battle of the bands

I just got back from the New Britain-Southington football game, and if you must know, the Blue Knights won 34-21. It was their third straight win in the series.
But my attention wasn't focused on the game on the field. It was on the "battle" off it, although it is not what it used to be. The New Britain and Southington bands used to both perform at halftime of the big matchup, and the rivalry there was almost as fierce as for those in pads and helmets. But now, the New Britain band was not allowed to perform at halftime, for reasons that were not fully explained.
I kept a running diary of the events, watching each bands every move, song choice and performance. It's time these students get some recognition for the hours of time they put in on behalf of the teams on the field. As both sides said, they are there for the team.
Here are my impressions.

6:23 p.m.- The New Britain band shows up at Fontana Field, high leg kicks and all. They are led in by director Chuck Lunn, drum major Greg Leitao, and of course, the famous Cane-ettes. All heads immediately turn to watch them. This part of their routine is quite mesmerizing and the traditional drum beat is played flawlessly.
6:29 p.m.- The N.B. band finally reaches the track and assembles near the south endzone. While walking in Lunn yells to some of the Color Guard to close a gap in the line. This is no time to lose concentration.
When I talk to Lunn about his feelings before the big show, he says "my guys know they better play their hearts out tonight".
6:36 p.m.- Southington band director Jeff Shaw downplays the battle, saying "tonight the only battle is the football teams".
6:41 p.m.- Lunn, a Southington alumnus, runs across the endzone towards his band as they yell "touchdown" to him. Sharing in the light-hearted moment, he says "my colors" as he sees the Southington blue and white painted in the grass. The band sets up for the national anthem, Cane-ettes on the field and Leitao standing behind them, with the band behind him waiting on the track.
6:47 p.m.- The Southington band, sitting in the opposite bleachers, starts the first chant of the night, inaudible from across the field. The N.B. band, like an army unit, remains unmovable in its position.
6:50 p.m.- The air raid siren blares as the Southington team takes the field. The Cane-ettes do not flinch amidst the onslaught.
6:52 p.m.- Lunn calls an audible to his group, telling them that their usual opening has been cut down for time to allow for the Southington senior night celebrations, which have run late. They will now only play the Star Spangled Banner and not the alma mater as well.
7:01 p.m.- As the senior night announcements continue, the N.B. band starts to get fidgety still in its position.
7:03 p.m.- The band plays a stirring rendition of the anthem, and both sides of bleachers applaud loudly, as much for the song as the start of the game.
7:07 p.m.- As the N.B. band marches off the field, the Southington band plays the Notre Dame fight song, its first number of the night.
7:09 p.m.- Southington band plays "Get Ready 4 This", the brass instruments in back bouncing up and down in rhythm. This kind of co-ordination is clearly their specialty.
The New Britain band is still methodically marching off the track, its fans roaring. The two drum lines can be heard clashing with each other.
7:11 p.m.- The first big play of the game as B.J. Aponte gives the 'Canes a first down. The band does a cavalry call.
7:12 p.m.- Lunn tells the band to hurry up and get seated, as they are still shuffling in the stands following the long trek from the field.
7:15 p.m.- The bass drum booms as New Britain plays "All My Rowdy Friends", better known as the Monday Night Football intro.
I asked drummer Tyler Taylor if he can hear anything after the game, as my ears are already ringing.
"I'm used to it," he replies with a smile. He says he thinks the rivalry is a big deal.
I talk to the first time to Leitao and Magdalenn Widomski, who is in charge of signaling the band what song will be played next. On a pair of large dry-erase boards she has their set list taped, and will make decisions based on the situation.
