Full Text:

1996 - The Year In Sports

JANUARY

Newtown won its fourth-consecutive Stratford Holiday Tournament title when it

defeated Bunnell, 58-53. Brian Wassman scored 28 points in two games and was

named to the All-Tournament team while sophomore guard Andrew Gellert (26

points) was named tournament MVP.

Newtown High School assistant football coach Charlie Martin, 27, died in his

sleep after suffering a seizure. The 1995 season was Martin's first with the

Newtown program.

John Rose - better known as John from Sandy Hook on New York radio station

WFAN - died. Rose was a frequent caller on the popular Mike & The Mad Dog

afternoon show.

John Ball was named as The 1996 Newtown Bee Sportsman . Ball, who helped lead

Southern Connecticut State University to two Division II soccer championships,

was drafted by the Cleveland Crunch of the National Professional Indoor Soccer

League.

FEBRUARY

The Newtown High School girls' basketball team ran its winning streak to 12

games and seemed hell-bent on a trip to the South-West Conference

championship. The girls beat Joel Barlow and Lauralton Hall to reach those

finals for the first time since 1989.

In a shocking morning announcement at Newtown High School, principal Bill

Manfredonia told the student body that the Indian will no longer be the school

mascot. The news prompted a sit in and subsequent walk out among students.

The Newtown High School swim team earned a shocking victory over Bunnell when

Bunnell was disqualified in the final relay, the 400-yard freestyle relay,

when one anchor swimmer missed the wall on his flip turn. Newtown won the

meet, 93-92. The win put the team at 5-4 overall.

After a strong season, the NHS wrestling team finished fourth at the SWC

championship meet. The meet's high point, for Newtown, was in the 125-pound

class where NHS freshman James "Prez" Monroe won the SWC title by beating

senior Mike Mangon who was 25-1 going into the match. The win made Prez the

first freshman in school history to win a conference title.

The Newtown High School girls' indoor track team, depleted as it was, finished

second to Masuk at the South-West Conference meet. Marnie Larabee, Sarah

Zimmerman, Becky Crane and Courtney Elf all won individual titles along with

the boys' sprint medley team.

MARCH

Eric Gingold, a 7-foot-4, 285-pound prospect for the National Basketball

Association is found to be training in a private gym in Newtown. Gingold,

under the tutelage of Larry Gillman, was scouted by most of the teams in the

NBA and he got himself ready for the draft, but was not selected.

The Newtown High School boys' basketball team crushed Masuk in the South-West

Conference semi-finals but fell to Kolbe-Cathedral 85-79 in the conference

championship. The Indians won a school-record 20th game in the CIAC Class L

state tournament that followed but lost 58-53 to Torrington in the

quarterfinals. Mike Storms was named All-SWC.

The Newtown High School girls' basketball team saw its season end abruptly

when it lost to Masuk by 20 points in the South-West Conference championship

and then was beaten by West Haven in the first round of the CIAC Class LL

tournament.

Seniors Erica Hanson and Melissa Eigen finish up their four-year girls'

basketball careers on the Newtown High All-Time Top 10 scoring chart. Hanson

finished sixth with 730 points and Eigen finished ninth with 669 points.

Marnie Larabee captured an CIAC Class M State Indoor Track title in the

1,000-meter race, finishing first at the state meet with a time of 3:16. That

time qualified her for the State Opens.

The Newtown High School swim team guaranteed itself its fifth consecutive

winning season with a 102-81 victory over Holy Cross in its next to last

regular season dual meet. Newtown then finished 6th at the South-West

Conference meet.

Physical education instructor Dan Winsett was named head coach of the Newtown

High baseball team and Al Borchetta was named varsity assistant. The tandem

took over the posts vacated by the late Tony Urban.

In a controversial decision, the Board of Education turned down the nomination

of Larry Ashmore as coach of the Newtown High School freshman girls' softball

team, a post he had held for 15 of the last 16 years.

Karl Fischer, a graduate of Newtown High School, became the first Newtown

basketball player ever to play in the NCAA Final Four Basketball Tournament

when he took the floor with the Drexel University Dragons.

Newtown's TJ McKenzie and JP Calandruccio helped lead the St. Joseph's Cadets

to a CIAC Class L basketball championship, a 67-47 win over Torrington High.

Newtown Power Equipment outlasted Fico's Painting, 2-1, in the finals of the

Parks and Recreation Power Division volleyball championship. It was the second

title in a row for Newtown Power.

