2008 Varsity Recaps

  • Week11
  • Week10
  • Week9
  • Week8
  • Week7
  • Week6
  • Week5
  • Week4
  • Week3
  • Week2

11/26/09: Week 11 North Haven Varsity 21, Amity Varsity 19

11/26/09:
North Haven Varsity 0 14 0 7 - 21
Amity Varsity 0 0 0 19 - 19
11/26: The Indians traveled to a sloppy William E. Sim field in Woodbridge to take on the Amity Spartans in a Thanksgiving Day matchup. North Haven won the toss and deferred their choice to the second half. The Indians kicked off and the two teams traded punts until North Haven gained favorable field position and mounted the game's first scoring drive. Pounding the ball through the soft middle with consistent runs by Ryan Criscio and around the ends with runs by Joe Schwab and Kendrick Amaker, the Indians moved down to the goal line and scored on a 1-yard run by Schwab. Robert Carbone kicked the PAT to put North Haven up 7-0. Later in the quarter, North Haven moved back into Amity's end and scored when Schwab handed off to Amaker and then Amaker fired a pass back down the sideline to Schwab for a 20 yard touchdown. Carbone made his second PAT kick and the Indians took a 14-0 lead into the half. The Indians took the second half kickoff, but had to punt it back. Late in the third quarter, Amity mounted their first drive and scored on the first play of the 4th quarter as Tyler Vallie threw on the run diagonally across the field to Tom Scanlon, who was wide open in the end zone, for a 35 yard TD. At the end of the play, Amity was penalized 15 yards on the point after kick for unsportsmanlike behavior. The extra yardage proved costly as the PAT kick was missed, so North Haven's lead was now 14-6. Shortly thereafter, Schwab was intercepted when his pass was tipped by his intended receiver and Amity returned it inside the Indian red zone. A couple plays later, Vallie scored a touchdown on a 2-yard keeper. An attempt to tie the game with a 2-point pass attempt failed, so the score was 14-12 North Haven. The Indians responded with a nice time consuming drive that ate up most of the remaining fourth quarter. Schwab connected with Amaker with a key fourth down pass to keep the drive alive and move inside the Spartan red zone. A couple of runs by Amaker helped move the ball in close and then Schwab took it around the right side for a 1-yard touchdown. Rob Carbone connected with his third PAT kick to make the score 21-12. Amity got the ball back with under two minutes to play, and put together a quick drive to score again on a 16 yard pass from Vallie to Christian Sanchez to make the final score 21-19. With the win, North Haven improved their record to 7-3 and narrowly missed the Class MM playoffs, finishing 5th in the state.

11/15/08: Week 10 North Haven Varsity 51,  Jonathan Law Varsity 14

11/15/08:
North Haven Varsity 21 10 6 14 - 51
Jonathan Law Varsity 7 0 0 7 - 14

11/15: North Haven received the opening kickoff and worked a long drive deep into Law territory before coming up against a 4th down. Mike Friello earned a crucial first down on a 4 yard run up the middle and then fired a 19 yard touchdown pass to Jelani Sancho in the right corner. Rob Carbone drilled the extra point for a 7-0 lead. Law's first drive ended with a fumble, which was covered up by Adam Iskra, giving the Indians the ball 22 yards from another score. A few plays later, Friello fired a 32 yard touchdown pass over the middle to Dan Oakes for a 14-0 lead. Law scored quickly on their next drive aided by a long pass play down the far left sideline. A short touchdown run followed and the score was 14-7. Ryan Criscio took the next kickoff and spun through traffic and bolted for 60+ yards down to the Law 12.
 

11/15: A couple of plays later, Friello scored a 5 yard TD around the left side to push the lead to 21-7 at the end of 1. In the second quarter, another Law fumble gave the Indians the ball back and they turned it into a quick 7 when Friello scored on a keeper around the right side and in from 20 yards out to make it 28-7. After a Law punt, Oakes hauled in a long pass with a leaping 1 handed catch, and Rob Carbone converted on a 28 yard field goal as time expired in the quarter, giving the Indians a 31-7 lead at the half. Law took the 2nd half kickoff and moved down into North Haven's red zone before Nick Melillo picked off a pass at the goal line and took it back out over the 20.