"Because we have both short songs and longer ones, we usually do the longer ones later in the game," Leitao says. He also explains that they have numbers for whether they are on offense of defense. For instance, when the opposing team has the ball, they may play the Imperial March from Star Wars. If they are dominating an opponent late in the game, a natural choice is "Na, Na, Hey, Hey, Kiss Him Goodbye".
"Not today," Leitao says when asked if that will likely come out tonight. "I think it will be close tonight."
7:20 p.m.- The NFL on Fox theme is played for the first time and as it is, Aponte breaks free for a long touchdown, the first score of the night. This also triggers the first playing of "Bingo", the band's touchdown fight song.
"Hopefully you'll hear it all night," Lunn says.
This is followed by "Land of 1,000 Dances" in the band's extensive set list.
7:27 p.m.- The band starts its "dynamite" chant. Talking to the color guard, they say it is one of their favorites. However, they can barely be heard from a few feet away of the horns behind them.
"It doesn't matter," one of them tells me. "We're here to support them (the team)."
7:31 p.m.- To signal the playing of Rock and Roll, Part 2 by Gary Glitter, Widomski holds up the white board saying "The Hey! Song". They may not know the title, but it leads to an interception, and when a major signals the band to stop, they ignore it and keep playing anyways, caught up in the moment.
7:34 p.m.- A Southington touchdown quiets the New Britain band temporarily. I still can't hear the Southington band from across the field. Maybe it is just the distance.
7:40 p.m.- As the first quarter winds to a close I talk to band chaperone and parent Mike Sokolowski. He explains that part of his duty is to make sure no Southington students come across the field to cause trouble. We want a clean game here.
Sokoloski is upset that the band will not be allowed to play at halftime.
"We go to every game. There are some schools that are very cordial ... If [the Southington band] come to New Britain that can play."
Sokoloski also tells me that the deafening noise the band is making has little to do with the magnitude of the matchup.
"This is every game," he says. "The only time they sit down is halftime. They cheer the whole game long."
7:44 p.m. - Widomski's sign just says "CHEER". New Britain gets a big interception seconds later. I guess this stuff works.
The band celebrates with "Great Balls of Fire".
7:48 p.m.- A second New Britain touchdown leads to the second playing of "Bingo". No, it's not the song about the farmer and his dog.
7:53 p.m- A frantic Taylor runs to the top of the bleachers and back down, goes to Lunn and asks, "how can I get on the track". Lunn says, "no, just do it here".
Taylor rounds up David Ortiz, Jonathan Caez, and Lenny Selgado and they dance as the band plays "Y.M.C.A." It's quite inspired. The crowd loves it.
Meanwhile, Lunn, Sokolowski and other adults stand transfixed by the game, screaming encouragement... mostly.
"It's not about the band. It's about football," Lunn says with a grin.
7:58 p.m.- The Southington band moves onto the track to prepare for its halftime show.
7:59 p.m.- The N.B. band plays "Layla", obviously forgetting that military bands don't have guitars. We'll give them a pass.
8:04 p.m.- Widomski's sign now says "CHEER, BRASS TOO!"
"Sometimes I like to give them personalized notes," she explains.
8:12 p.m.- Southington scores in the closing seconds of the half to go up 15-14. It's obvious the team, and band, will need to rally in the second half. But there are no worries in the stands.
"The spirit is always better up here than it is on the field," Leitao says. "When the team gets down these guys cheer louder ... The team has always said we're like the 12th player."
8:17 p.m.- As the Southington band takes the field for the half, I cross sides, leaving my new friends from New Britain behind. I'm looking forward to hearing the Southington band, which will be playing Saturday night at Giants Stadium in a formal competition.
