Sweeney Slices Through Southington Defense On Thanksgiving

November 27, 2009 by Greg Lederer

The Cheshire High School football team enjoyed quite a feast on Thanksgiving. Not only did 23 seniors win (24-11) their final home game over Southington at the David B. Maclary Athletic Complex, but the Rams (9-1 record) also clinched a Class LL berth for the second straight season.
“We wanted to win with playoff implications,” said senior quarterback Greg Palmer, who completed 10 of 13 passes for 174 yards. “Some people forgot about us because we graduated a lot of players. We came together and always thought we could get back there.”
Senior running back Dan Sweeney rushed for 155 yards and a touchdown to earn the Overall MVP and Cheshire Offensive MVP awards in the 14th Annual Apple Valley Classic. Cheshire built a 24-5 lead by halftime and limited Southington senior Dylan Danko to 44 rushing yards.
“They have tremendous character,” added Cheshire Head Coach Mark Ecke. “They believe they can win every game.”
While having to replace their entire offensive line from last year, Cheshire has been solid up front and opened up holes for Sweeney. Seniors Luke Scinto and Steve Sutherland play tackle, while juniors Izear Hogan and Nick Ritchie play the interior at guard. Senior center Connor Hepler makes the line calls.
“It’s been a long season,” said Sweeney. “We lost our offensive line and (quarterback/defensive back) Billy (Ragone) to graduation. We put a team together this year.”
Southington did score first when junior Joe Pesce (Defensive MVP) tackled Palmer for a safety. Sweeney answered with a 23-yard run to the one-yard line and Palmer (80 rushing yards) scored his 21st touchdown. Cheshire faked the extra point, as senior Paul Tuscano found sophomore Sebastian Little for an 8-2 lead.
“We called for the fake,” explained Tuscano, a captain alongside Sweeney and classmate Craig Thorne. “I just had to make the pass and Sebastian made a great catch.”
The Rams needed one play each to post their next two touchdowns. Sweeney burst up the gut and followed blockers over a 63-yard touchdown, extending the lead to 14-2 at the end of the first quarter. Palmer used play action to freeze the defense and connected with senior Brian Havlicek, who wasn’t touched on a 83-yard sprint to the end zone. Danko (20 yards) and Cheshire sophomore Kyle Pulek (25 yards) traded field goals in the final five minutes of the first half.
“It’s a play we’ve been working on. We wanted them to think it was a run play,” stated Havlicek, who enjoyed playing before around 2,500 spectators in his last home game. “I’ll miss the memories. All the wins and losses will last with me.”
“We have a lot of kids that can make plays from different positions,” explained Ecke.
The Blue Knights opened the second half with their only touchdown. Junior quarterback Connor Butkiewicz threw a 15-yard strike to junior Tyler Dube. The two-point conversion attempt failed, but Southington looked to cut further into the deficit. Senior defensive back Ryan Connolly dislodged the ball from Southington senior Anthony Florian at mid-field and sophomore linebacker Dylan Baumgardner (Defensive MVP) recovered the crucial fumble for the Rams.
“Coach (Ecke) said if we play defense the whole game, we will be fine,” said Baumgardner.
The game saw no more scoring, as the rivals stopped each other on fourth downs. Southington senior Zachary Etter received their Offensive MVP, catching seven passes for 71 yards. The Blue Knights completed a 5-5 season.
Cheshire (third seed) will visit second-seeded Glastonbury (9-1 record) for the Class LL semifinals on Dec. 1, at 6:30 p.m. The game is a rematch of last year’s title game, in which the Tomahawks posted a 28-14 victory to secure an undefeated season.
“That was the number one goal of the season. We had to get back to the playoffs and win a championship,” Tuscano added.
Find a detailed account of the Apple Valley Classic and Class LL semifinal in the Dec. 3 issue of The Cheshire Herald.