Bringing Back

One Book, One

Community By Emma Dutil

This year, the East Catholic community is

reading The Hate Y ou Give by Angie Thomas,

which was chosen to reflect this year’s school

theme of inclusion. The theme of inclusion means

that despite our differences, everyone should treat

others kindly and equally in the East Catholic com-

munity.

Starr, the protagonist of The Hate Y ou Give,

is a black student going to a prep school called Wil-

liamson Prep. This is hard for Starr because the

community is predominantly white and she feels

the need to hide her true identity as she navigates

two worlds. This book is relevant in the East Cath-

olic community because it invites students to recog-

nize themselves in different characters and reinforc-

es the need to listen to each other’s experiences.

Through learning empathy, we can look out for

each other and work to create a more inclusive

community.

In regards to the increasing opportunities to

support our own students of color, President Sean

Brennan ‘85 invited seniors Mackenzie Talavera

and Jencih Manhertz to speak at the orientation ses-

sions for each class at the beginning of the school

year. Their thoughtful speeches raised awareness

about micro-aggressions, implicit biases and other

barriers to full inclusion in our community. This

ties back into the theme of inclusion, announced by

President Brennan as the theme for the year. The

study Thomas’ novel is a further step forward for

East , giving students opportunity to educate them-

selves about the injustices toward people of color in

our society today, and diversifying the curricu-

lum. By reading this book, we can reinforce the

importance of inclusion for all within our commu-

nity.

Teachers have been provided background

information about topics such as Black Panther

Party and their Ten-Point Program, Emmett Till,

Tupac, and Malcom X, as they focused on the

novel. The English Department has done a great

job in tying these historical connections to the

events in the text, as well as events occurring in

today’s society. They have facilitated challeng-

ing conversations about race, inclusion, and di-

versity to ensure all voices are heard.

Finally, the book adds light to our commu-

nity and faith at East Catholic as it discusses the

importance of friends and morality. For exam-

ple, Starr and Maya learn to stick up for them

selves when confronted with their friend Hai-

ley’s ignorant remarks. One way they do this is

by calling out her racist statements about Kha-

lil’s death. By reading this book, students can

learn to stick up for each other when injustice is

seen. When we trust and hold each other ac-

countable, we are creating an inclusive commu-

nity where everyone can feel comfortable and

safe. Through reading this book, East Catholic

students will be able to grow in this year’s theme

of inclusion and build on the foundation of our

faithful community.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE...

East Updates:

Pages 2-3

Crossword:

Page 7

Sports:

Page 9-10

East Catholic High Observer

E C H O Online Vol. III No. 1

Shout-Outs and School Highlights Faculty: Ms. Gina Burby was recently awarded the Light of Chr ist Award from

the Archdiocese of Hartford. This award recognizes and celebrates the excellence of

teachers who have contributed to their schools through continual devotion to the aca-

demic achievement of their students.

School: Back-to-school night was held virtually

through Google Meet links this year on October 14th,

showing that no matter the circumstance, East Catholic

strives to reach out to the community. Also, the Walk-a-

thon fundraising has started with the walk itself occur

ring Friday, November 6th. This will be covered in the

next edition of the ECHO!

Academics: East Catholic senior Jake Phelan has been named a Commended Student through

the National Merit Scholarship Program based on his PSAT/NMSQT scores that

showed tremendous academic promise.

Music: Juniors Emma Ter lizzi and Lindsey Wearne have been accepted into

The Hartt Preparatory Academy and The Greater Hartford Youth Wind Ensemble.

Also, sophomore Julia Vieira Reis has been selected to join the CT Youth Sympho-

ny and Suzuki string orchestra Opus at Hartt School of Music’s Community Divi-

sion.

New

Administration

at East By Farah Suede

Coming into this new academic year, East Catho-

lic has gained multiple new faculty and administration

members in various departments, specifically gaining

a new President and Dean of Student Life. Previously,

East’s administrative structure included the Head of

School, Principal, and Vice-Principal. This year, East

has moved to a new structure, with positions of Presi-

dent, Dean of Student Life, and Dean of Academics.