Unlike the New Britain band, I find out that Southington does not specialize in being a pep band. They are at a significant disadvantage in this "battle".
8:34 p.m.- The band leaves the field after its show, looking cold.
"Tonight they're doing a little better with the cold," Shaw explains as they head to their seats. "Last week was the first really cold night."
Shaw says to drum major Jaclyn Dailey "same thing as the first half. Let's play a lot but don't play while the ball is in play."
This is their policy. As Shaw explains it to me, they don't want to interfere with the signal calling from the coaching staff to the players.
Shaw also tells me that it is not his decision whether or not the New Britain band plays at halftime.
8:38 p.m.- Southington again opens the half with "Get Ready 4 This".
8:40 p.m.- The band chants "mascot" as the iron-clad Knight roams the track. When he finally acknowledges them with a wave of the sword, they cheer.
8:42 p.m- While most of the band remains seated, the horns play loudly as Southington scores. This is followed by the Notre Dame fight song, which is their equivalent of "Bingo".
8:44 p.m.- After the touchdown, the band calls for the cheerleaders to do pushups, one for every point Southington has scored. The band counts them out so they can't get away with not doing them.
At this point I talk with drum majors Dailey, Tim Dobosz and Nora Graseck about the night.
"It's about both football and the band," Dobosz explains. But he acknowledges New Britain's edge.
"This is what they do," he says. "We're a competition band. This is an added bonus for us."
Asking them about their big night in East Rutherford, New Jersey coming up, which they do each year, Graseck downplays nerves.
"Once you've been there, it's not that big. But it's intimidating the first time."
Meanwhile the New Britain drums can be heard across the way and that band breaks into "Thriller".
8:54 p.m.- Scattered instruments again play as Southington scores, but most remain seated. They are clearly saving themselves for competition.
Notre Dame ... cheerleaders.
8:59 p.m.- The N.B. band plays the Superman theme after an injured player gets to his feet. Nice touch.
9:01 p.m.- Southington intercepts a deep pass. I am sitting behind the tubas in the back, wearing red berets. Most tuba players wear berets.
"It's just a tuba thing," Jon Gworek explains. "Because the helmet doesn't fit (while carrying a tuba)."
Fellow tubas Dan Orlando and Tim Scheffler explain that they would play more songs, but the drum majors aren't signaling them to.
9:09 p.m.- The mascot gets the band to start a "defense" chant.
As the third quarter winds to a close, the band plays "Back in Black", just minutes after New Britain had played its own AC/DC song, "Dirty Deeds".
Apparently sensing the challenge, the N.B. band follows that up with "You Shook Me All Night Long". Two AC/DC songs in their repertoire.
9:14 p.m.- New Britain scores. Time for "Bingo".
"Good," Shaw says with the score 28-21. "It will be a ballgame."
The Southington band stirs with a "Let's Go!" cheer.
9:18 p.m.- The New Britain side is ecstatic after recovering a fumbled kickoff. The band is swaying and waving in unison. Take that, Southington band.
9:22 p.m.- After a N.B. turnover on downs, the Southington band does a chant. Meanwhile, the N.B. band can only make noise, as the game appears to be slipping away. But they make noise with the best of them.
9:27 p.m.- The Southington band continues to pick up the volume as the game remains close.
9:32 p.m.- Southington band mixes it up with an "offense" chant. This is not a very common move, but it will pay off at ...
9:36 p.m.- Southington scores the clincher with just minutes left. Notre Dame fight song.
9:46 p.m.- The Southington band starts the countdown to 0:00 and again plays the Notre Dame fight song.
They saved their best for last playing "Battlefield Glory". You might know it as one of the songs from NFL Films.
While New Britain has clearly won the battle of the bands, Southington takes the football game.
A good fight both ways.

