Staples shuts out Glastonbury to reach Class LL final
NAUGATUCK — It’s tough enough for opponents to try and stop one of the Chudowsky sisters from Staples on the pitch.
But the two sisters combined have wreaked havoc — literally — in the FCIAC all season long. And now, the Wreckers will be playing for a second straight Class LL state championship this weekend.
Natalie Chudowsky scored a pair of goals and Evelyn Chudowsky scored the other to help No. 3 seed Staples shut out No. 2 Glastonbury 3-0 at Veterans Field Wednesday night.
“When they play like that not too many (teams have answers),” Staples coach Barry Beattie said. “(Natalie) is such a special talent, you know you can give her the ball under any circumstance and she is going to do something with it, kind of like how Mary Lundregan was last year for St. Joe’s.”
Last year, Staples and Wilton played to a scoreless draw and shared the LL title. Penalty kicks will now be used to determine a winner if need be.
“I’m so excited to go and defend our title and hopefully come out with a title of our own, not cochamps,” Staples defender Sami DeWitt said. “I think we were a little upset about that because I feel like we dominated the game last year. I’m excited to go to the final and try to win it fully this time.”
Staples will face top seed Cheshire, a 2-1 winner over No. 4 Ridgefield, in the final at Trinity Health Stadium. Days and times are yet to be announced.
It was Natalie Chudowsky, a freshman who trains with the 15-under national team, who broke the scoreless tie with 2:52 left in the first half.Evelyn, a junior, made it 2-0 in the 47th minute, making it an uphill climb for the Guardians (15-2-4), whose only other loss this season was at St. Joseph 2-0.
“It took work from every single person who stepped on the field, it took work from the people on the (sidelines) cheering us on, our fans, everybody, the coaches, it took every single member of the team and I’m so incredibly proud of all of them,” Evelyn Chudowsky said,
Natalie scored her second goal off a free kick 10 minutes later.
“Those two goals were just absolutely fantastic,” Glastonbury coach Mark