dealership pg 1 3-3-22
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Aerial View
The 12-acre parcel is marked by a yellow border.
Toyota dealership coming to Putnam
Property on Rt. 44 in E.
Putnam sold — twice
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
PUTNAM — Plans have not been solidified yet, but Sean and Michael Putnam, LLC, intends to give all their customers as many local options as possible at the Toyota dealership now slated for 88 Providence Pike.
This is the second sale in three months of the 12-acre parcel on Rt. 44, just east of the Putnam Parkade.
The sale of a parcel of land along East Putnam’s budding “commerce row” was recently filed at Town Hall, twice.
The former Cormier property was sold to Breault Realty III, LLC, for $535,000 in November.
Feb. 22 Breault Realty III, LLC sold the property to Sean and Michael Putnam, LLC, for $1.335 million, according to town clerk records.
Roger Breault signed for Breault Realty III, LLC.
The agent listed for Sean and Michael Putnam, LLC, of Norwell, Mass., is Robert McGee.
Under various companies that group owns 17 dealerships.
The parcel contains a small yellow house, a field adjacent to the house along Rt. 44 and a large undeveloped area directly behind the house and field. The open acreage in the back runs all the way behind the store buildings on the eastern end of the Putnam Parkade.
Directly across from the property are Tractor Supply and a liquor store. Retail stores, a pharmacy, fast food restaurants, banks, and more fill in Rt. 44 on both sides heading west toward I-395.
East of Tractor Supply are car dealerships and a restaurant.
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Centaurs pg 1 3-10-22
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caption, page 2:
Trophy
The Woodstock Academy Blue prep basketball team proudly displays the Power 5 Conference AA tournament trophy, held by coach Denzel Washington, after it posted a win over Springfield Commonwealth Academy in the championship game Marc. Photo courtesy of Denzel Washington.
caption, page 5:
All-Star Award
Four members of the Woodstock Academy boys’ hockey team, from left: freshman goalie Dante Sousa; senior defenseman Chris Thibault, sophomore winger Donnie Sousa and sophomore center Noah Sampson with coach Kevin Bisson, after receiving their Nutmeg Conference All-Star awards prior to their tournament semifinal game with SGWL. Photo by Marc Allard.
Roundup
Centaurs take
Power 5
Conference
AA crown
It was the final game of the season for the Woodstock Blue prep basketball team.
And the Centaurs went out in style.
The third-seeded Centaurs downed No. 4 Springfield Commonwealth Academy, 50-47, in the Power 5 Conference AA tournament championship game March 6.
The Centaurs led the entire game, including 23-16 at the half, but they could never completely pull away from the Tornadoes.
“We knew that whatever the score was, they were going to play hard. We just had to weather the storm. We told the guys not to get too high or too low although it was a very emotional game for some of them because it was their last high school game. We knew we would be OK at the end,” said coach Denzel Washington.
Kunga Tsering led the Centaurs (19-12) with 20 points, four rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Jason Ofcarcik added 10 points, three steals, two rebounds and two assists.
Ofcarcik has been a key for the Blue squad over the last half of the season.
Washington said: “He has been the heart-and-soul of this team He showed his, although he was one of the younger guys, veteran status as far as being here before. This is Year 2 for him and while there are a lot of guys who come in and are stressed about going through certain things, he’s already been through it so he’s been one of the guys to tell everyone what is coming up next.”
Ofcarcik led the Centaurs in the first game of the tournament March 4 as he finished with 13 points, 10 rebounds, four steals and two assists in a 59-49 win over sixth-seeded Hoosac School. Logan Talbot added nine points and four steals in the win.
Woodstock followed that up with a 67-60 win over second-seeded Evangel Christian in the semifinals March 5. Talbot was the top scorer with 15 points to help propel the Centaurs into the championship game.
For the Centaurs, it was a nice way to cap off a season where the team not only battled opponents but injuries and the continued problems of the pandemic.
Many of the Centaur players on both the Gold and Blue prep basketball teams will begin the process of leaving the school as early as this week.
“It’s hard,” Washington said. “You go from getting to know them, to loving them, and wanting to coach them for years to come. Then, it ends and you have to recruit a whole new group for next year. It’s really hard to let them go but I also know that we’ve prepared them to be the best men that they can be. Not just basketball players, but the coaching staff has done a great job preparing them for what is to come afterward. It’s about being great young men, model citizens. Within the next couple of years, these guys will be fathers, which is scary to think, but it’s true. We hope that we’ve prepared them for everything that is to come after Woodstock.”
Gold falls in 1stround:
The Woodstock Academy Gold prep basketball team was knocked out of the Power 5 Conference AAA tournament in the first round March 4.
The Centaurs fell to the Springfield Commonwealth Academy AAA team, 77-65.
Dominic Strother paced Woodstock with 11 points, two rebounds and two steals while Jayshane Woodard added 10 points and two rebounds.
Boys’ Hockey: Centaurs fall in championship game
Sometimes, the puck just doesn’t go into the net.
