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BristolPress.com/Sports | Sunday March 31, 2013 8-page pullout section starts here All-Press Special T.J. Dowling Fans of the St. Paul boys basketball team brought their enthusiasm to a state tournament game against Classical Magnet this season. We will all cheer for our All-Press teams inside today. Time to cheer Our All-Press winter sports teams are inside Bristol’s Leader in Spine Care, Post Surgical Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine! www.ptcbristol.com Physical Therapy Center of Bristol, LLC 72 Pine Street, Unit A-1 Bristol 860-585-5800 Plantsville 203-272-8490 “A Certified McKenzie Spine and Extremity Clinic” 033783 Celebrating 10 Years

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Page 1: All Press Sports - The Bristol Press - 03-31-2013

BristolPress.com/Sports | Sunday March 31, 2013

8-page pullout section starts here

All-Press Special

T.J. DowlingFans of the St. Paul boys basketball team brought their enthusiasm to a state tournament game against Classical Magnet this season. We will all cheer for our All-Press teams inside today.

Time to cheer

Our All-Press winter sports teams are inside

Bristol’s Leader in Spine Care, Post Surgical Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine!

www.ptcbristol.com

Physical Therapy Center of Bristol, LLC72 Pine Street, Unit A-1

Bristol 860-585-5800 Plantsville 203-272-8490 “A Certified McKenzie Spine and Extremity Clinic”

033783

Celebrating 10

Years

Page 2: All Press Sports - The Bristol Press - 03-31-2013

ALL-PRESS SPECIAL2 | Sunday, March 31, 2013 The Herald Press

Overall, the 2012-13 campaign was a winning one for area boys basketball teams, although three of

the four area squads were not far removed from the .500 mark and none of the teams will

be raising a banner to mark any kind of championship.

Of the four, Terryville enjoyed by far the most success, finishing 19-6 overall. The Kangaroos were run-ners-up in the Berkshire League

Tournament and quarterfinalists in the Class S state tournament,

bowing out against Old Lyme.St. Paul, which finished

12-11 overall, was the only other area squad to win a state tournament game, advancing to the second round in Class S. Bristol Central (12-10) bowed out in the first round in Class LL and Bristol Eastern (9-12) lost in its Class L opener.

With the team’s success on the court, Terryville’s players picked up the most post-season honors, with two Berkshire League First Team All-Star players and another on the second team. Yet all four area squads had at least one all-conference player, and all those league honorees, along with three other selections, make up our fifth annual All-Press Boys Basketball Team.

Leading off the first

team is Terryville junior guard Tyler Trillo, the only All-State performer in the area and one of just two repeat honorees from last year’s All-Press Team. He topped 1,000 points for his career in the Kangaroos’ last game of the season. The first -eam All-Berkshire League honoree averaged 21 points per game.

“Tyler’s dedication to improve his game truly paid off this season as he was unstop-pable on the offensive side of the court,” Terryville coach Mark Fowler said. “His ability to get to the basket complemented his outside shooting so well. He had some huge offensive games for us and shot just under 90 percent from the free throw line on the season. A truly phenomenal season as a junior.”

Joining Trillo on the All-Press first-team is teammate and fellow All-Berkshire League first team honoree Jacob Johnson, also a junior guard. He averaged 15 points, six rebounds and three steals per game.

“You would be hard pressed to find someone that works harder on every possession than Jake,” Fowler said. “His heart and desire are on display every time he steps on the court. His ability to score and shoot the ball overshadow the fact that he is one of the best defend-ers not only in our league, but the entire state.”

Earning Academic All-State status this past season is St. Paul’s Kyle Dube, and the senior forward and team-elected captain also earns a spot on our All-

Press first-team.“Kyle really was the heart and soul of

our team this year,” St. Paul coach Steve Phelps said of his two-year starter. “He just did

a tremendous job for us in rallying some of the younger and inexperienced guys around him.”Dube averaged 17 points per game, to go with

6.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 3.5 steals per contest, plus 11 drawn charges. He was the team leader in all of those categories.

Phelps gave Dube credit for helping the Falcons get back into the state tournament this year.

