New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
North Haven earns first win, hands Hamden first loss
HAMDEN — Going into Friday night, North Haven was probably the best 0-4 team in the state.
North Haven looked nothing like a winless team Friday night, scoring the first 28 points of the night to knock Hamden from the ranks of the unbeaten with a 28-7 Southern Connecticut Conference victory.
Going into the night, North Haven’s opponents (Shelton, Cheshire, Wilton, New Canaan) were 13-3.
“We have not played a team with a loss coming in yet,” North Haven coach Tony Sagnella said. “It’s a challenging schedule for our kids, but steel sharpens steel. We looked at the bye week as a way to start a new season and tonight, we played at the level need to win the game.”
Hamden (3-1) struggled to contain the difficult North Haven single wing offense all night.
“At the beginning they did,” Sagnella said. “They
caught up to it and you have to credit their kids. They made it tough for us in the second half. They did a good job.”
However, it was a pass play, one of just a handful that North Haven ran, that got the visitors on the board first. Jeffrey Karavas connected with a wide open Matt Dodge for a 20-yard scoring strike with 6:33 to go in the first quarter to make it 7-0.
“They are very run heavy in their defense, so we have to have some pass plays that look like our run plays,” Sagnella said. “If you call them at the right time, it looks good, If not, it looks bad.”
North Haven scored on its second possession of the night with Adam Pandolfi scooting 33 yards for the touchdown to make it 14-0.
“It’s a diverse offense that a lot of people underestimate,” Pandolfi said. “It looks sloppy, but it takes a lot of guts to play. It’s annoying to defend as it takes a lot of time off the clock.”
Hamden had a chance to score before the half, but a J.J. Gibson Jr. pass was picked off by M.J. Devilliers Jr. and returned 63 yards for a touchdown with 27 seconds to go before intermission.
Pandolfi (13 carries for 69 yards) scored his second touchdown of the night with 5:22 remaining in the third quarter to give North Haven a 28-0 lead.
“This was a big win,” Pandolfi said. “It gets us going. We’re looking to make state playoffs now.”
Hamden finally got on the board late in the third quarter when Gibson Jr. (6-for-11 pass got 91 yards) connected with Camyran Winder for a 53-yard touchdown.
Defensively, North Haven held Hamden’s top running back Sam Doumah to only 19 yards rushing on seven carries. The Green Dragons were hurt by penalties as well and had only 45 yards of rushing offense.
“From the beginning, we didn’t play well tonight,” Hamden coach Tom Dyer said. “They play an offense that once they get going, they can grind and churn it out. We struggled offensively and our special teams didn’t play well. When all three phases of the game don’t play well, this is what happens.”