A PRODUCTIVE SPRING IN WEST HARTFORD

My recent time spent covering the postseason for Hall and Conard has further reinforced my respect and appreciation for the scholastic sports scene in West Hartford.

BASEBALL: On the baseball front, Northwest Catholic made a powerful statement that it reigns supreme in town by sweeping its two-game sets with the public school teams, but the level of play across the board was almost certainly the best it’s ever been.

Credit the sensational work being done at the youth level for the dramatic upswing.  Atop the list is the West Hartford Amateur Baseball Association, the brainchild of Rick Sanford and Steve Meucci.  Their organizational acumen has been tantamount in providing expert instruction for the players and guidance for the players and their parents.  They don’t get nearly the credit they deserve, and neither do the people aligned with them, some of whom I know (Elliott Lane comes to mind) and others whom I’ve yet to meet.

Conard’s teams have been consistently above average.  The Chieftains have qualified for the Class LL (‘L’ in 2005) tournaments for the past nine seasons.  They have won first-round games the past two years, beating Hall last week and Xavier last year, but have not moved past the next hurdle since 1975 when they lost to New Britain in the semifinals.

Hall’s 12-win season ranks as one of the best in school history.  The Warriors went 13-9 and won the CCC West in 2009 under Dave Masters, but winning records on the diamond have been rare in the north end.

Neither school has ever won a state championship, but with the quality work being done at the youth level, primarily at the West Hartford Youth Baseball League where the philosophy is focused on competing rather than just having fun playing the game, statewide recognition is imminent.

Such recognition is familiar at Northwest, where Cory Carlson and his dynamic staff have the Indians racing toward their second Class S crown.

BOYS LACROSSE: For those who haven’t seen it, I urge you to read my story in the West Hartford News on Conard’s tournament ouster at the hands of Brien McMahon-Norwalk.

Talk about a coach who has dedicated his life to a program, I give you Bill Condon.  He battled to keep his emotions in check after the 16-8 loss, but it wasn’t the setback per se that shook him. 

Although he wasn’t prone to discuss it at the time and I wasn’t about to pry into his inner feelings, I could tell that this crop of seniors meant a lot to him and the thought of not being together as a team anymore tore him up.  If that doesn’t convince you that your boy could learn something beyond the game playing Conard lacrosse, I’m not sure I could provide that service.

At the core of the Chieftains’ senior group is Ricky Cotton.  St. John’s University is not only getting a dedicated athlete but a young man who will enrich the campus with his leadership, tact and understanding.  By fighting back tears, Condon was showing me that his relationship with Cotton was somewhat closer to father-son than coach-player.

Cotton starred in three sports at Conard, so credit should also go to wrestling coach Chris Glowacki and football coach Rob Cersosimo for developing a great athlete and a greater person.

The Norwalk outfit showed once again that Fairfield County lacrosse continues to retain its superiority over any team greater Hartford can muster.  At this writing, top-ranked Simsbury is still representing, but whether or not the Trojans can become the first Class L/Division I team north of Cheshire to capture a pennant remains to be seen.

GIRLS LACROSSE: The Hall girls turned in another inspired performance for another of West Hartford’s dynamic coaches, Steve Boyle, by turning back a capably upset-minded group from Danbury, 12-11.

Even in the internet age, there was no way Boyle could have known that the Hatters’ dramatic improvement stemmed from the return to eligibility of a state-class athlete in junior Raven Winters.  With Winters supplying the athleticism and fellow junior Pauline Kaplan winning draws and controlling the area in front of the cage, Danbury was miles ahead of the team that Hall dismantled early in the season.

“We didn’t even know Winters existed,” Boyle said after the game. “We just knew based on their results against the top teams in the state that they were very much improved.”

The Warriors are very young.  Kelsey Smith is the only senior, and how she distinguished herself in ultimately neutralizing Danbury’s dominance of the draw.  Boyle instituted a counterattack strategy that Smith and Megan Tracy exquisitely interpreted.  It was essential in Hall’s rebounding from a three-goal deficit in the second half.

