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Rocky Hill Boys Soccer Wins One for Sylvie

by Kathleen Pulek The Rocky Hill soccer community came out on a mild Oct. 15 evening to honor the memory and to celebrate the life of Sylvie Poulin, a popular and driving force behind the Rocky Hill Booster Club who passed away Aug. 1 at age 44 after a long battle with cancer. In a pre-game ceremony before the Rocky Hill-Tolland High boys soccer game, Poulin was remembered for her dedication to the sport, tireless commitment to the Soccer Clubs Columbus Day Tournament and staunch support for the growth and development of the towns travel soccer program. We invited the Rocky Hill youth soccer teams to join us tonight to honor Sylvie Poulin, Terriers coach Frantz Innocent said, and had the U-11 Pumas escort our starting lineup onto the eld before the game. Were also wearing and selling black shirts with pink lettering. The Terriers inched closer to double digit wins with a 3-1 win over visiting Rockville last Friday, behind a pair of goals from Fonseca and one from sophomore Giancarlo Viera. Our senior leadership is very strong, the RHHS second-year head coach noted. Julian Fonseca and Stefan Lonero are our scoring threats.Stefan is aggressive and goes full steam at every ball. Thats how he functions, while Julian is skillful and talented. Midelder Cameron Sweeney is the link between our offensive and defensive lines. Hes the heart of the team. Most opposing coaches know his number and his aggressive play. David Outeiro leads and stabilizes our defense from the center back position. Michael Bordonaro, a back up in 2012, has shown tremendous improvement to earn the starting goalkeeper spot. Hes beneted from working with Ann Marie Murray, the Rocky Hill girls soccer coach, said Innocent.

Sebby Calderon (16) battles in mideld with Tollands Zac Parracino. Photo: Dave Burnham (www.esnapsport.wordpress.com)

Poulin would not have enjoyed the start of the game, with the visitors jumping out to a quick 1-0 lead when Tyson Bridge found the net just 1:09 into the contest. It was a lead the Eagles would make stand up until the second half. Poulin would have enjoyed the nal 40 minutes much more,

and it was only tting that on her night, the Terriers rallied behind seniors Julian Fonseca and Stefan Lonero to secure the 2-1 CCC East victory, which raised Rocky Hills record to 8-4-1 overall. The seasons rst meeting between the two teams was a 4-1 victory posted by the Eagles Sept. 20.

Poulin would also be happy that the Terriers have already clinched a berth in the state tournament and especially pleased that the squads senior members will have the chance to close out their scholastic careers in the postseason. This year is absolutely what I had hoped it would be, especially when you contrast it with our past three seasons, said Lonero. Weve had a good season and we already know it will continue in the state tournament. Everything is coming together. Fonseca echoed Loneros sentiments. Were coming together and having a lot of fun. We have a winning record, and for the rst time in four years, were going to the state tournament. Sweeney noted that the Terriers want to nish strong, while Outeiro added, Everyone is excited to be in the state tournament, but we just dont want to be in it. We want more.

Rocky Hill Running Back Chris Young Cant be Slowed Down

by Mark DiPaola Time is winding down in the fourth quarter of the Rocky Hill High School Terriers road match up against Wetherseld. Rocky Hill running back Chris Young is already sitting on a 50-yard touchdown run from the third quarter, and the 25-12 score line suggests that Head Coach David Coyne might do what he typically does-sit him in the latter part of the contest to spare him the relentless onslaught of hits he takes on a game-to-game basis. But Young isnt showing any signs of having clocked out for the day--the senior is still taking carries as the Terriers attempt to literally run out whats left of the clock, while providing immaculate coverage as a cornerback on the defensive side of the ball. Im standing next to Dave, a close friend of the family who both Chris and his mother Angela consider an uncle. Hes gonna pop off another one, Dave tells me with a condent grin. Just wait and see. Prophecies might be faith-based, but hard numbers dont lie. Young put up around 1,800 yards last year, but that was in only three full games--the score is lopsided so often, that he rarely sees playing time past the rst half. He had 29 touchdowns that year, two of which were on kick returns. Against the Eagles, its business as usual. The Terriers have yet to throw the ball, but they havent had to--the rushing attack led by Young is churning up yards and turning seemingly hopeless third down situations into massive gains. Young takes the hand off ies into a maze of bodies, reappearing somewhere off to the right with a defender wrapped around him. With Wetherseld tacklers closing in, it appears as if hell go down after once again gaining impressive ground for the Terriers. But like his size--hes around 59, but all muscant do, so I can show them I can. He probably gets that from his mother. Im sitting at the kitchen table of their Rocky Hill apartment on a Friday--game day. Chris is eating his favorite pre-game meal, a dish of chicken parmesan, while Angela sits across from him. She tells me about one game--she goes to all of them--from his freshman year. She was walking the sideline, following the play as she always has, when she overheard an excited fan talking to her mother. She was like, Hes so good, Angela recalls. And then her mother goes, Thats what they do--they run. Young wasnt doing too bad academically at the time--he gures he was probably a C student-but Angela wanted him to prove to the world that he was more than just a jock. And, more importantly, he wanted to. He said Mom, I got this, Angela says. And he was true to his word; Chris has garnered Academic Honor Roll status every year since then. With college approaching, he has set his sights on playing Division I football and, if everything goes as planned, a career in the NFL. Despite his success on the eld and in the classroom, however, drawing attention from college recruiters has been an uphill battle so far, Angela says. I think part of it is because were Class S; were small, she says. But bigger high schools have been trying to convince Chris to transfer throughout his career, but hes opted to stay in Rocky Hill for the rush--rst offense--the pass shy anomaly that has allowed him to showcase the raw athletic ability that has won him honors in both track and wrestling as well. If he was in a school that did nothing but throw the ball, would you see that? Angela says. Now when you follow Rocky Hill, youre going to think of the running team and Chris Young.