Good luck Southington at Giants Stadium. And congratulations to the Golden Hurricanes for a dominant pep band performance. Each has its niche. Both are talented.
And a lot of fun to hang out with.

week 9 preview

It got really dark out there this week as we said goodbye to our friend Daylight Savings Time. It also got really cold. I'm not sure which is more depressing. Let's all just pray that we hold off the snow until after the first week of December. Then I'll be glad to build a snowman in front of every school in the coverage area. But until then, we've got football games to think about.
Which leads me into my week 9 picks, after which we can finally start seriously breaking down playoff situations. Truth be told, most things will be determined for our local teams this week, except Newington (which I will simply say better start rooting as hard as possible for every team it beat this year).
I am now 42-17 overall this year, which I think is a very good record. When the season ends I'll break that down team by team so I can see who I understood and who I'm still trying to figure out.
Oh, not sure what my schedule is yet this weekend, but I can tell you I will be at Southington High School tonight, and I want to see you all there. I will be leaving the game coverage to our excellent writer Ken Lipshez, who can stomach the cold much more than I can. Meanwhile, I plan on being warmly ensconced amid the two marching bands, who will be battling it out for supremacy on the sidelines. I plan on spending time with each side and seeing a little bit of what goes through their heads during a game like this.
Keep an eye out for the blog. If I can give live updates from the game via a wireless signal, I'll do it that way. Otherwise, I will be talking about the bands on here after the game.
And on Saturday I expect to be at Wethersfield-Weaver, so for now I won't write about that. Should those plans change, I'll add it later.
Friday:
New Britain at Southington: Ladies and gentlemen, the show you've all been waiting for. Finally. These teams don't know what it's like to be tested. Since the Hurricanes loss to Windsor in week 2, they've beaten their opponents by an average of 29.6 ppg over the last six. Meanwhile, Southington has beaten its eight opponents by an average of 31.1 ppg for the season. If the season ended right now, both would be in the playoffs, but somebody will in all likelihood lose this game. Should it be New Britain, their playoff hopes go out the door. Southington could probably withstand the loss, but won't want to risk it.
For two years Southington has been the better team. They've won with their defense, and used the offense to put the game away. But don't forget that New Britain was a few altered plays away from winning each of those games, and the best offensive weapon on the field (B.J. Aponte) will be in maroon and gold.
Still, I think Southington's defense is better than it's been before, and will give the offense field position it can take advantage of. I'm picking Southington, but I wouldn't stake anything of value on that pick.
Newington at Bristol Central: The Indians have been rolling too, despite their shaky defense. Can Nate Pagan top 300 yards for a third straight week? Can he break the state record of eight touchdowns? Why not? After all, defense is Central's least favorite part of the game as well.
One thing I guarantee is this game will be high-scoring and last a while. I'm also pretty sure that Newington will come out on top. There's no margin of error for them.
Plainville at Farmington: This is a really fun matchup. Good running backs on both sides (Dave Soltis, Matt Robinson), and teams that are solid but obviously flawed. With Farmington leaving the conference, this is the last chance for the Devils to hang a loss on their long-time rival.
I think this one is going to be close, but I think Plainville is the better team. I'm picking the Blue Devils.
SP/GT/LM at Rocky Hill: After the Terriers boys soccer team clears the field, the football team will take it. And I think Dan Carducci will find more running room than the soccer players do.
The Terriers played one of their best games of the year last week, so lack of concentration or desire after the Berlin loss is not an issue. Rocky Hill will win.
Saturday:
Berlin at Middletown: This is naturally getting lost in the shuffle of NB-Southington, but equally important. The Redcoats win and they have only to beat hapless East Catholic to make the playoffs. Lose, and things get really dicey. Middletown has to worry about Xavier on Turkey Day, but lose this one and the Dragons can punch their playoff ticket win or lose to the Black Hole.
Oh, and the winner virtually clinches at least a share of the conference title.
So who's the better team? Well, many still say Northwest is the best team in this conference, and both of these teams lost to the Indians. Middletown put up a better fight.
And somehow I'm still confident that Berlin is better. Maybe I'm crazy. Maybe I just don't believe that Middletown's front line is as good as it has looked.
If the Middletown that shut out Rocky Hill shows up, it will win. But I'm expecting the Middletown defense that was very porous against Plainville. I'm taking Berlin.
"STATE" GAME OF THE WEEK
Greenwich at Naples (FL), Friday, 7 p.m.: I've been waiting for this one all year. Greenwich is without a doubt one of the best programs in Connecticut. And this year's team by most knowing accounts is at least one of the top two in the state.
But this is Connecticut. And Naples is ranked in the top-ten in football-crazed Florida.
The interesting thing is that this game really doesn't matter to Greenwich. The Cardinals have so many points already that they can lose their last two games and still make the playoffs. This is for pride alone.
The only question is, how much will Greenwich's pride be damaged for the playoffs if it suffers a big defeat in this one?
I'll take the warm-weather team.
(They're excited about this one down in the Sunshine State too!!! TAPE DELAYED WEBCAST OF THE GAME!!! http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2007/nov/08/check_out_our_special_greenwichnaples_page/?breaking_news)

This is a big week, and mixed in we've got state soccer and volleyball tournament action. It's an exciting time to be a sportswriter.

road to a title?

