Farmington, Simsbury prepared to renew rivarly; Avon/St. Paul gets shutout

written by Gerry deSimas, Jr., Collinsville Press | October 4, 2026

It’s been nearly six decades since the Farmington High and Simsbury High football teams were in the same division competing for a championship.

The last time the two teams were in the same division was in 1968 when the Trojans and River Hawks – known as the Indians in those days – were members of the Northwest Conference.

The two teams have been together in the Central Connecticut Conference since Farmington moved to the league in 2008 but they have never played in the same division in football until this season.

Farmington and Simsbury are both 3-1 and will meet on Friday night in Farmington at 6 p.m. in a key CCC Tier III contest. Farmington (3-1, 2-0 CCC Tier III) and Middletown (4-0, 2-0) currently share the lead in Tier III with Simsbury (3-1, 1-1 CCC Tier III) in the hunt.

It might be the most meaningful game between the two schools since 1968.

There have been just six games between the two schools since that year. In 1969, Simsbury moved to the CVC (Central Valley Conference) while Farmington remained in the Northwest Conference through 2007. Simsbury was a charter member of the CCC when it was formed in 1984.

Farmington’s 33-0 win over Simsbury in 1999 was crucial in helping Farmington secure a CIAC playoff berth in Class L when just four teams qualified in each class.

Simsbury and Farmington both need a victory to remain in contention for the CCC Tier III title and the CIAC Class L tournament with the top eight in each class qualifying for post-season play. Farmington is currently the No. 7 seed in Class L while Simsbury is No. 8.

Farmington and Simsbury first played football in 1923 and the River Hawks hold a 21-18-1 advantage in the series. Their most recent game came in 2014 with Simsbury prevailing 42-12. Farmington’s last win in the series came in 2013 with a 26-14 over the Trojans.

Simsbury won their third straight game on Friday night with a 55-20 win over Bloomfield.

The River Hawks improved to 3-1 on Friday with a 28-0 shutout of Newington, their first win over the Nor’easters since 2018 and their first shutout over NHS since 1973.

Tommy Zadrozny scored three touchdowns for Farmington in the win. He had a pair of touchdown runs (15 and 2 yards) and a 56-yard interception return. Senior quarterback Mason Kiniry threw his sixth touchdown pass of the season to Grant Kintner.

The River Hawks held Newington (1-3) to just 45 yards rushing and 48 yards passing.

Avon/St. Paul gets shutout win
BRISTOL, Oct. 2, 2026 – The Avon/St. Paul co-op got their first shutout with a 16-0 win over Weston on Friday at St. Paul in a Connecticut Football Alliance contest.

Evan Herron scored on a five-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and added a two-point conversion run for an 8-0 halftime lead. Cooper Donnelly scored on a 10-yard pass from QB Christian Wankier in the third quarter for the Falcons. Wankier’s two-point conversion run made it 16-0.

Avon/St. Paul (2-2) had 254 yards of total offense (104 yards passing, 150 yards rushing) while holding Weston (0-4) to just 80 yards of total offense (67 passing, 13 rushing).

“We played pretty good defense,” Avon/St. Paul head coach Kerry Graves said. “We knew they wanted to run the QB as much as possible and it was a focal point of our game to shut that down.

“What was really big was that we pressured them all night,” Graves said. “Getting the first shutout is good while will hopefully we a momentum building. We still have a long way to go but this was a great start.

“The kids wanted this big time,” Graves said. “They stuck together and took advantage of our opportunities.”

Linebacker Lorenzo Castro was selected as the player of the game by Gridiron 1180.com.

Avon/St. Paul has a bye this weekend but returns to play by hosting East Catholic on Saturday, Oct. 17 in Bristol at 1 p.m.

Spartans fall to Griswold/Wheeler
JEWETT CITY, Oct. 2, 2026 – Lewis Mills/Wolcott Tech receiver Gryfn Koblarz caught a pair of touchdown passes from QB Jayce McDonald in a 42-12 loss to the Griswold/Wheeler in a Connecticut Football Alliance contest. McDonald completed 13 of 24 passes for 203 yards and two touchdowns for Mills (2-2). Kobylarz caught nine passes for 161 yards and two TDs.

