By Tim Parry

If you looked over from the shot put area Sunday at Danbury High School, towards the lights at the Federal Correctional Institute, you could see an unpleasant sky approaching. What appeared to be a funnel cloud was possibly heading towards the Nutmeg State Games and its track and field meet.

And then came the voice from the press box, asking all spectators and athletes to exit the stadium slowly, in an orderly fashion, and seek shelter.

Though it was about 4 p.m., the skies soon darkened as if it were five hours later, and dumped inches of rain on the area.

The rain eventually stopped, but meet officials decided to postpone the remaining events until this Sunday, August 3.

About half the events had been completed at the time of the evacuation, but results will not be posted until the official completion of the meet.

Are you a trained medical professional with a big heart and passion for sports? The Nutmeg State Games needs qualified health care providers to volunteer their time and services.

The sports medicine team includes dedicated professionals from the following fields: athletic training, chiropractic, medicine, osteopathy, naturopathy, podiatry, physical therapy, nursing, massage therapy, emergency medicine, and occupational therapy. You’ll watch the competition from the sidelines and courtside; observe the small and big hits, twists, and bangs; and be on your toes to care for the athlete in need. You’ll help insure the health and safety of the athletes to be able to compete at their full potential.

The games will be taking place July 26 to August 3 in the Danbury area. Please review the schedule and indicate your dates and times of availability. It can be found at: http://www.nutmegstategames.org/08sportsmedinfo.pdf.

First aid and sports medicine supplies and medi-bags will be provided. If you have your own bags, then supplies will be provided where needed and available.

To volunteer or for any question, call 860-528-4588 or visit www.nutmegstategames.org.

It’s been a busy weekend for the CIAC, with state champions to crown in a ton of sports.

And after a cool spring weather-wise, mother nature went crazy yesterday, blistering athletes with temperatures in the 90s. Which meant in-season conditioning became a major factor for all the athletes involved.

Here’s a quick roundup of winners, losers (though to be politically correct, they are runners-up), and more, including clips from the local sports media…

FRIDAY:
Westhill wins Class LL Baseball Title
I slammed Westhill pitched T.J. Hickey’s mound antics in a post a few weeks ago. He’s recovered nicely and, on the mound, became the go-to guy a lot of us saw during the football season. As he kept Masuk batters in check, Bobby Migliazza and Greg Smith led the offense in a 12-1 win up at Palmer Field in Middletown.

The clips: Stamford Advocate game story; Stamford Advocate sidebar; Connecticut Post.

Also Friday: Darien takes volleyball title; Staples wins again in Class L.

SATURDAY
The links:

• Masuk phenom Rachele Fico shuts down Naugatuck: Connecticut Post; New Haven Register.
• Law upsets Ludlowe for Class L baseball title: New Haven Register; Connecticut Post.
• Danbury takes Division II girls lacrosse championship: News-Times; News-Times sidebar.
• Prefect ending for New Fairfield lacrosse team: News-Times.
• Prep tops Ridgefield in 3OT to take Class L lacrosse title: Connecticut Post.
• Darien girls defeat Wilton again for girls lacrosse championship: Stamford Advocate.
• Blue Wave Boys make it a lacrosse sweep: Stamford Advocate.

The Sacred Heart track & field teams won five individual titles over the weekend at the 2008 New England Championships, with seniors Arman Dixon (Beacon, NY) and Marsha Locke (Danbury) taking home a pair each. For the third-straight year the Pioneer men improved on their best-ever finish at the event this year coming home third overall. The women took fifth overall.

Dixon continued his stellar senior season with New England titles in the 200 meters and long jump. Dixon turned in his fastest time of the season in the event, clicking in at a NCAA Regional qualifying time of 20.86 to dust the field in the 200 and come up with the win. His leap of 23′10″ (7.26m) won him the long jump title as well. Dixon will also compete in the long jump as well as the 400 meters at the NCAA Regional Championships.

