15-5. They still had that 10-point spread at period’s end (22-12).

Newtown cut into that lead in the second quarter as Reid Schmidt sparked a 7-point run but Pomperaug still led, 27-23, at the half.

The Night Hawk defense seemed to get tighter as the game wore on and the Panthers made just one trey in the second half. Carl Gatzendorfer had that one in the first minute to keep the Panthers on top, 30-25.

The rest of the way it was all Newtown. The Panthers made few shots and the Hawks ran with every rebound getting a bunch of layups.

The numbers back up the second half domination. Newtown outscored Pomperaug, 37-17, over the last fifteen minutes of the game.

Leading the Newtown surge was Kyle Wilcox. Limited to five points in the first half, he erupted for eighteen in the second half. He had a three in there but most of the points were in transition.

It was a Connor Quinn baseline drive that gave Newtown the lead for good, 32-31, with 4:45 left in the third and the Hawks never looked back from there.

Nathan Rubenstein (13 points)

Nathan Rubenstein (13 points) paced Pomperaug hitting three 3’s in the first half.

Jake Ball picked up a technical foul just before halftime.

Mike Foley went down hard defending a drive.

Why was Connor Quinn taking the ball to the basket very late in the game with a ten-point lead? A hard foul would have made perfect sense.

Another game for me with no program. Maybe everyone in these parts knows each other??

Newtown box score

Pomperaug box score

(The pictures enlarge to normal size if you click on them.)

Jake Ball swarmed by Carl Gatzendorfer (15) and Lucien Fortier

Mike Foley (22) shoots over Mike Davis (20)

Sam Rubenstein (10 points)

Mike Foley (22) drives

Connor Quinn (3) fouled by Nathan Rubenstein (34)

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Filed under Newtown, Pomperaug

Tagged as Connor Quinn, Kyle Wilcox, Mike Foley, Nathan Rubinstein, Newtown High School, Pomperaug High School

December 21, 2011 · 12:12 am

Newtown Wins 4th Straight Easily Defeating Weston 68-45 in Girls Basketball

Riley Wurtz (1) on fast break with Jess Lynch (10) just about to get a pass for a layup.

Cassie Ekstrom (5) puts some defense on Morgan Moubayed.

(Newtown) Undefeated Newtown (4-0) overwhelmed winless Weston (0-3), 68-45, in nonleague girls action at Newtown High School on Tuesday night.

The twenty-three point margin doesn’t begin to tell the story of how one-sided this game was. No sign of the Hawk starters after the third quarter – they were ahead, 59-27.

From the start you could see that the Newtown full-court pressure was going to be trouble for the visitors. That pressure seems to work best in the half-court and every turnover (25+?) became a fast break in the other direction.

Riley Wurtz (7 points) shot poorly but more than made up for it with steals and assists.

Jess Lynch (17 points) was on the breakaway end after many of the Lady Trojan giveaways.

Riley Wurtz (7 points) on clean break away.

Another successful Hawk maneuver was an instant answer to every Weston basket. Newtown had several long-pass layups after baskets.

Newtown jumped out to a quick, 7-0, start with a Bridget Power three at the end of it. Weston responded with three baskets led by Ellie Martin and the score was, 11-6, with three minutes left in the first period.

The next fifteen minutes of playing time, stretching through four minutes of the third quarter were all Newtown. They outscored the visitors, 42-10! Jess Lynch had fifteen points during the big run.

Weston had just three bench players and early on it was clear that keeping up with the non-stop Hawks was going to wear down the Lady Trojans. Fortunately, NHS coach Jeremy O’Connell used reserves early and often and they weren’t quite as adept at creating the turnovers and getting breakaways.

Ellie Martin (left) and Sam Stemlie (11) chase loose ball

With the NHS starters on the bench, Ellie Martin (23 points) had a nice final quarter getting Weston’s last eleven points.

First look at Newtown’s basketball setup. Terrific lighting.

I was on hand for the Newtown/Masuk football game. Less said about that, I suppose, the better.

Cheerleaders were impressive. They were so good that I didn’t worry about them falling.

This was Newtown’s home opener. No programs???

If you click on the pictures they enlarge to normal size.

Bridget Power (23) Riley Wurtz (1) Morgan Moubayed (2)

Jess Lynch (10) shoots over Anna Mahoney (50)

Maddy Good (14) ties up Anna Mahoney

good times on the NHS bench

Newtown box score

Weston box score

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Filed under Newtown, Weston

Tagged as Ellie Martin, Jess Lynch, Newtown High School, Riley Wurtz, Weston High School

November 23, 2011 · 4:40 pm

Masuk Captures SouthWest Conference Football Title With 46-7 Win Over Newtown

Newtown pregame banner signifies the stakes versus Masuk on Thanksgiving Eve

Shawn Flynn (10) raises the championship trophy.

(Newtown) Masuk 46 – Newtown 7

You expected otherwise?

A couple of previous scores was all it took to make this first-time viewer suspect accurately how this one would go. First: last year’s score between these two – Masuk 42 Newtown 0. Second: This season Newtown lost to Pomperaug (16-7) while Masuk romped, 49-3, against the same opponent. Other considerations were Masuk’s 55 points per game average (tops in Connecticut) and a twenty-two game winning streak for the Panthers.

As it turned out, the only real surprise was the weather. The forecast of rain was faulty, which turned out to be a blessing, because the game was switched from Masuk to Newtown’s wonderful turf field.

Masuk (10-0) with the win on Thanksgiving Eve captures the SouthWest Conference crown. It also qualifies for the Division L playoffs starting next Tuesday.

Newtown (8-2) had qualified for the Division LL playoffs even before the Masuk loss. They won’t be facing schools the size of Masuk in the postseason.

