with a 49-28 victory over Ansonia.

The Cadets (10-3) won their second straight championship, and 10th overall.

Takes over at own 6, up 34-20.

Ansonia has a 3rd-and-goal at the SJ to start the 4th quarter.

Down 34-20.

4-yard TD pass from Joe Della Vecchia to Tyler Matakevich, who has 2 rush TDs, 2 TD receptions.

Kick good. 34-20 SJ 1:36 3Q

from Elliott Chudwick to Andrew Matos 25 yards.

2-point conversion pass from Chudwick to Dobbs is good.

27-20 St. Joe's.

539 3Q

Tyler Matakevich scores on a 2-yd. run for SJ.

The play was set up on a 42-yard reception by Quinn Irwin from Joe Della Vecchia after SJ stopped Ansonia on a fourth down at the Ansonia 44.

Kick is good. SJ leads 27-12. 723 3Q

SJ takes over on ANSONIA 44.

by SJ's Jerry Kramer. SJ takes over at own 32. 1026 3Q.

to begin third quarter, trailing 20-12 to St. Joseph.

FIRST DOWNS
St. Joes 10
Ansonia 11

RUSH YARDS
St. Joes 132
Ansonia 160

PASS YARDS
St. Joes 52
Ansonia 24

TOTAL YARDS
St. Joes 184
Ansonia 184

Dobbs 31-147-2
Matakevich 8-68-1


Della Vecchia 6 of 9 52 yards

TIME OF POSS.

St. Joes 8:11
Ansonia 15:49

ST. JOSEPH 20
ANSONIA 12

LJ Hunt rumbles 19 yards for the score. Joe DeCarmo kick is no good, but St. Joe's leads 20-12. Nearing halftime.

at the Ansonia 4. Chargers take over.

Montrell Dobbs scored on a 4-yard TD run. A drive that covered 75 yards on 18 plays and took 7:01 off the clock.

Dobbs' two-point conversion attempt, however, is no good.

St. Joe's leads 14-12. 7:00 left in first half.

St. Joseph leading Ansonia 14-6.

This time on a 12-yard TD run. Kick good. 14-6 St. Joseph. 658 First quarter.

Carries all nine times on the Ansonia drive for 58 yards. 2-point conversion pass is NO GOOD.
St. Joseph leads 7-6 with 7:37 in the first quarter.

A 21-yard pass to Tyler Matakevich from Joe DellaVecchia. Kick good. 7-0 St. Joseph.
10:46 left in first quarter.

Now 7:15 p.m due to the length of the Class L game, which took nearly three hours to complete.

Xavier (13-0) or Masuk (13-0)


Xavier defeated Class M champion Hillhouse (10-3) in regular season. Defeated West Haven (8-3) in regular season AND in Class L quarterfinals. Also defeated Notre Dame-West Haven, Cheshire, Shelton and a decent Middletown team.

Xavier defeated Glastonbury in the semis and Trumbull in the final.

Masuk defeated Class M semifinalist Brookfield, Pomperaug and Newtown, which fell just short of a Class LL berth, in the regular season.

Masuk defeated Bristol Eastern in the quarters, Darien in the semis and New Canaan in the final.

So, who is the best team in Connecticut?

After a 50-20 victory over New Canaan.

Masuk finishes 13-0.

Leads 50-20 and just made an INT. 558 left.

Cochran on 1 YD run, leads 43-20 206 3Q

Cochran, though, appears to have suffered a foot or ankle injury. Is being worked on.

Colin Markus scores on a 5-YD run for Masuk in Class L final. 849 left in third quarter.

New Canaan has ball on own 48.

Stats
First downs
New Canaan 14
Masuk 13


Rush yards
New Canaan 9 for 15 yards
Masuk 14 for 67 yards

Pass yards
New Canaan 297
Masuk 214

Matt Milano, New Canaan
21 for 32 297 yards 3 TDs

Casey Cochran, Masuk
17 of 27 214 yards, 2 TDs

Kevin Macari, New Canaan
8 catches, 192 yards 2 TDs

Thomas Milone, Masuk
3 catches, 115 yards, 1 TD

Colin Markus catches an 8-yard TD pass from Casey Cochran. Masuk leads 23-7, 549 left in first half.

to give the Panthers a 16-0 lead. Markus scored on a 13-yard run. There's 842 left until halftime.

after a 21 YD FG by Jon Testani. 1049 left in first half.