Ms. Susan Perillo has maintained her position in ad-

ministration, now serving as Dean of Academics. The

Dean of Student Life, Ms. Jan Reilly, has taught

Spanish and served as World Language Department

Chair at East for many years. The new President,

Sean Brennan, comes from a previous administrative

position from Austin Preparatory School in Reading,

Massachusetts.

President Brennan ensures that all students re-

ceives the academic support they need, and works to

manage the school’s finances and keep the school

within the correct health and safety guidelines. He

also oversees the school on behalf of the Archdiocese

of Hartford. Though President Brennan is new to the

school’s administration, he is no newcomer to East

Catholic and its community, having graduated from

East in 1985. Returning to our school was a conscious

decision on President Brennan’s part to pay forward

the wonderful experience to the next generation that

he had when he attended. With over 32 years of

teaching and educational experiences in his repertoire,

President Brennan is uniquely poised to help our com-

munity through the challenges of the strange year

ahead of us, specifically the challenges stemming

from the pandemic by keeping our school community

within the recommended CDC health and safety pro-

tocols. He has also instrumental in bringing back One

Book, One Community at East Catholic. Welcome

back to the East Catholic community, Mr. Brennan!

Mrs. Reilly’s

Return By Khang Dang

East Catholic welcomes

back Math teacher and cross

country coach, Mrs. Kathy

O’Neill Reilly, Class of ‘83. She

became a teacher to help stu-

dents acknowledge their poten-

tial in math and gain confidence

in what they can do. What she

likes most about the school is the community of peo-

ple that have been here. She admires that teachers

have always made their students feel comfortable as

they learn through kindness. She enjoys seeing how

students can grow and understand their work, and

when they find confidence and feel proud of them-

selves for understanding material. By the end of the

year, Mrs. Reilly wants her students to grab a news-

paper and understand the graphs and statistics in it

because it will help them understand what they are

reading and analyzing. Furthermore, she wants to pro-

vide a PSAT/SAT prep course to provide advice and

tips for it. In regards to her classes this year, she en-

joys creating real-life warm up questions, graphs and

headlines that are shown from the news, and then dis-

cussing if the graph is helpful and accurately showing

information.

Acknowledging that she has been connected to

East Catholic for a while, Mrs. Reilly states it is a

good place to be back at, remembering her time as a

student in Algebra 1 with Ms. Romano, throwing

javelin on the upper field, and meeting the person

whom she later married at a Cross Country bake sale.

When she is not coaching and teaching, she likes to

have a backyard full of kids playing lacrosse, football,

or ice skating, because it helps her feel refreshed

when she sees kids create rules, organize what they

are doing, create their teams, and work out their dif-

ferences. She also enjoys gardening, biking, and

spray painting.

Mrs. Reilly graduated from Albright College in

Reading, PA in 1987, where she received a B.S. in

Math, with a minor in Education. She later graduated

from Springfield College in 1992, where she received

a M.Ed. in Sports Injury Prevention and Management

and became a Certified Athletic Trainer. She looks up

to her mother, admiring how her mother raised a fam-

ily of four and remembering when her mother would

be with her children at the kitchen table, teaching

them how to do math. Mrs. Reilly saw her mother

teach her own grandchildren and children of neigh-

bors, teaching her a lesson about hard work and the

importance of practicing.

Some advice that Mrs. Reilly has to juniors and

seniors is to work hard in school consistently on a

daily basis, apply to different colleges, and trust in

God’s plan that they will end up where they are meant

to be. When the applications are sent in, avoid stress,

relax and trust in God. God has a plan for all people

so there is no need to be afraid of the college process.

We are excited to have her back!

The Aeneid of a

Latin Teacher

By Alison E. Jarmoszko

There is a new Latin

teacher in school, and

his name is Kevin

McGinnis. This is not

his only teaching posi-

tion for the school year,

as he also teaches Latin classes at Stonehill College.

His favorite part of teaching is when he connects

with his students because of his background in

counseling. His educational background consists of

a Master’s in Educational Psychology and Counsel-

ing: Student Development in Higher Education

from California State University at Long Beach, a

Bachelor's Degree in Religious Studies and Classi-

cal Studies, with a focus on Latin, from the Univer-

sity of California San Diego for a Bachelor's De-

gree, and a Master’s in Religious Studies from

Brown University. He also went to Claremont

Graduate University to get his PHD in Religious

Studies, with a focus on the New Testament.

