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Five Avon High athletes earn All-State honors

From left, Shelby Little, Paul Netland, Carver Morgan and Isaiah Adams were High athletes that earned All-State honors this winter.

Five Avon High athletes earned All-State honors this past winter with their performance with runner Carver Morgan adding All-New England honors to his resume and Isaiah Adams becoming the first wrestler in school history to earn All-American honors.

Morgan and Paul Netland earned All-State honors in track and field while Shelby Little was named All-State for the third time in girls hockey. Falcon diver Sarah Grady earned All-State honors in boys swimming while Adams earned All-State honors in wrestling for winning the Class M championship.

Adams (38-6) won his first State Open championship at 113 pounds using his quickness. A week earlier, he won his first Class M title and a week before that, he won the Central Connecticut Conference championship.

Adams went 2-2 at the New England tournament but excelled at the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) Senior nationals in Virginia Beach, Va. He was 6-2 in the national tournament earned All-American honors by finishing seventh. He is the first Avon High wrestler to earn All-American honors.

A takedown with one minute left in regulation gave Adams a 5-4 win over Missouri’s Nate Martin in his first match of the national tournament. After pinning Ohio’s Gunner Havens, Adams lost to Tyler Washburn of Florida, 13-1. But Adams was focused and won three bouts in the consolation round to earn All-American honors.

Morgan earned All-State honors with victories in the 1,600 meters and 3,200 meters at the Class M indoor track championship meet – the first Avon High athlete to win two state titles on the same day. Morgan won by 0.84 of a second in the 1,600 meters and won the 3,200 meter title with a sprint to the finish.

Netland earned All-State honors with his third place finish in the 55 meter hurdles.

Morgan finished fifth at the State Open the 1,600 meters, earning him a spot in the one-mile race at the New England championships – which does not hold a 1,600 meter race. Morgan finished fifth at the New England championships in the mile to earn All-New England honors.

Avon’s Sarah Grady earned All-State honors this winter. (Photo courtesy Grady family)

Grady made history throughout the season. She finished second in diving at the Class M championships to earn All-State honors. That qualified her to compete in the State Open where she is believed to be the first girl from Avon to compete at the State Open boys swimming championships. She finished 18th in the field of 24 divers.

Little, a defenseman for the Avon co-op hockey team, earned All-State honors from the Connecticut High School Girls Hockey Association for the third straight year. But she also earned a spot on GameTimeCT’s All-State girls hockey team team.

Little had 11 goals and 11 assists for 22 points for the Nighthawks this winter, who won the Central Connecticut Conference tournament championship. She had two goals and six assists in five postseason games with the squad this winter.

A four-time All-CCC selection, she finished her career with 34 goals and 36 assists (70 points). She will attend UMass in September and play for the nationally-ranked women’s club hockey program in Amherst.


BOYS BASKETBALL
Coach:  Kris Pedra
Record: 12-9, 3-4 CCC West (fifth place)
All-CCC West: Issac Aguilar
All-State: none
CCC Tournament:  Did not qualify
CIAC state tournament: Lost to Newtown, 50-38, in first round of CIAC Division II tournament

GIRLS BASKETBALL
Coach:  Drew Faucher
Record: 5-15, 0-7 CCC West (eighth place)
All-CCC West: Sofia Mango
All-State: none
CCC Tournament:  Did not qualify
CIAC state tournament: Did not qualify

WRESTLING
Coach:  John McLaughlin
Record: 14-4, 4-1 CCC North (second)
All-CCC West: Isaiah Adams, Jonah Weber, Roel Johnson, Cameron Casey, Ethan Volpe, Nils Jerger
All-State: Isaiah Adams
CCC Tournament:  4th
CIAC state tournament: 5th in Class M; 28th at State Open
Of note: Adams became the first Avon wrestler to earn All-American honors by finishing seventh at 113 pounds at the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) Junior National tournament in Virginia.

BOYS HOCKEY
Coach:  Mike Barone and Scott Pervical
Record: 13-9, 5-7 CCC North (fifth place)
All-CCC North: Jack D’Occhio
All-State: none
CCC North Tournament:  Did not qualify
CIAC state tournament: Lost to Sheehan, 6-0 in CIAC Div. II quarterfinals
Of note: Avon is part of the co-op team with Farmington, Lewis Mills and Windsor.

GIRLS HOCKEY
Coach:  Mike Carrera
Record: 18-5-2, 6-2-2 (2nd CCC)
All-CCC:
Shelby Little
All-State: Shelby Little
CCC Tournament:  Beat Hall/Conard, 3-2 to win tournament
CIAC state tournament: Lost to Darien, 5-1, in state semifinals
Of note: Avon is host of the co-op program that includes Southington, RHAM, Lewis Mills, Wethersfield and Coventry.

BOYS INDOOR TRACK
Coach:  Courtny Fusco
Record: no dual meet record
All-CCC West: Jevonte Eaves, Oliver Lojewski, Carver Morgan, Paul Netland
All-State: Carver Morgan, Paul Netland
CCC Tournament:  7th in CCC championships
CIAC state tournament: 4th in Class M championships
Of note: Morgan earned All-New England honors by placing fifth in the one mile at the New England championships in Boston.

GIRLS INDOOR TRACK
Coach:  Courtny Fusco
Record: no dual meet record
All-CCC West: Marenn Ek, Katrina Frez
All-State: none
CCC Tournament:  18th  in CCC championships
CIAC state tournament: 16th in Class M championships

BOYS SWIMMING
Coach:  Travis Morse
Record: 8-1, 5-0 CCC North (Division champions)
All-CCC North: Rhys Vale, Alex Gauthier, Oliver Akers, Owen Vale, Antonio Arias-Camison, Sarah Grady, Gautham Kumar and Gabrielle Fisher
All-State:
 Sarah Grady
CCC Tournament:  Won CCC North championship meet
CIAC state tournament: 10th at Class M championships, 47th at State Open

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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