Berlin High School Athletic Hall of Fame

Leading up to the Hall of Fame banquet, event, The Citizen is highlighting the Class of 2023.

Aldo Zovich, BHS Class of 1979

Aldo Zovich was a freshman at Berlin High School in 1976 when he went out for the first wrestling team in school history.

“We didn’t have uniforms. We wrestled in cutoff shorts and T-shirts,” Zovich said.

“Our wrestling mats were donated.”

The late Jim Day was an assistant coach on the early teams. He would become head coach and produce nine state team champions and four New England individual champions.

“He’d wrestle with us,” Zovich said of Day. “We’d go full bore -- hard. Then he’d tell you what you did wrong. It was a huge learning experience.”

Day’s influence was key to Zovich’s success. He was cocaptain his last two years and competed in the 157167 weight range, and as a senior went 14-0-1 and placed third in Class M.

John Georgiadis praised his wrestling teammate: “He made people around him better. He practiced and played so hard. A great example to others. He was so friendly.”

Zovich also starred in foot- ball and track. “I was practicing all year,” he said. “I don’t know when I did homework.”

Zovich was a running back in junior high school. But when he got to BHS, coach Al Pelligrinelli had other ideas. He saw Zovich as a perfect pulling guard for his Wing-T offense.

“We pulled a lot and although he wasn’t big, he was quick, agile, used leverage, had great hands and was as fast as some running backs on the other team,” Pelligrinelli said. “Running behind Aldo was a winning position. He made me a better coach.”

Zovich also played on the defensive line.

Zovich was a member of the 1977 team that lost to HandMadison in the Class M title game, 21-16. “It was tough losing, but it was a huge memory, ” he said. He was co-captain on the 1978 team.

See Zovich, A8

“He had lots of guts,” coach Leo Veleas said. “A tough, tough kid. He had the best lefty breaking ball I’ve ever had. He could throw it on any count.”

For the season he struck out 86 in 73 innings.

Left-hander Jesse Carlson (10-1) said one of his best pitches was inside to righthanded hitters: “It was very beneficial. My 3/4 low-arm slot was very deceptive.”

He hit 13 batters saying, “I’d rather hit a guy than have him get a hit off me.”

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In the state tournament, Carlson pitched three games including the semifinal against Fitch-Groton. The Redcoats won 13-0. The game was called after five innings because of the mercy rule. Carlson struck out six.

Three days later against Seymour, Carlson pitched a complete game striking out five, allowing three hits and – hitting four batters.

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Pitcher Matt Young was also dominant with a 7-0 record, 1.43 ERA and 57 strikeouts in 40 innings.

“The season didn’t surprise me, ” Carlson said. “We had a good group of seniors.”

He finished the season with a 0.96 ERA. His lone loss was against Northwest Conference rival Plainville. It was his only loss in high school, American Legion or fall ball. He played at UConn and later professionally for 11 years, including four with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Zovich

From A7

He was also track and field captain his senior year. It was no surprise when he was named “most athletic” in the senior class yearbook. His work in track underscored his versatility. He threw the shot put, ran 100 and 200 dashes and long jumped, getting valuable points for his team.

How many football linemen can do that?

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Zovich, 61, lives in East Hampton and is a co-owner of AMCO Precision Tool in Berlin with his brother Richard.

The Berlin High School Athletic Hall of Fame induction banquet will be held Sunday, April 23 at the Aqua Turf in Plantsville. Tickets are $50. For more information, call 860-546-8614 or email bhshalloffamebanquet@gmail.com.

Consider a health care proxy to empower someone you trust to make health decisions for you if you become incapacitated. A durable financial power of attorney allows someone else to manage your financial affairs, acting on your behalf to pay bills and taxes and also access and manage your assets.

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Editor:

The Marine Corps League, Hardware City Detachment, New Britain is actively looking for new members. You do not have to live in New Britain to be a member. We have members from Bristol, Southington, Berlin, New Britain, Hartford, Manchester, Middletown, Milford, New Haven, Plainville, Portland, Rocky Hill, Tolland and West Hartford.

Our mission is to promote the interest in, and to pre- serve, the traditions of the United States Marine Corps. Our detachment regularly supports local veterans and their families in need and we actively participate in many local celebrations and remembrances. Also, the Hardware City Detachment has a very active “Funeral Honors Unit.”

We meet the first Wednesday of each month at the VFW, 152 Massirio Dr., Berlin, at 6:30 p.m. Please stop in and make some new friends and see what the Marine Corps League is all about.

If you would like to be a part of a dedicated group to help honor our military personnel and veterans and help those veterans who need our help, call or send an e-mail to Sal V. Sena Sr.:

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The Healthy Brain Series runs Wednesdays, March 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29, from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Participants should select one series and are encouraged to attend all five sessions. Topics include: Session 1: Challenge Your Mind Daily: Activities to Keep Your Mind Sharp; Session 2: Feeding the Brain: The Importance of Diet and Hydration; Session 3: Benefits of a Purposeful Life: Finding Meaningful Engagement as You Age; Session 4: Good Sleep and Brain Power: The Importance of Sleep and Your Brain and Session 5: The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest. Presented by a certified dementia specialist. Registration required. Call 1855-442-4373 or go to HartfordHealthCare.org/VirtualClasses.

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Guidelines from the American College of Physicians recommend that the first line of therapy for chronic back pain should be nondrug treatments. Join the class Thursday, March 2, from 2 to 3 p.m. Topics covered will include: defining pain, risk factors and causes, and ways to manage back pain with various approaches, including exercise and physical therapy. Presented by Lisa Murawski, exercise physiologist, GoodLife Fitness. Registration required. Call 1-855-4424373 or go to HartfordHealthCare.org/VirtualClasses.

Local officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Sliceworks on Jan. 25. The new local eatery has something for all tastes, from gourmet pizzas to specialty breads and creative desserts.

A popular dessert is Lucas' Huckleberry cheesecake, a recipe the Meriden resident brought with him from Montana, his former home. “I wanted to bring back a piece of my childhood and share that with my customers,” said Lucas, who along with a business partner, own Illiano’s Ristorante & Pizzeria in Meriden, as well.

Looking back on his earlier days in the pizza business, Lucas said “I made a lot of mistakes, and some of them set me back."

But when he hit his 30s, Lucas said he was ready to give his all to restaurant work. “I had to learn how to be a professional, and then I studied more about stuff in the kitchen,” he said.

While his career road was a windy one, it led him to where he is today.

Soon, Lucas hopes to expand Sliceworks by hosting pizza parties, and maybe selling his pizzas in local grocery stores. Also, he has a goal to open another restaurant, possibly in Southington.

Sliceworks, 1863 Berlin Turnpike, is open seven days a week, 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. The restaurant can be found online at sliceworksct.com.

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