The Woodstock boys’ hockey team took 44 shots at Eastern Connecticut Eagles goalie Cam McCollum March 5. Only two found their way between the pipes.
As a result, the top-seeded Centaurs fell to the second-seeded Eagles, 3-2, in the Nutmeg Conference championship game.
The Centaurs (14-6) gave it their best shot and the Eagles almost helped.
A tripping call against Eastern Connecticut gave Woodstock the power play for the final 1 minute, 24 seconds of the game.
The Centaurs even bettered the odds by bringing on a sixth skater and pulling goalie Dante Sousa.
They got several chances at the net, the best by sophomore Noah Sampson but as it was all night, the puck bounced harmlessly away with just over a minute to play.
“We got the pole there at the end. We wanted the puck on Noah’s stick and it just hit the post which was unbelievable honestly,” said coach Kevin Bisson.
The Eagles (9-12-1) didn’t wait long to take the lead in the title tilt. Drew Sager slipped one under Dante Sousa’s blocker just 1:04 into the contest. Just 4 ½ minutes later, Eastern Connecticut struck again when Dylan Relaz tallied.
“They caught us flat-footed,” said assistant coach Bob Donahue. “We didn’t come out with the intensity that we were looking for and they did.”
The Centaurs cut the lead in half quickly in the second period when Sampson put in his 18th goal of the season just 20 seconds in.
But the Eagles responded with five minutes left in the second when Anthony Gesino tallied to make it, 3-1.
Like the third period, the opportunities were there.
“We seem to be fighting ourselves in a way,” Bisson said at the end of the second period. “We’ve had some opportunities, two posts at the end right there, and (if they went in), it’s a very different game at this moment in time. We talked about it before the game, what we did before against this team doesn’t really matter. When the stakes are higher, teams find a way to ramp it up and that’s what we need to do.”
The Centaurs had beaten the Eagles, 8-3 in Norwich and 6-4 at home in the regular season.
It looked like things were going to turn around when Donnie Sousa put home his 19th goal of the year off the second assist of the game for Chris Thibault.
But Woodstock just could just not find the equalizer.
“We waited too long,” Bisson said. “We kind of gave them the first period. We fought, we battled, and we gave everything we had right until the final second. It’s unfortunate to have the record we had and everything we’ve done to this point and that’s the way the conference championship played out.”
The Centaurs headed into the Div. II state tournament as the 10th seed. They played No. 7 Trumbull March 8 (the game ended too late for this edition).
The Centaurs advanced to the title game of the Nutmeg Conference tournament with a 4-1 win over Suffield-Granby-Windsor Locks in a semifinal March 3. It was the Centaurs 10th straight win.
Suffield scored first when Dillon Gadzik took a rebound off a Colby Esposito shot and poked it into the Woodstock net just 5 minutes, 55 seconds into the game.
“We kept calm, kept our composure,” said defenseman Chris Thibault.
The Centaurs tied the game with 4:49 left in the first period when freshman Maxx Corradi assisted on a goal by Sampson.
“We tied it up at the end of the first, went into the locker room and assessed and we came out in the second period pretty strong,” Thibault said.
The Wildcats first period goal would prove to be the only one it would get on the night as the Woodstock defense was staunch.
“We got Jeter Darigan back in the lineup (Thursday) after a concussion and we shifted him from forward to defense and have him paired with Chris for the most part. We see them as a good pair, they both have the offensive and defensive skill sets, and it was great to have Jeter back because we’ve lost Brendan Hill (broken hand). Shawn Wallace, a first-year senior for us, had two nice early assists. You’re seeing the contributions come from up-and-down the lineup which is great,” Bisson said.
The Centaurs went ahead for good when Jared Neilsen got the puck to Wallace for the first of those two assists as he sent it to Corradi who put home his 12th goal of the season 4:59 into the second period.
Woodstock got the insurance tally with 14 seconds left in the period when Donnie Sousa tallied off a Wallace assist.
Sampson finished things off with his second goal of the game just 21 seconds into the third period.
In between the two semifinal games, the Nutmeg Conference announced its All-Stars with four members of the Centaurs honored.
Freshman goalie Dante Sousa, sophomores Donnie Sousa and Sampson and Thibault all received first team All-Star plaques.
Girls’ Hockey: Centaurs finish up season
The Woodstock girls’ hockey season ended where first-year head coach Eric Roy’s season did last year — at the Northford Ice Pavilion.
Roy was the former head coach of the Daniel Hand cooperative program and his former team handed his current team a 3-1 loss March 5.
The Centaurs had been on the sidelines since Feb. 19. They came out a little flat and fell behind by three goals.
“We battled in the third period, though. That final 15 minutes was the way to close the season,” Roy said.
Junior Keynila Hochard scored her eighth goal of the season for the Centaurs off assists from Bryn Miller and Sydney Haskins to account for the only goal.
The Centaurs finished the season with a 4-8-2 record.