Every game I see the Wethersfield boys soccer team they play better than the last. I can't say I've seen a team definitively better than this one in the three years I've been covering soccer in the state.
Out of curiosity, I asked the team's two managers their thoughts on who the best player was. After goalie Hami Kara, they had difficulty coming to any kind of concensus between the two of them. They nominated about five or six different players and could not rank them.
That says a lot about a team. When those closest to it can't identify a superior player, and the team has done nothing but win all season long, things are looking up.
Following their latest win, a 5-0 romp of Ledyard in the second round on Thursday, coach Rob Jachym and many of the players planned on attending the Farmington-Glastonbury game at night. They can take it easy for a couple days. Their opponent in the next round won't be decided until Avon and Middletown play on Friday and the quarterfinal game won't be until Monday.
"It’s fun going there, knowing you’re in the quarters for once, and watch the other two teams battle," Jachym said. "I’m just going to relax a little tonight and focus on them."
But Jachym will be back to coaching for a short time Friday afternoon, as well as a light practice Sunday. If the Eagles play the way they did today, they won't be losing.

that other Division I team

The Hartford Hawks are saying "don't forget about us" a lot these days. It is understandable that the UConn program should by far garner the most attention state-wide, but the Hawks are often left trying to figure out why they should have to compete so much with CCSU as well. Simply said, the Blue Devils success has been primarily in the men's game, while Hartford has had even greater success in the women's game. Even in this state, men's basketball is more popular (although you could argue UConn womens' fans are more avid than the fans of the mens' program, though fewer in number).
But, things seem to be changing at Hartford. I attended their media day today for both programs, and I'm impressed with what I see. We all know what UConn legend Jennifer Rizzotti has done with the women, bringing them to three NCAA tournaments in nine years, going 30-2 in the conference over the last two seasons and pulling off an upset win in the NCAA first round two years ago.
But get used to the name Dan Leibovitz. He is the second-year coach of the mens' team, which finished well ahead of preseason projections last year. This year they were picked sixth by conference coaches, and Leibovitz once again said he believes they are better than that ... or the conference is extremely good.
Matt Straub and I spoke to both Leibovitz and senior captain Brian Glowiak of New Britain (look for Matt's story on Glowiak in the coming days). The theme of the discussions, as dictated by each of them separately, is that this is a much more unified, confident and well-prepared team than before.
Leibovitz is soft-spoken off the court. I haven't seen him on the court, but you can guess he learned something in his years as an assistant to fiery, longtime Temple coach John Chaney. But despite his calm demeanor, his delivery and presence demand your attention. You listen intently to what he has to say. He also seems genuine, something those who follow coaches will tell you is not always the case. But it is an attractive trait to recruits.
Add to that a beautiful gym on campus, that has undergone some renovations in recent years, and I like the direction this program is heading.
Then there are those women. Don't be surprised if this is Rizzotti's best team yet. After many felt they were snubbed last year by not receiving an at large bid to the NCAA tournament after they lost in their conference championship to UMBC, the Hawks have taken the right approach. They didn't complain, just beefed up their schedule to enormous lengths.
Hartford will face Kansas, Providence, UAB, BYU, UMass, UConn, St. John's, Michigan St., could face Hawaii and will face one of Kentucky/Minnesota/Texas/Virginia in the Wahine Classic in Hawaii. That non-conference schedule rivals any in the country, and dwarfs those of most "mid-major" programs.
And they're playing to win those games, not just show up for a loss. The Hawks return all-conference player Danielle Hood as well as key players in Jamie McCabe, Courtney Gomez, MaryLynne Schaeffer and Lisa Etienne. Add to the mix the return of forward Erica Beverley after a season-ending injury last year, and this team is loaded.
No wonder they were picked by the league coaches to finish first, something Rizzotti said is a challenge in itself.
Get out to West Hartford and see this team if you can. There's a very good chance they'll be playing in March one way or another, and they host the America East tournament this year, as they have each time they won it.
When she was hired, Rizzotti was the youngest coach in Division I. Now she's the veteran at her own school, and she and Leibovitz appear to have a good relationship. Rizzotti will further cement her status as the best possible future replacement for Geno Auriemma, of course barring Chris Dailey simply taking over the reins on her own. It must be nice for UConn to see a potential candidate so close to the program already.