11/15: The Indians put together a nice drive highlighted by a 20+ yard run by Criscio, and a 15 yard run by Friello. Criscio ultimately scored from 4 yards out but the kick was blocked, so the score was 37-7. Friello scored his 3rd TD from 17 yards out in the fourth quarter to push the score to 44-7 before Law was able to score on a short screen pass after a questionable pass interference call kept their long drive alive to make it 44-14. Chris Matteis scored from 42 yards out, busting through several would be tackles to score a touchdown to make the final score 51-14.

(Photos)

11/07/08: Week 9 North Haven Varsity 47, East Haven Varsity 0

11/07/08:
East Haven Varsity 0 0 0 0 - 0
North Haven Varsity 14 14 7 12 - 47

11/7: East Haven received the opening  kickoff, and returned it out near midfield, but had to punt the ball away when their drive sputtered. The two teams traded punts until the Indians earned some favorable field position, and then aided by a 15 yard roughing penalty moved the ball deep into Yellow Jacket territory. A couple of short runs were followed by QB Mike Friello's jaunt through the left side for 29 yard touchdown. Rob Carbone drilled the extra point to make the score 7-0. The ensuing kickoff was botched by East Haven and the Indians recovered it on the 23 yard line. A 5 yard defensive penalty and a couple of  short running play later were followed by Nick Melillo, who came around back and took a handoff, and ran around right end and in for a 13 yard TD. Carbone's kick was good and North Haven was up 14-0.
 

11/7: As the 2nd quarter started, Dan Sardilli made a big interception to give the ball back to the North Haven offense on East Haven's 39. Jelani Sancho had a nice run, then Friello fired a 20 yard pass into the end zone to Dan Oakes for a TD. Carbone's kick was good, so it was now 21-0. Later in the 2nd, Sancho had a 25 yard run to move the ball over the timeline, and then a couple plays later when it got to be 4th and 21 from the 28, Friello connected with Anthony Chiaia for 22 yards and a 1st down. On the next play, Friello took it himself through the right side for a 6 yard TD. The kick was good and the Indians took a 28-0 lead into the half.

(Photos)

11/7: North Haven took the kickoff to open the third, and drove deep into East Haven's side of the field, but a long field goal attempt was blocked.  East Haven still couldn't get anything going and had to punt the ball back. The Indians scored again,  going right down and in on a 15 yard run by Friello. Carbone's kick was good and North Haven was out in front 35-0. Steve Cusano ran the Indian offense, and the Indians closed on another score as 3rd quarter came to an end. On the first play of the 4th quarter, Nate Alleyne took it in for a 2 yard TD run. The kick is blocked, so the score was now 41-0. Nick Melillo ran the JV offense later in the fourth, and after a great fake into the line caused a pile of players, Mellilo was able to zip on bye and go 75 yards - untouched  - for a seventh NH touchdown. The kick was no good, so the final score was 47-0.

10/30/08: Week 8 Cheshire Varsity 35, North Haven Varsity 13

10/30/08:
North Haven Varsity 0 0 0 13 - 13
Cheshire Varsity 14 21 0 0 - 35

10/30: Billy Ragone was 19-for-32 for 250 yards and threw two touchdown passes while also rushing for two others.  Dan Sweeny ran 2 yards for the Rams first touchdown and then caught a pair of additional TDs as Cheshire defeated visiting North Haven, 35-13, in a Southern Connecticut Conference interdivision game.

(Photos)
 

10/30: Cheshire scored on its first five possessions and out scored North Haven 35-0 in the first half. The Indians were held to just five plays in the first quarter. Ragone connected with Sweeney on touchdown passes of 5 and 41-yards. Sweeney had three catches overall for 68 yards. Brian Havilcek had 166 yards on eight catches for Cheshire.

10/30: North Haven got on the board in the fourth quarter when Anthony Chiaia hauled in a 4 yard pass from Steve Cusano but the extra point kick was no good. Not too long after that, Trevor Keyes broke a 42 yard run for a touchdown and Rob Carbone kicked the extra point to make the final score 35-13.