APRIL

Samantha Byrne tossed her second consecutive regular season no-hitter when she

opened the 1996 season with a 10-strikeout, 19-1 win over Immaculate.

Labor strife forced the postponement and reshuffling of many high school

lacrosse games across the state. A dispute arose over the pay levels accorded

to two separate boards of officials, leading to a strike that was resolved

soon after the 1996 was supposed to have started.

The Newtown High boys' and girls' tennis teams started their 1996 campaigns

under the tutelage of a pair of new coaches. Linae Collopy took over the

reigns for the girls' team while Val Stoiana took over the boys' team.

Tom Kuroski, co-coach of the Newtown High School girls' basketball program,

announced his retirement after four seasons with the team.

Senior Charlie Heinzer set two new Newtown High School lacrosse records in

Newtown's 21-2 win over Brien McMahon. Heinzer set the new mark for goals (8)

and points (13) in a game.

Six members of the Newtown High School baseball team were suspended for the

season for their involvement in an incident during the team's annual trip to

Cooperstown, NY. According to police, several members of the team entered a

grocery story near the team hotel and stole several bottles of beer.

MAY

John Ball, who won a pair of Division II national championships with Southern

Connecticut State University, won another championship as a member of the

Cleveland Crunch of the National Professional Indoor Soccer League. The Crunch

defeated the Kansas City Attack, four games to two, in a best-of-seven

championship series.

Newtown Little League held its first-ever night game as VFW Post 308 and

Budget Electric met at Treadwell Park to play under the lights. First

Selectman Bob Cassella threw out the first pitch.

Newtown's Patty Murren, a senior at Wake Forest University, won the ACC

Academic Excellence Award at the school's athletic banquet. Murren helped lead

the Demon Deacons to their third-straight 20-win season while being ranked in

the country's top 50 throughout the season. Her 109 career singles victories

at Wake, rank second on the school's all-time list.

The Newtown High baseball team defeated New Milford 4-3 in the First Annual

Urban Affair, a memorial game for its late coach Tony Urban. Newtown snapped a

3-3 tie with a run in the sixth inning to win it.

Charlie Heinzer became the first Newtown High lacrosse player to score 100

career goals as he scored eight times in an 18-4 win over New Fairfield.

The NHS girls' track and field team, under coach Rick Medve, completed its

second-consecutive undefeated season as it defeated Joel Barlow 65«-61« in the

regular season finale behind big efforts by Marnie Larabee, Dee Conley, Becky

Crane, Heather Martins, and Becky Osborne. The team, though, finished a

disappointing third at the SWC meet. On the lighter side, Osborne won an SWC

title with a career shot put of 32-5.

With longtime coach Russ Weiss back at the helm after a three-year layoff, the

Newtown high boys' track team compiled a surprising 11-3 record during the

regular season behind strong efforts by first-year sprinter Brian Wassman,

Terry McGovern, Jeff Fagan, Reid Warner, Erik Riesterer, and the relay team of

Wassman, Kevin Fitzgerald, McGovern, and Fagan which later went on to win an

SWC title in the event. The boys finished fourth in the SWC as a team.

Tom Nacewicz, Charles Ginetti, Paul Rockoff, and Jack Huray combined to win

the championship at the First Annual Newtown Blue & Gold Booster Club Golf

Tournament held at Newtown Country Club. The foursome shot ten-under at the

scramble.

The NHS baseball team ended an upsetting season with a 5-4 win over Bethel to

finish at 7-13. Despite the poor record, NHS catcher Matt Zavatsky was

presented with the John Giampaolo Award as the MVP of the conference. Zavatsky

also earned All-Conference and All-State accolades. Teammate Jon Danko, who

won the team's triple crown, was also honored with All-Conference recognition.

The NHS softball team was eliminated from the SWC semifinals in a 1-0 loss to

top-ranked Bethel. The game's lone run was scored on a Newtown throwing error.

The team then went on to lose to Newington in the state playoffs. Pitcher Sam

Byrne was named to the All-SWC team after recording 163 strikeouts on the

season.

The NHS golf team, led by Jared Tendler, captured the SWC Championship at

Ridgewood Country Club. Tendler was the tournament's medalist for the

second-straight year, shooting 76. Steve Brookes, Tom Fallon, and Dan

Schneider followed Tendler in to aid in the 322 aggregate. At season's end,

Tendler became the first All-State golfer in school history.

