Newtown High School JV football game results from the second half of the season:

Newtown 36 Cheshire 6: After a two-week hiatus the 2-2 JV Newtown Nighthawks traveled to Cheshire to take on the Rams. The Hawks showed no wear from the time off as they jumped out to a quick lead on the third play from scrimmage. Quarterback Jayden Cordova hooked up with Gio Vazquez for a 60-yard catch and run touchdown. Kicker Dominic Simpri added the extra point and Newtown was up 7-0 less than two minutes into the game. The defense also showed no sign of rust as it stopped the Rams on their opening drive. The Hawks regained possession on a blocked punt as Sean Reilly and Jackson Chacon met in the Cheshire backfield to get a piece of the ball that was quickly scooped up by Brady Macey to give Newtown great field position. Three plays later, Cordova connected with Andrew Grenier for a 22-yard catch and run TD. Simpri’s extra point made it 14-0 a mere five minutes into the game. The Hawk defense continued to frustrate the Rams. A Chacon sack forced Cheshire into an ill-advised pass that was picked off by Macey. Two plays later, Cordova connected with Griffin Clemen to setup a 23-yard TD run by Bryan Reyes. Newtown was up 20-0 just seconds into the second quarter. The only blemish on the day for the Hawks was a kick return TD for Cheshire in the second quarter. Newtown denied the two-point attempt on great pass defense from Ryan Zaniewski. Cheshire made one more attempt before the half but pressure from the Newtown defense line of Alamin Islam, Jason Benson, and Cole Wanzer helped force another interception by Grenier to close out the first half. The offensive line led by Luke Phelps, Lewis Roth, Declan Regan, Daniel DeOliviera, Islam, and Wanzer provided protection all game. Cordova connected with Reyes to close out the third quarter. Simpri’s kick made it 27-6 with one quarter remaining. The final score of the game was sparked after Chacon fielded a short, errant punt deep in Ram territory. Two plays later a 25-yard pass and run from Cordova to Vazquez capped the scoring.

Shelton 22, Newtown 19: The 3-2 JV Nighthawks returned to Blue & Gold Stadium after more than a month away to take on the Shelton Gaels. The cold, wet conditions proved to be a challenge for both sides throughout the game. A bright spot for the Hawks was the kick return game of Bryan Reyes. He consistently put Newtown in good starting position. Despite the weather, Newtown took to the air on their first offensive possession. Quarterback Jayden Cordova connected with Andrew Grenier on a 20-yard pass and then hit Gio Vazquez on a 35 yard TD pass, putting the Hawks up 6-0 a few minutes into the game. Wet ball issues plagued both sides and Newtown took advantage early on. A mishandled punt was forced by the rush of Evan Nikolis and Cole Wanzer. But yards were hard to come by all day and Newtown gave the ball back to Shelton on downs. Brady Macey and Andrew Grenier provided solid pass defense for the Hawks. Shelton went up 7-6. Newtown had an opportunity to make some noise after Jackson Chacon had a strip sack that was recovered by Sean Reilly deep in Gael territory. However, the Hawks were not able to capitalize. Shelton cashed in and scored early in the second quarter to increase the lead to 13-6. Pinned down deep in their own end, the Hawks turned the ball over again. Shelton took over on the Newtown one-yard line and quickly converted to go up 20-6. Undeterred, Newtown returned to the running game. The next drive featured strong runs by Vazquez and Cordova. On a third and long Cordova connected with Grenier for a first down that setup a five-yard TD run by Vazquez. Dominic Simpri’s extra point made it 20-13 midway through the second quarter. The Newtown defense remained strong; Kevin Murray and Nikolis all provided pressure while Wanzer recorded a sack. Shelton blocked a Newtown punt, but the Hawks’ defense held fast. Brady Macey had a TD-saving play at the goal line, and Reyes forced a fumble to get the ball back for Newtown. The Gaels then returned the favor by scoring a safety in the closing minute of the half to go up 22-13. Reyes then intercepted a Shelton pass to stop the final drive of the half.

In the second half, a clutch fourth down pass from Cordova to Grenier resulted in a 55-yard touchdown to make the score 22-19 in favor of the Geals. The stout Newtown defense did not allow Shelton to score for the rest of the game. Richie Wilford, Luke Phelps, Murray, and Wander were strong on the defensive line all game with great support from Joey Corbo, Reilly, and Chacon. Newtown squandered a great opportunity after Macey scooped up a botched Shelton kick return. The Hawks drove to the Shelton one yard line, but a turnover gave the ball back as the third quarter expired. Another sack by Wanzer helped to force a punt by Shelton and Newtown took over on the Shelton side of the field. However, the Hawks could not capitalize on their good field position and gave the ball back on downs. The Gaels went to the ground game to bleed clock in the fourth quarter and were able to convert on a crucial fourth and long to extend their drive. The defense held strong and gave the Hawks one last chance in the closing minutes of the game. Shelton penalties and critical catch by Corbo kept the drive alive for Newtown. Ultimately, the drive came up short in the closing minute.

