No. 2 Xavier pushes around No. 8 Cheshire

Ansonia-Derby to resume today

Notre Dame-WH shutouts Shelton

Area roundup

Follow the scores with our Week 3 scoreboard


TODAY'S GAMES
CCC DIV. II EAST
Bulkeley at RHAM, 2:30 p.m.
E.O. Smith at Hartford Public, 2:30 p.m.
Wethersfield at Fermi, 4:00 p.m..

CCC DIV. II WEST
Windsor at Bristol Eastern, 6:00 p.m.

CCC DIV. III EAST
Platt at Plainville, 7:00 p.m.

CCC INTER
Conard at Glastonbury, 2:00 p.m.
Hall at South Windsor, 2:00 p.m.
Rockville at Weaver, 3:00 p.m.
Southington at Newington, 6:00 p.m.

CSC
Wolcott Tech at Bullard Havens Tech, 12:00 p.m.
Abbott Tech at Platt Tech, 2:30 p.m.
Cheney Tech at Prince Tech, 2:30 p.m.
Wilcox Tech at Putnam/Tourtellotte/Ellis Tech, 6:00 p.m.

ECC MEDIUM
Montville at Bacon Academy, 2:00 p.m.

FCIAC CENTRAL
Ridgefield at Stamford, 6:00 p.m.

FCIAC EAST
Darien at St. Joseph, 2:00 p.m.

FCIAC WEST
Bridgeport Central at Danbury, 4:00 p.m.

FCIAC INTER
Trinity Catholic at Harding, 2:30 p.m.
Westhill at Norwalk, 3:00 p.m.
Staples at Brien McMahon, 7:00 p.m.

NVL BRASS
Wilby at Watertown, 3:30 p.m.
Crosby at Wolcott, 5:00 p.m.
Ansonia at Derby, 6:00 p.m. (at Shelton)

NVL COPPER
Naugatuck at St. Paul Catholic, 3:30 p.m.

PEQUOT SASSACUS
Nonnewaug at East Hampton/Vinal Tech, 10:30 a.m.
Hyde Leadership at Coginchaug, 3:00 p.m.

PEQUOT UNCAS
Housatonic/Wamogo at Canton, 2:00 p.m.
Gilbert/NW Regional at Ellington/Somers, 2:30 p.m.
SMSA/University at Avon, 3:00 p.m.
Granby Memorial at Windsor Locks/Suffield/East Granby, 6:30 p.m.
Stafford/East Windsor at Enfield, 7:00 p.m.

SCC INTER
West Haven at Hamden, 2:30 p.m.
Wilbur Cross at Fairfield Prep, 4:00 p.m.
Hillhouse at Foran, 6:00 p.m.

SWC INTER
Oxford at Bunnell, 3:00 p.m.
Pomperaug at Immaculate, 3:00 p.m.
Weston at Newtown, 3:30 p.m.
New Fairfield at Bethel, 7:00 p.m.
Notre Dame-Fairfield at Brookfield, 7:00 p.m.

By Mike Pucci, Register staff
mpucci@nhregister.com
@MikePucciNHR

Ansonia football captains (left to right), Jake LaRovera, Hakeem Martin, Tyler Wood and Elliot Chudwick are photographed at Nolan Field in Ansonia on 9/27/2011. Photo by Arnold Gold/New Haven Register AG0425D

On paper, this year’s Ansonia vs. Derby football game could be a carbon copy of last season’s contest.

Last year, Ansonia rallied from a 13-point halftime deficit and emerged with a thrilling 33-32 victory over its rivals in a game dominated by the offenses.

The Chargers return a veteran and imposing offensive line, electric sophomore running back Arkeel Newsome and several other talented skill players.

Derby, meanwhile, counters with senior quarterback Ray Kreiger and receivers Brian Dobek, Tim Adanti and Dillon McMahon (questionable for the contest due to a bruised tailbone).

Both teams, though, learned valuable lessons from last year, mainly in how to defend the other.

While both remain explosive offensively, there’s reason to believe that defense could play a more significant role Friday when the teams kick off at 7 at DeFilippo Field in Derby in a Naugatuck Valley League Brass Division tilt.

Read the full story here.

Week 3 Predictions

Last year, Ansonia trailed by 13 points at halftime before rallying for a 33-32 victory over rival Derby.

The rematch takes place Friday at 7 p.m. at Derby's DeFilippo Field. No. 4 Ansonia (2-0) has looked impressive in victories over expected NVL contenders Torrington and Woodland.

Derby (1-1) earned a Week 1 win over St. Paul before losing a 14-13 heart breaker to Naugatuck last week. That loss, though, hasn't diminished the anticipation nor the expected intensity for Friday's contest.

"Either way, it's going to be Ansonia vs. Derby," Ansonia coach Tom Brockett said. "Those (Derby) kids had their hearts broken last year, being that close to victory. I'm sure they want nothing less than a victory."

Ansonia leads the series with Derby 52-28-8. Ansonia has won the last four meetings, and nine of the last 10. Derby's last victory in the series came in 2001. The teams did not play from 2004-2008. Last year's game resparked interest in the rivalry after some recent lopsided Ansonia victories.

"It (2010) brought back the rivalry real quick," Brockett said. "You look at halftime when we were down 13 points and another 1,500 people showed up. There's no doubt about it that the rivalry is alive and well."

Derby joined the NVL in 2009 moving over from the SCC. In 2009, the Red Raiders went 4-6 and last season, in current Derby coach George French's first season with the Red Raiders, Derby finished at 5-5.

The Red Raiders, though, have not had a "trademark" win in some time. That could change if they're able to knock off Ansonia.

