Hall Erases Seven-run Deficit to Dethrone Southington in CCC Championship

Muzzy Field with Southington at the plate against Hall AJ ANGELILLO PHOTOS

BRISTOL — Southington put seven runs on the board in the bottom of the first inning at Muzzy Field on Wednesday, and for three innings, the Blue Knights looked every bit like a team about to win their third straight CCC Baseball Championship.

Then Hall decided that was not going to happen.

The Warriors erased the entire deficit and pulled off an 8-7 comeback to win their first CCC Championship in program history. Hall entered the game at 17-5 and had already lost to Southington twice in the last 13 months, falling 6-2 in last year’s CCC final and 13-9 in a regular-season meeting on April 10.

The first inning was a disaster for the Warriors’ pitching staff. Junior center fielder Drew Kelly worked a walk to lead off the bottom of the frame against senior right-hander Grant Davidson and the Blue Knights’ aggressive baserunning took over from there.

Kelly stole second during junior second baseman Mason LeFort’s walk and junior shortstop Domenic Zigmont beat out a grounder that brought Kelly home. Senior right fielder Connor Lentini roped a double into the left-center gap to plate LeFort. After senior left fielder Mitchell Zielinski drew a walk to load the bases, Davidson was done after recording just one out.

Senior reliever Alexandre Rebours came on and walked in a run before freshman designated hitter Bryce Zielinski lined into a tag at first by senior first baseman Matthew Panarella. Kelly came back around and hammered a two-run double into the gap in center to cap the frame and by the time the inning was over, Southington led 7-0.

Junior right-hander Luke Prozzo backed that offensive explosion with three no-hit innings. He struck out eight through four frames and had Hall’s lineup completely off balance, looking every bit like a pitcher capable of carrying his team to a title.

The fourth inning cracked the door open. Senior third baseman Quinn O’Neill picked up Hall’s first hit with a single, stole second and scored on a base hit from Panarella. A hit-by-pitch on senior catcher James Alerte forced in another run and a bases-loaded walk to junior shortstop Joshua Gertner cut the lead to 7-3. Prozzo stranded the bases loaded with a strikeout, but the momentum had shifted.

The next inning flipped the entire game as Head Coach Stan Switala pulled Prozzo and went to sophomore right-hander Tyler Tortora, and Hall jumped on the change.

Junior second baseman Kaiyo Sharkey lifted a sacrifice fly to score junior designated hitter Maxwell Hanawalt and Panarella singled to put two runners in scoring position with two outs. A wild pitch from Tortora scored O’Neill and made it 7-5 and after junior right-hander Cole Kosko came on and hit Alerte with a pitch to load the bases, Gertner lined a two-run single through the left side to tie the game at 7-7. The Hall dugout erupted and their fans behind the backstop matched every bit of their energy.

Senior right-hander Matthew LaBreck deserves much of the credit for making the comeback possible. He entered in the third inning after Hall burned through three arms in two frames and tossed 3.2 scoreless innings, allowing just two hits while striking out three. He grounded a pitching staff that desperately needed stability and without his presence on the mound, the Warriors may never have gotten close enough to tie the game.

Hall took the lead for good in the sixth when O’Neill reached on an infield single, advanced to third on a ball that deflected off LeFort’s glove and scored on Sharkey’s fielder’s choice. Bryce Zielinski settled in on the mound for Southington and limited the damage, but the Blue Knights could not answer in the bottom of the frame despite senior catcher Max Pierce getting hit by a pitch and stealing second.

Junior right fielder Louis Sauer came on in relief and closed the door, retiring all four batters he faced over 1.1 innings with two strikeouts. When junior Tyler Guerrette flew out to center to end the seventh, the Warriors swarmed the mound in a celebration that many would have considered unthinkable three hours earlier.

For Southington, the loss drops the Blue Knights to 20-3 and snaps a two-year hold on the CCC, a remarkable run for a program that entered the season ranked ninth in the preseason GameTimeCT poll after losing 11 seniors from last year’s roster.

For Hall, now 18-5, senior captains LaBreck, O’Neill, Panarella and senior left fielder Thomas Hussey leave with a conference championship no group before them could claim. Both teams now turn their attention to the CIAC state tournament.

Southington Survives Glastonbury 4-3 to Earn Shot at Third Straight CCC Title

Senior Max Pierce at the plate AJ ANGELILLO PHOTOS

BRISTOL — The chants of “Rocco, Rocco, Rocco” echoed through Muzzy Field as Rocco Davino walked off the mound for the final time Tuesday night. Eight days after throwing a no-hitter on Senior Day against Plainville, the senior right-hander gutted through a completely different kind of start in the CCC semifinal against Glastonbury.

