Spring Sports Recap

CATS PUT TOGETHER SUCCESSFUL SPRING

The Cats had an impressive spring athletic season, one filled with milestones, championships, and plenty of victories.

The Cheshire Academy softball team (above) won their third straight WNEPSA Class B title and fifth league title in the last seven years. A potent offense averaged over 10 runs per game and hit 18 home runs. On the diamond, a young Cats baseball team made its fifth straight WNEPBL playoff appearance.

On the tennis courts, the boys put together a perfect 14-0 regular season and earned the top seed for the NEPSAC Class A tournament. The Cats fell to eventual champion Brunswick in the semifinals. The girls recorded a school-record 47 flight wins and secured a NEPSAC Class B tournament berth.

The Cheshire Academy girls’ lacrosse team won six straight to close out the regular season to reach the Class B Girls Lacrosse Invitational. Also, the girls’ track and field team placed third at the NEPSAC Division III Championship. The Cats broke multiple school and personal records at the meet.

HOLMES ’18 HEADED TO KENTUCKY AFTER BIG YEAR AT PENN STATE

Alexis Holmes ’18 wasted no time establishing herself as one of the nation’s elite runners on the college circuit.

After making an immediate impact as a freshman at Penn State, Holmes transferred to Kentucky. While at Penn State, Holmes won the 400m at the 2019 Big Ten Women’s Indoor Track and Field Championships was named the conference’s freshman of the year. Her time of 52.14s was a school record. She followed by finishing fourth in the event at the NCAA Track and Field Indoor Championships, and her time of 52.37s was the best among freshmen. She was also the only freshman to earn All-American honors.

She went on to represent the United States in July at the Pan-Am Games, where she was part of a 4x400m relay team that broke a World U20 record. Holmes also placed second in the 400m.

At Cheshire Academy, Holmes earned Gatorade Connecticut Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year honors — a first in school history. She set multiple meet records at the NEPSAC Division III outdoor championships and went on to set a meet record in the 400m at the New Balance Outdoor Nationals with a time of 51.21s, the 7th fastest in U.S. history. Holmes was Cheshire Academy’s first female to sign with a Division I track and field program, joining her brother, CJ Holmes ’17, who is a safety for the Penn State football team.

15 FOR ’19 AND 77 IN 7

Cheshire Academy has been a hotbed for producing college football players. Fifteen student-athletes from this year’s graduating class will be on college football rosters in the fall. The list includes: Malachi Burby, Rutgers; Andre Carter, Army West Point; Adam Cohen, UCLA; Josh Comune, Monmouth; Tanner Davis, UMass; Tyler DiIenno, Yale (at right); Jordan Funk, Army West Point; Antonio Giano, New England; Dan Graziano, Salve Regina; Jay LaRosa, Ole Miss; Jared Martino, UMass; Cletus Mathurin, UMass; Max Mazzella, Marist; Bryce Sebastian, Boston College and Matt Trez, Elon.

That brings Cheshire Academy’s total to 77 college football players in the last seven years.

Expect that list to continue to grow with more high-level programs. Jack Brandon ’21 recently received an offer from Ohio State, Jack Roberge ’20 has committed to Amherst, and Wilfredo Aybar ’22 has received offers from several schools, including Michigan and Florida.

JASON CURRY ’91 EARNS JR. NBA COACH OF THE YEAR HONORS

A member of this year’s Cheshire Academy Kevin Slaughter Athletic Hall of Fame class, Jason Curry ’91 was named Jr. NBA Coach of the Year in May.

Curry was honored as the New York Knicks Jr. NBA Coach of the Year at Madison Square Garden on March 9 and was then selected to be one of eight semifinalists for the national award.

Curry is founder and president of Big Apple Basketball, which has been training and mentoring children for 20 years. The nonprofit currently serves 350 kids from ages 7 to 18. Big Apple Basketball hosts events, conducts clinics and offers mentoring, educational and scholarship programs.

The Jr. NBA Coach of the Year award is given to a youth basketball coach in an NBA and WNBA team market who is making a positive impact on children by demonstrating outstanding integrity, character, and leadership. After starring on the basketball team at Cheshire Academy, Curry was a standout guard at Saint Michael’s College and is in the college’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

A FIRST FOR THE CATS

The Cheshire Academy girls’ basketball team made history last winter by reaching the school’s first NEPSAC Class B Tournament. The Cats earned the No. 8 seed and nearly knocked off top-seed St. Luke’s in the opening round. Cheshire Academy led by as many as 11 points in the second half and held a late lead with under 2 minutes, before St. Luke’s pulled out a 56-52 win.

The Cats finished 14-7 for the season. Both a suffocating defense and a well-balanced offensive attack keyed the successful year. Nia Hubbard ’19 and Kyla Raccio ’19 (right) were selected to play in the NEPSAC Class B All-Star game.

ELIJAH PEMBERTON ’16 FEATURED ON SPORTSCENTER

Elijah Pemberton ’16 hit a full-court shot just before halftime of Hofstra’s 85-68 win over James Madison back in January. The 90-foot shot was one of the longest in college basketball history. It was the top play on ESPN’s SportsCenter Top 10 Plays and trended on Twitter.

Pemberton helped lead Hofstra to a 27-8 mark last season and was second on the team with 15 points per game. He averaged 21 points per game for the Cats in 2015-16 and was runnerup at the 2016 American Family Insurance High School Slam Dunk Championship.