Avon Old Farms drop second straight
AVON, Oct. 3, 2026 – QB Matthew Baer threw four TD passes, three to receiver Christian MacIntyre but visiting Buckingham, Browne and Nichols from Cambridge, Mass., rallied to beat AOF, 45-35 on Saturday in a NEPSAC contest. QB Ethan Hatch also threw four TD passes for BB&N (2-0), who erased an early 14-point deficit and scored the final two TDs of the game to secure the win. AOF hosts Choate Rosemary Hall on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

Farmington 28, Newington 0
At Farmington
Newington (1-3)           0    0  0  0 – 0
Farmington (3-1)         7  14  7  0 – 28
First Quarter
F: Tommy Zadrozny 15 run (Tyler McMahon kick), 7:17
Second Quarter
F: Kiniry pass to Grant Kintner (McMahon kick), 9:57
F: Zadrozny 56 interception (McMahon kick), 2:32
Third Quarter
F: Zadrozny 2 run (McMahon kick), 6:22
Individual statistics
PASSING: Newington – Lucas Malan 1-3-2, 34; Zach Gagnon 3-5-0, 14
RUSHING: Newington – Kaedon Porteous 1-1, Christian Billbrant 10-21, Tyler Gebbia 1-minus 3, Lucas Malan 6-26
RECEIVING: Newington – Jaden Mangual 2-38, Gebbia 1-1

Avon/St. Paul 16, Weston 0
At Bristol
Weston (0-4)                   0  0  0  0  — 0
Avon/St. Paul (2-2)       0  8  8  0  — 16
Second quarter
A: Evan Herron 5 run (Herron run)
Third quarter
A: Cooper Donnelly 10 pass from Christian Wankier (Wankier run)
Of note: First shutout for the co-op and first shutout for Avon since 2021. Game was the first of two games to be played in Bristol, home of St. Paul, this season. First game ever between the two programs.

Griswold/Wheeler 42, Lewis Mills/Wolcott Tech 12
At Jewett City
Lewis Mills/OWTS (2-2)          6    6  0  0  — 12
Griswold/Wheeler (2-2)          14  13  8  7  — 42
First quarter
G: Layne Moss 65 interception return (Chris Or kick)
G: Liam Cassidy 1 run (Or kick)
LM: Gryfn Kobylarz 65 pass from Jayce McDonald (Two point conversion failed)
Second quarter
G: Or 25 pass from Cassidy (Or kick)
LM: Kobylarz 20 pass from McDonald (Two-point conversion failed)
Third quarter
G: Or 87 pass from Cassidy (xx pass from Cassidy)
Fourth quarter
G: Jason Damico 8 run (Or kick)
Individual leaders
PASSING Mills – Jayce McDonald 13-24-1, 203 yards, 2 TDs
RUSHING: Mills – Mason Scanlon 7-46, Gryfn Kobylarz 1-7, S Madore 1-1
RECEIVING: Mills – Mason Scanlon 1-2, Gryfn Kobylarz 9-161, 2 TDs, Bret Hemingway 2-16, Clark Grady 1-24

BB&N 45, Avon Old Farms 35
At Avon
BB&N (2-0)                      7  3  21  14  – 45
Avon Old Farms (1-2)   14  7    7    7  – 35
First quarter
A: Christian MacIntyre 20 pass from Matthew Baer (Gavin Cahill kick)
A: MacIntyre 23 pass from Baer (Cahill kick)
B: Darin Shaw 5 pass from Ethan Hatch (Jonathan White kick)
Second quarter
B: White 33 FG
A: Makai Bolcy 8 pass from Baer (Cahill kick)
Third quarter
B: Owen DeSalvo 45 run (White kick)
B: Charlie Todd 40 pass from Ethan Hatch (White kick)
A: MacIntyre 15 pass from Baer (Cahill kick)
B: Todd 20 pass from Hatch (White kick)
Fourth quarter
A: Baer 10 run (Cahill kick)
B: Shaw 5 pass from Hatch (White kick)
B: Colin Hoffman 1 run (White kick)
Of note: Buckingham, Browne and Nichols is from Cambridge, Mass.