Throughout the last 12 turns of the calendar were numerous changes in the world of Newtown sports — from championships and record-setting performances to installation of a new field. Masks were on and off during the winter season, and some games were postponed but all of the championships were held in somewhat of a return to normalcy following the previous two years of coronavirus-impacted play. Let’s have a look back at much of what transpired in 2022:

*The winter sports season got going with some exciting early regular-season performances. Highlights to ring in the New Year included the Newtown High School’s girls’ basketball team draining a dozen 3-pointers in a 52-35 win over New Milford; the boys’ cagers clawed back from five points down in the final minute to stun Crosby 76-74. On the wrestling mats, the NHS grapplers got a final-bout comeback by Marc Maurath to help the Hawks shock New Milford 34-33; on the ice, Cam Gouveia’s hat-trick lifted the high school hockey team to a 4-1 victory over the Southington co-op; in gymnastics, despite the minimum four competitors, the Hawks got off to a winning start. The teams were off and running in January and a year chock full of excitement had just begun.

*In February, the Newtown Wrestling Booster Club celebrated 50 years of Newtown wrestling (1971-2021) with an event at the high school that brought back former coaches and wrestlers from the program’s roots and years that have followed.

*A trio of NHS wrestlers — Ben Plaue, Luca Manfredi, and Fisher Stites — earned individual titles at the South-West Conference championships. Manfredi went on to claim a state title in the 132 pound weight class.

*On the youth mats, the up and coming Nighthawks stood out in state championship competition with many place winners and went on to win the New England Championships behind more strong performances up and down the lineup, highlighted by Camron Veneziano’s Most Dominant Wrestler recognition. Another Newtown product, Brighton Karvoski, competing for Regional Training Center out of Danbury, won the Most Outstanding Wrestler award.

*Newtown High’s boys’ swim team came in second in the SWC championships; Peter Horan set the school marks in the 100 yard backstroke and 100 freestyle races, breaking the SWC backstroke record in the process. Horan went on to set a state championship backstroke record and two more school marks during the Class L State Championships.

*The NHS girls’ track team won the SWC title with a solid showing featuring several individual and relay event place winners; the Hawks dethroned a Weston program that had won eight straight championships. Shayna Millard and Newtown’s 4x800 relay team went on to capture Class LL State Championships and the 4x400 relay team of Elise Barricelli, Ally McCarthy, Riley Powers, and Hannah Snayd was first. The 4x80 relay set the school record three times, each with a different mix of runners. The 4x800 relay team of Powers, Snayd, Sophia Guevara, and McCarthy won the State Open title and broke the school mark. Newtown’s boys 4x800 relay came in seventh in school record-breaking time at the State Open; the relay comprised Aidan Budge, Colby Harrell, Cameron Whorf, and Soheib Dissa.

*In the SWC tourney quarterfinals, Newtown ended nearly a decade of Immaculate dominance with a 43-37 win.

*On the ski slopes, Matt Jacobs won the overall championship to help the Pomperaug-Newtown co-op team shine in the state championships.

*Jan Brown was selected as the Newtown Bee’s Sportsman of the Year.

*A combined youth cheerleading team, a D13 Level 3 squad that included participants ages 9 to 13, competed in the Youth Cheer and Dance Alliance Globals in Atlantic City, N.J. in late February, and placed second in its division.

*For the first time, dance had All State recognition and NHS had three dancers make All State and the All Academic Team: Caroline Hancock, Kyra Masone, and Audrey Botta. The NHS dancers were first in Jazz and Hip Hop at SWCs and we were the runner up in the Large Jazz Division at States.

Springing Forward

*As the days got warmer things were heating up both on the fields and with the fields themselves. A new turf field for a combination of town youth, recreation, and high school programs was put in behind Newtown High. Ground broke in the spring and the turf was down late in the summer as fall season sports got underway.

*The NHS girls’ lacrosse team opened the regular season, over the course of the first couple of weeks, by giving a handful of opponents their first losses of the campaign — highlighted by some nail-biting wins. One of the season highlights, however, was a 17-6 blowout over Immaculate which went down as an Immaculate game in more ways than one with all six seniors registering goals on Senior Night. Coach Maura Fletcher was recognized as the Connecticut High School Girls’ Lacrosse Association’s Coach of the Year, earning this honor for the second time (2014).