10/24/08: Week 7 Sheehan Varsity 49, North Haven Varsity 23

10/24/08:
North Haven Varsity 3 14 6 0 - 23
Sheehan Varsity 14 14 7 14 - 49

10/24: Sheehan won the toss, took the kick off and ran it back 92 yards for a touchdown, then kicked the extra point to go up 7-0. North Haven responded with a drive into Titan territory. When the drive stalled, they had to punt, but a roughing the kicker penalty allowed the drive to continue. It stalled again inside the red zone, so Robert Carbone kicked a short field goal to put the Indians on the board at 7-3. The Titans scored quickly on a long pass from midfield to go back up 14-3. Ryan Criscio took the ensuing kickoff and ran it back to midfield as the first quarter ended. Criscio had a couple of runs to open the second and then Mike Friello culminated the drive with a TD run to close within 14-10.
 

10/24: After a Sheehan punt, the Indians scored again on a Mike Friello keeper around the right end for a 34 yard TD run and a 17-14 lead. Friello left the game with a leg injury and it all went down hill from there. Sheehan reclaimed the lead a minute after North Haven went ahead by moving right down the field with a bunch of passes and a long pass to John Songer, down to 10 yard line. Zach Prefontaine ran for 9 around the right side and then in for a TD a 21-17 lead. The Indians tried to rebound with a drive back into Titan territory, but had to punt. A great kick by Jelani Sancho pinned Sheehan back at their own 1 with 55 seconds left in the half. But again, Brett Biestek picked apart the Indians secondary and went right down and scored again with a 35 yard pass threaded between a pair of defenders at the right pylon and in for a 28-17 lead at the half.

10/24: In the third quarter, the Titans scored again with another long pass and North Haven worked a long drive and scored a touchdown on a 5 yard pass from Steve Cusano to Mike Iannone on 4th down. The 2 point conversion was stuffed, but the Indians seemed to be back in this one, down only 35-23. In th fourth quarter, Sheehan kicked a 38 yard field goal, but were penalized for illegal procedure, so they went for it and Biestek threw his 4th TD of the game - a long pass into the end zone to go up 42-23. With about 2 minutes left in the game, the Titans pulled off a beautiful fake into the line, and then Biestek ran a keeper around the end for a 59 yard TD to cap the scoring at 49-23.

(Photos)

10/17/08: Week 6 Daniel Hand Varsity 49, North Haven Varsity 40

10/17/08:
Daniel Hand Varsity 14 21 0 14 - 49
North Haven Varsity 14 7 7 12 - 40

10/17: North Haven won the toss and deferred their choice to the second half, so Hand asked for the ball, took the kickoff, and went right down the field and scored on a 15 yard pass to take a 7-0 lead. The Indians answered right back with a nice drive, which culminated when Ryan Criscio shot through a hole in the middle and bolted 22 yards for a TD. After the kickoff, the Tigers struck quickly with a 70 yard pass play to go back up 14-7. North Haven kept pace moving very quickly down the field with some nice runs by Crisco and Lou Landolfi and then tied the score at 14 when Mike Friello took the snap and sprinted through the line for a 32 yard TD.

10/17: On the last play of the 1st quarter, Friello was intercepted and Hand returned it 31 yards to the Indian 26. Mike Davis busted in from 6 yards out and the Tigers moved out to a 21-14 lead. On the first play after receiving a North Haven punt, Davis broke off a 53 yard TD run to make the score 28-14. After yet another NH punt, Hand scored a 3rd TD in the quarter on a 7 yard pass and the lead swelled to 35-14. With  1:37 left in the half, North Haven scored quickly with a 64 pass play from Friello to Jelani Sancho and the Indians went into the half down 35-21.