time for prayer

When asked by those outside the state, particularly when I was in college in Massachusetts, to explain the fanaticism surrounding UConn basketball, my typical answer, somewhat sarcastic, was to say that the Huskies are the closest thing to a state religion. It was always only partially a joke.
With another season upon us, and being one of the avid fans, I am naturally excited. But there is a large amount of apprehension surrounding this year's team, particularly after last season's tremendous disappointment.
Let me first say that for the last eight months, since the Huskies played their final game of last season against Syracuse at Madison Square Garden, I have been among their more vocal supporters. I likened this year's team to those that followed up disappointing finishes in 1997 and 2001 with trips to the Elite Eight in 1998 and 2002. The 1997 squad in particular seemed an apropos comparison to last year's bunch.
That team, featuring freshmen Richard Hamilton, Kevin Freeman, and Jake Voskuhl, suffered a devastating blow in personnel when expected star Kirk King was suspended for NCAA violations for nearly the entire season. Sophomore point Ricky Moore was suspended for several games, and the young squad was left with one elder statesmen. Does anybody remember Monquencio Hardnett, who was a junior on that team and the oldest player of significance? What ensued was a year in which the Huskies could not hit the broad side of a barn with a jump shot, could not work the ball inside, and lost a majority of their games. But things went well late, Hamilton showed what he would become in future years in the NIT and the team rallied to the semifinals of that tournament.
What that team also did was play excellent defense, usually losing games close, but in the 50 or 60-point range.
Flash forward to last year. With the departure of seven key players from the 06 team, the Huskies again had no seniors on the roster, no juniors in fact. Sophomore Jeff Adrien was the "voice of experience". Worse than in 97, the Huskies had trouble throwing the ball in the ocean from the pier.
However, they played even better defense than that 97 team. In case you didn't notice, UConn ranked in the top ten teams in the country last year in defensive efficiency. They allowed an opponent to score 70 points only five times and 60 points a mere 11 times.
It was easy for me to believe that this team could improve its offense on a level comparable to the 1997-98 jump, which landed them back in the top ten the latter year. This team does not need to score many points to win. They don't need to be great on offense, just "not bad".
Surely the Huskies would be a lock to again reach the NCAA tournament and had a good chance to crack the top 25.
And then I heard about UConn's preseason scrimmage against Assumption (carrying the pride of my second home Worcester, Mass.) in which UConn needed a late surge to hold off the Division II opponent. A second game against Bryant was better, a 100-65 win, but that Assumption game haunts me.
This team appears to be once again inept on offense, perhaps detrimentally so. Is it possible that this team could squander a top ten defense with an inability to work as a team and shoot the ball for a second year?
Coach Calhoun still says he has faith in the ability of A.J. Price, but following his involvement in the now infamous laptop thefts two years ago, it is hard to root for him to do well, particularly with his penchant for spouting off at the mouth to the media. Win some games before bragging.
I'll say this. I still see the potential for some really good players here. I think Jerome Dyson, Hasheem Thabeet, Stanley Robinson, and yes, Price, could be NBA players some day (Price on reputation alone though, not on anything I've seen on the court). Adrien is a pre-season all-conference pick, and I like Doug Wiggins and Craig Austrie as role players.
But I now fear this team is still far away from being a legitimate contender in the Big East, and even farther away from competing nationally.
Pray with me Husky fans. It could be another long season. (We've still got the women though. I'll ramble on them some other night.)