Boyle heaped praise on the effort of his goalie Maddy Hooper, whose understanding of the position has advanced light years.  Hooper, just a sophomore, will be among the state’s best by the time she graduates, if she’s not among them already.  As Boyle said, she not only made spectacular saves, but disrupted the Danbury advances with aggressive play around the crease, and ignited fast breaks with good decisions after gaining possession.

Hall is not the quickest team around but there is none smarter.  Boyle’s daughter Alannah and Cookie Aronow combine game savvy and excellent stick-handling to create offensive opportunities.  They weren’t intimidated by Danbury’s defensive commitment to aggressive play.

Every team of Hall’s quality needs some speed element and that is supplied by junior Hayley Mullins.  While Mullins will go to college on a soccer scholarship, she has the stuff to gain some All-State consideration in lacrosse.  Mullins printing down the sideline, cradling the ball safely in the pocket of her stick, is a sight to behold.

HERE'S WHAT BUGS ME

I know many people follow my writing here in Blog-ville and I’ve been grossly negligent.  A month between blogs doesn’t cut it, but here’s what’s been occupying my mind.

First, I am going to stray from the familiar whimsy of sports to some reality checks that make me wonder about the basic intelligence of those whom we elect to legislate.

How about the highways?

When we Connecticut folk travel through Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey, we pay tolls.  After I got stuck at an NYC-area booth that accepted only EasyPass and got thoroughly embarrassed about holding up a line of people with NYC-style patience, I bought the EasyPass gizmo for the windshield and cruise through the booths.

But here in Connecticut, drivers from other states zip through for free.  How does the state make up for the shortfall that these millions of drivers would bring, and do so elsewhere? Simple, they double the tax on our gasoline.

As a resident of the Farmington Valley, I go out of my way to plan trips to the Commonwealth so I can fill my tank for up to 25 cents-per-gallon cheaper than I can here.  I buy a whole bunch of stuff up in Southwick now – trips to The Summer House for lunch, Meadow View Farms to buy the veggie plants and flowers for the garden and grab a cuppa Joe at the Daily Grind, a terrific coffee shop in an old church at the north end of town. Then over to Valero I go to fill up the truck.

How did our legislators let us down so?  Where were you guys when our neighboring states were figuring out how to establish revenue streams without taxing their residents to the brink of hysteria?

So, you guys need money that you can spend it on what YOU deem important.  Okay, somebody ostensibly smarter than me has to make these decisions.  I just wish the voters would engage in some analytical thinking instead of just casting their votes like elections were popularity contests.

Did you notice when you’re on the highway and doing 65 or so, there are at least a dozen people flying by you on the left and right who have to be touching 90?  If they want to drive like idiots and endanger the lives of innocent people, why shouldn’t they pay the freight?  How about putting some troopers out there and assessing some hefty fines, not for just disobeying the speed limit, but obliterating it.

Common sense, guys.  Let’s take our attention off these worthless busways that too few will use and focus on that elusive element that the Good Lord disbursed, which has devolved dramatically since the long-gone days of my youth.

Another kick that I’ve gotten on is all the rackets out there in which some cash in and the foolhardy get sucked in.  Some of these infomercials and spam emails defy sensibility so severely that it’s hard to imagine anybody could possibly fork over their hard-earned cash.

Anybody who knows me can rightly conclude that I have studied up on weight-loss gimmicks over the years.  Hey, I ain’t giving up my Pepe’s Pizza (Sally’s when I get to Wooster Street in my native New Haven), my fried clam visits to Lenny and Joe’s and my occasional burger binges at Harry’s in Colchester.  We’re all going to die anyway and I’m dying with a grin on my face, not having eaten rabbit food in vain for 20 years.

“Take this pill three times and day, and if you follow a sensible diet plan and get plenty of exercise, you will drop 20 pounds in a month.”  No shit, Charlie, and you’ll lose the 20 just as readily without taking the placebo.