Davino tossed 6.2 innings and junior left-hander Luke Prozzo recorded the final out as the No. 6 Southington Blue Knights held off the No. 4 Glastonbury Guardians 4-3 to advance to Wednesday’s CCC Championship against Hall at Muzzy Field.

The win gave head coach Stan Switala his 100th career victory at Southington, a milestone reached in just his fifth season leading the program.

The Blue Knights jumped on senior right-hander Daniel Wallace from the start. Junior center fielder Drew Kelly and senior catcher Max Pierce opened the bottom of the first with back-to-back singles before junior second baseman Mason LeFort worked a walk to load the bases. Junior shortstop Domenic Zigmont struck out looking, but senior right fielder Connor Lentini grounded into a fielder’s choice that scored Kelly.

Senior left fielder Mitch Zielinski then delivered the big blow, working the count full and lining a two-RBI single to left that brought home Pierce and Lentini. Senior left fielder Bennett Bedard’s throw from the outfield came up short and Southington led 3-0.

Glastonbury got on the board in the third when senior shortstop Jack Westergren scored on a throwing error by Zigmont to make it 3-1. The Blue Knights answered immediately in the bottom half when Lentini singled with two outs and Zielinski dropped a liner in front of junior center fielder Cooper Saunders as Lentini advanced all the way to third.

When Wallace caught Zielinski in a rundown between first and second, Lentini timed the play and broke for home. Glastonbury could not get the tag at the plate and Zielinski reached second safely without ever being touched. The play stretched the lead to 4-1.

The Blue Knights' dugout

The Guardians clawed their way back over the next two innings. Wallace doubled into the gap in left-center to lead off the fourth and senior catcher Dylan Woodworth lined an RBI single down the left field line to cut the deficit to 4-2. Davino loaded the bases later in the frame by walking senior Ryan Sansoucy with two outs, but escaped when Bedard flew out to center.

In the fifth, junior designated hitter Connor Smith singled and stole second and third before scoring when a popup dropped between Lentini and freshman first baseman SJ Switala. Saunders reached second on the play and the deficit was down to one.

But Davino and the defense bent without breaking, when sophomore third baseman Ethan Herens recovered from a pair of errors earlier in the game to make throws when they counted.

Then LeFort delivered the play of the night in the sixth, diving to snag a liner off the bat of Bedard with senior Nathan Hill standing at third and two outs. The Southington dugout erupted and Davino walked back to the dugout more fired up than he had been all game.

Kelly nearly blew the game open in the bottom of the fourth, launching a fly ball to the center field wall and sliding in safely for a triple that sent the bleachers into a frenzy. Pierce fouled off five pitches in a long at-bat before lining out to second with Kelly left stranded.

Davino came out for the seventh, looking to finish what he started. He retired Smith on a flyout and froze junior first baseman Zachary Bernabeo on a slider for a called third strike to bring Glastonbury to its final out.

But Wallace worked a walk and Saunders singled through the left side to put runners on the corners. Switala went to the bullpen with Davino, who received a standing ovation as he was greeted by his teammates. Prozzo would then come in to finish the job as Woodworth grounded out to second and the Blue Knights stormed the field.

Kelly led the offense with two hits and four total bases. Zielinski went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and Lentini added a hit, two stolen bases and two runs scored. Davino finished with six strikeouts on 87 pitches, allowing seven hits and two earned runs.

Southington won the CCC Championship in both 2024 and 2025. On Wednesday, the Blue Knights will face Hall at Muzzy Field with a three-peat on the line. First pitch is set for 6pm.

At Memorial Tournament, Organizers Remember Founder of Southington Lacrosse

Barbara Vilar, Ryan Vilar, Aindrea McDowell, Shawn McDowell PHILIP THIBODEAU PHOTO

For the thousands of young lacrosse players who traveled to Southington from across southern New England to participate in the KVMJ lacrosse tournament last Saturday, the focus was on getting a few urgent questions answered - where is the field my team is playing on? when do we start? where can I get water? – so they could compete and have fun.

NMR PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTOS

But for the tournament organizers who were making sure all their questions got answered, the event meant something more. The abbreviation KVMJ stands for ‘Ken Vilar Memorial Jamboree.’ Ken was the founder of Southington lacrosse, which was first recognized as a sport at the high school in 1989. The jamboree was renamed in his honor after his death in 2012. On Saturday, Aindrea and Shawn McDowell, Ken’s daughter and son-in-law, were busy running the event, just as they done for past several years, with the help of friends, family members, and the Southington Lacrosse Association.

On the grassy fields at the high school and DePaolo, 160 boys and girls teams were either playing lacrosse or getting ready to compete. While they watched the action and took questions from out-of-towners, Aindrea and Barbara Vilar, Ken’s wife, took some time to reflect on the history of lacrosse in Southington and the key role Ken played in popularizing it.