The Newtown Hurricanes (U-12 girls) and the Newtown Strikers (U-10 boys) both

earned championships in the Newtown Memorial Day Kickoff Soccer Tournament.

Morgan Haines scored the game-winner in the championship for the Hurricanes

while the boys tied Ridgefield 0-0 to earn their co-title.

JUNE

Joe Carpissassi of Southbury and Susan Faber of Oxford were the top male and

female finishers at the Newtown Parks and Recreation's 22nd Annual Rooster

Run.

In the last game ever played by the Newtown High School Indians, the NHS

lacrosse team lost 13-10 in a shootout against Somers in the Division II state

semifinals, thus ending their season.

Newtown High students voted on a new school mascot and the winner was the

Nighthawks. The new mascot would replace the Indian, effective immediately.

Dan Glezer won the men's singles championship at the 21st Newtown Open

defeating Gene Chappell in the final match. Cynthia Vidal defeated Dianne

Gucciardo to take the women's title, while Joanne Klopfenstein - after a three

year layoff- returned to capture her first-ever Newtown Open title, winning

the over-40 women's singles.

Superstar Sports defeated Police Union in a Newtown Youth Softball

championship thriller in the Seniors Division. Action Lube, meanwhile, upset

top-ranked Pony Express for the championship title in the Juniors Division.

JULY

After a three-game season-ending winning streak that allowed them to snatch

the fourth-and-final Majors Division playoff seed, Lexington Gardens stunned

top-seeded Police Union to win the championship, 3-2. Lexington catcher Dan

Maxwell threw out the potential tying run at third base to end the game.

Taunton Press got rallied from a 2-0 deficit to defeat VFW Post 308, 5-2 in

the Minors Division championship contest. Joey Nowicki's three-run double

broke a 2-2 tie for the winners.

Pitney Bowes - behind the efforts of Ken Seferi, Kyle McCullough, Steve

Moulton, Mike Marusa, and Ray Reynolds - copped the championship in the Babe

Ruth 14/15 Division.

Newtown's Erica Christopher doubled home the game winning run for the Legacy

18-U girls' fastpitch team in the AFA State Championship game in Wallingford.

Christopher was a sophomore on the NHS girls' team this past spring.

The Newtown Little League's Diamond Invitational, previously a tournament for

11-year-old all-stars, was renamed the DeMeo Invitational in honor of longtime

Newtown LL coach, Dave DeMeo. Newtown's entry - behind the play of Dan Murphy,

Jeremy Graves, and Matt Brown - reached the tournament finals as they scored

seven runs in the seventh inning to beat Monroe 10-9 in the semifinals. The

team fell to Seymour in the finals.

Behind the play of Kyle McCullough, Ken Seferi, Jeff Rucktenwald, Larry Isler,

Rich Barillari, Brian Tomasulo, Paul Giarratano, Mike Marusa, Pete Zingoni,

and others, the Newtown Babe Ruth All-Stars won the District Championship with

a 13-3 win against Danbury in the finals played at Brookfield High. Seferi and

Barillari had three hits each and combined for six RBI in the win.

Newtown's Cassie Shewmaker and Kristen Bandura helped lead the Express 14-U

premier softball team to a state title.

AUGUST

Mike Marusa shot 36 over nine holes to capture the Junior Club Championship at

Newtown Country Club. Marusa, 15, had begun playing golf only a year earlier

when he saved up and purchased his own membership.

Newtown's Ally Gellert was named MVP of the Connecticut Starters AAU

basketball team which won seven-of-eight games to capture the title in the

Youth Basketball Organization of America's Publix Shootout Tournament in

Orlando, Florida.

Rob Anders, Diana Perachio, Kristen Meyer, Zack Miller, and Matthew McFadden

each won singles championships in the Newtown Tennis Association's Junior

Championships. They became the first names engraved on the newly formed,

Coopersmith Cup.

The Newtown Sports Hall of Fame was formed and named its five cornerstone

inductees: Harold S DeGroat, Ann Anderson, Wilton Lackaye, Bruce Jenner, and

Bryan Kerchal. The ten former Newtown Bee Sportsman winners - Jack McAuliffe,

Rich Pesce, Ray Craven, Jack Shpunt, Patty Murren, Bob Sveda, Bob Zito, Bob

Stampp, Larry Ashmore, and John Ball were also inducted. Each summer, four

more local sports figures will be inducted along with that year's Bee

Sportsman. The Hall of Fame will be on display at The Newtown Bee Sports

office.