“I would consider my first season at Woodstock Academy to be a success,” Roy said. “We laid the groundwork for a winning environment; We made the program’s first championship game. Our younger players were able to grow and got lots of minutes. The future of this team is definitely bright. The loss of our five seniors will be tough to overcome because they meant so much to the team but they set a great example for the younger players.”
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
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find pg 1 3-10-22
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Glint of Winter
Mashamoquet Brook, off Taft Pond Road, sparkles in the winter sun. More photos on page 4. What isn't sparkling is the condition of the bridge --- the 3-ton limit is on the bridge again and officials are weighing the options for quick repair. Linda Lemmon photo.
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
POMFRET — Town officials expect to hear from engineers this week on the best and quickest recommendation to get the Taft Pond Road Bridge back on its feet — again.
In December, after state divers found some base material near the southern abutment been washed away, the state wanted the bridge closed. However they allowed the town to instead put a 3-ton limit on the bridge, according to First Selectman Maureen Nicholson.
The bridge had already had a 3-ton limit and had also been closed for an extensive renovation. State officials believe, judging by the tree debris downstream of the bridge, that the July storm had run a tree under the bridge, scraping away the material.
Nicholson said, divers also checked out the Bosworth Road Bridge. Material was also missing there but not as bad, she said. This is a bridge that washes over the road.
“The undermining is not as serious as Taft,” she said.
Because the repair to the Taft Pond Road Bridge needs to be addressed as quickly as possible, Nicholson said she does not believe that any grants could be obtained in time to help. “It needs to be fixed sooner rather than later,” she said.
Two possible federal grant programs out there that could have helped if the timing were better: The Infrastructure and Investment in Jobs Act and the American Rescue Plan Act. Both are federal programs. “The timing on those two isn’t going to match what we need for timing,” she said.
She added, “We’ll talk to the experts on how to fix it. They’ve got better ideas. The town would be looking for fixing not replacement for the Taft Pond Road Bridge. It will probably be a matter of shoring up and filling. “We hope it won’t be expensive.”
Bridges town wide and statewide are experiencing the same problems. Bridges that were built to last another 50 years are not, she believes because of the “volumes of water now going through and the chemicals we’re now using on the roads."
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psa pg 1 3-10-22
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PSA: Here
we come
Nationals
Stop to smell the roses. But know there is one more to go.
That’s how PSA’s boys’ Prep basketball team approached the postgame celebration March 6 after a 96-70 win over Commonwealth Academy in the title game of the Power 5 Conference Tournament.
“It’s a good feeling,” said Arturo Dean, who had 13 points, six assists, and three steals. “Like coach said, enjoy the moment because not everybody gets to celebrate a championship. So we’re excited about it.
“And now we’ll get ready for the National championships. That’s what we want, that’s what we’ve been preparing for all year. We’ve got a good chance to win it, we’ve got a great team. We just have to keep it rolling.”
The target was on the Mustangs’ collective back this weekend, as every team wants to be the one to knock off the top-ranked team in the country. To this point, no one has and PSA stands at 34-0 heading into Nationals, which started this past Tuesday (the semifinals and finals are March 11), at the University of St. Joseph in W. Hartford.
“I’ve never won one of these,” Barry Evans, who finished with seven points and six rebounds. “It feels good to be part of something great. And now it’s on to the Nationals, and try to be part of something great there too.”
PSA, which has made a habit of turning five-point leads into 25-point leads real quick throughout the season, actually found itself in a ballgame in the second half. Commonwealth closed to within 11 at halftime, then trailed just 60-53 with 12-plus minutes to go in the game. Three-and-a-half minutes later though, PSA’s lead was at 22, 75-53, following a monster dunk by Evans and a 3-pointer from Dean.
“I honestly didn’t even know the game had gotten that close,” Dean said. “I thought we were blowing them out the entire game. Coach was like ‘Hey, they’re in the game now’ and I turned and looked at the scoreboard. Time to turn it up.”
Said coach Tom Espinosa: “Any other year, I probably would have been freaking out. But this team is different. They make me feel comfortable. It’s crazy. (Commonwealth) made their run, I knew it was going to happen, and I was OK with it. We took a couple bad shots took a couple plays off defensively. It’s part of the game.
“But 12 minutes is a lot of time left and I was pretty confident we would be all right.”
Desmond Claude led PSA with 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting, and DayDay Gittens added 20 on 7-of-11 shooting. Ugonna Kingsley added 13 points, eight rebounds, and five blocks.
PSA advanced through the tournament with a 98-68 win over Bridgeport Prep in the first round and a 101-45 victory over Redemption Christian Academy in the March 5 semis. Kingsley had 14 points and nine rebounds, and Gittens and Mouhamed Dioubate had 10 points apiece against Bridgeport; Kingsley had 12 points, 12 boards, and four blocks, while Claude had 13 points and Duane Thompson had 11 against Redemption.
Stephen Nalbandian
Sports Information Director
Putnam Science Academy
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