“Kyle is an athlete that we never had to worry

All-Press Boys BasketballDube, Love, Collins, Trillo, Johnson are first-team selectionsBy PAUL ANGILLYSTAFF WRITER

KYLEDUBE

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JACOB COLLINS

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St. Paul’s Kyle Dube

Bristol Eastern’s Kevin Love

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ALL-PRESS SPECIAL Sunday, March 31, 2013 | 3The Herald Press

RYANCHIASSON

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SHEATRACY

TERRYVILLE

JOEYDEFILLIPPI

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BRENDANCARROLL

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Bristol Central’s Jacob Collins

Terryville’sJacob Johnson

Terryville’sTyler Trillo

about him putting effort forward,” Phelps said. “He’s a guy that wears certainly his emotions, and his intensity, he wears it on his sleeve for everyone around him to follow.”

Not just an excellent athlete — Dube is headed to Fairfield this fall, where he’ll play Division I baseball — he’s an asset to the St. Paul community, Phelps said.

“We will not be able to replace a Kyle Dube,” he said. “We are just hopeful that the younger guys around him were paying attention to the lessons he brought every day.”

The last two spots on the All-Press first team belong to Bristol Central’s Jacob Collins and Bristol Eastern’s Kevin Love, both of whom earned all-conference hon-ors in the CCC South.

Collins, a 6-foot-3 junior forward, was “by far the most improved basketball player on our team this year,” Central coach Tim Barrette said.

Collins really worked hard in the offseason to improve his game, the coach added.

“He really rebounded the bas-ketball well all year … he really controlled the paint for us, which was a major reason why we fin-ished 12-8 [in the regular season],” Barrette said.

Though just a sophomore, Love was the leading rebounder and scorer for Eastern this season.

That was no surprise, Lancers coach Mike Giovinazzo said.

“He’s a very talented player. We knew the potential was there for

him to have a great year, and he did,” Giovinazzo said. “He was one of the most dominant big men

in the league. Being only a sophomore, his best days are ahead of him.”

Leading off the All-Press sec-ond team for this past season is Bristol Eastern forward and senior captain Ryan Chiasson, also an all-conference selection in the CCC South. He is also a repeat All-Press selection, having earned the honor last year.

“Ryan was the heart and soul of our team,” Giovinazzo said. “He was an insprational leader, but he was also a very capable scorer, rebounder and passer.”

The coach noted Chiasson’s best two games were the team’s last two games of the year, including a victory in the regular season finale

in which he scored 24 points and the state tournament loss against Maloney, in which he netted a game-high 22 points.

“It was a fitting end to his four years of basketball,” Giovinazzo said.

Also earn-ing All-Press second team status was Bristol Central’s Joey DeFillippi, a 5-3 junior guard.

“He’s a leader of our team,” Barrette said. “He’s like having another coach on the floor. The kid is prob-ably the smartest basketball player I’ve coached or will coach in my time at Bristol Central.”

Though undersized, “He’s a tough player, and mentally very

strong,” Barrette said. “He’s very skilled with the bas-ketball and if you leave him open, he can knock down the open looks.”

DeFillippi is a key player in the clutch.

“He’s the guy with the ball in his hands at the end of games, and we know he’s going to make the right decision,” Barrette said.

Together with Collins, “We anticipate them having even bigger years as seniors,” Barrette said.

Another key player in St. Paul’s success this past season was sopho-more Brendan Carroll, another All-Press second team pick.

“[He] really ful-filled the coaching staff ’s expecta-tions of what we thought he would be able to bring to the team this year,” Phelps said. “As the year progressed, he really exceeded our expectations as a sophomore.”

Carroll shot 73 percent from the free throw line and 40 percent from 3-point range, had less than two turnovers per game for the season and was tied as the team’s second-leading scorer with nine

points per game despite not being named a starter until halfway through the season. He averaged 12 points per game in the Falcons’ last seven games and 15 points per game in the postseason.

Carroll “really established himself as a player that was willing to do whatever was needed to benefit the team,” Phelps said.

A member of the National Honor Society, he’s ranked number one in his class.

The best part, Phelps noted, is that as a sophomore, he’ll be back another two years.

“He continually during the course of the year, as he gained

See ALL-PRESS BOYS, Page 8

Page 4: All Press Sports - The Bristol Press - 03-31-2013

ALL-PRESS SPECIAL4 | Sunday, March 31, 2013 The Herald Press

All-Press Wrestling TeamIt was a strong season for high

school wrestlers from Bristol Central, Bristol Eastern and Terryville.