“Congratulations, you’ve won the Belgian Lottery.  Just give us your social security number and all your bank account data and we’ll share our $2 billion bounty with you.”  So scream the emails I get about 30 times a week.  You mean to tell me that there are folks gullible enough that buy into this bilge that it encourages these back-room geek reprobates to keep on sending them?

How about today’s TV shows and movies?  If there aren’t either robots, fire or both involved, the majority don't watch.  Robots.  Fire.  Mmmm, cool.  Then a fabulous movie like “The Artist” comes around, sweeps the Oscars and 75 percent of the people I talk to never even heard of it.  But that idiotic, repetitive computer-generated trash with one-eyed, metal evil-doers plundering smoldering cities below?  Robots.  Fire.  Mmmmm, cool.

Call me an old-fashioned fool trapped in the past but I’m having a grand old time watching movies like “Mutiny on the Bounty” (Charles Laughton-Clark Gable version) and “Casablanca” for the umpteenth time.  And how awesome it’s been rediscovering the merit of the old Westerns. 

James Arness (Matt Dillon of “Gunsmoke”) recently passed away but he’ll never be forgotten.  Clint Eastwood sure was cool in those old “Rawhide” shows.  You even learn new words, like remuda (where the horses were secured at night during cattle drives).
That’s only part of what fires me up.  C’mon over for a few hours of “Bonanza,” James Cagney flicks and a couple of tomato pies from Pepe’s and you’ll get the rest.

GOLD KEY DINNER ALWAYS INSPIRES

    The atmosphere was thick with inspiration April 28 at the 71^st Gold Key Dinner.

Like all great events, the Gold Key Dinner, administered by the Connecticut Sports Writers’ Alliance, has evolved since the group banded together in 1939 to honor those who have enriched the sports scene across the state.  

In the Dinner’s early days, it was common to see the major league franchises in Boston and New York well represented. Those were the days when teams like the Yankees, Red Sox, Knicks and Celtics coveted state coverage and Connecticut’s newspapers staffed their games.

But as more and more athletes demanded heavy appearance fees and sports staffs were sliced and diced into near oblivion, the focus turned to the colleges, high schools and minor league teams that call Connecticut home.

Proceeds go toward scholarships for youngsters with the passion in their heart to chronicle the exploits of our young athletes. The mission is to pass the torch of crafting sports stories to the next generation after as the fingers of ours grow brittle, our abilities erode and our mentors fade away.

This year’s scholarship winner – Kathleen O’Brien of Shelton High School – looked me directly in the eye and spoke of her passion to follow in our footsteps. It matters little to her that most newspapers are just a trace of the great publications they once were. Now that’s passion.

Joining the roll call of esteemed Gold Key winners Sunday were Trinity Catholic-Stamford boys basketball coach Mike Walsh, Bacon Academy-Colchester girls basketball and baseball coach Dave Shea, Former Trinity College ice hockey coach John Dunham and, as John Nash of the Norwalk Hour so aptly put it, one of the greatest athletes the state has ever known in the inimitable women’s soccer pioneer Kristine Lilly of Wilton.

All recognized that the state holds no higher award for its sports brethren than the Gold Key.

The Gold Key Dinner always has a New Britain flavor. The Hardware City has long established itself as one of the state’s top sports towns so a Dinner without a New Britain representative is virtually impossible.

Past Gold Key recipients Andy Baylock, Ken Kezer and Howie Dickenman were on hand Sunday. Kezer was the long-time baseball coach at New Britain High. Dickenman, of course, is the highly respected men’s basketball coach at Central Connecticut State University.

Baylock, a city native who has served on the UConn athletic staff since 1964 including 24 years as head baseball coach, accepted the award for Athlete of the Year in a Male Sport that is destined for the trophy case of Kemba Walker.

Other Gold Key winners with New Britain ties include: former Yale assistant football coach Harry Jacunski, CCSU basketball coach Bill Detrick, NBHS football coach Tony Apisso, CCSU football coach Bill Loika, CCSU baseball coach Hank Majlinger, CCSU women’s basketball coach Brenda Reilly, CCSU golf coach Lowell Lukas, New Britain Red Sox owner Jose Buzas, CCSU administrator Dr. William Moore and NBHS track coach Irving Black.

