One question can change your life. Just ask Joe LaPorte. In the late 1960s, he was standing in the shadows at Memorial Park, minding his own business while his son Dan raced around the bases during a Little League tryout.…
Category: Sports
Southington Observer Sports Section
Blitzing Bobby; Rob Thomson was hard to stop in high school, college, and coaching
By John Goralski Sports Writer It’s hard to believe, but the Blue Knights had gone almost a full decade without back-to-back winning seasons when coaches welcomed the sophomore class in 1983. That didn’t escape the notice of coaches as they…
Legion wins the zone; Post 72 captures first title in 20 years
By John Goralski Sports Writer A small parade of vehicles floated down the mountain road from Wolcott’s soggy field to the one at Recreation Park. First, a small band of volunteers began to ready the field. Next came the procession…
Gridiron greatness; The 1954 football team was the best of the best
By John Goralski Sports Writer Tom Kirkland centered himself over the football in 1954 like a con artist with a handful of gullible tourists. Now you see it. Now you don’t. Kirkland’s snap would disappear into a swirl of Southington…
Open season; Bill Lee was the first to capture the state crown
By John Goralski Sports Writer A video camera captured Bill Lee in a close-up as he walked off the championship mat at the 1999 state open, and its grainy image captured the key to the Southington grappler’s success. Lee had…
Crushing the opposition; ‘87 softball charged to a state title and a 52-game win streak
By John Goralski Sports Writer Nobody knows what the Danbury girls where thinking when they stepped onto Falcon Field for the 1987 girls softball championship, but they couldn’t have been happy. Just a few months earlier Kris Mach had dashed…
Hall of Fame announces Class of 2012
By John Goralski Sports Writer For more than a century, Eleanor DellaVecchia followed her beloved Yankees as they collected 27 World Series titles, but family and friends find it more than just a coincidence that the Bronx Bombers haven’t won…
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