The three teams may have pro-duced just two individual state champions, but each of the three squads finished in the top seven of their respective classes at state meets. Terryville was the best with a tie for third in Class S. Central fin-ished sixth in Class L with Eastern right behind in seventh.

Central junior Tyler Burrow improved throughout the season but saved his best wrestling for last, capturing a Class L state championship at 132 pounds. Terryville sophomore Elliott Wilion proved he could win against experienced opponents, claiming a title in Class S at 120. The best may be yet to come for both of them.

The Rams and Lancers each have five representatives on the fifth annual All-Press wrestling team while the Kangaroos have a solid four.

For Central, there’s Burrow, along with seniors Jordan Nadimi, Glenn Pierce, Gino Rafaniello and Cy McIntosh. The Rams had an up-and-down regular season, but sent coach Brian Archibald out with a bang by claiming sixth place in the Class L meet, which was held at Bristol Central High School.

A young Eastern squad was a force in dual meets, going unde-feated in the CCC South on the way to a division title. The Lancers then battled their way

to a seventh place finish in Class L. The All-Press representatives from Eastern are freshman Joshua Wilson, junior Daniel Morocho, senior Peyton Soucy, junior Jacob Pelletier and senior Ahimelec Mangual.

Terryville won a Berkshire League title and finished the reg-ular season with an 18-3 record, then followed that up with a solid finish in Class S. Wilion leads the way for the Kangaroos on the All-Press team, followed by senior Avery Ellegard, senior Dan Folino and junior Sam Ferreira.

Burrow, 27-4 during the regular season, came into his own in the last month. That was never more evident than during the Class L

meet. After a bye, Burrow blew through the next two rounds with a pin and tech fall. In a match against defending cham-pion Pharoah Eaton of Fairfield Warde, Burrow worked his way to a pin with just 17 seconds left in the second period. That got Burrow into the final against Farmington’s Garrett Hastings. Burrow went to work and earned a 13-4 major decision to capture the title. He is a three-time All-Press recipient.

“We say there is a ‘light switch’ of sorts when kids realize what their capabilities are and it hap-pens just like flipping a switch,” Archibald said. “It happened for Tyler about three weeks into

the season and he continued to improve and will do so during the offseason.

McIntosh, named All-Press for the second straight time, entered the Class L 195 tourna-ment bracket with a 31-7 record. After a bye, McIntosh picked up a quick 23-second pin, then a major decision to reach the semifinals against Masuk’s Salvatore Longo. McIntosh recorded a 6-3 decision in that match, then lost a tough final to Immaculate/Joel Barlow’s Steven Ghoissaini.

Rafaniello started Class L’s 182 bracket with a bye and a 12-second pin, then reached the semifinals with a 6-4 decision. After losing in the champion-

ship semifinal, Rafaniello won his consolation semifinal match 7-1 over Nery Ceron of Norwalk. Rafaniello claimed third place by forfeit. Rafaniello came into the tournament with a 35-6 record.

“Gino Rafaniello and Cy McIntosh were the foundation of the team,” Archibald said. “The team expected them to score big points every time they went on the mat and they usually did that.”

Pierce lost his second match at 160 in Class L, then worked his way all the way back to the fifth place match before losing a tough decision to Pomperaug’s Michael Calo. Pierce went 21-14 during the regular season.

“He was dangerous at all times during a match,” Archibald said. “Regardless of the caliber of wres-tler we always knew that he could pull off a big move.”

Nadimi was another Central senior who showed resilience after an early loss. Nadimi lost his second match at 138 in the Class L meet, then worked his way through three tough matches in the consolation bracket before falling in the fifth place match. Nadimi struggled at first in his only varsity campaign, but picked it up on his way to a 24-11 regular season record.

“When he chose to focus on what he can control it was obvi-ous that he would have a strong season,” Archibald said.

For Eastern’s Soucy, it’s his third straight All-Press selection. Soucy went into Class L’s 126 bracket with a 31-6 record. After a bye, Soucy won his second round match via pin in 38 seconds, then

By KEVIN D. ROBERTSSTAFF WRITER

TYLERBURROW

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Mike Orazzi | StaffBristol Central’s Tyler Burrow takes on Ledyard’s Matt Jones in a 132-pound match at Bristol Central this season.