Terrier running back Chris Young has become a well-known threat in the Connecticut high school football community.

cle, according to Dave-looks can be deceiving. Young spins away, breaking the tackle and running into open space and, ultimately, the end zone. Whatd I tell you! says a beaming Dave as the Rocky Hill fan section erupts in cheers. Perhaps it should not have come as a surprise-not allowing anything to bring him down has always been part of Youngs philosophy, and the eld is not the only place that it plays out. And its a good thing, be-

cause thats something that is consistent with footballand sports in general, as the Twitter hype leading up to the Wetherseld game illustrates. According to Dave, social media forums, namely Twitter, exploded with pregame trash talk centered mostly around stone walling Young, but for him thats not unusual. I get that a lot, Young says. Gotta stop Young. Young, were coming for you. It motivates me. I like people telling me what I

Jake Hedberg threw for a school record 459 yards and added six total touchdowns to help the Newington Indians crush the struggling South Windsor Bobcats 52-36 Friday night. Receiver Andrew Grenier caught nine of Hedbergs passes for 178 yards and three touchdowns. Hedberg and Grenier are both juniors and are showing glimpses of how dangerous the Indians passing attack will be for the remainder of this season and into 2014. Newington now welcomes the East Hartford Hornets this Friday night. The Indians stung the Hornets in their only meeting last season, 42-26. East Hartford (2-4) is led by head coach Dan Lawrence, who is coaching his 10th season at East Hartford. He is currently the longest-tenured head coach in the Central Connecticut I East conference. Kickoff is at 6:30 p.m. The Xavier Falcons lost in dramatic fashion, 35-34, to the West Haven Blue Devils Friday night at Ken Strong Stadium in West Haven.

Hedbergs Arm Tames Bobcats

Trailing 35-28, Xaviers Joe Carbone scored on a quarterback keeper from one yard out. Kicking an extra point would have tied the score and sent the game into a second overtime, but Xavier coach Sean Marinan decided to go for the win and attempt a two-point conversion. Carbone ran another quarterback keeper and was stopped just short of the goal line on the conversion try. Both teams came in with identical 4-1 records and were both ranked in the top 10 in the Connecticut high school football rankings. Next, the Falcons return home to take on the Notre Dame Green Knights, who they annihilated 44-0 last season. Notre Dame (2-4) is coming off a 38-20 victory over Amity Regional, but their defense has struggled in their four losses this season, giving up an average of 40 points per game. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. The Middletown Blue Dragons stomped their conference foe Bristol Central Rams 49-21 at Muzzy Field in Bristol Friday night. Middletowns all-world quarterback Dario Highsmith ran for 346 yards and totaled six touchdowns to

High School Football Round-up

help keep the Blue Dragons undefeated. With the win, Middletown (6-0) should be able to crack the top10 in this weeks Connecticut high school football rankings. They entered the weekend ranked 11th overall. Middletown remains tied atop the Central Connecticut II West conference with the Farmington Indians, who knocked off previously undefeated and fellow conference rival Windsor (13-7) on Friday night to break a three-way tie atop the conference. The Blue Dragons will travel to Meriden this Friday night to take on the Maloney Spartans. Kickoff is at 6:30 p.m.

come in the Plainville Blue Devils this Friday night. Plainville (2-3) is coming off a loss to Berlin and is looking to avenge their 42-7 loss to Rocky Hill last season. The Blue Devils are led by multi-talented quarterback Jeff Ziegenhagen, who possesses a rocket arm and is also eet of foot. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. The Cromwell Panthers soundly defeated the Windsor Locks/Sufeld/East Granby Wildcats 27-13 on Saturday afternoon. Wildcats superstar running back Jarvis Miller totaled 159 yards and scored a touchdown, but the Cromwell defense held the rest of the Wildcats to a mere 114 total yards. After opening the season with a loss, the Panthers have reeled off four consecutive impressive victories to take over sole possession of rst place in the Pequot - North Conference. This Saturday Cromwell will look to make it ve in a row when they travel to The University of Science & Engineering in Hartford to face the Sports & Medicine Science Academy Tigers. Kickoff for the cat clash will be at 12 p.m.

Cromwell Extends Streak to Four

Xavier Loses Heartbreaker in Overtime

Middletown Remains Unblemished

The Rocky Hill Terriers shook off last week loss to Platt by pasting the Weaver Beavers 4912 on a sunny Saturday afternoon in Hartford. Rocky Hills Chris Young continued his sensational senior season, tallying 160 rushing yards and four touchdowns on only 13 carries. Quarterback/safety Andrew Jenkelunas added a touchdown toss and a pick-six (interception returned for a touchdown) in the Terriers victory. Rocky Hill (5-1) will return home and wel-

Terriers Whack Beavers