He prioritizes students feeling safe in the

classroom, especially during the pandemic, and

hopes to utilize a new textbook for the students to

use next year. Also, Mr. McGinnis wants to set up a

murder mystery game that would be year-long task

for students to complete, but needs to make sure the

students have a strong base in the language in order

to do that. Until then, he enjoys reading daily reflec-

tions, which are assignments that have a quote that

students reflect on and tell their thoughts about it.

Furthermore, Mr. McGinnis says that his fa-

vorite thing about East Catholic so far are the peo-

ple. He has said everyone is very nice and support-

ive. When he is not at East, he enjoys disc golfing

and spending time with his family, which include his

wife, three step-children, and two dogs. One of his

dogs is actually named Lexi, after Alexander The

Great. He really looks up to his wife because she

works with middle school students that have with of

behavioral and emotional needs, noting she has an

enormous amount of energy to be able to help those

students, and she also just ran her 20th marathon.

Moreover, Mr. McGinnis wants the student

body to know that the values of social justice and

inclusion are important to him. Those values are

why he is in teaching and Latin can be a way to dis-

cuss these issues. He advises the juniors and seniors

looking at colleges to trust how they feel about the

campus when touring, claiming, “Your feel for a

campus is more important than you realize. Living

on campus is an irreplaceable experience.”

2 East Updates

Hola Mr.

Mantequilla! By Emma Dutil

East Catholic is very ex-

cited to welcome Mr.

Butter as the new Spanish

teacher. Mr. Butter grad-

uated from Castleton Uni-

versity in Vermont with a

degree in Physical Educa-

tion and Spanish. At col-

lege, he was inspired by his advisor who was al-

ways there for her students and made time for

everyone. In his free time, Mr. Butter likes to play

and coach soccer. He was motivated to teach at

East Catholic because his friend is an ECHS alum

who always had positive things to say about the

East community, and a Spanish position opened

up. He is very excited to be the new Spanish teach-

er this year and is looking forward to working with

his students and getting to know the nature of the

community. One thing that he looks forward to

Spanish projects because he likes the students to be

creative and the ability to learn more about

them. He has learned so far that not every class

has the same dynamic to it and is unique in its own

way. He hopes that by the end of the year he will

have worked out all the kinks and be ready for an-

other successful year.

No(ah) Way– A

New Science

Teacher By Khang Dang

A new Science teacher, Mr. Noah Leonard,

is now teaching Anatomy

and Physiology and Biol-

ogy at East, with ambition

to help his students be on

the right way to achieve-

ment and success. With a

major in Physiology and

Neurobiology from

UCONN, Mr. Leonard has strived to become a

teacher to help students acknowledge and be suc-

cessful in their studies. He is a recent graduate of

East Catholic, having graduated about five years

ago, and is glad to be back. He describes the experi-

ence as being different as a student compared to as

a teacher. “There is a difference between the per-

spective of a student, who is being taught, and a

teacher, who is teaching,” he says. Teaching is fun,

according to Mr. Leonard, because he likes to see

when students believe that they can acknowledge

and understand material that initially came off

confusing and difficult, finally seeing that spark

of inspiration. This moment of when students

understand the material also aligns with his

hopes as a teacher.

The achievement that Mr. Leonard

wants students to see can be within the assign-

ments he gives. The tasks he enjoys assigning

are open-ended questions and long-response

questions because it is good to see them

acknowledge the material that they understand

with that. However, something that surprised

Mr. Leonard was the collaboration between the

students and the teacher, the speed of their in-

teractions, and the bonds that they create

through classroom environments.

According to Mr. Leonard, teaching is en-

joyable when focusing on others being success-

ful. The person Mr. Leonard looks up to is Ms.

Milas, encouraging him and helping him be-

come interested in Biology, leading to his de-

gree in the subject. Ms. Milas also encouraged

him when discussing things to do during free

time. For example, when Mr. Leonard has free

time, he often likes bird-watching. Mr. Leonard

and other students went bird-watching in May

with Ms. Milas, sparking his interest in that.

Lastly, Mr. Leonard has a lot of advice to

give about colleges, such as how getting into

college is the most stressful part and to help not

get overwhelmed, ask for help from teachers.