The Newtown defense shut out Masuk for a quarter which was a season first for the Panthers.

Masuk Quarterback Casey Cochran (12) had excellent protection.

I thought that the Panthers believed that their passing attack, led by all-everything quarterback Casey Cochran, would work. Not on this day. The Hawks rushed few but flooded the secondary with defenders. Completions were few for Casey and his team ended up punting four times in the early going.

The rest of the game the Panthers began to rush more and Thomas Milone (2 touchdowns) and game MVP Colin Markus (2 touchdowns) ran wild.

Thomas was the carrier on counters. On one his first score, the faking of QB Cochran was so good that Thomas went into the end zone practically unnoticed by the Newtown defense.

Colin Markus (32) with last Newtown defender Dan Hebert.

Colin was a Hawk problem from everywhere, as he frequently broke the line of scrimmage and got into the Newtown secondary. There were way too many instances of him being tackled by safeties. He also set up the Panther TD just before the half, taking a short pass from Casey Cochran and turning it into a 71-yard gain.

The key play of this game could well have been the Newtown turnover (pick-six) in the second quarter. Down, 6-0, QB Andrew Tarantino tried a middle screen. As my picture shows, Panther defender Pat Tripodi had a great look at it. He intercepted the underthrown pass and was immediately off to the end zone 43 yards away.

Newtown’s shining moment was first possession in the second half. Trailing, 19-0, they put a 16-play, 79-yard drive together to close to 19-7. Dan Hebert, set up in Wildcat formation, found Julian Dunn wide open in the middle for the score.

The momentum quickly shifted back to Masuk. They reached pay dirt 1 ½ minutes later and never looked back.

Nate Coleman (11) heads for a “pick six” as Brian Monaco (95) blocks.

Late in the game, Panther defender Nate Coleman had a “pick-six” racing 65 yards. He got a good block from Brian Monaco to send him on his way.

Masuk’s last score came with seven minutes to go. The only “worry” thereafter was the 50-point rule (Cochran Rule). Surely Jack Cochran (Casey’s father) was in the house.

Jack Cochran won eight titles coaching in Connecticut. He picked up some heavy slack along the way, especially in 2005, when his team won four games by more than fifty points including a 90-0 score over Griswold. Hence the rule.

Casey Cochran committed to UConn in August after being courted by a number of prominent schools including Boston College. Casey’s plan is to graduate from Masuk in December and start at UConn in January.

Casey Cochran

Casey was Connecticut’s Gatorade Player of the Year last year and should get that award again after this season. He holds the Connecticut career records in passing yards, completions, and touchdown passes.

Casey played for his father as a freshman at New London. When his father was fired, they moved to Monroe where Casey has played, and set records, for the past three seasons.

Masuk is ranked second in Division L behind undefeated Hand of Madison.

Newtown’s Lou Fenaroli set a school record 1,598 rushing yards. He led the SWC in rushing.

Another key to the Masuk win was the way they contained the Hawk running game. Lou Fenaroli was only able to get 59 yards in 19 carries. Denied the balance of a strong running game, the Hawks were forced to pass to get anywhere. The chant from the Panther side of, “You’re no Casey,” directed Newtown QB Andrew Tarantino, was accurate.

Newtown’s turf field was terrific. The stadium was packed on a very brisk evening. The lighting on the field was about as good as it gets.

(I take ownership for any “fumbles” in this blog entry.) Pictures will enlarge if you click on them.

Andrew Tarantino (4)

Masuk coach John Murphy

Colin Markus

Thomas Milone

Lou Fenaroli (44) follows blocker Dan Hebert (7)

Pat Tripodi (30) with second quarter “pick six.”

Thomas Milone (22) with blocker Eric Tucker (66)

Masuk defenders break up pass.

Julian Dunn (15) scores the Newtown touchdown

Thomas Milone (22) falls into the end zone on Andrew Cebry (14) as Nick Plescia (58) watches.

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Filed under Masuk, Newtown, SouthWest Conference Connecticut

Tagged as Andrew Tarantino, Casey Cochran, Coach John Murphy, Colin Markus, Lou Fenaroli, Masuk High School, Newtown High School, Thomas Milone

December 28, 2009 · 10:25 pm

Ridgefield Holds Off Newtown 55-49 in Holiday Tourney Opener

(Westport) The Ridgefield Tigers built up a 49-33 lead with three minutes left and then had to hold on for dear life to defeat the Newtown Nighthawks, 55-49, in the opening round of the Holiday Tournament at Spaulding High School on Monday night.

Hitting the long ones in the final quarter triggered the Newtown comeback as they cashed in on six of them. Josh Engler’s second of three treys brought the Nighthawks to 50-46 with 1:15 to go. Unfortunately, for Newtown, they missed three of their last four attempts, the rest of the way, or they might have stolen this one. No question, though, the Nighthawks did make things very interesting down the stretch.

Doug Delbene (23 points) had a 12-point second period that pushed the Tigers to a 10-point lead (24-14). He was huge in crunch time with two free throws, a layup on an inbounds play, and forcing a turnover, all in the last minute.

Dan Lynch and Josh Engler each had 15 points for Newtown.

John Taglieferri (19 points) dominated the boards for the Tigers and made six baskets from in close. He was a bad matchup for the Tigers all game long.

The tempo was fast throughout with plenty of full-court pressure to deal with. There were a lot fewer whistles than the action may have warranted and turnovers were abundant – 23 for Newtown and 18 for Ridgefield.

The burst of offense in the fourth period was surprising after a 34-27 score after three periods. Fatigue defensively on Ridgefield’s part led to some wide-open Newtown 3-point looks late in the game six of which they connected on.

(All stats are unofficial.)