The inaugural winner of the Hal Levy High School Athletic of the Year Award knows New Britain. Everybody wanted their photo taken with Casey Cochran, the record-setting quarterback of Masuk-Monroe who is striving to play the position at UConn.

Cochran’s father Jack, the ultra-successful football coach at Bloomfield, New Britain and New London high schools was in attendance to honor his son. When Jack was guiding the Hurricanes to state championships in 2001, 2003 and 2004, Casey was just a youngster. The sight of Casey hugging his father after games became riveted in the minds of those close to the program.

New Britain fireman and popular youth football coach Brian Anderson, an assistant under Jack, was also present.

You’ll have to go a long way to find a 17-year-old high school athlete with more polish than Casey Cochran. His respect for the man whose name adorns his award was touching, particularly for Hal Levy’s two sisters Sara Kobylenski and Charlotte Harrison. Hal Levy died in 2008 after a Hall of Fame career as the sports editor of the Shore Line Times in Guilford.

The Dinner remains a tribute to another of our fallen colleagues, master storyteller Bohdan M. Kolinsky of the Hartford Courant until his untimely passing late in 2003 at only 48-years-old. Bo, whose name was affixed to the scholarship program in 2004, was represented by his widow Jill. His spirit flashed through the room and the hearts of those who had the pleasure to have known and loved him.

The CSWA’s other major fund-raiser, the Bo Kolinsky Memorial Golf Tournament, will be held June 28 at the Lyman Orchards Golf Club.

Perhaps the most inspiring moment of the dinner came when former city sports journalist Robert Mayer presented the Bob Casey Courage Award to Dave Balfore of Berlin. Balfore was a promising young athlete when he was stricken with leukemia. A contemporary of current UConn running back Max DeLorenzo, Balfore spoke about what enters a youngster’s mind when he encounters a life-threatening challenge.

The speech touched Casey Cochran to the extent that he made it part of his presentation moments later.

Manchester High School track coach Thayer Redman offered another heart-rending moment when he thanked his older brother for helping raise him during a challenging childhood in Portland, Maine. Redman, whose squad brought home the school’s first track-and-field state title in more than 50 years last spring, was overcome by emotion several times during his presentation.

The founders of the Connecticut Sports Writers’ Alliance would have had a hard time recognizing the 71^st Gold Key Dinner without the fanfare generated by past award winners like baseball’s grand old man Connie Mack, beloved boxer Willie Pepe and NBA legend Calvin Murphy. But whatever flourish may have been missing was replaced by the inspiration that the state’s great athletic achievers will always be able to supply.

INSPIRATION COMES IN DIVERSE FORMS

Spring is a time in New England when the renewal of life is a true inspiration.

Inspiration can be found on any country corner, in anybody’s backyard, in ways that are singular to personal taste. I’d like to share two of mine, one incredibly broad and the other exclusive.

Nothing soothes the soul like nature.  The first of God’s phenomena, Connecticut style, is the Laurel Ridge Foundation daffodil field in Northfield, just outside of Litchfield. The gloom of winter makes its final exit when you pass by this explosion of color, a broad brushstroke of nature’s handiwork.

A hillside literally covered with white and yellow daffodils rolls gently toward a pond framed by evergreens. A little island with daffodils and evergreens is so inviting but alas, no canoes in sight.  A deep breath fills your lungs with an indescribable sweetness that covers you with a blanket of inner peace.  All your troubles leave with the next exhale.

By mid-May, it’s just another meadow, but one that’s filled its many visitors with visual memories that will last a lifetime.

As the daffodils swoon, the sweet blooms common to most every sunlit highway and byway in Connecticut emerge for their all-too-fleeting visit.

There’s a reason why every company that manufactures items for purposes of covering pungent odors includes lilac among its chosen fragrances. It ranks right up there with the rose for the way you would expect the environment to smell in heaven. Just ask the Yankee Candle Company.