Page 5: All Press Sports - The Bristol Press - 03-31-2013

ALL-PRESS SPECIAL Sunday, March 31, 2013 | 5The Herald Press

took a 4-2 decision. In the cham-pionship semifinal, Soucy scored a sudden victory first tiebreaker takedown over New Milford’s Niko Stefanatos to reach the final. Soucy fell to undefeated Fairfield Warde wrestler Charles Kane by decision, 6-3 in the final.

“He’s probably one of the best point scorers that we’ve had,” Eastern coach Bryant Lishness said, referring to Soucy’s ability to get pins and technical falls.

A strong technical wrestler, Wilson impressed in his fresh-man season and became just the third first-year wrestler to attain All-Press. Wilson went 33-5 in the regular season and reached the Class L 106 championship semifi-nals with two pins, but was forced into the consolation bracket after getting pinned. Wilson was resil-ient, picking up a pin to reach the third place match, which he won by decision over Fairfield Ludlowe’s George Wales.

“He’s been wrestling for a really long time,” Lishness said. “He came up through the [Bristol Gladiators youth wrestling pro-gram]. As a coach, you’re fortunate to get kids like that.”

Mangual put together a solid dual meet record of 21-5, then started Class L’s 285 bracket with a pair of pins. After losing in the championship semifinal, Mangual came up with a pin to reach the third place match. Mangual fin-ished fourth overall. A wrestler who didn’t fear anyone, Mangual had little experience but quickly learned how to wrestle.

“He came in with not having too much knowledge, but he’s a

very bright kid,” Lishness said.Morocho, a hard worker and

very physical wrestler, battled his way to the fifth place match after losing in his second 113 bout at Class L. Morocho scored two straight major decisions in the consolation bracket, then pinned Farmington’s Drew Dahlberg to capture fifth. Morocho held a 26-13 record entering the Class L meet.

“He and Wilson were workout partners and they benefit from each other,” Lishness said.

Pelletier started off his time in Class L’s 220 bracket with a 14-9 decision. After being knocked into the consolation bracket, Pelletier staved off elimination with a sudden victory takedown against Maloney’s Nicholas Craft. Pelletier then took a pin in the next match before finishing sixth

overall. Pelletier was 21-10 com-ing into Class L.

“He put a lot of offseason work in, and he’s an example for our kids,” Lishness said.

For Terryville, the accom-plishments of Wilion cannot be overlooked. The sophomore com-piled a 27-3 regular season record, then started the Class S tourna-ment with a pin in the second round after a bye in the first

round. From there, Wilion gave up just two points on his way to the 120 title.

“He was a match away from placing at the State Open,” Terryville coach Peter Veleas said.

Wilion is also a solid student, ranking in the top five in his class.

Ellegard was a co-captain and role model for Terryville.

“A tremendous leader for us,” Veleas said.

Ellegard finished third in Class S as a junior before taking second this season at 138. He lost just once during the regular season (27-1). This is Ellegard’s second straight All-Press selection.

Ferreira’s role as co-captain as a junior can be attributed to his leadership.

“He’s a good role model for the younger kids,” Veleas said.

Ferreira is an athletic kid who Veleas hopes will continue to improve and advance further in Class S. He finished sixth at 126. This is his second straight All-Press selection.

Senior co-captain Folino bat-tled his way to a fourth place in Class S.

“He saved his best for last,” Veleas said.

An injury sustained in the third place match kept Folino from wrestling at the State Open, but that doesn’t take away from who Folino was.

“Fantastic kid,” Veleas said. “A great role model for the young guys.”

Kevin D. Roberts can be reached at (860) 584-0501 ext. 7229 or [email protected]

PEYTONSOUCYEASTERN

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All-Press Wrestling Team

Mike Orazzi | StaffBerlin’s Ethan Greider wrestles Terryville’s Elliott Wilion in a 120-pound match during the Art Powers Duals.

