BASEBALL: CIAC TOURNAMENT PREVIEW
CLASS LL STORYLINES
DECADE OF FCIAC-SCC: Teams from the FCIAC or the SCC have won Class LL the last nine seasons (Norwalk, Staples, twice, Cheshire, Amity, four times, and Shelton).
In addition, a team from one or both conferences has played in the Class LL title game every year since 2000 except for 2011 when Newington beat Southington.
This year, the top three seeds, Xavier, Amity and Warde all come from the two conferences.
The odds will again be in their favor with 12 FCIAC teams in the LL field, 8 SCC and 8 CCC teams.
However, since they have so many teams, three of the firstround matchups are FCIAC vs FCIAC; one is SCC vs SCC but there are no CCC vs CCC games.
The way the draws work out, it is possible for one of those three conferences to fill all four semifinal spots like the FCIAC did last season when Norwalk, McMahon, Greenwich and Westhill all made it.
CCC DRY SPELL: Newington in 2011 was the last CCC team to win Class LL.
In that time, Southington has reached the finals four times and South Windsor made it once.
Prior to 2011, the last CCC team to win LL was Southington in 1999.
That is a lot of years between titles for a conference with so many high-quality teams.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Zach Broderick, Warde, Sr. 1B/P: Broderick can do it all for the Mustangs, playing first and hitting for as much power as any other batter in the state. On the mound, he is a bulldog who can grind down the best lineups. Shaun Callahan, Newington, Sr. OF: The University of New Haven commit hit .444 with 17 extra base hits, including 6 home runs with 35 RBIs and 35 runs scored along with swiping 22 bases this season.
Kyle Kipp, Westhill, Jr. P: The Boston College commit was 5-0, only gave up three earned runs this season, striking out 84 in 47 innings with a 0.45 ERA and a .119 batting average against. Drew Kron, Xavier, Sr. OF: The UConn commit is among the contenders for state player of the year, hitting over.400 while playing a stellar centerfield
AJ Soldra, Amity, Sr. OF: The left-handed centerfielder sets the table leading off for the Spartans with a combination of blazing speed and home run power.
SCOTT’S PICKS SEEDED UPSETS
No. 25 Norwalk over No. 8 Danbury
No. 20 Newtown over No. 13 Hall
No. 21 Shelton over No. 12 Fairfield Prep
FINAL FOUR
Xavier, Newington, Trumbull, Warde
CHAMPIONSHIP
Warde over Xavier
CLASS L STORYLINES THE GREAT WIDE OPEN:
Of all the four classes, no tournament bracket feels as wide open as Class L.
The top three seeds, Windsor, Brookfield and Fitch, have all appeared in the GameTimeCT Top 10 this season with Windsor currently No. 4 and Brookfield No. 7.
After those top three, it is anyone’s guess who could emerge in this tournament.?
This is where we could easily see multiple double-digit seeds playing in the semifinals, especially with the likes of No. 12 Hand, No. 14 Notre Dame-West Haven and No. 19 Wilton lurking as lower seeds from power conferences.
The No. 26 seed, Stratford (911), played well against the best teams in the SWC this season and could make a push through to the later rounds.
No. 24 Berlin? The Redcoats lost 11 games but six of those 11 losses were by 1 or 2 runs. Do not be surprised to see Berlin back after losing in the Class L final last season.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Brandon Cahill, Platt. Sr. P: The two-time All-CCC pick went 9-1 with a 0.55 ERA and 85 strikeouts in 59 innings. He is primed to show the rest of the state what the CCC already knows.
Mason Glickman, Windsor, Sr. P/IF: The four-year starter, committed to New Haven, hit .403 with 27 hits and 26 runs scored while also performing as one of the CCC’s best pitchers, going 7-1 with one save and 83 strikeouts. Justin Hackett, Lyman Hall, Sr. P/SS: The SCC Player of the Year took off during last year’s state tournament, guiding Lyman Hall as a 22 seed to the Class L semifinals. He does it all, pitching, fielding and smashing balls at the plate.
Cam McGugan, Fitch, Sr. C: The best catcher in the ECC has started for three seasons. He can hit the ball to all fields and is a force defensively.
Gabriel Silva, Brookfield, Sr. P/SS: The Bobcats had one of the best seasons in school history going 18-2 in large part due to the stellar pitching, fielding and hitting of Silva.
