Killingly football, Putnam Science long winning streaks end

This post was originally published on here

Just thought I’d empty out my reporter’s notebook while looking forward to Tuesday’s blockbuster high school boys’ basketball tripleheader at the Mohegan Sun Arena: Norwich Free Academy versus New London, Griswold versus Old Lyme, and Notre Dame-West Haven versus West Haven. 

Killingly football 

Killingly football’s 25-game winning streak came to an end with a 37-13 loss against Daniel Hand in last Saturday’s Class SS state championship game. It certainly wasn’t the result Trailblazers’ fans were hoping for but the Tigers from Madison, one of the state’s football bluebloods who captured their 15th CIAC state title, were certainly one of the most formidable opponents Killingly has met during their remarkable 10-year run.

Since 2015 (the 2020 season was cancelled due to COVID), Killingly has a won-lost record of 109-15. They’ve been to the state semifinals every season except 2023 when they fell to New Canaan in the Class L quarterfinals. 

Killingly has appeared in six state championship games over the past eight seasons, winning state titles in 2017, 2021, and 2024. Their state finals losses came against Weston (2019), North Haven (2022), and Hand (2025).

Killingly’s 22 seniors became the first class to post back-to-back undefeated regular seasons. They will be sorely missed. But as I’m writing this I can almost hear metal clanging against metal and smell the sweat emanating from the team’s legendary weight training facility: The Barn.  

“I think our program is in good shape,” Killingly coach Chad Neal said after the loss to Hand. “We’ve always responded and come back a little stronger. We’ll evaluate and keep working and the kids will be back in the weight room on Monday.”

After spending most of the season ranked No. 2, Killingly was voted No. 6 in the final GameTimeCT Top 10 poll. The Trailblazers were ranked No. 5 in the final Hartford Courant Top 10 State Football Coaches Poll. 

Final GameTimeCT Top 10 Football Poll

(first-place votes and record in parenthesis)

1. New Canaan (21) (13-0)
2. Daniel Hand (12-1)
3. Greenwich (11-2)
4. Windsor (12-1)
5. Berlin (13-0)
6. Killingly (12-1)
7. Southington (9-4)  
8. Fairfield Prep (9-3)
9. Brookfield (10-3)
10. Bunnell (10-3)

Here’s the final Top 10 vote I submitted to the good folks at GameTimeCT last Sunday. 

1. New Canaan (13-0)
2. Daniel Hand (12-1)
3. Greenwich (11-2)
4. Windsor (12-1)
5. Killingly (12-1)
6. Berlin (13-0)
7. St. Joseph (9-3)
8. Wilton (10-2)
9. Fairfield Prep (9-3)
10. Sheehan (11-2)
11. Southington (9-4)
12. Brookfield (10-3)
13. New Britain (8-2)
14. Cheshire (9-4)
15. Norwich Free Academy (7-5)

More: No. 1 Putnam Science wins heated battle against St. Thomas More

Prep Hoop Notes

Putnam Science Academy’s 50-game winning streak came to an end last Sunday in Bradenton, Florida. The five-time national champion Mustangs fell to IMG Academy, 91-88.    

The day before Putnam Science defeated Sunrise Christian Academy, 113-85, to establish a new program record of 50 wins in a row. Jalen Taggart was the leading scorer for the Mustangs in this historic game with 22 points. Kamai Samuels added 17 points and 7 assists, while Adama Tambedou had a 16 point, 10 rebound double-double. 

Six years before, Sunrise Christian Academy defeated Putnam Science to end the Mustangs’ 49-game winning streak. 

“People don’t realize in 2018 when we won our national championship, we won our last 20 games, then the next season we won 29 and then played Sunrise Christian Academy and they beat us,” Putnam Science Academy head coach Tom Espinosa told writer Ben Heacox. “Fast forward again, we’re on a 49-game winning streak and who do we face? Sunrise Christian Academy. 50 games is amazing. All the credit goes to the players and my coaching staff. It’s been a great run, I’m really proud.”

The Mustangs are 17-1. 

Norwich Sports Hall of Fame

The Norwich Sports Hall of Fame are now accepting applications for the Class of 2026. 

There is a big change this year. The age for Hall of Fame candidates has been lowered from 40 to 35. Anyone can submit a nomination letter to norwichsportshalloffame.org. Submissions are open until February 28.

More: Norwich Sea Unicorns capture historic third straight FCBL championship

Sea Unicorns win awards

The Futures Collegiate Baseball League announced this week the award winners for the 2025 season.