"Last year we made great strides in getting the program in the proper direction," French said. "This year, in Year 2, we have to get that benchmark win. We have to learn how to win against the good teams. Our kids are learning one step at a time. They had another tough loss last week (against Naugatuck). A couple of plays here and there and it goes in our direction. We have to start turning those plays in our direction.

"We have a lot of respect for Ansonia. They're one of the top five teams in the state this year and one of the most storied programs in state history. We have a lot of respect for them, but we know we can compete with them. We have to make our kids believe that we can compete on the same level as Ansonia, and our kids believe they can do it."

Read more about the Ansonia-Derby game in Friday's print editions of the Register and on-line at www.nhregister.com.

An interview with Ansonia football coach Tom Brockett.

Via traditionstv.com

Click here to see interview.

Rainy weather coupled with some cool days we've had the past few weeks have combined to delay the completion of the turf field project at Cheshire High.

Originally scheduled for completion on Oct. 14, the completion date is now termed TBA (to be announced). The Oct. 6 "home" game has already been moved to Falcon Field in Meriden with a 7 p.m. start. The Oct. 14 "home" game with Wilbur Cross on Oct. 14 has now been moved to Sheehan in Wallingford with a 7 p.m. start.

Another wrinkle in the project is the secondary project of resurfacing the track that surrounds the field. R.A.D. Sports company of Rockland, Mass., the construction company handling the project, is doing its best to keep the project moving forward according to Turf Committee chairman Bob Behrer. Behrer said the track resurfacing needs 2-3 weeks of curing before anyone can walk on it.

The hitch is that the curing can't be done unless there is a 7-10 day stretch of warm, dry weather.

"Right now the Oct. 28 home game with Foran (7 p.m. start) is TBA, all depending on the progress of the project," Cheshire High athletic Director Steve Trifone said. "I do not think they want to put the track resurfacing off."

One option is to delay the track resurfacing until next spring. But officials close to the project believe R.A.D. Sports will do everything it can to get the track done this fall.

According to one source, it is more than likely the first home game on the turf field will take place on Thanksgiving Day against Southington at 10 a.m.

However, Behrer said everything will be done to try and get the project done before Thanksgiving.

By Mike Pucci, Register staff
mpucci@nhregister.com
@MikePucciNHR

The season almost ended before it began for the O’Brien Tech football team.

Then the Condors suffered a 42-14 setback to Seymour in Week 1.

O’Brien Tech, though, had reason to celebrate this past weekend.

The Condors won the first game in school history on Saturday with a 34-30 victory over Abbott Tech.

“It wasn’t a win for me,” Condors’ coach Ken Roberts said. “It was a win for the kids and this program.”

Some current team members played the past three years as part of a co-op with Derby. In the offseason, the Condors decided to field their own squad when the co-op was disbanded due to Derby surpassing the number of players to stay co-op eligible.

Instead of playing just a junior varsity schedule, O’Brien Tech opted to jump into the varsity fold in Year 1.

Read the rest of Tuesday's notebook here.

Check out Week 2 highlights here.

Masuk remains No. 1 in latest Top 10 Poll.

The CIAC decided not to take any action against Northwest Catholic and its head coach Mike Tyler for violating the state's score management policy in a 52-0 win over Weaver on Saturday. Read about the ruling here.

A team violates the policy when they defeat an opponent by more than 50 points. If a team is found in violation, the head coach could face a one-game suspension.

Here's some information from Matt Fischer, the director of information services at the CIAC, in response to an e-mail I sent him regarding the policy.

Since the policy went into effect for the 2006 season, there have been five games with margins in excess of 50 points. (Four out of 3,565 games played from 2006-2010.)

Northwest Catholic 52, Weaver 0 (9/24/11)

Enfield 52, Wilcox 0 (11/21/08)

Berlin 57, Farmington 0 (10/12/07)

East Hartford 60, Fermi 0 (9/29/06)

Bridgeport Central 56, Bassick 0 (9/15/06)

In three of the four previous cases before 2011, the penalty was overturned on appeal with East Hartford being the exception.

Compare that to the 2005 season where there were 20 games over 50 points, including scores such as 90-0, 64-0, 67-6 and 77-6.

Fischer said that "the CIAC reviews all of its policies regularly and will make adjustments or changes as appropriate. The policy was changed this year from being an automatic suspension to an automatic review. Part of the reason for that change is a feeling by the committee that a vast majority of coaches are doing what they are supposed to be doing. This policy will be regularly reviewed and monitored just as all of our policies are."

Milford Academy, a prep school located in New Berlin, N.Y. that has a host of state players on its roster, beat Army Prep 40-20 this past Saturday.

Milford came back from deficits of 17-0 in the first quarter and 24-14 in the third quarter.

Here's how the CT players fared (report filed by Milford coach Bill Chaplick):

Montrell Dobbs (Ansonia) : 20 carries, 119 yards rushing, three touchdowns.

Tyler Matakevich (St. Joseph): Had five solo tackles and one sack.

Erich Berzinskas (Morgan): Went 7-for-9 passing for 223 yards and two touchdowns.

Ruben Berger (Naugatuck): Locked down Army receivers all game. Allowed zero receptions against.

Eddie Glenn (North Haven): Played solid at DE, had one tackle and one assist.

Aaron Echevarria (Naugatuck) : Played right tackle and had a solid game.

Milford Academy has won 17 of the last 18 games. Milford is now 6-0 heading into Stevenson College in Baltimore at 3 p.m. this Sunday.

Just in from the CIAC:

After a review of reports received from both schools involved and the game officials in regards to Northwest Catholic High School's 52-0 varsity football victory over Weaver High School on Saturday, it has been determined that the proper sportsmanship protocols were followed, and that there was no violation of the CIAC Score Management policy by the winning school's head coach.

Due to this fact the review committee will not take any action against Northwest Catholic High School in regards to Saturday's game.

Check out the football roundup and scoring summaries.

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