Page 6: All Press Sports - The Bristol Press - 03-31-2013

ALL-PRESS SPECIAL6 | Sunday, March 31, 2013 The Herald Press

All-Press Girls Basketball

By KEVIN D. ROBERTSSTAFF WRITER

KARISSASMITHEASTERN

CHANDLERWALKER

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THERESASWANKE

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Smith,Bossi,Shoultz,Swanke,Walkermake ourfirst-team

There were some big accomplishments for Bristol area high school girls basketball teams this season.

Bristol Central reached the state tour-nament for the first time since 2002, and won a game in the tournament for the first time since that year as well. The Rams upset Avon on the road, then came close to

knocking off eventual Class L state champion Farmington in the second round. Central finished the season with a record of 11-11.

Terryville hadn’t been to the Class S State Tournament since 2010, but the Kangaroos were able to get there this season behind

third-year coach Damian Coggshall. After going 6-14 and 5-15 in the previous two campaigns, the Roos were 10-10 and qualified for both the Berkshire League and Class S tournaments. Terryville finished 10-12, but it was a good start toward building a successful future.

Bristol Eastern started as a team with

a ton of inex-perience sur-rounding All-Press and All-CCC South senior for-ward Karissa Smith. After a tough start, the Lancers turned it around and finished the regular season with a 14-6 record. Eastern won its Class L first round game against Guilford before losing in overtime to CCC South rival Berlin in the second round. The Lancers finished at 15-7.

St. Paul was also a young team with not much experience. The team relied heav-ily on All-Press junior forward Theresa Swanke to lead the way, along with All-Press sophomore guard Kelly McMahon. The Falcons had some ups and downs, but were able to put together an 11-9 regular season. St. Paul finished 11-11 after first

Bristol Eastern’sKarissa Smith

Bristol Central’s Lauren Bossi

Bristol Eastern’s Khadaijia Brooks

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ALL-PRESS SPECIAL Sunday, March 31, 2013 | 7The Herald Press

OLIVIAPILARSKITERRYVILLE

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Bristol Central’s Chandler Walker

St. Paul’sTheresa Swanke

round losses in the Naugatuck Valley League and Class M tour-naments, but the future looks bright for the Falcons.

Central is represented by three players on this year’s All-Press teams, and two of the names will sound familiar. Junior Chandler Walker makes the first team for the second straight time while senior Lauren Bossi moves up to the first team from the second team. Senior leader Gretchen Edelman earned a spot on the second team.

Eastern also has three players on the teams, led by Smith, who made All-Press for the third time. Sophomore Khadaijia Brooks returned from a freshman knee injury to put forth a strong year and made the first team. Junior guard Amanda Zdun was chosen for the second team.

Both Terryville and St. Paul had two players each.

Junior Julia Pilarski made the second team for the second straight year for the Kangaroos, while twin sister Olivia made it for the first time.

For the Falcons, Swanke and McMahon each made it for the second straight year.

Smith has been a mainstay for Eastern. A consistent double-dou-ble threat, the forward has worked hard throughout her career.

“One thing about Karissa, she has the special qualities of a player that you’re looking for,” Lancers coach Tony Floyd said.

A hard-working player who always gave it her best effort, Smith was tough to move around inside and could affect shots with her defense.

Brooks came back from a fresh-man knee injury with a vengeance. It took until around Christmas for Brooks to get into basketball shape, but once she did, it was hard to stop her.

“Her and Karissa, that 1-2 combination inside gave us a very tough front court,” Floyd said.

If it wasn’t Smith doing the damage inside, it was Brooks inside or off the dribble.

“They compliment each other very well,” Floyd said.

Zdun helped provide stability in Eastern’s backcourt on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court.

“She’s our best 3-point shooter

this season, but she’s also our best defender,” Floyd said.

Every game, Zdun took on the task of guarding the other team’s best player.

“She was able to contain those good guards and make them uncomfortable out there,” Floyd said.

Walker missed time in the regu-lar season with a foot injury, but when she was on the court, she was a force.

“She averaged a double-double for the second consecutive year and was also named to the all-conference team for the second year in a row,” Central coach Steve Gaudet said.

Walker helped Central qualify for the state tournament for the first time since the 2001-02 season, then put in a monster performance in a Class L first round win over Avon with 17 points, 17 rebounds and seven blocks. Walker led the team in rebounding and was sec-ond in scoring.