(Photos)

10/17: Opening the 2nd half, Friello led the Indians down the field on a nice drive and got them to the goal line with a 15 yard pass to Dan Oakes. Chris Matteis took it up and over and the Indians were back within 7 at 35-28. The Tigers took the 3rd quarter off, but came back with a vengeance in the 4th, scoring on a 26 yard QB keeper to put them back up by 14. Anthony Chiaia made a great catch and run as North Haven stormed back with a drive which ended when Friello ran around the right end and scored a short TD. The extra point kick was blocked and the score was now 42-34.  Hand scored on a 92 yard pass play and the score flipped to 49-34. In the waning moments of the game, Chris Matteis broke a 44 yard run on 4th and 3, and Friello zipped a 6 yard pass to Oakes for a TD which capped the scoring in this 49-40 loss to Hand.

10/10/08: Week 5 Foran Varsity 28, North Haven Varsity 27

10/10/08:
North Haven Varsity 7 6 8 6 - 27
Foran Varsity 0 14 7 7 - 28

10/10: In a game where Ryan Criscio ran for 232 yards and a TD and Mike Friello ran for 114 yards and 3 TDs, you might think the Indians would have come out on top, but unfortunately, they lost a heartbreaker tonight, 28-27. In the first, North Haven stopped Foran's first drive when Billy Zullo intercepted Jake White's pass and the Indians took over on their own 4. A 96 yard drive culminated with Mike Friello's 1 yard TD plunge, and a 7-0 NH lead. The Lion's worked all night out of the shotgun, passing more than they ran. In the 2nd, they worked two very quick drives for TDs sandwiched around a North Haven punt as White threw primarily slants over the middle to Tyler Hames and Brian O'Keefeto to take a 14-7 lead.

10/10: With 1:44 left in 2nd, Ryan Criscio broke a 77 yard run, and Mike Friello scored TD #2 on an 8 yard keeper with seconds left in the half. The extra point kick was wide and the Indians headed into the half down 14-13.  The Lions came out throwing in the second half, working their way down to the Indian's goal line before being stopped on a 4th down try. A 90 yard drive to Foran's 7 followed, but after the go ahead TD was called back via a penalty, a missed 24 yard field goal gave the Lions the ball right back. On the next play, a short screen pass from White to Hames resulted in an 80-yard TD to open up a 21-13 Lion lead.

(Photos)

10/10: Very shortly after getting the ball back, Ryan Criscio broke a 50+ yard run to get the ball down to the Lions' 5, and Friello took it in for his 3rd TD to cut the lead to 21-19. Chris Matteis took the handoff and busted it in for the 2 pointer to tie the game at the end of the 3rd. The 4th quarter saw more of White passing to Hames for a 50 yard TD to put Foran back on top 28-21. With just over 5 minutes to play, Ryan Criscio shot through a hole in the middle and sprinted 45 yards for a North Haven TD. The Indians gambled and went for the win, but this time Matteis was stopped cold and Foran maintained their 1 point lead. North Haven got the ball back one more time, but Mike Friello was picked off in Lion territory to end this one, 28-27.

10/3/08: Week 4 North Haven Varsity 48, Derby/O'Brien Tech Varsity 0

10/3/08:
Derby/O'Brien Tech Varsity 0 0 0 0 - 0
North Haven Varsity 14 7 14 13 - 48

10/03: North Haven won the toss and deferred their choice to the second half. Derby asked for the ball and on the first play after the kickoff, Dan Sardilli intercepted a pass and returned it the other way for a TD. Ryan Criscio scored his first TD later in the quarter on a long run up the middle for a 14-0 lead.

(Photos)

10/3: The Red Raiders could not make a first down in the first half, and had to punt 4 times. The Indians took advantage of one of them with a short drive which culminated with a Chris Matteis dive over the pile into the end zone for a TD and a 21-0 North Haven lead at the half.

10/3:The Indains received the opening kickoff and Criscio almost broke it for a TD, but was taken down deep in Derby territory. Mike Friello finished off the short drive with a 20+ yard TD run around the left end and a 28-0 lead. Ryan Criscio added his second TD of the game with a long run later in the 3rd and tacked on his 3rd in the final quarter for a 42-0 lead. Robert Carbone scored 7 extra points with perfect kicks.

