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Falcon field hockey team has little trouble with Waterford in tourney win

AVON, Nov. 11 — Just two weeks earlier, the Avon High field hockey team had lost their first game of the season to Granby by a 2-1 score, snapping a 13-game winning streak. But the Falcons had little time to mourn the loss. In less than 18 hours, they were back on the field and ended their regular season with a 2-0 win over Stonington.

Avon’s Maddy Riccardi had three goals in Friday’s 6-0 win over Waterford

Hours later, heavy, wet snow fell across Avon and Connecticut plunging the state into a 10-day power outage that brought the state, the town, the school and high school athletics to a standstill. More than 831,000 customers of Connecticut Light and Power lost their electric service, including every customer in Avon. The high school became a shelter for residents and it took up to 11 days to restore power.


Avon hit the field Friday for its first game since the snowstorm and flourished with a 6-0 win over Waterford in the second round of the CIAC Class M tournament. Maddy Riccardi had three goals while Emily Arciero had a goal and three assists. Elle Crane had a goal and one assist while Nicole Rodiec added a goal for the Falcons, now 15-1.

“We just wanted to play as hard as we can,” Avon coach Terri Ziemiecki said. “It is just about wanting it and doing your best.”

The Falcons (15-1) had three practices this week in preparation for the game. With no school last week, there were no practices. With no power, it was hard to communicate. Some families stayed in town. Many left town to stay with relatives, in a hotel or a second home.

The success of the team was established earlier this year. “We knew we had to play our game – hustling and good passing,” Arciero said. “That is our formula – be efficient on offense.”

Avon advances to the Class M quarterfinals on Monday at 2 p.m. when they will host No. 6 Joel Barlow (13-2-2) at the high school.

The Falcons have advanced as far as the semifinals in three of the last four years. A year ago, Hand eliminated Avon in the semifinals, 1-0. Avon’s 15 wins is the most in a single season since 1995 when the Falcons lost in the Class S finals to Canton. The school record for most wins in a season is 17 set in 1984 when Avon won its second straight Class S championship.

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Gerry deSimas, Jr., is the editor and founder of The Collinsville Press. He is an award-winning writer and has been covering sports in Connecticut and New England for more than 40 years. He was inducted into the New England High School Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2018.

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