Locke successfully defended her New England shot put title by besting the field by over two feet. Her throw of 48′11.75″ (14.93) won the event and met the NCAA Regional qualifying standard. Locke already qualified for the NCAA Regional meet with her winning throw at the NEC Championship. Locke picked up her third career New England title by winning the javelin with a throw of 134′11″ (41.12m). Locke also picked up points by finishing fourth in the discus with a throw of 136′10″ (41.72m).

Sophomore Brittany Dexter (Ballston Lake, NY) defended her New England title in the high jump, clearing the bar at 5′8.75″ (1.75m) to meet the NCAA Regional qualifying standard. Dexter won the event for the second-straight year as well at the NEC Championship meet a week ago with a height of 5′7″.

Senior Scott Giordano (Hamden) picked up points by finishing fourth in the 200 meters with a 21.83 second clocking. Senior Michael Barrett (Islip Terrace, NY) scored with a sixth-place finish in the 100 meter dash finishing in 11.25 seconds. Freshman Peter Conti (Mansfield, MA) picked up points in his first New England meet showing by taking fourth in the 110 meter hurdles. Conti crossed the finish line in 14.93 seconds.

Junior John Kenworthy (Gloversville, NY) finished fifth in the 3000 meter steeplechase, shaving two seconds off his time at last week’s NEC Championships with a 9:27.76 clocking. Sophomore Brett Luongo (North Attleboro, MA) took fifth in the javelin with a throw of 188′10″ (57.55m).

The SHU trio of sophomore Keith Rowe (Taunton, MA), junior Brian Germain (Wallingford) and junior Thomas Hyatt (Hopewell Junction, NY) finished second, third and fourth, respectively, in the decathlon. Rowe racked up 6,134 points to finish 152 points off the top-spot. Rowe won the 100 meter dash (11.46), the 110 meter hurdles (15.45) and the long jump (22′0.75″) in the decathlon. Germain won the discus throw (125′9″) and the javelin (165′8″) while Hyatt took the pole vault (13′9.25″).

Senior Melissa Kostan (Salem, NY) took second in the heptathlon with 4,831 points. She finished second in the 200 meters (25.16), the 100 meter hurdles (15.04) and the long jump (17′7.50″) and third in the high jump (5′5″) and the javelin (98′9″).

Senior Christine Yakubec (Greenwich, NY) took third in the discus with a throw of 140′1″ (42.69m) with fellow senior Sarah Hickman (Amherst, MA) finishing sixth throwing 135′3″ (41.23m). Junior Sarana Hyatt (St. Albans, NY) took sixth in the 400 meter hurdles (1:04.70) and eighth in the long jump (17′7.00″). Senior Lenahndem Tankeng (Yonkers, NY) finished eighth in the hammer throw (154′6″).

The Pioneers will compete at the ECAC and IC4A Championships this weekend at Princeton University.

The Danbury High School boys track and field team’s dual-meet winning streak is over. The last time the Hatters lost was 2000, according to published reports. And some say it can be attributed to the suspension of 13 Danbury athletes for its meet on Tuesday.

Danbury head coach Rob Murray told The News-Times that the suspensions were for disciplinary reasons, and could not elaborate further. But as a result, Danbury fell to Trumbull 76-74 (even though the Hatters did get wins over Westhill and Wilton).

But for what it’s worth, what is a one-meet suspension worth? And did the crime fit the punishment? That part we will never know, since school records are kept under wraps.

But dual meets, in theory, are overrated when it comes to track in field. Yes, winning is great, but track is one of those sports in which dual meets are used to get ready for the post season. The regular season, in all reality, is all about developing athletes.

Yes, there is a bit of pride on the line when you go against a rival school, but that’s about it. Even if the athletes are not allowed to compete Saturday in the O’Grady Relays (which are kind of a big deal in Danbury and the surrounding area), that one is still a meet based on pride.

The streak of 137 consecutive dual meet wins is nowhere near as important as discipline. I applaud Murray for taking a stance. Form The News-Times:

“We took this action because both the track and field team and the school felt it was important to convey to the community that what took place is unacceptable,” Murray said. “It is not what we stand for.”

And with the way the team performed Tuesday, there’s little doubt that Danbury has the athletes and the depth to compete for FCIAC and CIAC championships… the meets that count.

