Thursday News Blast: Rocky Hill Lacrosse Fundraiser, Two CT HS Football Alum Are In The Super Bowl
Rocky Hill Lacrosse Fundraiser, Two CT HS Football Alum Are In The Super Bowl.
As we close in on the weekend, the NFP Sports team is hard at work developing fundraising products for all of our spring teams and organizations. Along with that, we’ll be starting interviews with Walter Camp Breakfast of Champions award finalists.
CHSCA Boys’ Hockey Player of the Week
Last week, James Kohm from Fairfield Warde-Ludlowe took home the title of CHSCA Boys’ Hockey Player of the Week. Now, we have three new candidates for this weeks award.
This week, representing the CCC is goalkeeper Brendan Lynch from Simsbury High School. Lynch faced 21 shots and saved 20 of them in a 4-1 Trojans win over Xavier. In the FCIAC, puck handler Doster Crowell from New Canaan High School tallied 7 points over a two game span agains Stamford and Greenwich as he netted 3 goals and tacked on 4 assists. Last and certainly not least from the SWC/SCC is Mike Farricielli from Branford. In a 4-3 win over North Branford, Farricielli totaled 3 goals and added 1 assist.
The Boys’ Hockey Player of the Week award is sponsored by Hamden Sports Center and Cheshire Sports Center. You can vote on the winner at CHSCA.org now! Voting closes at 8:00PM this evening so make sure you get your votes in as soon as possible.
ECC Athlete of the Week
This week in the ECC, we have a new wave of candidates for Athlete of the Week. You can vote now on eccathletics.org now. Voting closes at 8:00PM tonight.
For boys Athlete of the Week, there are five candidates. Mason Conetti from Killingly went 4-0 in wrestling matches with 3 of those wins coming by pin. Luca Viviano from Ledyard took first place at the Shoreline Invitational in pole vault with a vault of 11’6”. Another indoor track athlete has been nominated with Kolby Quinn from St. Bernard. Quinn took second place in long jump with a jump of 20’0” and was on the fourth place Sprint Medley Relay team at the Jack Long ECC Invitational. Brendan Bezanzon from Norwich Free Academy took first in both the 100 breaststroke and 100 butterfly vs Fitch. On the hardwood Luke Lowry of Stonington dropped 47 points 9 assists and 7 steals in a two game stretch.
For girls Athlete of the Week, Zhuning Gao from St. Bernard went 6-0 in fencing matches vs New London and Fitch. On the gymnastics front, Olivia Aleman from Woodstock Academy finished first in All-Around against Stonington. Sticking with gymnastics, Trinity Ambruso from Norwich Free Academy took first in vault, bars, beam, floor and All-Around in a win vs South Windsor. On the court, Cassie Rice from Ledyard High School had 29 points, 9 steals, 12 rebounds, and hit 7 three pointers in a three game span as Ledyard went 2-1. Last and certainly not least is Ariahana Headen from Killingly High School who had 21 points and 30 rebounds in a two game span.
The ECC Athlete of the Week program is sponsored by Buffalo Wild Wings. Make sure you vote as soon as possible as voting closes tonight at 8:00PM.
ECC Announces Winter Tournament Schedule
Sticking on the theme of the ECC, the conference has announced the dates for their winter tournaments. The tournaments are sponsored by Coreplus Credit Union. You can find all the tournament dates at the tweet attached below from the ECC Athletics account.
Two CT High School Football Alum Are Playing In The Super Bowl
Next week the NFL season concludes with the Super Bowl and while everyone is focused on Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes, there are two Connecticut High School football alum on Super Bowl rosters.
Lucas Niang is currently a back up offensive tackle for the Kansas City Chiefs, but before the his days in the NFL, Niang was a monster on the offensive and defensive line for the New Canaan Rams. He helped lead the Rams to three state championships from 2013 to 2015 and was named two time All FCIAC and one time All State. Niang accumulated offers from Penn State, Miami, and Auburn and would end up committing to TCU to play offensive tackle.
Over his four seasons with the Horned Frogs, Niang played in 43 games starting 28 games. In his junior and senior season, the 6’7 offensive tackle did not allow a sack. In 2018, Niang made Second Team All Big 12 and PFF First Team All Big 12.
The New Canaan High graduate was drafted in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs, but opted out of the 2020 season due to the Covid-19 pandemic. For the 2021 season, he was named the Chiefs starting right tackle. He started seven of the first nine games, missing two with a shoulder injury, before suffering a ribs injury in Week 9. He’d go on to miss the next four games due to injury and then in Week 17 he returned and started at left tackle. The 2022-2023 season has been a tough one for Niang as he’s been battling injuries and has only played a handful of snaps.
The other Connecticut high school football alum is playing on the offensive line for the Eagles. Jack Driscoll was a captain and team MVP at Daniel Hand High and earned a 3 star rating on 247Sports. He committed to UMass over Army and redshirted his freshman season in 2015 with the Minutemen. In 2016, Driscoll appeared in nine games starting eight and the following season in 2017, he started all 12 games at right tackle. In addition to being a full time starter, Driscoll made Phil Steele All-Independent First Team, All-ECAC Second Team, and paved the way for the Minutemen to tally 670 total offensive yards against Georgia Southern.
Following the 2017 season, Driscoll entered the transfer portal and committed to play at Auburn. In 2018 as a grad transfer, Driscoll won the starting right tackle job and started every game that season while also making AD Honor Roll and SEC first-year academic honor roll. The following season in 2019, the 6’5 Driscoll once again started every game. His 45 consecutive starts ranked 10th among current FBS offensive linemen at the time. Driscoll was put on the Reese’s Senior Bowl watch list, nominated for Campbell Trophy and National Football Foundation postgraduate scholarship, made SEC academic honor roll, and won the Cliff Hare Award.
Driscoll was selected in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles. In his time with Philadelphia, Driscoll has started 16 games playing all over the offensive line. As a rookie, he started 4 games at left tackle and appeared in 11 games. This season, Driscoll has played 371 snaps across the offensive line. It’s an exciting time for CT High School football. Good luck to these two maulers in the trenches.
Rocky Hill High School Lacrosse Is Selling Beef Octane Beef Jerky
Last week, we looked at the Sheehan High School boys basketball team and their fundraising product, the Greater Wallingford Pizza Madness Card. At the start of the week, we highlighted Beef Octane beef jerky and our partnership with them.
The Rocky Hill High School boys lacrosse team kicked off their spring fundraiser last week. They’re selling bags of Beef Octane beef jerky and you buy them now at this LINK.
The Terriers lacrosse team is offering eight different delicious flavors of Beef Octane jerky for only $22.00 a bag. If you’re feeling spicy and want to support the Rocky Hill boys lacrosse team, I recommend the Blazin’ Buffalo Chicken Jerky or Mango Habanero Beef Jerky. Maybe spice isn’t your thing and you still want to offer your support to the team. If that’s the case then I would suggest ordering a bag of either the Brown Sugar & Maple Bacon Jerky or the Teriyaki Beef Jerky. No matter what flavor you choose, just know that when you purchase a bag at this LINK, you’re supporting a good cause; the Rocky Hill High School boys lacrosse team!
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If you’re interested in fundraising with NFP or looking to work with us on the sports marketing front, you can send an email to james@nfpbrands.com.