week 8 in review

The playoff picture is getting clearer, but there is a lot of unfinished business ahead. I'm a bit of a junkie when it comes to the CIAC playoff point standings. If you don't know, you can find them at www.casciac.org. Click on the CIAC sports link on the left and then the link for schedules and results and scroll down. You can analyze the football season or find the playoff brackets for other sports.
The football points standings fascinate me because of all the various implications every game played can have on who makes the playoffs and who doesn't. If you think the NFL playoff scenarios get dicey, read the description of the CIAC points and take a minute to try and figure out who you think will be in the top four spots at the end of the season in each division.
Anyways, I'd say at this point that four of our teams have a legitimate shot at making the playoffs right now if they handle their own business, and another two are hoping for some near miracles, but have not officially been eliminated yet.
Got my first chance to see Farmington and Newington this week and BOTH impressed me. I admit I didn't expect much from Farmington at Northwest Catholic, but a few plays different and they would have had the upset of the year.
I don't care what NWC coach Mike Tyler told me after the game (read it at www.newbritainherald.com), those Indians were nervous in the second half at what the visiting Indians were doing.
I got to chat with the Farmington statkeeper, who happens to be QB Eric Morrissey's father, during the game. While Morrissey and Matt Robinson, and a handful of other key parts, will be graduating this year, there's a lot of talent in the younger classes there.
Newington runner Nate Pagan is far better than he was even last year. I implore you, if you get a chance to see this kid in the next few weeks, do so. While he isn't getting looks from big-time college programs, he's got the raw skills to play there. He unfortunately was not blessed with the stature that college coaches drool over, but has made up for it by a long shot at this level.
New Britain, Southington and Berlin once again dominated outmatched opponents. If you can, I implore you as well to get down to Southington this Friday for the big annual matchup between the Knights and 'Canes. I'll be there, but perhaps not watching and listening to the football game only. More on that later.
One more note. I must have angered the Rocky Hill team. I predicted an upset for Enfield, and the Terriers came out and put in one of their most dominant performances of the season against a solid team. Nice work, boys. And I'll have you know the Herald's Matt Straub sent me text messages from the game every time you scored to let me know just how wrong I was.

I went 6-1 with my picks this week. Could have had my perfect week if I didn't go for the upset. My mistake. Overall records: 42-17, 5-3.

Teaser: There's two huge matchups on the schedule for this coming weekend, and Thanksgiving games coming soon. I'm excited despite the cold weather and early darkness.

love for the swimmers

I received a comment regarding the Northwest Conference swimming championships held Saturday on the campus of Wesleyan University. I was aware that the event was taking place but was assigned to an afternoon football game. I must admit I was not in the office on Saturday night, so I did not get a chance to talk to any coaches who called to report scores that night. However, perusing the Herald's website, I see a report that East Catholic won the event, edging out Scott Ferrigno's very good Farmington team, despite a record-setting performance.
The Indians' medley relay of Jenn Noyes, Audrey King, Melly Marrington and Monika Drogosz set a new conference record with a time of 1:54.57, an excellent time.
Marrington, Noyes and Drogosz each won individual events as well. The latter's 55.25 in the 100 yard freestyle is particularly impressive to me.
Taylor Friedmann (Berlin), one of the most consistently dominant swimmers in the area, won two events, the 200 and 500 freestyles.
Unfortunately I don't see any info on the top swimmers from Plainville, although I'm sure you could find the names Meghan Sisson, Melanie Norton and Jessica Jahr at or near the top as well as diver Millie Mills. I got the chance to watch that team swim against Farmington earlier this season and both sides impressed me.
Sometimes it is easy to overlook swimming with football, soccer and volleyball, team sports, garnering the most attention. But I will have my eyes on times at the state tournaments and state open over the next couple weeks to see how well these gifted athletes do in the pool.