Norwich Sea Unicorns outfielder Antonio Ducatelli was selected the 2025 recipient of the Futures League’s Pete Wilk Award. The award was established to honor the former Vermont Lake Monsters manager who lost a 15-month battle with brain cancer in April 2024. The award is presented to a persevering individual who has overcome injury, illness or personal tragedy to make an impact for their team on or off the field, as that is exactly what Wilk did throughout his life. 

Ducatelli, a Levittown (N.Y.) native who is a rising junior at Central Connecticut State University, returned to the Sea Unicorns for the second straight summer in 2025. Despite twice having his season interrupted due to injuries, he stayed around to be supportive of his teammates while rehabbing diligently to get back in the lineup as fast as he could. 

Ducatelli hit .333 with a .439 on-base percentage and three extra-base hits across 14 regular-season games, the last nine of which came after he returned from injury in time for Norwich’s playoff push. He helped the Sea Unicorns win their third straight Futures League championship in August, recording seven hits, four runs scored and two stolen bases during the five-game postseason run. 

“Antonio Ducatelli is the type of player that every team would like to have; shows up every day and works hard to make himself and his team better,” Sea Unicorns General Manager Lee Walter Jr. said in a press statement. “He may have worked even harder while out with injuries so that he could come back and finish the summer out with his teammates. This perseverance helped make the Sea Unicorns a tough team to beat late in the season and showed the best qualities of what Futures League baseball is all about.”

The Norwich Sea Unicorns’ Adam Plager was selected the Broadcaster of the Year. Working in conjunction with local partner SNSN Sports, Plager has taken Norwich’s broadcasts to a new level in two summers. The Sea Unicorns’ home game streams integrated new pregame show features and advertising sponsorship spots, but Plager also took to the road quite often to provide an audio broadcast for Norwich fans if they were not tuned into the home broadcast. 

Plager’s tireless work ethic also had him writing game recaps for the team website, as well as compiling statistics for Sea Unicorns and opposing players. Plager was also selected to call two NESN games, including the All-Star Game at Polar Park in Worcester.

The Sea Unicorns also had five players selected to the Futures League All-League teams. The pitching duo of Matt Wootton (Eastern Connecticut State) and Frank Spirito (UConn), along with second baseman Charlie Walsh (George Washington), were named First Team All-League.

Sea Unicorns first baseman Chace Chaplin (Yale University) and designated hitter Aidan Stern (Trinity College) earned Second Team All-League honors. 

Sea Unicorns outfielder Gavin O’Brien was the team’s recipient of the Adam Kennan Sportsmanship and Scholarship Award, while Sea Unicorns 10-plus years season ticket holder Bruce Rosenthal was among  a group consisting of longtime fans, supporters and staff members who best represent each of the Futures League’s teams and were recognized with the Futures League’s first “Hometown Heroes” award.

Rosenthal rarely misses a game and has brought his kids out to Dodd Stadium for years, introducing them to a game they have grown to love. He was one of the first supporters to fully grasp the Futures League concept in Norwich and talk to other fans in the area about how much the play on the field is better in many ways than it was in the minors.

The Sea Unicorns 2026 home opener will be played on Saturday, May 30 against the Westfield Starfires at Dodd Stadium. 

The league’s 16th season of summer baseball around New England will begin on Wednesday, May 27. The 2026 season features the return of the Lowell Spinners as they become the third and final former affiliated New York-Penn League franchise within the region to join the Futures League.

STUCK IN THE 70s

On December 26, 1972,  Dave Cowens poured in 38 points and grabbed 20 rebounds to lead the Boston Celtics past the New York Knickerbockers, 115-106, at a sold-out Boston Garden. John Havlicek had 31 points and 10 assists as the Celts improved to 28-5.

Walt Frazier scored 29 points and dished out seven assists, while his backcourt partner Earl Monroe added 18 points for the Knicks.

Cowens went on to win the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award following that 1972-73 season. He would lead the Celtics to NBA titles in 1974 and 1976. Cowens was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in 1991.

Of course, I’ll always remember that spring night in 1990 when Cowens walked into the Everett High School (Mass.) Field House to play in the Edward K. Zanor Memorial Basketball Game. 

The annual event, which honored my late brother’s memory while raising money for charity and a scholarship fund, ended with Cowens sinking a buzzer-beating jump shot. Legendary.     

Jimmy Zanor is a sportswriter for the Norwich Bulletin and can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter@jzanorNB.