Barbara: “This was his dream, to expose the sport. He played on Long Island, where lacrosse is a big thing. Around here back then everything was baseball and football. He started with little sticks at the YMCA [a program for younger kids]; it was about building up those skills. Then he worked really hard to get a program at the high school.”

Aindrea: “He started fundraising for the equipment and the travel. He set up a booster club. Any kind of money we raised, all of it went to Southington lacrosse.”

Barbara: “We did so much fundraising! It’s an expensive sport, with the equipment – sticks, helmet, gloves, pads – and the fees. We sold everything – cheesecakes, you name it.”

Aindrea: “And there was Panthorn Park, too. He fought for Panthorn to be Southington’s lacrosse home.”

Barbara: “Do you remember Dr. Saloom, the Superintendent back then [in the 1980’s]? He was a tough one. We really had to fight to get a team recognized. Now the school system is more flexible, more open to new sports.”

Aindrea: “It’s been a long ride. We’ll keep doing this as long as we can. It’s important to us to preserve his legacy and keep his name out there, to let people know.”

At one point in the conversation the name Jeff Merrill came up. Merrill played lacrosse at the high school and graduated in the same class, 1989, as this reporter. Aindrea and Barbara’s faces lit up at the mention of his name. Merrill was the leader of the group of young lacrosse enthusiasts who turned to Ken for help advocating for the creation of a high school team. When I wrote to him to ask for his perspective, he was happy to share:

“When I approached Ken Vilar about putting a team together for SHS," Merrill replied, "he was very supportive. With his dedication and leadership he was willing to guide me on the next steps to make the team happen! I realized that Ken was the voice for us boys to have a Lacrosse team at SHS.”

“I remember being at the School Board meeting with Ken and the team members. Ken spoke for all of us and for future students who would someday be able to play Lacrosse in Southington at every grade level. Today I think about Ken Vilar and I know that the saying is true: you can do it, if put your mind to it. Ken did it for all of us!”

Another important figure in the history of Southington lacrosse is the current high school coach, Chris Kennedy. When Kennedy came over to the organizers’ booth, he introduced himself and explained how his own story intersects with that of the Vilars:

“This is my fourth year as head of the high school team,” he said. “I coached at St. Paul for eight years prior to that. I was on the first group of youth teams in Southington.”

“I played for Coach Vilar. He recruited me off the basketball courts from Central Elementary School. There was a group of us playing. He walked up to the whole group and asked if anyone had seen the game before. By a process of elimination I stayed in the conversation longer than the rest. I was interested, but at the time I knew my family didn’t have the money for sign-up or equipment or even rides for that matter. Coach didn’t take no for an answer; he said ‘I didn’t ask you for money; just commitment.”

“That’s how I got started in lacrosse. I played in the youth program and in high school. I kept playing baseball too.”

“Fast forward a few decades. My son decided he wanted to play lacrosse. The year I got involved again in SLA [Southington Lacrosse Association] was the year Coach came back and started to coach his grandson. So we kind of reunited. Unfortunately, that was also the year we lost him.”

“That lit a spark in me to coach lacrosse. I had been coaching high school football for 15 years at that point. I went hard into lacrosse then, coaching in SLA, coaching my own son. I had bigger aspirations. At St. Paul I think we took things to the next level. I thought I would stay there forever until the position at Southington became available. That was the only position I would leave St. Paul for. It became an obvious decision from there.”

“There is not a day that I don’t walk down this field and think of Coach and what he did for me. I had a great football mentor: I coached for Jude Kelly for 25 years. Usually, with me, people think of Jude, which makes sense, since he’s a father figure to me. But I first learned the impact that someone could have on young people from Ken Vilar. He was that person when I was a young kid.”

“I take that very seriously. I don’t cut kids. I think there’s a place for everybody. Everyone can get value from being a part of the game, as long as you’re willing to do the work. This is my 13^th year as a HS head coach and I’ve never cut a kid.”

Kennedy also shared some insights into the nature of lacrosse when asked to explain what it’s like: “A lot of people make the football-lacrosse connection, and that’s understandable because of the physicality of the game. But it’s actually basketball. Few people know this, but James Naismith, before he invented basketball, played four years of college lacrosse and coached college lacrosse. When he invented the game, the intent was an indoors, less-physical version of lacrosse.”

“From a deeper standpoint, the x’s and o’s, if you understand the rotations in basketball, if you understand the two-man and three-man game that’s commonly used in basketball – this is where it comes from.”

Kennedy then set off to spend some time with family, and do a little scouting: “I was here first thing this morning. My daughter is in eighth grade playing. I was watching the girls side this morning. My wife Melissa and I are coming back to watch the fourth and fifth and sixth grade and all the future Blue Knights, making sure they’re doing things the way Coach would have done them. There’s a very bright future from Southington Lacrosse based on what I’ve seen today.”