TALKING TURKEY WITH KEVIN THE TURKEY

The sports department at the Rare Reminder has been so consumed with high school football that we’ve neglected the other sports excitement that is taking place on our fields, trails, and courts. Thankfully we ran into local celebrity Kevin the Turkey, who is an avid sports fan and has been closely monitoring the local high school sports landscape. The fabulous fowl was nice enough to sit down with us at his coop in Old Wethersfield and give us the lowdown on some of the sports action around our surrounding towns that we have missed. He also shared his predictions for the upcoming weekend on the local gridiron.

Cromwell: Kevin likes what he sees out of the girls’ volleyball team in Cromwell. The Panthers are 6-3 heading into this week, including victories in their last three contests. Captains Amaya Feitel, Dana Coughlin, and Aijah Caccio have helped lead the team, while sophomores Najla Cecunjanin and Kaitlin Lewkowicz have burst onto the scene. Cecunjanin leads the team in kills and blocks and Lewkowicz has been excelling as the team’s libero, leading the team in digs.

Middletown: Kevin spends a majority of his time outside and has been frequenting the soccer fields in Middletown. Heading into the week, the girls have won four of their first six games behind the brilliant play of Amalia Sessoms. The Blue Dragon boys have lost four of their first six, but have been competitive in every game thanks to the efforts of Jeffrey Turro.    

Newington:  Kevin has been impressed with the job that Chris Wanner has done with the Newington girls’ volleyball team. The Indians entered the week having won seven of ten games. Senior Meghan Roberts has been dominating the frontline, averaging 2.5 kills per set, and fellow senior Blayne Wanner-Hyde leads the team in aces and digs. Azya Bass, Yasmin Rincon, Carelys Benitez, and Trumbell Paige have also played well this season.

Rocky Hill: Kevin is pleasantly surprised with the resilience of girls’ volleyball in Rocky Hill. The Terriers lost their first five games of the season, but have since won four of five including a straight sets victory over Weaver last Friday. Captains Julia O’Conner, Grace Fisher, and Maddi Santo have ignited the turnaround. O’Conner and Fisher have been enforcers at the net and Santo has been deadly from the service line, averaging an ace per set. 

Wethersfield: Kevin is not a strong swimmer, but he does love to watch the area swimmers compete and Wethersfield has set the standard in the local pools. The lady Eagles have won their first five meets and did something that they haven’t done in 18 years by defeating Glastonbury on Sept 19 and then broke three school records in a win over E.O. Smith on Sept 23. Abby Francis broke the 200 freestyle record and two freshman relay teams also broke records in the meet. Julia Pitchell, Riley Wilhelm, Haley Krawczyk, and Olivia Thompson combined to break the medley relay record and Pitchell, Krawczyk, Thompson, and Emily Wolf teamed up to break the 400 freestyle record.

Kevin the Pigskin Prognosticator: Our famous feathered-friend is also an aficionado of football, offering a unique perspective from his bird’s eye view of the game. He regularly attends games up until Thanksgiving, where he goes into hiding for obvious reasons. Here are Kevin’s predictions for this weekend’s games, straight from the turkey’s beak.

Cromwell/Portland at Coginchaugh/Hale Ray- Saturday, Oct 7 @ 1 p.m.
“I normally don’t like panthers because they pose a major threat to us galliformes, but I really like what I’ve seen out of this group of Panthers so far this fall. They’re undefeated through four games, outscoring their opponents by nearly 35 points per game, and can beat you in a cornucopia of ways. Dianta Highsmith is dominating both sides of the ball, plucking passes out of the sky and stuffing lanes in the run game. I expect head coach Randell Bennett and his boys to feast in Durham, improving to 5-0 and establishing a clear pecking order in the Pequot Conference heading into their bye week.”

Rocky Hill at Tolland- Friday, Oct 6 @ 6:30
“I have a strong feeling in the pit of my gizzard about this game. Our undefeated Terriers enter Tolland to face an Eagles team with only one loss to their name. Rocky Hill’s defense has been devastating opponents, registering a shutout last week and allowing only 28 total points through four games, and the offense has been running wild turkey over opponents to the tune of 300 yards per game. Tolland has a versatile quarterback in sophomore Ryan Carlson, who happens to be the team’s best defender as well, but expect the Baker Brothers and company to gobble him up. Also look for Joseph-squared and the revamped offensive line to gobble up more yards on the ground.”

Newington vs South Windsor- Friday, Oct 6 @ 6:30
“The thought of this game turns my caruncle bright red, because it should intensify an already budding sports rivalry between these two schools. The Bobcats of South Windsor come to town undefeated and the Indians are looking to snap a two-game skid after starting the season 2-0. Expect some feathers to get ruffled in this contest featuring two offenses that can be explosive and multidimensional. Newington will need big nights out of Damon Stewart and his defensive mates, otherwise the scoreboard operator could have a busy night in this potentially exciting and non-violent turkey shootout.”

Middletown vs Bristol Central- Friday, Oct 6 @6:30
“Players should bucket up their wattle-straps because I’m anticipating a grind-it-out slugfest. Middletown has won all four of its games in convincing fashion and the visiting Rams of Bristol Central come to town having split their first four games. Quarterback Stone Belzo has been turning defenders into giblets and Stephen Hill and the Blue Dragons defense has been stopping opposing offenses cold turkey. I’d like to see Middletown use more wishbone formation, but either way I don’t expect them to lay an egg at home.”   

Wethersfield (Idle)
“It had been a rough year for my winged friends in Wethersfield, who had lost their first three contests, but the resilient flock rebounded with 17-7 victory over previously unbeaten Platt last Friday. It was a season-saving victory and further proof that ‘birds of a feather flock together.’ I sent my letter of congratulations, via carrier pigeon, and I fully expect the Eagles to keep soaring after their bye week.” 

Newington Cross Country Celebrates Senior Night

On Tuesday, September 26, friends and family of the Newington High School Cross Country team gathered at John Wallace Middle School to watch a cross country meet and to celebrate senior night.  The girls ran a tough race behind strong showings from senior Angelina Zacharias and junior Samantha Gorski, but came up short against a strong Rocky Hill team.  The boys team was led once again by junior Aiden Toth and freshman Sam Geisler, capturing first and third places respectively. They won decisively over Rocky Hill and Bloomfield.  

Once the race was concluded, the team celebrated the contributions of the senior student-athletes.  Coach Krusell commended the leadership and commitment of the core group of 12 seniors, many of whom have been on the team for multiple years. 

*Information and photo provided by XC Booster Club Co-President Lara Bohlke*
Newington senior cross country team members include: Front row, from left:  Angelina Zacharias (capt), Carly Saidon (capt), JR Villano, Alexa Freitas, and Gabriela Paxi.  Back row, from left: Brendan Henriques (capt), Konrad Sadowniczyk, Mark Walsh (capt), Patrick Boucher, Justin Field (capt), William Weidlich. Missing from photo: Patrick McGrath

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