SCOTT’S PICKS SEEDED UPSETS
No. 17 Masuk over No. 16 Guilford
No. 26 Stratford over No. 7 Wilcox Tech
No. 19 Wilton over No. 14 NDWH
No. 24 Berlin over No. 9 Bethel
FINAL FOUR Windsor, Hand, Brookfield, Wilton
CHAMPIONSHIP Windsor over Wilton
CLASS M STORYLINES
THE NEXT MLB DRAFT PICK?: Last year in Class M, it was all about following Franke Mozzicato and East Catholic.
Mozzicato was 9-0 with 135 strikeouts in 49 innings and had a 0.16 ERA, drawing national attention after tossing four-straight no hitters.
He was eventually drafted as the 7th overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft by the Kansas City Royals.
By comparison, Stanfordbound senior Matt Scott of Barlow is 7-0 with 107 strikeouts in 49 innings with a 0.14 ERA. He is also batting .538, which Mozzicato never did.
He may lack the hype that was generated by four no-hitters but the numbers do not lie and Scott belongs in the same conversation.
Though he has not shot up draft boards with the same trajectory of Mozzicato, scouts have been flocking to Redding for Scott’s starts and when he pitches in the state tournament, that should be no different.
This year in Class M could be all about Scott and it would be a fitting end if he was celebrating with his Falcon teammates on Palmer Field come June 11 just like Mozzicato did last season.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Joey Keane, Tolland, Sr. SS: The All-CCC pick hit .493 with 4 home runs, 20 RBIs and 25 runs scored.
Nate Keefe, Killingly, Sr. C: A three-time All-ECC selection, the UConn-Avery Point commit hit .488 with a .577 OBP with 10 doubles, 1 home run, 19 RBs, 25 runs scored and 10 stolen bases.
Evan McCue, Waterford, Sr. 1B: The 6-foot-4 slugger hit .533 with a .593 OBP, scoring 20 runs and driving in 29.
Jack Novak, Bacon Academy, Sr. P: Novak was 8-0 pitching with a 2.48 ERA while batting .439 with 7 home runs. He is going to play at Mitchell College.
Matt Scott, Barlow, Sr. P: The Stanford commit is arguably the best pitcher in the state. He had a 0.14 ERA, going 7-0 with 107 strikeouts in 49 innings while also batting .538 with .627 OBP.
SCOTT’S PICKS SEEDED UPSETS
No. 24 St. Joseph over No. 9 Rocky Hill
No. 18 Wolcott over No. 15 Wolcott Tech
No. 19 Law over No. 4 Norwich Tech
No. 27 Foran over No. 6 Ellington
FINAL FOUR
St. Joseph, Barlow, Woodland, Bacon Academy
CHAMPIONSHIP Barlow over Woodland
CLASS S STORYLINES
FALCONS SOARING: St. Paul lost in last year’s Class S final and made it their mission to get back and win it this time around.
As the only unbeaten team in the tournament (though they did lose in the NVL semifinals to
Woodland, the CIAC does not recognize that loss), St. Paul will definitely have a target on its back.
With most of the team back including the heart of the lineup in UConn-bound SS Ryan Daniels, 2B Devin Kulas, 1B Mario Izzo and University of New Haven commit, Casey Cerruto.
In 14 of the Falcons 20 wins, they scored double digits.
St. Paul can pitch and play defense as well as hit, allowing just two teams to score three or more runs on them this season.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Tommy Conley, Immaculate, So. P: The young lefty has been dominant all season and pitched a gem against Brookfield in the SWC quarterfinals. The St. John’s commit could be the breakout player of this tournament.
Ryan Daniels, St. Paul, Sr. SS: The UConn commit has been crushing baseballs for two years and would love another shot at Palmer Field after the Falcons lost in the Class S finals last spring.
Alex Irizarry, East Catholic, Sr. SS: The University of Maryland commit has been tearing it up once again in the CCC and along with Daniels is one of the best two hitters in Class S. Conner Lane, Old Saybrook, So. C: Lane can do it with his bat, hitting .404 with 18 RBIs and defensively behind the plate where he has not allowed a stolen base all season. He has also committed to UConn.
Chas Terni, Montville, Sr. 3B/C: His coach calls him “The best hitter I have had in 12 years.” He is batting .530 with 1 home run, 7 Triples, 7 Doubles and a .680 OBP.