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11/20/2017 11:00 PMThe Valley Regional-Old Lyme football squad clinched a spot in the Class S State Playoffs, while maintaining its grasp on the Principal’s Cup and winning a division title to boot with a 22-7 victory at Haddam-Killingworth on Nov. 17. This marks the sixth time in eight seasons that the Warriors have qualified for the playoffs, and they’ve now defeated division rival H-K six straight years in the teams’ annual battle for the Principal’s Cup. Valley-Old Lyme finished the regular season with a record of 9-1 and went 7-1 in the Pequot League’s Sassacus Division to share the top spot with Cromwell-Portland, which the Warriors defeated 34-28 in overtime on Oct. 27.
Valley Regional-Old Lyme is the No. 6 seed in the Class S State Playoffs and played at No. 3 seed Rocky Hill (10-0) in the quarterfinals on Nov. 28 (after press time). Head Coach Tim King feels proud that the Warriors have cemented another playoff berth after reaching the state semifinals last fall. Even though Valley-Old Lyme has had plenty of success in recent years, the significance of making the playoffs in any season is appreciated by Coach King and his team.
“It’s always amazing to get to the playoffs. It’s something that you hope to do. I’ve been coaching here quite a few years. The first 15, 16 years, I never even had a chance to smell the playoffs. Now since 2010, this is our sixth time going to the playoffs,” said Coach King, who’s in his 21st season at the helm. “It’s an exciting thing. It’s one of the main goals at the beginning of the year. You want a winning record, then the Principal’s Cup, then win the Pequot, then make the playoffs. This is one more step we’ve accomplished along the way for these kids.”
Fresh off a 14-7 victory that put a significant crimp in Old Saybrook-Westbrook’s playoff hopes, H-K scored the first touchdown of the night in the opening quarter with a goal-line run and successful point-after attempt to take a 7-0 lead against Coach King’s club. In the second quarter, Warriors’ junior Jae’len Arnum caught a 12-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Mike Cullina to put six on the board for the Warriors. Sophomore Brian Funk kicked the first of his two extra points to tie the game at 7-7. After getting the ball back, Valley-Old Lyme made another push down the field and, upon reaching the red zone, Cullina connected with senior Ernest Jean-Pierre on a 9-yard TD touchdown pass for a 14-7 advantage at the half.
The score remained that way through a scoreless third quarter. Then in the fourth quarter, the Warriors made it a two-score game when Cullina took one into the end zone from a yard out with just less than four minutes to play. Following a 2-point conversion pass from Cullina to senior Cole Ensinger, the final tally of 22-7 was set in stone.
Coach King said the Warriors’ strong play on defense proved integral in their win over Haddam-Killingworth (6-4, 5-3). King also felt that his offense would see success as long as the offensive line was able to hold back the Cougars’ pass rush. That’s why Valley got back to basics in its O-line’s practice drills last week.
“Going in, we knew that the big thing was to stop them defensively. We’ve been able to put points on the board. When you have some good athletes out there, it helps on offense,” said King. “We did a lot more one-on-ones for the offensive line for pass protection. We went back to that. That paid off. Mike had some time to throw.”
Cullina used his time well by completing 16-of-28 attempts for 267 yards and two touchdowns to go with his touchdown on the ground. The QB’s primary target was junior Jason O’Brien, who reeled in five receptions for 102 yards. Jean-Pierre had three receptions for 67 yards and a score. The Warriors’ running game saw five players combine for 74 yards, led by senior Jason Kruszewski with six carries for 39 yards.
Valley’s defense focused on Haddam-Killingworth’s double-wingback formation and was designed to stop the Cougars’ rushers from turning the corner near the sidelines. That strategy paid major dividends for the Warriors.
“Pretty much we wanted to try to contain them from getting outside,” Coach King said. “After watching a lot of the film, they get outside on a lot of teams and run a counter. If we could stop them outside, then we had to play cut back. Then the defense had to come down the line for that, and they did it. They did a pretty good job of that.”
Some of the strong performers for Valley-Old Lyme’s defense were senior Blair Allen, who led the squad with 15 tackles; and Kruszewski, who had 11. Jean-Pierre and junior Ben Falivene each had 10 tackles, senior John Balocca made eight tackles that included three for a loss, senior Roan Sullivan also had eight tackles, and senior Jud O’Brien added seven tackles. Additionally, senior Josh Donahue forced a fumble in the victory.
As usual, the Warriors pulled off their big win against H-K by performing in all facets of the game. Coach King said that’s something his team prides itself on.
“It’s the mentality of our kids. They know we’re a team, and we’re not individuals,” he said. “We don’t have one side of the ball. We’re one unit, and we really concentrate on being that one team—special teams, as well. For the most part, we’ve done a great job.”
King knows the Warriors still have a lot work ahead of them to shore up some areas that have room for improvement as the postseason approaches. The playoffs are a different beast where there’s little margin for error, and now Valley-Old Lyme is looking to follow up its accomplishment of making the tournament by doing some damage once they get there.
“The competition is tenfold when you start playing in the playoffs. These teams have played good teams all year. You can’t afford to make a mistake. We have to clean up our turnovers and our penalties.
In the playoffs, you do that, and it’s a quick exit,” said King. “It is exciting and, when you think about it, we’re one of the last eight teams in Class S to be standing. You know, that’s kind of impressive.”
• If Valley-Old Lyme wins its Class S State Playoff quarterfinal game against Rocky Hill, the Warriors would face the winner of No. 2 seed St. Joseph (9-1) and No. 7 O’Brien Tech (8-2) in the semifinals on Sunday, Dec. 3. On the other side of the bracket, top-seeded Ansonia (10-0) is facing No. 8 Seymour (8-2), and No. 4 Bullard Havens Tech (9-1) will play No. 5 seed Stafford-East Windsor-Somers. The championship game is on Saturday, Dec. 9.
• The Warriors’ nine regular-season wins this year came against Ellington (33-7), Morgan (48-7), Coginchaug/Hale-Ray (41-13), Nonnewaug (48-0), North Branford (23-0), Cromwell-Portland (34-28 in overtime), Rockville (28-6), Lewis Mills (35-3), and Haddam-Killingworth (22-7). Valley’s sole loss came against Old Saybrook-Westbrook (34-13). With the exception of Rockville and Lewis Mills, these were all Pequot League Sassacus Division games for Valley-Old Lyme.