9/26/08: Week 3 Hillhouse Varsity 18, North Haven Varsity 10

9/26/08:
North Haven Varsity 0 10 0 0 - 10
Hillhouse Varsity 0 12 0 6 - 18

9/26: North Haven won the toss and deferred their choice to the 2nd half. Hillhouse took the opening kick, but couldn't score. The teams traded punts until North Haven earned a favorable spot to start a short drive and ultimately scored a touchdown on the last play of the quarter. But that TD was called back because of a holding penalty, and the Indians had to settle for a 23-yard field goal on the first play of the second quarter by Robert Carbone, and a 3-0 lead. The Academics responded very shortly after with an 82 yard TD scamper by Marvin McClendon to take a 6-3 lead. But the Indians fought back with a nice TD drive of their own highlighted by a nice run by Mike Mauro and a long run by Ryan Criscio.

9/26: When the drive seemed to stall around the Hillhouse 30 on 4th down, Mike Friello connected with Dan Oakes for a 17 yard pass play and then on 3rd and 13 hit Anthony Chiaia near the goal line and Chiaia busted through into the end zone for the score. The extra point kick by Carbone put the Indians back on top 10-6. But that lead was short lived as well as Hillhouse scored 3 plays later. The Academics took the next kickoff back to the 45 yard line, and then followed with a 31 yard run and a 24 yard slant pass for a 12-10 lead, which they took into the half.

(Photos)

9/26: In the third quarter, conditions deteriorated and neither team could move the ball. With 7:25 left in the 4th, Brandyn Wright broke a 50 yard TD for Hillhouse to open an 18-10 lead and their extra point kick was blocked. All fired up from the block with one last chance to tie, North Haven took the next kickoff and moved all the way to the Academics 24 yard line with a series of QB keepers, before a fumble killed this drive and helped Hillhouse to preserve an 18-10 win.

9/19/08: Week 2 Branford Varsity 20, North Haven Varsity 19

9/19/08:
Branford Varsity 12 0 0 8 - 20
North Haven Varsity 0 7 12 0 - 19

9/19: Branford scored a pair of first quarter TDs and took an early 12-0 lead with a 72 yard run by Dylan Northrup and Andrew Luzzi's 25 yard scamper. But the Indians came back with the help of Mike Friello's first of 2 rushing TDs, a 11 yard run out of the shotgun around the right end, to close out the first half scoring with Branford on top 12-7. North Haven took the 2nd half kickoff and moved deep into Hornet territory on the strength of 2 big passes from Friello. The first was to Jelani Sancho and second at the goal line to Dan Oakes.

9/19: A short TD plunge by Friello followed, but a missed 2 point conversion kept the score at 13-12, North Haven. The Indians got the ball back quickly and scored on Freillo's 3rd rushing TD, around the right side for about 20 yards to open up a 7 point lead, but a questionable call to go for 2 failed and the score was 19-12. North Haven continued to dominate in the fourth quarter, as they drove into Hornet territory while winding down the clock.

(Photos)

9/19: But a fumble with about 5 minutes to play gave Branford the ball back, and the Hornets took advantage as they moved down the field and then Andrew Luzzi hit D.J. Rossa with an 8 yard TD pass, and then surprised everyone by throwing for a 2 point conversion to a wide open Northrup in the end zone for a 1-point lead. North Haven got the ball back and drove to Branford's 14 - within range of a winning field goal, but consecutive sacks on 3rd and 4th down made scoring again impossible and Branford won this game, 20-19.

 


Photo Ordering Guide
 

Week 2

9/19/13: Vanacore Field, North Haven 7:00 pm

Xavier Varsity 0 13 8 7 - 28
North Haven Varsity 7 14 0 21 - 42

425 Action Photos

9/19/12: Xavier HS, Middletown 4:00 pm

North Haven Freshmen 0 22 6 6 - 34
Xavier Freshmen 0 7 0 7 - 14

422 Action Photos

Week 1

9/13/13: Kennedy Stadium, Bridgeport 4:30 pm

North Haven Varsity 14 14 7 7 - 42
Bridgeport Central Varsity 0 0 0 8 - 8

392 Action Photos



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