Lilacs generally are at their peak the first week of May. You may be walking amongst a bush or two and notice the fragrance yet you may not give it a second thought. Often the bushes are allowed to grow without a trimming and they’ll reach toward the sun, or maybe its heaven.

Inspiration comes in diverse forms, and a another sure source is baseball.

There’s no need to take out a mortgage to get adequate seats Fenway Park or Yankee Stadium. Baseball is a beautiful game at virtually any level.

Locally, the college teams are in action as well as the high schools. If you truly love the game like I do, you will find that these players possess each and every characteristic that their big-league brethren do. The key is balance. A contest between two competitive pitchers will often bring the taut late-inning drama that true fans crave.

But if you truly want to enjoy ballpark amenities and the best baseball between the Green Monster and the Major Deegan Expressway, you have the New Britain Rock Cats.

The true beauty of Eastern League ball has a springtime virtue that isn’t totally unlike the daffodils and lilacs. Somewhere at New Britain Stadium at any given time, a talent is blooming.

I watched a young David Ortiz before he was Big Papi, slugging baseballs into the dark of Willow Brook Park with little fanfare.

I recall a struggling right-handed pitcher named Kyle Lohse before he gained the confidence to match his arm strength. Because he doesn’t play for Boston and New York, his name may be unfamiliar, but I invite you to review the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals pitching statistics.

You only care about the Red Sox? Several young, ambitious, talented players displayed their wares multiple times in New Britain before moving on. Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz, Daniel Bard, Kevin Youkilis, Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia are the cornerstones of Boston’s future. Circle “Portland Sea Dogs” on your handy Rock Cats schedule to see if you can determine the next wave of prospects.

But please don’t be so parochial that you will ignore the other talented lads on display. The Minnesota Twins supply the human resources for the Rock Cats, and their astute scouting and development people have succeeded in dispersing a rich vein of talent throughout the major leagues.

Michael Cuddyer played two seasons in New Britain. He’s now a multi-millionaire with the Colorado Rockies. Jason Kubel was such a gifted hitter that he came and went in one short springtime term. He’s now blasting shots for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Joe Mauer. Justin Morneau. Denard Span. The list goes on and on.

Another benefit of attending Rock Cats games are the major-league amenities.

For a minimal admission price, you get comfortable seats, an informative program, a well-stocked souvenir store and a wide range of food at reasonable prices. You have coffee and hot chocolate when its chilly, frosty beer and soft drinks when you’re parched.

Springtime in New England? You betcha. I’d write a few more lines except I’m going out to the deck to do some gardening and tune in to a Rock Cats game. Inspiration doesn’t have to come in complex or expensive packages.

BUSINESS AS USUAL FOR ROCK CATS

The atmosphere at New Britain Stadium has a bright and breezy feel.

The early spring weather has the grass looking lush. The walls along the stadium concourse have been spruced up in patriotic blue, red and white. An alternate uniform and cap show traces of baseball tradition.

But the upbeat nature in the Land of the Rock Cats has much more than just some superficial alterations. The era ushered in by the omnipresent Bill Dowling and his local partner Coleman B. Levy has run a fruitful course. Their investment group has sold the team to the DSF Group, a Boston-based commercial and residential real estate investment group led by its president Josh Solomon.

Solomon’s father Arthur owns the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. The group will be doing business as New Britain Double Play, LLC.

Rock Cats fans will notice quickly that the familiarity of the Dowling-Levy regime won’t be diminishing anytime soon. Dowling, who retains a portion of the team, is slated to spend two years as a consultant, and he’ll be consulting his old Rock Cats confidante John Willi.

Willi, now the Rock Cats’ president and general manager, spent 11 years working for the team before departing for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats in 2010. Along the way, Willi, 36, was chosen as Eastern League Executive of the Year in for 2009 and selected by the Hartford Business Journal for its “40 under 40” list, distinguishing him as one of Greater Hartford’s top 40 business executives under 40-years-old.