64-yard touchdown pass from Casey Cochran to Thomas Milone.

PAT no good.

3 p.m. Masuk (12-0) vs. New Canaan (11-1).

Hillhouse captured the Class M state title Saturday after a 7-0 victory over New London. It was the fourth state title for the Academics (10-3). Hillhouse, the eighth seed, knocked off No. 1, and defending champion, Berlin in the quarterfinals, and No. 4 Gilbert/NW Regional in the semifinals.

Harold Cooper scored the game's only touchdown on an 8-yard run in the fourth quarter.

Here are some postgame sound bites:

Hillhouse coach Tom Dyer:

"It didn't surprise me how good New London was. We saw them on film and we thought they were a tremendous ball club. But I'm real proud of the way these guys (the Hillhouse players) handled themselves today with class. They played their butts out.

"I can't say how happy I am for the seniors, and how well they prepared to do this.''

Hillhouse suffered a 9-6 loss to Class LL champion Xavier on Oct. 29. Dyer firmly believed the Academics could still might the Class M field despite suffering their third loss of the season that day. The players were just as optimistic.

Said Hillhouse senior Steven Dejournett:

"Yes, we were very confident. The seniors got together and we just told all the younger guys that we can do this and we can make this run and go to the playoffs. Look at us now."

Said Cooper:

"I feel wonderful. It's the best feeling in the world."

EAST HARTFORD - Harold Cooper scored the game's only touchdown on an 8-yard run in the fourth quarter to lift the Hillhouse football team to a 7-0 victory over New London in the Class M championship game Saturday at Rentschler Field.

Cooper's touchdown came with 11 minutes, eight seconds left in the final stanza. Cooper rushed 14 times for 39 yards.

Kevin Rosario intercepted a Josh Clements pass with 1:35 left to seal the victory for the eighth-seeded Academics (10-3). Hillhouse won its fourth state title, and first since 2006.

Taurese Washington rushed 18 times for 72 yards to lead the Academics, who rushed for 156 yards.

Kyle McKinnon carried 21 times for 161 for No. 2 New London (10-3).

Class M champions! 7-0 over New London. Hillhouse wins fourth state title.

Hillhouse intercepts a New London pass. Takes over with 1:20 left and leading 7-0.

1:40 left. 7-0 Hillhouse

Hillhouse up 7-0 in Class M final.

Taurese Washington intercepts a Josh Clements pass. Returns it 23 yards to the Hillhouse 47. 5 minutes left.

7-0 Hillhouse.

At Hillhouse 37. 5:11 left. Fourth quarter.

First down at the Hillhouse 35. 5:32 left.

7-0 Hillhouse

on own 10-yard line. 5:52 left.

New London came up short on a fourth down play at the Hillhouse 5-yard line. Hillhouse takes over, 7:20 left in fourth quarter.

Eight-yard TD run by Harold Cooper. Kick good. 7-0 Academics! 11:08 left in fourth quarter.

0-0 at halftime in Class M final.

No. 1 Xavier defeats No. 3 Trumbull 24-13 to capture the Class LL title, the school's second state championship. The Falcons also won in 2005.

17-7. Threw a pick near end of half. Another touchdown might have been insurmountable.

Second quarter. Joe Lynch's 25 YD FG the difference so far for Xavier.

No. 1 Xavier (12-0) vs. No. 3 Trumbull (11-2) kicks off at 7 p.m. at Rentschler Field.

It's not a surprise that perennial state power Ansonia has again reached a state final. The Chargers will appear in their 24th championship game Saturday when Ansonia (11-1) takes on St. Joseph (9-3) for the Class S title at 7 p.m.

