The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Four MHS seniors make choices
MIDDLETOWN » Four Middletown High student-athletes participated in college signing ceremonies at the high school Tuesday morning. Flanked by parents and school officials, each student signed a letter signifying their commitments to play at their schools of choice.
The students were softball player Kayla Pieta, who will enroll at Division III Regis College in Boston, swimmer Jayson DeFrance and diver Tahj Mitchell-Westberry who will attend Division II Southern Connecticut State University and swimmer Tim Joy, who will attend Division I Rider University in New Jersey.
“Kayla is very consistent, very steady,” said coach Sal Morello of his second baseman. “She fields every ground ball and with the big hitters we have, she kind of falls below the radar. But she has
very good at bats all the time.”
Pieta, who will major in nursing at Regis with the hopes of becoming a nurse practitioner in the area of mental health, said, “I try to get on base so the others can drive me in.”
DeFrance started out as a diver, but transitioned to become the dominant breaststroker in the Central Connecticut Conference’s Southern Division.
“We forced him to convert,” said coach Trevor Charles. “He’s a very hard worker who wanted to be the best in the conference at what he did. He got faster than maybe he even expected and this season just dominated.”
“When [diving coach Matt] Quinn told me to become a swimmer, I figured that was the end of my diving career,” said DeFrance.
DeFrance, who plans to major in accounting, said that swimming at MHS was the best experience of his life.
“It was a very close team and they pushed me,” he said. “I wouldn’t be the person I am without swimming.”
Mitchell-Westberry transferred to MHS for his junior and senior years. He was talked into diving by his physical education teacher at his previous school.
“So when I came here, I tried it out,” he said. “I enjoy seeing how high I can get and when I’m at the end of the diving board, I block everything out and just focus on my dive.”
Charles said MitchellWestberry’s dual meet score of 271 against the Bristol co-operative team set a new MHS record. “He has natural prowess as a diver,” said Charles. “He has a great ability to jump and control his body in the air.”
Mitchell-Westberry was All-State as a junior.
Joy was recruited as a distance swimmer by Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Rider and Charles said that’s his strength.
“Sometimes we needed him as a sprinter, so we used him in those events,” said Charles. “But when we needed a win in a distance event, that’s where we threw him in.”
Joy said he visited many colleges, but decided on Rider late in the search.
“Rider was my last visit,” he said. “It was the school I liked the most. It’s a relatively small school so I will get a lot of personal attention. I want to be a physical therapist and Rider has a very good program in health sciences, so if I want to move into another area of health, I can do that easily.”
Joy was accepted into the schools’ Honors Program and said the school’s decision to award him a scholarship helped him make his choice.
Joy, a freestyler, agreed that he was recruited for distance swimming. “In college they have the 1,000 and the 1,650 (mile). The longest event in high school is the 500, but that’s where they want me.”