Joe Pesce

Southington High School football

J

oe Pesce shrugged

 

off a lineman and

zeroed in on the

Cheshire quarterback. On

Thanksgiving morning,

Pesce was the first to draw

blood. A Blue Knight punt

had trapped Cheshire

inside the one-yard line,

and Pesce’s tackle drew a

safety to open the scoring.

It was the only lead of

the day for the Southington

squad.

“That was what I

thought would be the

beginning of a great

momentum push, and I

think it was,” said

Southington coach Bill

Mella. “It really helped to

get us going, but then

you’ve got to finish.”

Pesce wasn’t finished.

The junior linebacker kept

the Ram offense in check

during their scoreless second

half that helped give

the Knights a chance.

Officials recognized

Pesce after the game as

Southington’s defensive

MVP, but the award was no

surprise to Mella. The

coach has come to depend

upon Pesce as the Knights

battled injuries in the latter

part of the season.

“Joe is a tremendous

athlete, and a great player.

He's done a tremendous

job at outside linebacker,

and he's only a junior,” said

Mella. “I look for the great

things from him to keep

coming. He's a great kid, a

great student, and a great

football player. He's everything

that you could ask for

in a young man.”

For his outstanding

athletic accomplishments,

Pesce is our highlighted

male athlete of the week.

Class:

Junior

 

Junior

 

Reason:

Scored a safety and was named

 

as Southington’s defensive MVP on

Thanksgiving Da

Scored a safety and was named

 

as Southington’s defensive MVP on

Thanksgiving Da