Overall, we welcome Mr. Leonard back to East

Catholic and we are glad to have you back in

the community!

There is

Nothing Brash

About Ms.

Brasche By Khang Dang

A teacher

known for her talent

and skill in arts,

Heather Brasche, has

become a teacher that

teaches Fine Arts in

the school. Ms.

Brasche went to WCSU (Western Connecticut)

and received a Bachelor’s degree in Illustration

and Photography, as well as a Masters in Fine

Arts. She is ambitious, motivated, and deter-

mined to help students become slowly confident

in themselves and understand that they have

potential to be good even if they doubt them-

selves. The favorite aspect she likes about

teaching is watching the confidence increase in

her students as they grow. When she gets stu-

dents who doubt themselves, she believes that

when they draw and practice, she sees that

spark of determination in them, making her feel

proud as she watches them become proud of

themselves.

The assignments she likes to give balance

traditional skill with personal expression be-

cause it teaches the lesson while still being en-

gaging. She has hopes to solidify her curriculum

and make fine art classes a full-credit instead of

half, claiming it would help students learn and

not quickly rush them to understand all of their

material that they are learning and trying to un-

derstand. She also wants to bring back the Na-

tional Art Honors Society (NAHS) and develop

students’ confidence in themselves and to re-

gain that spark of interest in art. Ms. Brasche

found the camaraderie of the school to be her

favorite part of the school because they are

warm and kind to her where they help her feel

welcome and comfortable with that. She under-

stands how much students want to be inspired

and go beyond their boundaries, and be respect-

ed and comfortable.

For Ms. Brasche, many teachers inspired

her to become a teacher. Ms. Brasche does art

in her free time and loves to go hiking and be-

ing active with her dog because she feels being

outside is good for one’s health. Advice that she

has for students who are looking at colleges is

to look at the classes colleges offer and think

about how these courses will help pay such an

investment back. Ms. Brasche is ambitious and

we are glad to have her!

Rev. Jaime

Maldonado- Avilés

East Catholic welcomes Rev. Jaime Maldonado

-Aviles to the community as the new chaplain.

He became a priest in June 2020 and previously

studied biology at the University of Puerto Ri-

co. While at the university, he was able to earn

a fellowship through National Institutes of

Health. He later earned a doctorate at University

of Pittsburgh and completed a post-graduate

program at Yale. He is at East every Tuesday

morning for weekly mass.

East Updates Cont. 3

Stage East’s

New Plans By Morgan Frye

This year because of Covid-19, Stage East is

doing things a little bit differently. Instead of

having one of their fantastic fall plays, they are

running workshops each week for all to at-

tend. The first workshop, a miming and prop

workshop, was held on October 6th. Students

who attended brought various items to use as a

prop, such as a potato, water bottle, or fan, and

they used these items to play a part of a character

they invented.

Additional workshops consisted of im-

prov games on October 20th and character analy-

sis on October 27th. Upcoming workshops in-

clude improving one's monologues on November

2nd, learning to tap away for beginners and in-

termediates on November 9th, improving one’s

tapping skills on November 10th (advanced), and

“getting those jazz hands ready” on November

16th with Broadway jazz for beginners and inter-

mediates, with advanced dancers meeting on No-

vember 17th. Next, on November 23rd and 24th,

the second installment of improv games is being

held. All of these fun and exciting workshops

are held at 2:15- 3:00pm unless otherwise an-

nounced

Stage East is a wonderful community and

for those who have an interest in acting, but pre-

viously lacked the timeto make the commitment,

now is the chance to get involved with this pro-

gram. Students may also contact Mrs.

Quackenbush at quackenbushj@echs.com if they

are interested in helping out at the workshops

(except for advanced dance lessons). Students

with questions about the fall workshops or the

alternate plans of the spring musical may contact

Stage East’s director, Mrs. Quackenbush, or

stage manager Katrina Erwin.

