Late goal lifts Stonington over top seed Ellington
HARTFORD – It was corner kicks that kept the Ellington High boys soccer season alive, as the Knights scored twice in that fashion in a semifinal win over Ledyard to advance to the state championship.
It was a corner kick that ended Ellington’s season, too, as secondseeded Stonington scored with 14 minutes left in the game on a play set up by a corner kick to win the Class M state championship 1-0 at Dillon Stadium on Saturday, handing the top-seeded Knights (19-1) their third runner-up trophy in the last four seasons.
“It’s just too bad it ends this way,” said head coach Roy Gurnon. “Because again, it was a remarkable season. Players doing all the right things. In a game like this, sometimes it’s catching a break or not catching a break. They scored a terrific goal.”
Neither team had a clear advantage throughout the game, with scoring chances slim on both sides.
The Bears (17-0-2) were awarded a corner kick with just under 15 minutes left in the game, and sophomore Wynn Hammond was able to score off of an assist from senior Tyler Fidrych, who put the ball into play.
Ellington had sparse chances throughout, and the shots the Knights were able to get off were often swallowed up or swatted away by Stonington keeper Peter Fernholz, who made four saves in the first half alone.
Scrapping for opportunities late, the Knights had a late scoring chance with under 10 seconds remaining, as junior Nicholas DeBaise had a one-on-one chance against Fernholz in the box. His shot missed wide right and time expired.
“I think we played a pretty good game,” said Ellington senior Jimmy Maznicki. “We had our chances. I thought we had the better chances. Stonington puts theirs away, and all of a sudden, that’s it.”
For Ellington’s seniors, their high school careers finish with three trips to the state championship (2016, 2018 and 2019) - all three 1-0 losses for the Knights. Their career record in four years is 66-15-1.
“I couldn’t be prouder of these guys,” said Maznicki, the team’s captain. “For me, Ethan Moser and Ryan Zahner (seniors), we played 80 minutes in three state finals, lost every single one. To leave it all out there and not have anything to show for it, it hurts. But I’m proud of every guy here.” posed us in the end.”
Wilson would give Hall the lead with 17:30 left in the second half with his second goal. He’d finish off his hat trick with 14:17 left to play, sealing the win and Hall’s first LL title since 1980.
“It’s been just 25 years of hard work, trying to do it right,” Seguro said. “I can’t put it into words. I came [to Hall] with a five-year plan and it turned into 25 years. There’s nothing like high school soccer. They’ll enjoy this and think about this for the rest of their lives. I can’t be more proud of them.”
The win comes one year after Hall lost to CCC rival Glastonbury in the same stadium in the same championship game.
“I think last year when we were here, we were a good team but we lacked experience,” Seguro said. “We were kind of not ready for the moment. But this team was determined from the get-go. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy and even tonight, that was a quality team that challenged us.”
Greenwich, which lost in the quarterfinals of the FCIAC tournament but fought every step of the way through the LL bracket, didn’t go quietly against Hall, pressuring often and keeping things tight but for the final 15 minutes.
“For 65 minutes, we gave them a hell of a game,” Putnam said. “They don’t smash that many goals past teams without being good and I think we knew that. But I’ve got no complaints. They played as well as they could have done against an incredibly good side. We go away disappointed but we don’t have any regrets.”