The Chargers are 16-7 in championship games since the inception of the CIAC playoffs in 1976.

But what is surprising is that Ansonia reached the title game with a team primarily filled with underclassmen.

Said Brockett, who's in his fifth season at the helm and has a career record of 57-6:

"I think every year is a different challenge. Obviously, my first year (2006) was a big challenge, and the second year we had a lot of kids coming back so there was a lot of pressure. Then we had to replace those kids, and we were fortunate to get to a state championship (in 2008). Every year presents different challenges.

"But, as far as talent level, this, by far, was probably my most challenging year."

On playing the state final at Rentschler Field, home of UConn football, Ansonia senior running back Montrell Dobbs said:

"Everyone's dream is to play on a field like this. It's UConn, it's the best school in Connecticut. To be playing there for a championship like this is definitely a dream come true for a player like me."

Third-seeded Ansonia (11-1) squares off against No. 4 St. Joseph (9-3) in the Class S final on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rentschler Field in East Hartford.

Ansonia is making its 24th appearance in a state final. The Chargers have a championship game record of 16-7. The 16 titles are a state record.

St. Joseph has won nine titles, and are making its 12th trip to the final. The Cadets won the title in the now defunct Class SS last season.

Ironically, despite both team's success in the postseason, the two have never met for a state championship.

Below are some sound bites about the game:

Ansonia coach Tom Brockett:

"They're (St. Joseph) great, they really are. They're playing as good of football as anybody in the state. They just have so many different offensive weapons. They're physical on defense. (Joe) Della Vecchia (St. Joe's senior quarterback) does a good job of running the show for them; he can run and he can throw. They're presenting a ton of challenges."

St. Joseph coach Joe Della Vecchia (the quarterback's father):

"It’s a big challenge. He’s (Ansonia running back Montrell Dobbs) a great player, and they’re a great team. We have to slow him down, and score points ourselves. That’s going to be the key, to score points and to try to keep him contained."

Should St. Joseph (Class S) and Trumbull (Class LL) both win championships this weekend, it'll
mark just the second time since the inception of the CIAC playoffs in 1976 that two schools from the same town have won titles in the same year.

Wallingford schools Lyman Hall and Sheehan accomplished that feat in 1985. In 1981, St Joseph won in Class S-I, but Trumbull was defeated in Class L-I.

Stratford (Bunnell and Stratford High) had two teams make the final in 2006 but only Bunnell emerged victorious, which was the last time two schools from the same city reached the final.

"The (Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference) is one of the best leagues," St. Joseph running back Tyler Matakevich said. "Both of us are both very talented football teams. It really does say a lot, not only about the league, but about (the city of) Trumbull."

Trumbull rallied for a 38-27 victory over St. Joseph on Thanksgiving Eve.

St. Joseph (9-3) plays Ansonia (11-1) for the Class S title on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Trumbull (11-2) squares off against Xavier (12-0) in the Class LL title game on Friday at 7 p.m.

Masuk coach John Murphy remarks about his junior quarterback Casey Cochran, the Gatorade state player of the year.

Masuk (12-0) faces New Canaan (11-1) in the Class L state final Saturday at 3 p.m. at Rentschler Field.

Cochran led New London to the Class S state title in 2008 before transferring to Masuk as a sophomore. Cochran has thrown for 3,036 yards and 37 touchdowns this season

"He (Cochran) improved a lot. He's just so much more comfortable in the school and with his teammates. He's really such a great kid. He's such a hard worker. He studies a lot of film, and stuff like that. He works his tail off. Everything he gets he deserves."

Times have been set for the state high school football finals, to be played at Rentschler Field in East Hartford.

Class LL

No. 1 Xavier vs. No. 3 Trumbull, 7 p.m. Friday.

Class M

No. 2 New London vs. No. 8 Hillhouse, 11 a.m. Saturday

Class L

No. 1 Masuk vs. No. 6 New Canaan, 3 p.m. Saturday

Class S

No. 3 Ansonia vs. No. 4 St. Joseph's, 7 p.m. Saturday