Gaudet said Bossi was probably the team’s most valuable player.

“Lauren can do it all, and improved so much over her four-year career,” Gaudet said. “She was probably the best player on the floor in our loss to eventual state champion Farmington [in Class L’s second round].”

Gaudet said Bossi and sopho-more Ashley Elder gave the Rams a chance to win against Farmington that night. Bossi led the team in steals, was second in rebounding and third in scoring.

Edelman was a leader on the court for Central.

“She led the team in assists and was the coach on the court that made sure her teammates were in the right spots on the court,” Gaudet said. “She hit some big shots and some critical free throws when our team needed them most.”

Edelman knew that this season was her last chance to make the

postseason, so she made the most of it.

Gaudet added this about Bossi and Edelman:

“Lauren and Gretchen were the best two captains I have ever had in my eight years coaching. It was an absolute honor to coach them over their four-year careers.”

Swanke continued to be a dou-ble-double threat under the basket and also added 2-3 blocked shots per game. That wasn’t her most important asset, according to St. Paul coach Joe Mone.

“Probably more important was the way she conducted herself as a leader both off and on the court,” Mone said. “She did a great job of keeping a young team focused and working hard.”

While Swanke was a strong player inside, McMahon was St. Paul’s most consistent player overall, Mone said.

“Offensively she was our leading scorer and best out-side shooter,” Mone said. “She also worked really hard to become one of our best defenders this year.”

Mone liked the unselfishness that both Swanke and McMahon brought to the team.

“Both kids are team-first play-ers who couldn’t care less about personal stats, only team success, which makes it an absolute joy to have the opportunity to coach and be around [them],” Mone said.

Coggshall talked about the Pilarski sisters as a strong tandem for his team.

“Olivia and Julia are both a vital part to the teams’ success,” Coggshall said. “They compliment each other very well when they are on the floor.”

Julia Pilarski was a threat to light it up every game behind the 3-point line, and she also shot

well from the foul line. Olivia Pilarski’s all-around game made her tough to contain.

“Both sisters seem to know where the other one is on the floor at all times and play together,” Coggshall said.

Olivia aver-aged 13.5 points and nine rebounds per game while Julia averaged 10 points per contest.

With several of these players com-ing back to their respective schools, there could be even more success in store.

Page 8: All Press Sports - The Bristol Press - 03-31-2013

ALL-PRESS SPECIAL8 | Sunday, March 31, 2013 The Herald Press

All-Press Indoor Track TeamIt’s a rare season that goes

by without a Bristol athlete earning a state championship in track and field, be it indoors or outdoors, and this past 2012-13 indoor season was no exception.

In the Class L state meet held Feb. 15, Bristol Central’s Spencer Johnson placed first in the 3,200 meter run with a school-record time of 9:47.73. He won by more than five sec-onds over second place finisher Alexander Ostberg of Darien (9:53.03).

Johnson, who previously placed second at the CCC meet in the event with a time of 9:55, went on to place 13th in the State Open, finishing in 9:50.06.

With his accomplishments during his senior year, Johnson leads off our fifth annual All-Press Indoor Track Team, marking his second consecu-tive such honor.

As usual, Bristol Central leads the way in terms of number of selections, with two other boys and two girls from that school also earning All-Press honors.

Another long-distance run-ner from the Rams is among those other honorees, as junior Nadia Kreciglowa placed 12th in the Class L state meet in the 3,200 meters with a time of 12:32.89. She had run as fast as 12:18.27 during the season.

“Spencer needs to be rec-ognized for his hard work and dedication along with Nadia,” Bristol Central coach Larry Covino said. “They both rarely miss a practice, never complain about a workout and

push themselves harder than anyone.”

The only local athlete other than Johnson to compete in the State Open was Rams senior Melissa Cummings, who placed fourth in the 600 meters in the Class L meet with a time of 1:41.10, then was 10th in the State Open with a mark of 1:42.05.

An All-Press selection in indoor track for the third straight year, Cummings will be running at the Division I level for the University of Hartford in the fall, winter and spring as member of the

cross country, indoor track and outdoor track programs.

Rounding out the Rams’ selections for our All-Press team are senior Jon Jankoski and junior Jason Zaino.

