Road warriors from Windham knock off unbeaten Killingly
Killingly hadn’t lost a home football game since 2015.
Windham hasn’t played a home football game all season, since the Whippets’ field is being renovated.
So Friday night, Windham was on the road once again, against Killingly, which won the Class M championship last year.
“People were like, ‘Maybe you can keep it close,’ ” Windham coach Randall Prose said. “But the coaches and the kids, we believed in ourselves. We thought, ‘Maybe we have a shot here. Let’s go see how good we really are.’ ”
Windham is now 5-0, after a 41-26 victory over Killingly.
“It was an amazing team effort,” Prose said.
The offensive and defensive lines played well, led by senior Isaiah Mangual and sophomore Malachi Fowler.
Victor Mejia had three touchdowns. Quarterback Zachary Robinson-smey also had three touchdowns and had 10 carries for 98 yards and was 8 for 8 passing for 86 yards.
Prose tasked Travis Mangual, Isaiah’s cousin, to guard Killingly’s senior receiver Ben Jax, who is averaging 79 yards a game. Jax had one catch for 2 yards.
“He’s put up crazy numbers; nobody’s been able to cover him this year,” Prose said. “I told [Travis], ‘You have to guard him all night.
“It was a game-changer for them. That’s a big weapon they didn’t have that night.”
The win will go a long way to pump up the Whippets, who not only have no field but also no locker room due to school renovations — although the kids weren’t really complaining.
“We have a beautiful new turf field, and we were hoping to have it for opening day, but it’s not ready,” Prose said. “We have all our equipment in a storage bin outside. They go in and grab their equipment and dress in that thing and they go out and practice. We have a little square of grass. It’s like the outfield for the baseball team. We line it and we play.
“The kids haven’t complained a bit. The coaches and I are like, ‘This is inconvenient.’ The kids are like, ‘Whatever, it is what it is.’ ”
Top performances
Jansyn Booth, Hartford Public: Booth, the Owls’ quarterback, had three touchdown passes in a 26-0 win over Tolland.
Zyon Hymes, Hartford Public: Hymes had 17 carries for 113 yards in a win over Tolland.
Victor Mejia, Windham: Mejia had 24 carries for 209 yards and three touchdowns in Windham’s 41-26 win over Killingly Friday.
Joey Montalvo, East Catholic: Montalvo, a freshman wide receiver, scored three touchdowns in a 38-22 victory over Lewis Mills.