Twelve Newtown High cheerleaders - Carolyn Anders, Jessica Warren, Samantha

Byrne, Kristin Catigano, Alyson Harris, Lisa Picirillo, Michelle Pratt, Leah

Prokop, Chari Bird, Cathy Byrne, Carla Catigano, and Kate Thoreson - earned

Elite All-American honors at summer camp. It marked the first time that any

NHS cheerleader had earned such an honor.

Tilford's Piano Movers, a local men's softball team, captured the title at the

Woodbury Summer Slam Tournament.

Newtown's Kevin Carolan teamed up with Heritage Village professional Fran

Marello to win the title at the Pro/Junior Golf Tournament put on by the

Connecticut Section PGA.

Six local baseball players - Kyle McCullough, Ken Seferi, Larry Isler, Jeff

Rucktenwald, Rich Barillari, and Brian Tomasulo - helped the West Region

baseball team win a gold medal at the Nutmeg Games. The team was coached by

Larry Isler Sr and Tom Wyatt.

Newtown's Craig Arsenault captured a gold medal at the Nutmeg Games in the 400

meter track and field competition; Newtown's Bob Brewster coached the West

Region basketball team to a gold medal; Trey Hoppmeyer was a member of the

gold medal winning soccer team; Bill Brookes won a gold in the golf

competition.

Sergio Rebeiro braved the pouring rain to win the Newtown Bee 10K Race in

31:42. Sue Faber was the winner in the women's division.

Dick and Ken Slowick won the championship flight at the Newtown Country Club's

Member/Guest Tournament beating out Joe Lombardi and Art Haddad.

Gene Chappell and Leo Spinelli won the 'A' and 'B' Division batting

championships in the Newtown Slo-Pitch Softball League. Chappell hit .600 and

Spinelli ended the season at .579.

SEPTEMBER

Justin McCarthy and Diane Gucciardo captured the men's and women's singles

titles at the NTA's Bertram A Strook Tennis Tournament. The team of Wendy

White and Shelby Lance won the women's doubles title for a seventh-consecutive

year.

Fred Roy and Ann Caffrey-Garff won the men's and women's club championships at

Rock Ridge Country Club. Roy defeated Bob Smith in the final and Caffrey-Garff

beat Kim Kingston.

After knocking off perennial defending champion Gervais Bros, Catering By

George captured the 'A' Division title in the Newtown Slo-Pitch League with a

33-21 hammering of Newtown Exxon in the finals. George's hit eleven home runs

in the game getting three each from Bob Kick and Doug Rose. A total of 17

round trippers were hit in the contest.

My Place Pizzeria successfully defended its 'B' Division crown with a 12-7 win

over Steve's Liquor after falling 10-9 in the day's earlier contest. Tim March

and Rich Treadwell each homered and Mike Constine went 5-for-5 for the champs.

Jim D'Angelo and George Matern were named co-MVP's of the Newtown Slo-Pitch

'A' Division while Jim Chappuis and Mark Lawrence shared 'B' Division MVP

honors. Respective division home run champions were Rick Kasbarian and John

Hasselburger.

The NHS football team beat up three-time defending champion Brookfield, 29-14,

snapping the Bobcats 18-game win streak. Jeff Chuongvan, Matt Huray, Joe

Saputo, and Ryan Bunt all scored touchdowns for Newtown while Huray ran for

134 yards.

Newtown High girls' track coach Rick Medve had the Ridgefield High School

track named in his honor for his many years as a coach there. In 28 years

coaching at Ridgefield, Medve's career record was 670-170.

OCTOBER

Newtown High sophomore swimmer Jaime Ryan broke the first of what would be

five school swimming records that she would erase on the year when she

captured the record in the 200 IM against Lauralton Hall in 2:14.44.

Kellogg's Hardwood Inc rallied to defeat Gastop in the finals of the Newtown

Weeknite Softball League as Chris Daly went 4-for-5 with a three-run homer.

Pete Coviello also had four hits for the winners while Chris Kachur and Chris

D'Angelo each had three.

