The following charges were listed in the Putnam Police Department logs.  The people charged are innocent until proven guilty in court. The Town Crier will publish dispositions of cases at the request of the accused. The dispositions must be accompanied by the proper documentation. The Putnam Police Department confidential Tip Line is 860-963-0000.
Aug. 8
Brandon M. Markowitz, 36, Reynolds Road, Chepachet; disorderly conduct, first-degree criminal trespass.
Aug. 15
Linda Solomakos, 57, School Street, Putnam; disorderly conduct, third-degree assault.
Aug. 18
Alicia Lucey, 28, no certain address; third-degree criminal mischief, disorderly conduct.
Bryce Reck, 20, Calkins Road, Woodstock; operating unregistered motor vehicle.
Aug. 19
Zachary Conley, 22, Ballard Road, Thompson; stop sign violation.
Tony Claitor, 43, Maynard Street, Putnam; disorderly conduct.
Aug. 20
Jesus Caez III, 34, Smith Street, Putnam; creating a  public disturbance.
Aug. 21
Donald J. Lima, 56, Nichols Street, Putnam; two counts of violation of probation.

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caption:

Practice
Above: Woodstock Academy football players Braiden Saucier, right, and Seamus McDermott compete in a drill during practice. Left: Coach Sean Saucier watches his players at practice.


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The 2022-23 school year is right around the corner.
One tell-tale sign took place last week as the Woodstock Academy football team took to the field for its first full week of practice for the upcoming fall season.
And the numbers were good.
“We’re at 60-plus (athletes) and whenever we can get above 50-55, we’re in great shape. I think we’re sitting somewhere around 65 so that’s a nice turnout,” said Woodstock Academy football coach and athletic director Sean Saucier.
Technically, the team began to meet the week before with “Organized Team Activities” or OTA’s as it is better known in the athletic community.
It’s something that the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Ctaconference began to allow last season.
“They are a little awkward because you are kind of starting but kind of not,” Sean Saucier said. “It gives you three days of short, about an hour and a half, practices. It gives you time to deal with the equipment, get up to the field and get organized; set up stretching lines, go through the routine and the nuance stuff that usually distracts teams in the first week of practice.”
Does he love the idea of OTA’s? Not really. “But they are helpful,” Sean Saucier said.
That morphed into full practices as of last Monday and this past Saturday was the first day that football teams could conduct contact drills.
The head coach likes what he has seen as far as the fitness of the group is concerned.
He said 20-30 athletes were in attendance much of the summer for strength and conditioning.
Still, everyone is coming off a few months of summer and that can be challenging.
“It’s tough to get into shape because football is a fall sport and coming back after summer, so there are few people in condition and lots of people lined up along the fence (throwing up). But after the first week, everyone is usually back in the swing of things,” said senior quarterback Braiden Saucier.
The Centaurs are coming off a 7-3 season in which they captured their first-ever ECC Divisional title.
The reward, if it can be considered that, is a boost into Div. I of the conference alongside Norwich Free Academy, Fitch and E. Lyme.
“It’s really not much different to be honest,” Sean Saucier said. “We played two Division I teams last year, this year we play three. That is a little bit of a difference but we’re also not playing all the Division II schools and some of those are really good too. It’s six of one, half-dozen of the other.”
The Centaurs did lose 20 seniors from last year’s team.
“Even though we graduated a lot of seniors, we have 17 back this year and a lot of new kids. Numbers are up and energy is high. We’re feeling good,” Braiden Saucier said.
Braiden Saucier will have one of the tougher assignments.
He replaces Ethan Davis at quarterback.
The southpaw, now at Southern Connecticut State University, threw for 1,526 yards and 18 touchdowns and rushed for 961 and 12 scores last season.
“There’s definitely some pressure,” Braiden Saucier said. “The town of Woodstock is used to seeing good quarterback play at this point. I’ve been working three years of high school for this and I’m confident that I’m ready.”
Braiden Saucier did get some snaps under center last year, throwing for 414 yards and it was valuable experience that he hopes will pay off.
four touchdowns for the Centaurs.
“It definitely did help to see some varsity defenses and getting used to the level of play,” Braiden Saucier said.
In addition to the returners, the Centaurs have also seen an influx of talent, some expected, some not, and that could especially be helpful along the offensive and defensive lines.
“We have some new guys out here that will really contribute so it’s great to see some kids come out who didn’t play in the past,” Sean Saucier said.
Braiden Saucier said: "I think (the line) was where we got hurt the most with seniors graduating like Everett (Michalski) and Huck (Flanagan), basically our whole offensive line graduated and were all key players. Getting some additions improves my confidence at quarterback.”
“I don’t think we’ve lost much confidence or chemistry. This senior class has a ton of experience. I’ve been watching these kids play since they were in youth (football),” Sean Saucer said.
“I have to tell you, there aren’t a ton of holes,” Sean Saucier said. The season begins Sept. 9 at Enfield High School.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy

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caption:
Football Team Shuttle
Members of the Woodstock Academy football team shuttled golfers to the course prior to the 10th annual Centaur Classic Golf Tournament at the Quinnatisset Country Club in Thompson. Photo by Marc Allard.
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caption, page 8:
Hole-in-One
Westbrook resident Rick Atkinson recorded his first-ever hole-in-one.  Photo by Samantha Romero/Woodstock Academy.
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It was a foursome that had traveled up from the Westbrook-area together.
On the way to the Quinnatisset Country Club in Thompson, Rick Atkinson and his three friends had discussed holes-in-one on a golf course.
That’s because Lance Abbott, one of those riding up with Atkinson, had a dream the night before that he was going to get one at The Woodstock Academy’s 10th annual Centaur Classic Golf Tournament.
The dream turned out to be somewhat prophetic with the exception that it was Atkinson and not Abbott who found the hole from the tee box on the par-3 15th hole at Quinnatisset.
“This is my first one,” Atkinson said proudly, standing next to the flag on the 15th hole.
Normally, a hole-in-one is a costly accomplishment for the person who puts it in the hole.
This one turned out to be a rewarding one as Atkinson became the proud recipient of a 1-year lease on a Ford Explorer from Putnam Ford Mercury.
“It took a while to get there,” Atkinson said with a laugh of his shot. “I hit it off to the right a little bit but I have a natural little hook and it bounced off the hill, we saw it going across the green, and then we kind of lost it.”
“It’s the first one that I ever witnessed and it was by accident,” said Brad Favreau who, along with Sean Saucier, organized the event. “I was just driving around, checking on stuff and had stopped at the hole. (Atkinson) hit the shot, it hit the bank perfectly and rolled down and in it goes. They could hear us yelling all the way over to the 18th hole. It was pretty cool.”
It was the first hole-in-one made in the history of the event.
In all, 148 golfers took part in the tournament.
“It all starts with the weather, that’s the key, and it was a beautiful day. It was warm, but not the hottest day of the week. That was a great turnout and everyone left with a good taste in their mouth. Everyone had a good time. It was a great day,” Favreau said.
The group that had the most fun was the quartet of Eric and Luke Whittenburg, Luke Milanese and Rick Dion who finished with a 53, 19 under par.
“Unbelievable,” Favreau said of the winning score.
The foursome eagled a couple of holes, birdied the others and had one par that came at the first hole.
They didn’t win by much.
George Amendar, Jason Gerum, Steve Keller, and Scott Johndrow finished one stroke back. Steve Bordua was closest to the pin on the seventh hole; Steve Whitley had the longest drive for the men, Lynn Converse had the longest drive among the women.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy

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