The Hall Warriors athletics program completed another successful winter season across all sports. The winter season was highlighted by a Hall Track and Field State Championship and Hall-Southington advancing deep in States, as the Road to Yale continues.

 The Warriors are Rolling

I got to sit down with  Riquon Tyson a seniors this year of the hall high school’s varsity basketball team. We talked about what made this year different from the last three years that he has played here. Hall varsity basketball coming off of a 3-17 and the year before that going  3-17.this year really stepping it up and going 11-9 and making it  to the second round of states ,which has not been done in hall history in a very long time. Making this year historic for them as a team.

CT: “How have you stepped up as a leader on this team seeing that you senior?”

RT:”I bring a lot a energy to the team on both ends of the court ,but I really try to step it up on the defensive end and usually my teammates follow my lead. I take pride on my defensive play. I’m usually the guy who has to guard the best player on the court and i love locking them up”

CT: “What are your thoughts on how coach Moretti has stepped up as a coach being the leading voice out there on the court?”

RT: “He has done a great job keeping everyone focused all year starting the season 4-0 and finishing the season 11-9. So I would say he did a good job this season.”

The Boys varsity advanced to the second round of states with an upset win over south windsor. Coach Moretti’s first States win since he has been head coach, but unfortunately lost in the next round to the Weaver Beavers. Dan Brock’s departure marks the end of a four year run with him. The loss of him will be a big blow for the team. Sophomore guard James Decrescentis looks to pick up the slack next year taking home all conference honors.

                                    Indoor track Taking home the championship

The Hall High School Indoor Track team ended their 2016-2017 season with a Class I State Championship. The last event of the day 4×400 meter ,which they won came to a photo finish from senior Connor Blodgett. Before Connor crossing the line to win the state championship. ,they were down to middletown and that win in the 4×400 meter sealed the win for the hall indoor track team Connor after the win “ As soon as I finished the race I was on the ground and heard a lot of cheering and was not sure who won yet”. Running alongside him in the 4x400m was Josh Riviera, Jason farrell and George Touch. Patrick Cassidy second place finish was a another factor that lead to them winning the championship. Each event was crucial in taking this much need state championship. The Head coaches accessed the personal and choose the right people for each event ,which ended up working out great for them taking home their first championship since 1955.

Hall Southington Completes the Improbable, Not the Impossible!

What a week it has been for Hall-Southington. On Monday night, sixth ranked Hall-Southington took on eleventh ranked Newington at Veterans which ended in a classic thriller. Seeing themselves down 3-1 in the early third, the Warriors were able to chip away until Andrew Mitchell’s goal with just over a minute left in regulation, sent the game into overtime. Minutes into OT, Jeremy Fortin scored off a rebound from junior Drew Booth to send the fans home happy.

After Newington squandered a 3-1 lead, Hall-Southington looked to keep the momentum going as they traveled to Danbury Thursday night, to face Housatonic-Northwestern. Both teams were quite until Jacob Mohr opened up the scoring in the second period. The Warriors didn’t stop there as they scored two more unanswered to end the period. Hall-Southington would go on to win 6-1, with five different players scoring a goal. Since the combination of Hall-Southington Hockey in 2009, this is the first time that they have reached the semifinals and will travel to Yale.

Hall-Southington struggled with out-of-conference games versus Division II opponents early on. As they finished 1-5-1 against them. Hall-Southington senior Captain JP Herz believes that their tough schedule “was perfect this year. We got the chance to compete with some tougher teams which will prepare us for States.”

Hall-Southington finally turned the corner on February 6th, when they handed number one ranked Woodstock Academy their second loss of the season. Captain JP Herz went on record to say that, “The Woodstock Academy victory proved to everyone what we already knew: We could beat any team if we play our game.” Hall-Southington would go on to finish the season 4-2-1 and they look to capture Hall Athletics second State Championship of the winter season.

Hall-Conard Continues to Impress

The Hall-Conard Girls Ice Hockey team are less than 5 years removed from their State Championship and after a slight hiccup, they have now recorded two straight seasons over .500 including this year’s record of 11-7-2.

The Warchiefs biggest win of the season came when they dealt Hamden their 2nd loss of the season in a 2-1 victory in late January.

The WarChiefs advanced to the semifinals of the CHSGA State Playoffs where they were awarded the number four seed. It was a rematch from January 28 when Hall-Conard was the last team to beat Hamden. A strong number one ranked Hamden team, coached by SCC Coach of the Year Mike Callan. Were able to screech by the Warchiefs 1-0.

Warchiefs forward Erin O’Meara was named to the All-Conference team and was later named to the All-State team. The Warchiefs look to reach even higher heights next year with a young talented core ready to explode onto the scene.

An End of an Era

Senior Captain Andrew Swain can never go unnoticed around the hallways of Hall. Being the youngest of four older brothers, who all went through Hall and its Swimming and Diving program, everybody knows the Swain family. All four held captainship their senior year of high school, and all four are in the Top 10 of the Hall Swimming Hall of Fame. The Swain name is featured fourteen times on the Hall of Fame list of records through various events.

When asking Swain about the added pressure of having three older brothers who possibly set the bar too high, he chuckled a bit but didn’t feel the added pressure. From his early days at Morley Elementary, he had built a strong relationship with varsity coach John McClure since his oldest brother, Rob, was a freshman on the team.

Not being able to see a Swain in a lane at Cornerstone next year, is almost like seeing Arnold Palmer taking his last steps at Augusta National. Fellow senior classmate and close friend Ben Ellovich believes that “Although he’s had to live up to some of the great achievements his brothers set, Andrew has done above and beyond for Hall.” The Swain family is a true inspiration for us all, as it’s not only their performance on the field or in the pool that counts, but off the field too.

On this years Hall team, ten swimmers qualified for states which featured Andrew Swain with three events and Jack Hosey with four events. Swain pointed to sophomore Jack Russo right away as a future leader and player who could “take the reigns of the team.” Swain commented that, “Jack, who qualified for the 200m individual medley this year, has swum in the varsity lane with me since his freshman year and his effort and work ethic has shown through this season.”

Another Warrior underclassmen who Swain hinted at was sophomore Ian Harker. This year he qualified for four events in states after prestigiously placed on the All-Conference team last year after being a part of the 400m freestyle relay.

Senior Andrew Swain stated, “After a graduation of a couple of strong seniors, including myself, I have no doubt Jack will take on a leadership role and make an impact next season,” With young talent like Harker and Russo, Hall swimming should be making some room on the rafters for CCC Championships because they may be coming faster than some expect.