CHESHIRE — The final seconds were ticking away and Cheshire High defensive back Ryan Connolly seized the moment by standing still and basking in the glory.

“When the final whistle blew, that was just an amazing feeling,” said Connolly after he and the Rams sealed a second-straight CIAC postseason berth with a 24-11 victory over Southington in the 14th annual Apple Valley Classic before an estimated 2,000 fans.

No. 3 Cheshire (9-1) will play at No. 2 Glastonbury (9-1) Tuesday at 6:30 in the Class LL semifinals in a rematch of the 2008 title game when the Tomahawks held on for a 28-14 win.

To advance, Connolly and the Rams’ defense held the potent Blue Knights’ offense, led by quarterback Connor Butkiewicz to just one touchdown and a field goal in preserving Cheshire’s sixth-straight win since a 40-36 loss to Notre Dame of West Haven on Oct. 9.

“We had to stay focused because we knew how good Southington is,” said Connolly. “Southington lost some close games to a few great teams (Glastonbury, 49-46; Windsor, 24-21; and Simsbury, 29-26). Southington’s quarterback is an excellent player and we had to play solid defense.”

When Southington’s Joe Pesce tackled Cheshire quarterback Greg Palmer in the end zone for a safety in the first quarter and a 2-0 lead, that didn’t faze the Rams.

“Our defense got us the momentum back,” noted Palmer. “We just had to stay composed.”

The Cheshire defense stymied two Southington scoring drives in the first quarter and that led two Rams’ touchdowns, the first on a 1-yard plunge by Palmer and a 63-yard TD run by Dan Sweeney on the first play of the second quarter.

Sweeney, the game’s Most Valuable Player, deflected any attention away from himself, like he normally does.

“The blocking was tremendous,” said Sweeney. “I had huge holes to run through because of the line and the receivers.”

Even with a 14-2 edge, the turning point of the game came less than four minutes following Sweeney’s TD. From the Cheshire 17, Palmer threw a fly pattern down the middle of the field to Brian Havlicek. On a muddy, mostly dirt grass field, Havlicek caught the ball in stride near the Southington 40 and sprinted into the end zone for an 83-yard pass play.

“That was the turning point of the game and one of the best passes that Greg has thrown this year,” said Sweeney.

Few could disagree since it came at a most opportune time.

Sophomore Kyle Pulek’s PAT kick and his 24-yard field goal in the closing seconds of the first half, which followed Southington’s Dylan Danko’s 20-yard field goal, gave the Rams a seemingly safe 24-5 halftime edge.

Despite Southington’s  Butkiewicz to Tyler Dube 15-yard TD pass in the third quarter, the Blue Knights couldn’t sustain any long drives and close the deficit further.

“We had the philosophy of 11 hats to the ball,” said sophomore linebacker Dylan Baumgardner, Cheshire’s defensive MVP. “We didn’t give up any game-breaking plays.”

With the exception of the Rams’ lone loss to Notre Dame six weeks ago, they have prevented the game-changing plays. As a result, Cheshire is back in the championship hunt.

“We have amazing team camaraderie and we all stuck by each other,” said Tuscano, who along with Sweeney and Craig Thorne are the Cheshire senior tri-captains. “I am so happy now. I can’t to celebrate with my family.”