Photo by Greg Wisniewski
ANSONIA — The city will celebrate the Ansonia High School football team by throwing them a victory parade on Saturday (Dec. 17) for scoring its 21st CIAC state football championship.
The Chargers rallied Saturday to defeat Bloomfield 28 – 21 in the Class S championship game held at Arute Field at Central Connecticut State University.
To honor the team, a ‘parade of champions’ will step off at 10:30 a.m. this Saturday (Dec. 17) from the Ansonia Police Station at 65 Main St. and travel along Main Street to Bridge Street. Maple Street to Bridge Street will be closed to traffic, as the winning Chargers and their coaches will be riding atop a truck trailer. The team will stop in front of Ansonia City Hall for a presentation by Mayor David Cassetti. The procession will also include fire, police, EMS and the AHS Cheerleaders and AHS band.
Not only does Saturday’s victory make Ansonia’s football program the most winning in the state since playoffs began in 1976, it also marks a milestone for head coach Tom Brockett, who scored his 7th state title and 193rd career win, tying the record with his mentor, the late Jack Hunt.
The Chargers last clinched the state championship in 2016.
“It’s the best feeling in the world to bring the title back to Ansonia where it belongs,” said senior running back/linebacker David Cassetti, Jr. “This town isn’t called a ‘title town’ for no reason.”
For Cassetti, 17, who is the son of Ansonia Mayor David Cassetti, all the hard work of practicing day and night certainly paid off. Cassetti, who began playing football in third grade, was named game MVP, a title he’s proud to share with his teammates and coaches.
“The whole team and the coaches are the real MVP,” co-captain Cassetti said. “We stepped up once again in the second half of the game through adversity, which sums up our whole season of resilience and belief.”
Mayor Cassetti was cheering his heart out along with busloads of fans during Saturday’s game.
“It was inevitable they had to win a state title,” Cassetti said.
Brockett, who’s been head coach since 2006, couldn’t be more proud of his team and fellow coaches for the win.
“It was tremendous; we have a new group of kids who’ve never been through this from start to finish,” Brockett said. “We were down going into the last quarter, just like our five previous games, but the kids just battled back. They have such a belief in each other. I can’t say enough about their heart. It’s all about everybody working together; we don’t compete with each other.”
Brockett was also thankful for all the fans who turned out for the championship game.
“It felt like everyone one from the entire city came out to support us,” Brockett said.
Superintendent of Schools Joseph DiBacco was one of the super fans cheering his heart out from the stands.
“We have an incredible group of young men with a dedicated coaching staff,” he said. “This was a group of young men that deserved an undefeated season and a state championship. They showed true teamwork, exemplified hard work and showed the state what Charger Strong is all about.”
Cassetti noted that he’s also scored commitments from four area businesses to pay for championship rings (which will cost about $12,000) for all 65 players and coaches, which will be presented to the team at the banquet in March.
