all photos by Joyce Andersen
Photo above: Wilton 8-Blue’s Noah Levi and Reilly Sullivan make a tackle
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Wilton 7-Blue 22, Westport North 6
Wooder Thoby’s electrifying first-play, 70-yard touchdown run sparked Wilton 7 Blue to a 22-6 victory over Westport North in the twilight on Saturday evening, Sept. 12 at Fujitani Field.
Brian Cipri’s crushing block opened a hole for Thoby, whose shake-and-bake moves did the rest on his way to the Wrecker end zone for a 6-0 lead. Everett Andersen’s 2-point conversion pass to Ryan MacDougall was nullified by a 15-yard offensive pass interference call, but the Warriors converted anyway as Andersen hit a streaking Max Mannino in stride in the end zone for a twenty yard, 2-point conversion to make the score 8-0.
The Warrior defense–led on the day by middle linebacker Kiel Polito, who made tackles all over the field, and linemen Robert Rios and Kyle Jordan–shut Westport down nearly completely in the first half, which ended with Wilton leading 8-0.
After the Warrior defense again shut down the Wreckers at the start of the second half, the Warrior offense took over after a punt to the Wrecker 46. Polito and Thoby ground out yards to the Westport 32, and then the Warriors took to the air. Faking a pitch and rolling right, Andersen fired a pass to Jimmy McKiernan, who made an acrobatic leaping catch at the Wrecker 11. Two plays later Thoby outjumped two defenders to haul in Andersen’s pass in the end zone for the Warriors’ second score and a 14-0 lead.
Struggling to move the ball on the ground, Westport took to the air, but Wilton’s linebackers and defensive backs were up to the task. Jermaine Vincent, McKiernan and Ryan Sorbo thwarted all attempts by Westport to gain yards through the air, forcing punts in the third and fourth quarters.
Late in the fourth quarter, Westport’s defense stiffened and a Warrior drive appeared to stall as the home team faced fourth and 14 at the Westport 46. However, the Wilton coaching staff elected not to punt. Quarterback Andersen took the snap from center Trey Dexter (whose direct and shotgun snaps were perfect all day), faked a pitch right and bootlegged left. Will Jarvie and Mannino perfectly executed blocks clearing a path to the secondary where Andersen kicked in the afterburners and beat the defenders to the end zone. Polito’s fullback dive was good for two points and the Warriors led 22-0.
Westport managed to score on a long pass on the game’s final play, making the final score 22-6.
(Standing, L to R) Kiel Polito (32), Everett Andersen (7), Wooder Thoby (9) and on the line, Brian Cipri (90)
Wilton 8-Blue 21, Darien Blue 8
Compensating for a slow start on offense, a tenacious Wilton 8-Blue defense forced three first-half turnovers on the way to a 21-8 victory over Darien Blue on Sunday, Sept. 13 at Darien High School.
While the Warrior offense sputtered on its first two possessions, the defense was brilliant. Each of Darien’s first three drives ended with a defensive takeaway as Austin Andersen recovered a fumble, and Reilly Sullivan and Kyle Hyzy each intercepted Darien passes.
Darien kept the Wilton running game in check until the Warriors’ third offensive series. Capitalizing on perfect offensive line execution by Dominick Polito, Noah Levi, Jack Lenz, Jack Savarese and Jimmy O’Brien, Andersen burst through the middle on a draw play and raced 55 yards to the Blue Wave 10. Three plays later, Andrew Smith rolled right and hit Maden Herve with a perfect spiral at the edge of the end zone for a 6-0 lead. Levi’s kick was good to put the Warriors up 7-0.
Darien had one more chance before halftime, but a big hit by Levi and consecutive sacks by Tate Falta and Smith sent Wilton to halftime with the lead.
The Warrior ball control offense clicked in the second half as Wilton embarked on a 14-play, 8-minute and 33-second scoring drive. With the offensive line controlling the line of scrimmage, Hyzy and Andersen took turns pounding the ball on the ground all the way inside the Darien 20. On fourth and nine at the 13, Ryan Healey’s pass to O’Brien was complete for Wilton’s second touchdown. Levi again converted to make the score 14-0.
Darien went on a drive of their own early in the fourth quarter and narrowed the score to 14-8, but the Warriors struck right back, taking just three plays to go 70 yards for a score to put the game away. Sullivan’s 38-yard touchdown run, along with Levi’s extra point, made the final score 21-8.
Wilton Blue is now 2-0 on the young season and tied with Darien White atop the AFC Division. The Warriors will next take on Ridgefield at Tiger Hollow on Saturday night at 8 p.m..
Andrew Smith (8)
Tate Falta (40) sacks the Darien QB
Wilton 7-White 26, New Cannan Red 0
Wilton 7 White is off to a good start to the 2015 season with a record of 1-0-1. “Intensity” was the word of the day Saturday, Sept. 12 as they shut out New Canaan Red, 26-0.
The offense was led by quarterback John Stanley with a touchdown and two rushing touchdowns from Sean Sullivan. Extraordinary pass receptions by Michael Coffey contributed significant yardage to the effort. This tremendous offense would not have been possible without the superior blocking protection provided by Matthew Gulbin, Michael Burton, Brian Curley, Connor Healey and Connor Quinn.
White’s solid defense brought great pressure from line leading to many sacks and causing several fumbles recovered by Matthew Goldstein, Coffey and Gulbin. Andre Long recovered a fumble in the end zone for the final touchdown. This pressure along with key tackles by Ryan Van Heyst, Christian Theoharides, Evan Kauh and Trevor Martines as well as great pass coverage from Davis Cote and Brendan Quinn prevented New Canaan from scoring. Simon Alexander had a great interception at end of the game, delivering the final blow.
Wilton’s highly skilled kicking squad of Van Heyst with two extra points and Alexander punting for great field position rounded off a superb team performance. Written by Kevin Curley