Obviously I’m grateful for the opportunity to be a Rock Cat again, especially under these circumstances,” Willi said. “This franchise has such a strong reputation, following and incredible people, which separates it from other organizations.

“Our plan is to build upon all the incredible things we were able to do in the past. We obviously have an infusion of new energy and we want to put that toward community outreach, customer service, game experience and the overall value of coming to a Rock Cats game.”

Solomon and Willi were on hand in the Stadium Club Thursday to formally announce the change in an ownership changes that was about nine months in the making, and to elaborate on plans for the future. The New Britain Parks and Recreation Department, partners with the Rock Cats in maintaining the facility, was also present in force. Chairman Angelo D’Alfonso publicly welcomed the new management team.

"This is a wonderful show of support for the new ownership, particularly for John Willi,” said Dowling, who found the circumstances to be “bittersweet.”

“I’ve had 12 wonderful years with the Rock Cats. When we decided to sell the team we obviously were concerned about finding the right kind of buyers to keep the team in New Britain and continue the family-friendly entertainment that the Rock Cats have become known for over the years.”

Solomon came across reflecting amicability akin to that of Dowling, whose relationship with fans has always served as a manifestation of the Rock Cats’ extensive civic contributions. New Britain Double Play includes his siblings Jim and Jennifer Goorno.

“[Dowling’s] commitment to the community and entertainment seemed to really be in line with myself and my siblings,” said Solomon, who lives with his wife and their four children ranging from 4 to 13-years-old in Sudbury, Mass.

Solomon and his siblings, witnessing the joy that minor league baseball ownership brought their father, sought a team of their own in the region.

“It’s one of the main reasons in my sister, my brother and me had an interest in owning a minor league team,” he said. “We look to have the same joy, fun and excitement that he’s had, and we’ll have a little rivalry, too.”

He cited the interaction between fans and ballplayers at the minor league level as an attraction that the Rock Cats seek to build upon.

It was an emotional day for Dowling.

“This was a very bittersweet moment in a lot of ways for me,” he said. “After running this franchise for 12 years and putting my heart and soul into it – I probably missed six games over 12 years – it’s tough to give up the culture and the lifestyle.”

Dowling said the investors felt the time was right to put the team on the market.

“Josh Solomon and his group came along and I’m convinced that they’re committed to keeping the team in New Britain and also carry on the same fan-friendly culture that we managed to instill here,” Dowling said. “Bittersweet, but on the other hand, I’m at certain age in my life where I’ve got one more big push left and I want to figure out what that is. I’m not going to retire. I’ll be here for the next couple of years. I’ll be a consultant. I’ve got a little investment in the team and I’ll be the ultimate baseball authority for the next couple of years.

“It’s a little bit painful but life goes on and we’ll see what the next couple of months bring.”
History likely will validate Dowling as a savior for minor league baseball in the city. Under his guidance, attendance jumped from an EL-worst 181,643 in 1998 to 363,759 last season.

Willi’s year away from New Britain was spent as vice president of DSF Sports, which operates the Class A Bowling Green (Ky.) Hot Rods in addition to the Fisher Cats. Jeff Garner, former assistant general manager of the EL’s Altoona Curve, joins the management team as the executive vice president. Ricky Ferrell, who has been in the Rock Cats’ front office for seven years, has been promoted to vice president of ticket sales.

Willi also announced that the team has forged a new radio deal with Fox Sports 1410 WPOP. The station, operated by Clear Channel Media & Entertainment Hartford/New Haven, will air most home games. All home games will be streamed live on www.foxsportsradio1410.com and aired in high definition on ESPN 97.9 HD2.

Road games can be heard on WMRD 1150 out of Middletown and WLIS 1420 out of Old Saybrook.
Jeff Dooley, the Eastern League’s longest tenured broadcaster, returns for his 15^th season.

The Rock Cats open their 30^th season in the city at home April 6.

CIAC HOOPS A WINNER; FOOTBALL NEEDS WORK

Questions abound about the feasibility of continuing to play the CIAC football championships at Rentschler Field.

