All-Decade: Woodland top 5 teams, games and plays

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Woodland’s Anna Khalid celebrates with her teammates after winning the Class M volleyball championship at Berlin High in 2013. –REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN

Top five teams

  1. 2013 Volleyball

Led by Class M MVP Brianna Pacileo, All-NVL setter Samantha Lee and a terrific defense, Woodland went 24-1 and won the Class M title with a 3-1 over Foran. It was the first state volleyball title for an NVL team in 35 years.

  1. 2013 Football

A record-setting offense led by Tanner Kingsley, who broke the state record for career passing TDs with 113, helped Woodland reach the Class S and NVL championship games. Both times the Hawks lost to Ansonia, the state’s No. 1-ranked team.

  1. 2012 Boys Outdoor Track

Woodland finished as the Class M runner-up and NVL champion each year from 2012-14, but this squad was loaded with seven All-State athletes and a 4×400 relay team that still holds the Class M record in the event (and went All-New England).

  1. 2015 Girls Soccer

Not only did the Hawks win their first NVL title since 2004 (in a thrilling comeback, no less), but Woodland reached its first-ever Class M semifinal before losing in penalty kicks to Enfield. The Hawks finished 20-1-1 thanks to Alexa Casimiro and Co.

  1. 2012 Volleyball

The Hawks’ 2013 state title may not have been possible without the trailblazing 2012 squad that reached the Class M final before falling to Ledyard. It was the school’s first trip to a state final since 2005. Woodland finished 20-4.

Woodland quarterback Tanner Kingsley (7) and assistant coach Jake Pinho celebrate after a touchdown against Naugatuck in Beacon Falls in 2013. –CITIZEN’S NEWS

Top five games

  1. Football vs. Naugatuck (2013)

One of the most emotional nights in school history happened on Oct. 4, 2013, when Woodland outlasted Naugatuck, 25-22, before 2,000 fans to win the inaugural George Pinho Trophy Game just nine months after Pinho’s untimely passing.

  1. Girls Soccer vs. Watertown (2015)

Facing a 1-0 deficit late in regulation, Sam Plasky cleaned up a rebound to force overtime in the NVL final against Watertown. With 58 seconds left in the first OT, Jess Rodrigues chipped a ball at the left post to score the winner in a 2-1 classic.

  1. Boys Soccer vs. Watertown (2011)

A tight-knit group of seniors reversed years of struggles to topple Watertown, 2-1, for the program’s first NVL title. Eric Dietz forged a 1-1 tie in the 51st minute before Matt Moutinho’s game-winning header from Rich Vadala with 7:23 remaining.

  1. Girls Basketball vs. Waterford (2011)

Heather Framski snatched an offensive rebound and hit a turnaround three-footer that circled the rim before falling with three seconds left in a 64-63 win over Waterford in the Class M first round. Framski netted a school-record 37 points.

  1. Football vs. Capital Prep (2012)

Woodland rallied from a 16-point deficit midway through the third quarter to beat Capital Prep, 37-35, in the Class S quarterfinals. Tanner Kingsley’s 47-yard pass to Jack Pinho with a minute left sealed the wild comeback victory.

Woodland’s Jessica Rodrigues (23) is congratulated by teammate Alexa Casimiro (17) after scoring the game-winning goal during the NVL girls soccer tournament final against Watertown in 2015. –REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN

Top five plays

  1. 4×400 relay’s Class M record (2012)

Nick LaPerriere, Jon Alarcon, Tim Madormo and Eric Dietz ran a time of 3:21.48 at the Class M championships to smash the previous class record by 2.39 seconds. That record still stands for the group that eventually went All-New England.

  1. Rodrigues’ NVL-winning goal (2015)

With 58 seconds left in the first overtime period of a tense NVL final against Watertown, Jess Rodrigues slid near the left post and booted a shot that deflected off Watertown’s keeper and dribbled into the net. Woodland held on for the 2-1 win.

  1. Moutinho’s NVL-winning header (2011)

Matt Moutinho, the son of longtime Woodland coach Tony Moutinho, connected on a header off Rich Vadala’s corner kick in the 73rd minute for the go-ahead goal in the Hawks’ first NVL championship appearance. They held on for a 2-1 victory.

  1. Poeta’s 4th-quarter TD and pick (2013)

Joe Poeta hauled in a 12-yard touchdown pass from Tanner Kingsley to give Woodland a 30-20 lead with 8:06 left in a Class S semifinal against Bloomfield. The Warhawks rallied, but Poeta’s interception with 46 seconds left sealed a 30-26 win.

  1. Alfiere’s NVL-winning home run (2010)

Just 15 days after undergoing an emergency appendectomy, Katie Alfiere allowed one earned run and drove in all four Woodland runs — including the game-winning two-run homer in the fifth — as the Hawks beat Seymour, 4-2, for their first NVL title.