–Tim Parry

Bunnell 2B-P Dan Paolini will be taking a rare next step in his career. He’ll be playing Division I baseball, as both a position player and a pitcher. That’s how highly Siena thinks of the right handed thrower and hitter.

As you’ll see in the following video, Paulini isn’t going to the next level just because of his high school stats. Siena saw Paulini play in summer leagues and showcases, which helped him earn a scholarship to the New York school.

And when other Division I prospects turned their backs because Paulino needed shoulder surgery, Siena made its way to the picture in July.

Paulino’s advice to ballplayers who want to play college ball:

“You’ve got to go to a lot of showcases. You’ve got to play summer ball,” Paulino said after Bunnell’s win over Immaculate in Stratford on Friday. “That’s how they all noticed me. In high school ball, the [college] coaches are all in their season, but they do look at your high school stats. So you have to do well in high school and then carry that over to the summer.”

Paulino isn’t the only member of the defending SWC champs playing Division I ball. Tyler Casterta committed to Central Connecticut yesterday, and Eric Camacho is weighing his Division I options, according to Bulldogs head coach Scott Szturma.

Paulino pitched 2/3 of an inning in relief Friday, his first appearance on the mound since surgery. But Szturma says he’s hoping the 8-1 Bulldogs can continue to keep him off the mound for a while. Especially if that means he could become a secret weapon for Bunnell come playoff time.

“I don’t want to put him in a pressure situation right now. We just want to get his arm strength back, get him thinking like a pitcher again,” Szturma said. “He wants to do what’s best for the team, but my fear is he’ll do something that will get him hurt. It’s been kind of nice that we haven’t had to use him.”

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Thirty of Fairfield County’s finest football-playing scholar-athletes were honored April 10 by the Ralph DeSantis chapter of the National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame. Also honored at the dinner at Continental Manor in Norwalk were the head and assistant coaches of the year in the SWC and FCIAC, as well as two officials of the year.

Three players received $500 scholarships to be used towards their college education as well: William Bass (Bassick), Richard Holmes (Danbury), and Chris Payne (Wilton).

Wilton’s Tim Eagen was introduced as the FCIAC’s coach of the year by his mentor, Tom Fujitani, who he served under as an assistant coach for several years, and thanked his assistant coaches and the Warriors’ booster club for its efforts in helping to build a top-notch program. Ridgefield’s Kevin Callahan introduced one of his former players, New Fairfield’s Andy Buchsbaum, as the SWC’s coach of the year.

Carl Cairo (Greenwich) and John Pereira (Pomperaug) received their league’s respective assistant coach of the year awards.

The scholar-athletes honered were:

• William Bass, Bassick
• Nick Verderosa, Bethel
• Chris Green, Brien McMahon
• Kenneth Cobb, Bridgeport Central
• Steven Moss, Brookfield
• Jeffrey Farrell, Bunnell
• Greg Passineau, Canterbury
• Richard Holmes, Danbury
• George Rhein, Darien
• Matthew O’Laughlin, Fairfield Ludlowe
• Thomas Marx Jr., Fairfield Warde
• Jonathan Meyers, Greenwich
• Scott Hickling, Joel Barlow
• Victor Ciancetta, Masuk
• Chris Lemoine, New Canaan
• Patrick Cassidy, New Fairfield
• Jonathan Henion, New Milford
• Eric Puffer, Newtown
• Cyprian Oyomba, Norwalk
• Patrick Purrell, Notre Dame-Fairfield
• Stephen Barton, Pomperaug
• Tyler Strittmatter, Ridgefield
• Michael Dinihanien, St. Joseph
• Jason Zins, Staples
• Justin Shumyhora, Stratford
• John O’Leary, Trinity Catholic
• Jameson Cherilus, Trumbull
• John Midy, Westhill
• Dylan Hannum, Weston
• Chris Payne, Wilton

Also honored were a few unsung heroes of the game, the referees. Without them, of course, the games wouldn’t count in the standings. Bob Seirup, who has been working with the Fairfield County Football Association for 54 seasons, was honored as its official of the year. Bill Vasutro was the Colonial Football Association’s honoree.