It isn’t cost effective.  With the use of the stadium come inherent costs due to extended police presence and administrative staff.  When 4,500 people attend a game in a stadium that seats 45,000, it should tell the CIAC something.  I’m tired of hearing how important it is to the kids to play there.  It’s got to change.

In 2010, the CIAC revealed a $22,000 loss.  According to the chatter I heard at the CIAC basketball championships Saturday, the losses were less in 2011, but not that much less.  Given the economy, the cost of CIAC membership to the state’s school systems and the resentment in most towns to line-item increases in education budgets, a more austere program must be in the offing.

I remain adamant that some of the games should be held at New Britain’s Willow Brook Park. 

It seats 10,000, which has proven to be more than enough.  It provides adequate amenities for everybody.  Parking is plentiful if you consider the lots that surround the high school.  It is centrally located. 

The City of New Britain, the Parks and Recreation Department in particular, has a reputation for commanding a high price, which is why the CIAC abandoned Willow Brook for the soccer championships for Waterbury’s Municipal Stadium in 2007.  It’s also why we never see the baseball championships held there, so I doubt football would be any different.

But the CIAC won’t consider Willow Brook anyway with the primary fear being that the weather could make the field unplayable.  While the Parks and Rec may charge too much, it does deserve credit for maintaining the playing surface.  There’s a reason why Major League Soccer’s New England Revolution come back so often to host Open Cup matches.

The more likely solution is to utilize college venues.  Southern Connecticut State’s Jess Dow Field is perfect.  So is Central Connecticut’s Arute Field.  That’s more than I can say about using West Haven High’s Ken Strong Stadium.

Basketball is another story.

Mohegan Sun Arena is a great venue, although the rent-a-cop security tends to be a little overzealous.  The concern about having high school games on the grounds of the casino is passé. 

Fans couldn’t ask for a better atmosphere.  The media couldn’t ask for better amenities, and let me tell you that my colleagues need that sort of consideration more than ever.  The way the publishing companies see it, nobody desires a well-written story anymore.  Gifted writers now need to be photographers, videographers and computer zealots in order to keep their low-paying jobs.

The basketball season concluded Saturday.  Winning and losing aside, the fans in attendance appeared to truly enjoy their experience.  The kids enjoyed playing there.  The media had what it needed.

I watched two good games.  Hillhouse squandered an early lead and lost to St. Joseph-Trumbull in the Class LL title game that had all but the upper reached of the arena filled.  Northwest Catholic, inept for three quarters, waged an impressive comeback but fell to Career-Magnet-New Haven in Class L.

Plus, I got to eat at Frank Pepe’s Pizzeria Napoletana, nearly completing my Pepe’s Connecticut circuit.  I now have notches on my expanding leather belt from Pepe’s in New Haven, Manchester, Danbury and the Mohegan Sun.  Perhaps one of my friends down Fairfield way will invite me to complete Ken’s Pepperoni, Mozzarella and Thin Crust Tour.

FARMINGTON-NORTHWEST GAME HAD NO LOSER

I’ve covered more games at New Britain High’s Chick Shea Gymnasium than I’d care to count, but the atmosphere has never been as electric as it was Tuesday night for the Class L semifinal basketball game between Farmington and Northwest Catholic.

I arrived at about 6:45 p.m., well before the scheduled 7:30 tip-off, and the place was already nearly full.  If you were there, I don’t have to tell you that the Farmington community dominated the scene.

Nearly everybody in the popular student section, The Tribe, was decked out in black.  I’d call it a black out but that may conjure thoughts of the October snowstorm.  Hey, I live in Unionville’s Lake Garda section.  We didn’t see any of Thomas Edison’s inventions doing what they were supposed to for nearly 10 days.

The kids were loud, louder than any group I’ve ever heard at a sporting event.  They were enthusiastic but not overly so.  When they were asked to stop bouncing up and down due to fears the bleachers could collapse, they heeded the wishes of the New Britain administrators.