Newtown 35, Weston 0: The 3-3 JV Nighthawks returned to Blue & Gold Stadium to take on the Trojans from Weston. A crisp sunny fall day was the backdrop as the Hawks received the opening kickoff. It took a little while for Newtown to warm up as they traded possessions with Weston on the opening drives. The Hawks started their next drive very run-heavy with a combined 42 yards of rushing from Gio Vasquez. The drive was capped by a 30-yard touchdown pass from Jayden Cordova to Andrew Grenier. Emad Azba added the extra point and Newtown was up 7-0 early in the first quarter. The Nighthawk defense remained stout with dominating line play from Declan Regan, Richie Wilford, and Kevin Murray. Evan Nikolas had a key pass defense to give Newtown the ball. Newtown turned the ball over deep in its own end, but the defense continued to dominate and got the ball back to the offense four plays later. The Nighthawks continued to run the ball with strong runs from Griffin Clemen as well as Vasquez who fought hard for yards all day, shedding tackles and at times carrying half the Weston defense with him as he ran. Jackson Chacon had a tipped pass and Cole Wanzer forced a fumble on a sack requiring Weston to punt yet again. Chicon and Grenier forced a fumble on a fourth and short stopping the Weston drive in the second quarter. Three plays later, Cordova connected with Clemen on a 53-yard touchdown pass and Azba’s extra point made it 14-0. With minutes remaining in the second quarter the Newtown defense again took the ball back on an interception by Kaelen Schmitt. Taking advantage of the Weston miscue, the next play was a 53-yard pass from Cordova to Brady Macey. As time expired, Cordova again connected with Macey for a 15-yard touchdown and the extra point from Azba made it 21-0 at the end of the half. The Nighthawks got contributions from some freshmen players in the second half. Jayden Taylor was featured on the first offensive possession by Newtown; he ran the ball and caught a 26-yard pass from Cordova to set up two-yard TD run by Vasquez. Azba’s extra point put Newtown up 28-0 in the opening minutes of the third quarter. The Trojans could do little against the Newtown defense. Sean Riley and Noah Smith recorded a sack as Weston continued to have trouble moving the ball against the Nighthawks. Along with Taylor, other freshman that contributed to the win were Ayden Paulos, James Hartigan, Marco D’Amico, Joey Terry, and Will McManus. The final score was tallied on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Cordova to Taylor in the fourth quarter. Azba’s fifth kick made him a perfect five for five extra on points.

New Fairfield 22, Newtown 12: The 4-3 JV Newtown Nighthawks visited the New Fairfield Rebels in what would turn out to be their final official game of the season. The Hawks took the opening possession for an early score. The drive featured multiple long runs by Gio Vazquez and was capped by a 21-yard touchdown pass from Jayden Cordova to Griffin Clemen. The drive was made possible by strong offensive line play from Declan Regan, Richie Wilford, Kevon Murray, Lewis Roth, and Luke Phelps. The Rebels answered right back with a quick TD on their first possession. They added the two-point play and took the lead 8-6 just four minutes into the game. After the teams traded possessions, the Hawk defense stepped up with a big fourth down stand deep in their own territory in the second quarter. Cole Wanzer’s sack got the ball back for the Hawks. Newtown took little time to score. Cordova connected with Andrew Grenier on a 75-yard catch and run for a TD. Jackson Chacon had a big play on special teams forcing a fumble on the kickoff and putting the Rebels on their heels deep in their one end. The defensive line of Wilford, Phelps, Murray, and Wanzer held New Fairfield and the Hawks got the ball back with great field position. Newtown could not capitalize and turned the ball over late in the second quarter. The Hawk defense answered the call with a Brady Macey interception to stop the Rebel offense with less than a minute remaining in the half. In the third quarter the Newtown defense held strong, but New Fairfield scored twice in the fourth quarter.

With the final JV game being cancelled this past weekend, the Nighthawk JV sophomores combined with the freshmen to take on Masuk of Monroe in a “froshmore” game. Newtown beat the Masuk Panthers 20-0. Sophomore Andrew Grenier had rushing and receiving TDs, and sophomore Jackson Chacon recovered a fumble in the end zone for a score. Freshman Sam Kennel also had a fumble recovery for Newtown.