When the regular season begins in earnest this week, three area teams will start off as defending state champions.
Holy Cross softball won its second straight state championship in 2016, while the Wolcott and St. Paul baseball teams also claimed a banner. For the Crusaders, it was their second in a row. The Eagles won for the first time ever while the Falcons racked up their first championship since 1972.
Here is a look at who returns for each team, along with their opponent for the season opener.
 |
| Sarah Lawton and Holy Cross seeks a third straight Class S title. |
HOLY CROSS
You can’t have a better two years than the Crusaders have had. All Holy Cross has done over the last two seasons is win a pair of Class S state championships. The Crusaders will be a contender again in Class S in 2017.
Who returns in 2017? Well, start with the senior battery of pitcher Sarah Lawton and catcher Aubry DeFoe. Lawton has proven to be one of the best pitchers in the state, and it’s tough to score runs off of her.
Holy Cross is way more than a two-girl team. Alexandra Lombardo and Nicole Strielkauskas return as juniors, as do key contributors Allie Brown, Hannah Brown and Valerie Nobrega. The trio just mentioned are all sophomores. Yikes.
Emma Gargano and Gabby Goldman are returning seniors.
In a recent scrimmage against Bethel, sophomore Carley DeFoe and freshman Jenna Mowad also contributed. It was just a scrimmage, but Holy Cross establishing more depth is a scary thought.
Season opener: Seymour. Enough said. The Crusaders and Wildcats, perennial contenders in both the NVL and the state, play on Tuesday at 3:45 p.m. at Seymour High School.
WOLCOTT
 |
| Class M title game hero Ray Bartoli is back for his senior season. |
Best ending goes to the Eagles, who won the 2016 Class M championship at Middletown’s Palmer Field on a two-run, walkoff homer from Ray Bartoli.
Bartoli returns in 2017 for his senior season. Major contributors Steve Urbanski and Bobby White are also back for their senior seasons. Urbanski got Wolcott on the board in the state title game with a solo home run. White was one of the arms head coach Tary Scott counted on for pitching.
White and others take on a much bigger role on the mound this season due to the graduation of workhorse Isaiah Negretti-Flannery. Negretti-Flannery isn’t the only keg cog gone for the Eagles. Wolcott also lost Matt Warren, Jacob Ramos, Nate Murphy, Chris Hull, Brad Grasso, Jacob Gabriel, Eric Gillotti and Phil Olmstead to graduation.
Like Holy Cross, though, this team returns more than just its key seniors. Juniors Nick Longo and Nick Trager are back, along with sophomores Jeff Nicol and Jack Drewry. All saw time on the field, with some big moments for the likes of Longo and Nicol.
Wolcott is again in Class M, and it will have a bulls-eye on its back.
Season opener: The Eagles will host Kaynor Tech on Thursday at 3:45 p.m. at Wolcott High School.
ST. PAUL
 |
| Senior Zach Parent will be a big key to the St. Paul offense. |
Last June, Connor Crean struck out the final Morgan batter he faced in the Class S state championship, and the Falcons wrapped up their first title since 1972.
Crean is gone, as are Jackson Hines, Ben Mazzone, Chadd Richardson and Mike Dombrowski. All were major contributors last season. St. Paul also lost Joe Ricciuti, Wayne Sharp and Jarod Deegan to graduation.
OK, those are some big losses. St. Paul does return a slew of good players. Seniors Wes Lahey, Andrew Owsianko, Zach Parent and Jack Bator lead the way. They are joined by juniors Nick Morrell and Ryan Greene, along with sophomore Dylan Gagnon.
Lahey will be the ace on the mound in 2017. As noted in The Bristol Press baseball preview, Owsianko won’t pitch this season due to an injury. That’s a tough loss on the mound, but the Falcons will still have Owsianko’s glove at third base and his bat at the plate.
There are holes to fill in the lineup, so younger players will need to step up. How much those younger players develop during the season could determine how far St. Paul goes this season. The Falcons will again play in Class S.
Season opener: The Falcons open the season on the road Tuesday at 4 p.m. at Municipal Stadium against Waterbury Career Academy.