*Track and field highlights included three relays setting school records at the O’Grady Relays; what’s more, the sprint medley team of Ella Hall, Skyler Howard, Amelia Daly, and Elise Barricelli also set an SWC record. The girls ultimately took second in the SWC Championships behind several event wins.

*Softball pitcher Sydney Adolfson threw a five-inning, mercy-rule perfect game as the Hawks blanked New Fairfield 12-0 at Treadwell Park.

*Newtown High’s baseball team had quite a spring and captured the SWC title in dramatic fashion as Charlie Curtis stole home for a stunning 3-2 walk-off win over Masuk of Monroe.

*Golfer Kendall Reed captured the individual title at the SWC Championships.

*Doug Michlovitz took over the full-time role as Newtown High’s athletic trainer this past year.

*In the first road race of the year, Henry Prout won the Holcombe Hill 5K. The Rooster Run in June had early-spring like cool conditions; Trevor Genthe won the 5K and Philip Tisi was first in the 10K race.

*The Newtown Soccer Club sent two teams to the Connecticut Cup Finals where the U13 squad was crowned champions and the U19s took runner-up.

*Track and football standout Caleb Smith and track and soccer star Ally McCarthy were selected as the Newtown Bee’s Newtown High School Athletes of the Year.

*McCarthy and Isaiah Williams earned the state’s Scholar Athlete recognition.

*All five of Newtown’s youth baseball teams, ranging from 8U to 12U, qualified for state tourney play.

*Softball players Kathy Blewett, Jeanne Carney, Diane Lawrence, and Lauren Oliaro competed in the Senior National Games and helped their team earn bronze.

*On the youth race track, Jake Fattibene raced to a National title in July.

*The Newtown and Bethel women’s softball leagues merged to keep afloat due to a decline in players and teams resulting in large part to the impact of the coronavirus halting sports in recent years.

Rising In The Fall

*Peter Stockwell took over as president of Newtown Youth Football and Cheer and Kristen Keil became VP of Cheer in the program. Both football and cheer had teams that went on to accomplish big things. The eighth grade football team traveled to Cheshire and won the Shoreline Championship. The D10 and D12 cheer squads both won first place at state championships, and the D12s went on to claim a Regional title followed by the National Championship.

*Swim records were set by Alex Kwarcinski and Grace Fischer. First, Kwarcinski broke the NHS pool record in the 100 breaststroke race; then Fischer broke the team’s 100 breaststroke record in the SWC championships. Newtown’s 200 free relay of Diellza Limani, Anna Shew, Zoe Petertonjes, and Kwarcinski, was first in the championship meet.

*Newtown High’s football team went unbeaten against conference foes, including state fellow playoff qualifiers Joel Barlow, New Milford, New Fairfield, and Masuk, and claimed the SWC season title.

*Olivia Franson of Newtown helped the St Joseph of Trumbull soccer team claim a State Championship.

*Nick Conway won the Run 4 Hunger 5K. Soheib Dissa raced to the finish ahead of the pack at the Turkey Trot. Eric Ciocca won the Catherine Violet Hubbard Animal Sanctuary’s 5K For Kindness.

*Tennis in the fall: Dr Tom Conrod, Mike Piera, and John Reisert of Newtown helped their 40 and over tennis team place third in the United States Tennis Association League National Championships.

*Women’s pro hockey: Sandy Hook’s Melissa Samoskevich signed with professional hockey’s Connecticut Whale and has been lacing up the skates at the highest level of women’s hockey this winter.

Throughout the fall and start of winter there have been some memorable moments — among them runs to the SWC championship round by the girls’ volleyball and boys’ soccer teams. Newtown Youth Wrestling is back at it and kicked off the winter slate with several individual championships in the Annual Nighthawk Classic in mid-December. There is sure to be a lot more excitement, many more championships, records, and memorable moments in the months to come. Get ready for another year of action-packed Newtown sports.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.