Printer Friendly Version - 2017 Morgan Huskies Spring Year in Review

Senior captain pitcher Cooper Thompson collected a variety of honors for his exceptional performance on the mound with the Morgan baseball team, which won 19 ballgames in John Litevich’s final year as its skipper this spring. Photo by Kelley Fryer/Harbor News

The spring of 2017 at Morgan saw John Litevich step away following 11 successful seasons as head coach of the Huskies’ baseball squad. In other news, the girls’ outdoor track team set a school record during the postseason, while a doubles duo from the boys’ tennis squad made some waves at the State Championship.

The Morgan baseball team posted a record of 19-7 and earned victories in both postseason tournaments during its final season with John Litevich as head coach.

Morgan defeated East Hampton 5-1 in the Shoreline quarterfinals before taking a 6-0 loss to Cromwell in the semis. Then in states, the Huskies posted victories versus Stafford (10-0), Griswold (2-0), and Shepaug Valley (3-0), after which they dropped a 1-0 contest against Lyman Memorial in the semifinal round.

Senior captain ace pitcher Cooper Thompson posted a record of 9-1 with a 0.74 earned-run average and 66 strikeouts. He was named to the All-Shoreline Conference First Team, the Coaches Class S All-State Team, the New Haven Register All-Area Team, and was selected as the Shoreline Conference Pitcher of the Year. Fellow senior captain Madden Ward batted .385 with 32 runs scored and 22 steals to garner All-State and All-Shoreline honors. Senior pitcher John Urban earned a place on the All-Shoreline Conference Second Team with a record of 6-4 with a 1.10 ERA, and he also threw a no-hitter.

Head Coach Scott Chidsey’s team finished with a record of 7-13 this spring. Sophomore Rebecca Shamp led the team with a .464 batting average, while senior pitcher Syd Chomicz added 17 RBI.

The Huskies took sixth place at the Shoreline Conference Championship, where Kate Daley came away with a victory in the 3,200 behind a time of 11:40.13. Daley was also part of the second-place 4x800 relay team with Allison Gardner, Maura Kelly, and Isabella Ranaudo.

At the Class M State Championship, Daley earned gold in the 3,200 with a personal-record time of 11:26.87. Morgan’s 4x800 relay placed third with a school-record time of 10.00.53.

Morgan earned sixth place in the Shoreline Conference Championship meet this year. Bryce Thomas claimed second place in the 200-meter dash for the Huskies.

Morgan went 15-5 and qualified for the Class S State Championship this season. The doubles pairing of Sam Moran and Matthew Newfield made Huskies’ history when they reached the semifinal round of states, marking the furthest that any doubles team advanced at the championship in program history. Morgan was coached by Chris Zawadski.

The Huskies finished the season with a mark of 4-14. Head Coach Sue Cockley’s club earned two wins against East Hampton, as well as one victory versus Old Lyme and North Branford.

The Huskies competed in the Shoreline Conference Championship and finished sixth in the conference standings. Jack Bugg was named All-Shoreline Conference Second Team for Head Coach Eric Bergman’s Huskies. Morgan also competed at the Division IV State Golf Championship and placed 15th.

The Huskies posted a 8-10 record and qualified for the Shoreline Conference Tournament this spring. Head Coach Andy Wrynn’s squad also qualified for the Class S State Tournament.

Morgan went through a rebuilding season in 2017. Head Coach Jim Naccarato’s finished his second year at the helm of the Huskies.