Southington Falls To Greenwich In Class LL Final
- Dan Fappiano
- Dec 15
- 6 min read
After a 2-3 start to the season, Southington football went on a seven game win streak to reach the Class LL State Tournament finals. The Blue Knights’ campaign ended there at the hands of the Greenwich Cardinals, who came out on top, 45-6.
“Greenwich is a really good team,” head coach Rob Levesque said. “We knew they were good, we knew we had to execute better than we ever have. We didn’t. We had some turnovers, we gave them momentum early. We got banged up again, but that doesn’t mean anything, they’re a good team. Hats off to them. We ran into a good team and didn’t have our best game. The scoreboard looks like that when that happens.”
The Blue Knights got very close to the top this season, overpowering several strong teams along the way. On Saturday, however, the Cardinals proved to be more than the Knights could handle.
Game Recap
After a series of first downs, Greenwich broke off a long run to reach the one-yard line. Two plays later, they scored via another rush and converted the two-point try to go up 8-0.
It wasn’t long before the Cardinals got the ball back. On Southington’s next possession, faced with a third-and-18, junior quarterback Luke Prozzo threw an interception near the line of scrimmage. Greenwich would soon capitalize on that mistake with a seven-yard touchdown run, taking a 15-0 lead after the extra point.
Southington seemed to be getting the momentum back when junior Walker Mierzejewski came away with an interception. Prozzo found junior Leif Renehan for a first down. But the Blue Knights’ drive stalled after sophomore Ben Beaulieu took a big hit in the backfield. He was slow to get up, but left the field on his own power and later made his return to the game.
Southington was forced to punt. Greenwich brought the pressure, coming away with a block. Soon thereafter senior Mason Nardi checked the Cardinals’ momentum, coming away with an interception following a big hit.
On the Blue Knights’ next possession, however, the injury bug bit again. Prozzo got hit hard in the backfield and stayed on the ground. Eventually he walked off the field on his own power, but he did not return to the game. Sophomore Jacoby Roman came in as quarterback.
After a punt, Greenwich took over possession in Southington territory. A deep pass brought the Cardinals down to the one-yard line before Greenwich scored a rushing touchdown. The extra point made it 22-0.
On the next drive Southington moved up the field on a late hit penalty against Greenwich. A fake punt on fourth-and-11 was unsuccessful, however, and Greenwich took over. The Cardinals used a long run, a 13-yard touchdown pass and the extra point to take a 29-0 lead into halftime.
On the Cardinals’ first possession of the second half, Connor Orange made a key stop on defense. But Southington fumbled a snap and lost the ball. Greenwich soon took advantage with a three-yard touchdown run to move their lead to 36-0.
Despite the deficit, the Blue Knights kept fighting. Roman found Mierzejewski for a long pass down the field. Beaulieu ran in a touchdown that was called back for holding. Yet Southington still found a way, as Roman hit Beaulieu for an 11-yard touchdown pass. The extra point was blocked, making the score 36-6.
The ensuing onside kick was recovered by Greenwich. They kicked a 27-yard field goal to take a 39-6 lead into the fourth quarter.
Southington kept up the fight, as Orange recovered a fumble in the backfield. However, the Blue Knights’ drive ended after an incomplete pass on fourth-and-six. Greenwich missed a 42-yard field goal on their next possession, but then intercepted Roman to get the ball right back.
The Cardinals scored one more time on a 14-yard run. While the extra point was blocked, Greenwich secured the Class LL title with their 45-6 win.
Senior Send Off
Southington’s senior class played a crucial role in their run to the Class LL finals. When they entered their bye week at 2-3, Southington had a decision to make. What kind of team did they want to be? The seniors helped fix the Blue Knights’ mistakes and dictate their winning attitude to end the season.
“I’m proud of how they stepped up,” Levesque said of the seniors. “We could’ve given up after New Britain. They ground out those seven straight wins. They got to the state championship and the right to play the last snap of football in Connecticut. They earned that right.”
Linebacker Daniel Corrado has seen the highs and lows of Southington football, from 3-7 in 2024 to Class LL runner-up in 2025. Through it all one thing never changed: Southington battled as one, like a family.
“It’s really nice to be a part of this family here,” Corrado said. “This is a family. We work hard all year round, and we work through that family.”
Watching Southington’s turnaround after their loss to New Britain had a profound impact on Corrado. He will forever remember a senior season marked by a seven-game win streak that ran all the way to finals. But for Corrado, that never would have come about if the Blue Knights didn’t become as close as they are.
“We all work together,” Corrado said. “We found our rhythm. This team is really close knit.”
Southington’s senior class features: Tyler Koski, William Cumberlidge, Beckett Colby, Rosco Cook, Jaxiel Rivera, Mason Nardi, Kevin Hamilton, Daniel Corrado, Darien Rivera, Benjamin Cassan, Adin Abaza, Rocco Calabrese, Ahmed Mamoon, Matthew Musshorn, Brandon Haley, Evan Kirk, Corey Kosienski, Caden Powers, Samuel Tokarzewski and Tanveer Singh.
For Those Who Remain
Southington will see many of their key contributors return for the 2026 season. When they do, Levesque is expecting the Blue Knights to use their Class LL tournament experience to their advantage.
“We’ve been here,” Levesque said. “We understand what it means to run the gauntlet. To play all those games in so few days and keep your focus at the same time. These kids did that, even though we fell short. They ground it out and they prepared. They were ready to do this.”
Among the returners will be both quarterbacks, Luke Prozzo and Jacoby Roman, as well as star running back Ben Beaulieu. Against Greenwich, Prozzo completed 8-of-13 passes for 46 yards and an interception. Roman completed 9-of-21 passes for 87 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Beaulieu ran for 25 yards on 14 carries, while tying Jaxiel Rivera for the team-lead with 27 receiving yards on three catches. The running back had just won CTInsider's Player of the Week for his five-touchdown performance against NFA
Roman was thrown into the fire when Prozzo suffered his injury. He had won games for Southington earlier in the season during a previous Prozzo injury, but the Class LL finals was a different beast. Despite the loss, Roman came away with a better understanding of what it takes to succeed at the highest level.
“My nerves were a little high. Big stakes in this game,” Roman said. “First time for me, starting quarterback in the state championship. It didn’t go our way. But we’ll be here again though. We’ll be here again for sure.”
As he prepares for his junior season, Roman says he’ll be focusing on doing a better job of getting the ball to his receivers. He knows the Blue Knights have plenty of playmakers on their roster. If he is put into the starting role again, Roman is confident success will come if he can get them the ball in space.
Looking back at the Blue Knights’ campaign, the sophomore quarterback can’t help but notice just how far the team had come. It didn’t end as Southington had hoped, but Roman is confident it’ll only make the Blue Knights stronger in the long run.
“It means a lot,” Roman said. “We flipped the script after New Britain. We went on that big win streak. We shut out Cheshire. We had a lot of momentum going into the playoffs, and that’s what happens. We made it all the way to the state championship at 7-3. We did a lot of good stuff this season. We’re looking forward to it next year. We’re going to be back.”
There were numerous memorable moments in Southington’s run to the finals. They shut out Cheshire on Thanksgiving, then dropped 42 points on NFA in the quarterfinals. For all those touchdowns and takeaways, the key was how the Blue Knights approached things mentally.
No matter how high the hurdle, Southington was ready to leap it. Their comeback proved how much this year’s team was willing to fight.
“Mentally they started to believe and buy into what it means to be a competitive football player,” Levesque said. “Not just talk about it but to be it. They really started to come together as a unit. Sometimes with young guys that can be a challenge. But they really became a tight knit group.”