Behind the first-place efforts of freshman Brian McGovern, the NHS boys' cross

country team, under coach Rich Pesce, defeated Pomperaug and Joel Barlow in

the season's final meet to finish the regular season perfect, at 16-0. The

team then won the South-West Conference title. The NHS girls' team, meanwhile,

finished the season at 13-5 and placed sixth at SWC's. McGovern, Todd Badillo,

and Mike Giarratano were named All-SWC.

Controversy surrounded Newtown High's new Nighthawks mascot as NHS coach Larry

Ashmore was ordered not to allow his team to wear its warm-up jerseys which

read "Goatsuckers" across the front. Ashmore had made up the shirts during the

summer for his team.

The NHS boys' soccer team finished its season at 9-4-2 but missed out on the

SWC playoffs but qualified for the state tournament for the 15th-straight

year. All-State forward David Miller and Rob Anders led the team with eleven

goals each. The Hawks then advanced to the Class L quarterfinals before losing

2-1 to Wilton on PK's.

The NHS girls' soccer team finished the season at 9-2-4 but that wasn't good

enough to make the SWC playoffs. The girls then fell 5-0 to South Windsor at

the state tourney. Melanie Tyrell led the team with seven goals on the season

and Nikki Streegan was named the team's MVP.

The NHS field hockey team finished the season with a record of 3-6-5. Alicia

Wickson became the school's first-ever All-State player.

NOVEMBER

Former Newtowner TJ McKenzie, currently a senior at St Joseph's of Trumbull,

signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball at Providence College

next season. The 6-11 center, who was cut from the Newtown Middle School team

as a seventh grader, is regarded as one of the top high school players in

Connecticut this season.

The NHS swim team placed third at the SWC Championship meet. Jaime Ryan broke

a conference record as she placed first in the 200 IM and then took second in

the 500 free. Ryan then went on to win Class M state titles in both the 200 IM

and 500 free. The 200 medley relay team of Ryan, Kari Fischer, Stephanie

Nickse, and Sara Leddy also won a Class M title.

The NHS volleyball team advanced to the SWC finals, but lost to state-ranked

Bunnell in the title-match at Pomperaug High. The team then rolled through the

Class L state playoffs, defeating top-ranked Cheshire and then Briston Eastern

to bring home the school's first-ever state volleyball title. Kristen

Denninger was a force in the tournament as were Newtown's All-State honorees

Dee Conley and Leigh Hoppmeyer. The team finished 21-3 under first-year coach

Nell Ayn Lynch.

Steve Brookes and Lauren Pelletreau earned The Newtown Bee's No "I" In Team

Award for their efforts with the NHS boys' and girls' soccer teams.

The NHS football team beat Jonathan Law 39-8 and went over the 400-point mark

for the first time in school history. It was a short-lived record, though, as

the high-powered Nighthawks later went over 500. Newtown finished the regular

season at 10-0 and then wallopped Masuk 28-0 in the SWC title game and then

again 32-6 on Thanksgiving Day.

The U13 Hurricanes and U11 Strikers each won Division titles in the Newtown

Soccer Club. Kate Bouteiller, Dawn Macri, and Keira Morin led the Hurricanes

to victory while David Anderson, Devon Manfredonia, and Matthew Miller helped

lead the Strikers.

The NHS football team roughed up Pomperaug 49-12 at Homecoming. With their

strong performances Matt Huray and Ryan Bunt won The Newtown Bee's defensive

and offensive MVP awards.

DECEMBER

One of Newtown High's greatest football seasons ever ended abruptly as the

Nighthawks lost 12-0 to Holy Cross in the Class L semifinals on a mudslicked

field in Waterbury. On the season the Hawks outscored their opponents 510-85.

Patrick Reilly, Kevin Lausten, and Jeff Chuongvan were all named first-team

All-State while the three along with Greg Darling, Joe Wasko, Joe Saputo, and

Ryan Bunt were all named to the All-SWC squad.

Newtown High had an amazing eleven athletes named All-State during the fall

season. They included Reilly, Lausten, Chuongvan (football), Sara Leddy, Kari

Fisher, Stephanie Nickse, Jaime Ryan (swimming), David Miller (soccer), Leigh

Hoppmeyer, Dee Conley (volleyball), Alicia Wickson (field hockey).

As the winter seasons got underway at Newtown High School, the NHS boys'

basketball team started things off by defeating New Milford in the finals of

the inagural Newtown Holiday Tournament. Junior Andrew Gellert was named the

MVP of the tournament while teammate Patrick Reilly was named to the All

Tourney team as well.