Jankoski placed 13th at the Class L meet in the 1,600 meters, with a time of 4:54.19. That was down from the 4:42.39 he recorded in the CCC meet, in which he placed eighth.

“Jankoski is the joker on the team but when it comes to racing is very competitive and pushes himself to always beat his previous race time,”

Covino said.Zaino placed 16th in the

600 meters at the Class L meet with a time of 1:36.44. He had a season-best time of 1:31.55.

“Jason is an up-and-coming star who will be a middle dis-tance and distance leader next year,” Covino said. “I expect big things from him next year.”

Bristol Eastern had three athletes crack the top 10 at the Class L state meet, with all three earning All-Press recog-nition for their efforts.

Senior Jean-Claude Mouannes placed seventh in

the 55-meter hurdles with a time of 8.56 seconds, after pre-viously recording a season-best mark of 8.37, a personal best.

Lancers junior Jenna Rodjenski placed seventh in the shot put with a mark of 31 feet, 1 inch, just shy of her sea-son- and personal-best 31-3½.

It was the only event she competed in, but “she did very well,” Bristol Eastern coach Bob Rottler said.

Senior Mariah McPhee placed 10th in the 1,600 meters at the Class L meet for Bristol Eastern with a time of 5:35.87, a little shy of her

season-best 5:29.28. Also dur-ing this past season, she broke the school record in the indoor 3,200 meters, shattering a four-year-old mark by about 21 seconds.

“That’s pretty good,” Rottler noted.

All three of the Lancers bettered their marks from pre-vious seasons, he noted.

“They achieved that through hard work,” he said. “I’m pleased with the results of what they did this year.”

Though much smaller than the other two Bristol schools, St. Paul managed to place one boy and one girl on our All-Press team for this past season: senior Matt Santovasi — who is so honored for the second straight year — and freshman Kara Lipka.

Santovasi placed 16th in the Class S state meet in the 300-meter dash with a time of 39.51. The only four-year athlete on the Falcons, he was also a team co-captain.

His mark at the state meet was also a personal record.

“He peaked at the right time,” St. Paul coach Kyle Fuller said.

Santovasi also anchored the Falcons’ 4x200 relay team that set a school record at the Class S meet this year.

“Matt’s just a great all-around person that’s got a great future ahead of him,” Fuller said. “He’s the gem that comes into your program once … in a great while.”

Lipka placed ninth in the 1,000 meters at the Class S state meet with a time of 3:22.33, shattering her previ-ous best mark by more than three and a half seconds.

“She’s got huge potential. She did well [her] freshman year,” Fuller said.

After joining the school’s cross country team and doing well by the end of the season, Lipka needed some time to get used to running on an indoor track.

“Once she got comfortable, she started doing really good,” Fuller said. “She has huge potential in front of her for the next few years.”

By PAUL ANGILLYSTAFF WRITER

SPENCERJOHNSON

CENTRAL

JEAN-CLAUDEMOUANNES

EASTERN

JONJANKOSKI

CENTRAL

MATTSANTOVASI

ST. PAUL

NADIAKRECIGLOWA

CENTRAL

JENNARODJENSKI

EASTERN

JASONZAINOCENTRAL

KARALIPKAST. PAUL

MELISSACUMMINGS

CENTRAL

MARIAHMCPHEE

EASTERN

more experience, he really is developing nicely into a complete basketball player,” Phelps said.

Taking the final two spots on the All-Press second team are Terryville’s Arthur Trent and Shea Tracy.

Trent, a senior forward, earned All-Berkshire League second team honors with an average of 11 points and nine rebounds per game.

“Arthur did a tremendous job for us this season playing as our biggest player on the court despite standing only six feet,” Fowler said. “Each and every game he was matched with

at least one or two players that were bigger than he was height-wise. However, he always was fighting and scrapping for us inside and more than held his own.”

Tracy, a sophomore guard, aver-aged 10 points and five assists per game.

“Shea was the ultimate team-first

player,” Fowler said. “His skill set as a guard, which included great dribbling and pinpoint passing, was enjoyable to watch. His ability to find the open man was key to our offense getting good looks. He also had the ability to knock down long-range 3-pointers, which made him difficult to guard.”

All-Press Boys Basketball Team Cont.Continued from Page 3