“We knew it was going to be like that,” said Northwest coach John Mirabello, one of Connecticut scholastic basketball’s finest gentlemen, a true ambassador for his school and sport and like Farmington’s Duane Witter, a maker of men.

“I came out before the game and stood in the doorway as I was watching them warm up and saw the fans.  I thought back to when I was my kids’ age. I thought about them watching.  I told [my players], ‘Remember you were a kid, you were practicing and dreaming about things.  Look at your experience in here.’  This is a kid’s dream just to be in the layup lines.  How great is this?  I was really happy they could be in this spot.”

Between my fellow Farmington townsfolk, my dear New Britain friends and my newer circle of friends from Northwest Catholic, I connected with more friends than even Facebook could muster.  It’s been a tough year for me as most of my friends know but I felt this warm feeling inside, the kind of feeling that made me wish the evening would never end and that neither team would leave disappointed.

That, of course, cannot happen.  The Tribe had little to cheer about with Northwest phenom Kuran Iverson putting on the kind of show that is destined to grace NCAA Division I arenas in due course.  Northwest took an early lead and never looked back.

But as I look back on an event I’ll never forget, I conclude that nobody left New Britain a loser.

Farmington coach Duane Witter was comfortable knowing that each and every one of his players turned in great efforts.  When Iverson plays at that level, he said, Northwest is going to be virtually impossible to beat.

The Iverson Show had some terrific co-stars, too.  Junior Nick Gaynor and senior Aaron Wilson did it all – scored, rebounded, blocked shots, stole the ball and made crisp passes.  Point guard Tyler Huffman provided his usual steady performance and center P.J. Edwards filled his role to perfection.  If you had the chance to read my game story on the West Hartford News website, you’ll see their names.

But when you’re trying to keep your copy tight, there are aspects of the game into which you cannot delve.  The Farmington kids, devastated when their star player and team leader Ben Pollack suffered a season-ending ankle injury Feb. 25, played with the kind of heart that had to fill every Farmington with a deep sense of pride.

Six-foot-five sophomore Obi Momah continued the incredible restructuring of his game.  Obi developed into a scorer overnight in the absence of Pollack’s steady double-digit contribution.  He had a huge weight to carry if Farmington was going to stay with Northwest, let alone with the 6-foot-9 Iverson and 6-foot-7 Edwards hemming him in.

You rarely see a basketball player improve as much as guard Jalen Hurst did between his junior and senior years.  As Pollack’s best friend, he was compelled to step up as a leader as well as raise his level of play a few notches.  Jalen, who recently opted to continue his hoops and studies at Nichols College, began slowly as he struggled to deal with the game’s fast-paced rhythm but settled down and finished his career with a flair.

Junior Vasil Borisevich is listed at 5-foot-10.  He’s a few inches short of that and was obviously hard-pressed to try and match the athleticism of Wilson and Gaynor.  He couldn’t have played much better. 

Senior forward Mike English is a football player first.  Witter called upon him to make up for Pollack’s absence on the glass but he did more than that.  He made a couple steals, blocked a shot and mustered everything within him to compete with the likes of Iverson and Edwards. 

Ivan Guadalupe, like English, makes an imposing impact on anybody watching Farmington football.  Only a sophomore, he showed that he’s going to be one of Farmington’s greats, but his work in the tournament will serve him well as he pursues his scholastic hardwood journey.

Senior Nieko Labbadia didn’t get a whole lot of varsity time during his career but when Ben went down, somebody had to step in.  Witter called his number and received a tremendous effort through the tournament run.  Among his seven points was a high-arcing three-pointer that sent quite a message when it slipped through the net.

For sophomore Colin Cheesman and freshman Trey Witter, their day is coming.  They’ll step into the rotation next year and join Momah, Borisevich and Guadalupe as Farmington continues to shape its growing basketball reputation.  They got a taste of top-shelf varsity competition and looked anything but intimidated.

From a basketball perspective, Farmington will benefit from that game against Northwest.  From a community perspective, Farmington already has.  I know.  I’m proud to say I live there.