Book Club By Emma Dutil

Emma Dutil and Emma Maselli are excited

to announce that the book club is open for a sec-

ond year. Our proctor is Mrs. Miller who is an

amazing English teacher with a love for her stu-

dents and the community. This year, our first

book of focus is Night Circus, with the second

text being Orphan Train. Other books members

suggested to read this year include The Giver,

Never World Wake, The Help, Where the Craw-

dad’s Sing, Will Grayson Will Grayson, Legend,

Darius the Great, Scythe, and Turtles all the

Way Down. These books are important to discuss

in a book club setting, as they vary from heavy to

light topics and present many relevant themes

(culture, racism, society and conformity, mental

illness, bullying, and much more!). We are dedi-

cated to creating a welcoming, kind, and accept-

ing community where everyone feels comforta-

ble and can share their ideas. We hope that you

will join the Book Club and find a love of read-

ing and sharing with others. As Barack Obama

once said, “Reading is the gateway skill that

makes all other learning possible”. The next

meeting will be in Mid-November. Please reach

out to Emma Maselli or Emma Dutil for more

information.

Mock Trial By Farah Suede

Although later than usual, East Catholic

High School’s mock trial teams have sprung into

action to take on the case presented this year by

Civics First CT. Over the past few meetings, club

members have read through the case’s statements

and began creating angles to take and points to

argue. Though the format of the competitions will

significantly be changed to accommodate the

health and safety guidelines regarding Covid-19,

the core of mock trial remains the same. Two

teams of three witnesses and three attorneys each

have been created, one coined the Defense and

the other the Prosecution. The team for the de-

fense consists of juniors Taylah Pickering and

myself, and senior Christine Duah as the attor-

neys defending the accused. The second team

which will be acting as the prosecution consists of

seniors Matthew Levin and Maddie Fischer,

paired with sophomore Chadeon Rosemond. Over

the next couple of weeks, the attorneys on each

team will begin preparing a set of direct questions

and a set of cross examination questions for their

respective witnesses. These questions allow the

attorneys to tell the story from their perspective to

the judge and the jury, with attorneys aiming to

convince the two of the truth to their timeline and

exhibits. From there, the attorneys and witnesses

will then begin drilling over these questions to

cement their ability to know the case. Once all of

this is completed, our two teams will be compet-

ing against other schools in the Connecticut quali-

fying competitions for a mock trial in January.

Robotics Team By Alison E.

Jarmoszko

Over the sum-

mer, two sophomores

were making masks

for healthcare work-

ers. These two stu-

dents were Jonah

Hornak and Rishi

Mallepally, two members of East’s robotics team.

The robotics team let them borrow 3D printers to

make the masks. Then, the masks were donated to

a local hospital to be distributed. To learn more,

go to https://www.fox61.com/article/news/health/

coronavirus/using-robotics-talents-student-helps-

ct-frontline-workers/520-653bac14-9a9c-437e-

9eb5-11500c6baf34 or https://www.frc7153.com/

outreach.

The Hate U

Give By Farah Suede

East Catholic has brought back its tradition of

One Book, One Community this academic year

and it has been centered around the novel The

Hate You Give by Angie Thomas. This is a novel

that tells the story of a black teenage girl who

grapples with the realities of racism within mod-

ern-day America. Aspects of this novel have

been reflected within our own school community

this past year, as we have been confronted with

the uncomfortable effects of prejudices. To re-

solve this, two students from the class of 2021,

Mackenzie Talavera and Jencih Manhertz, took

initiative this year to tackle and discuss challeng-

ing racial issues. These seniors have also found-

ed the Student of Color Union at East, which

aims to create a safe environment for students of

color as well as a space to educate others on

these challenging racial experiences and issues.

Working with the new administration this sum-

mer, Mackenzie and Jencih hope to graduate

with a tradition of ongoing discussions and con-

versations between students of all racial and eth-

nic groups at SOC Union sponsored events.

Mackenzie and Jencih offer their personal per-

spectives and both are committed to bringing our

school community into better understanding of

how to be allies for students of color at East. The

two young women were originally motivated by

the events that took place in our nation and our

state in the past six months, taking an opportuni-

ty to step up and be the leaders in our school’s

role in the community’s activism.

4 Extra-Curricular

mailto:quackenbushj@echs.comhttps://www.fox61.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/using-robotics-talents-student-helps-ct-frontline-workers/520-653bac14-9a9c-437e-9eb5-11500c6baf34https://www.fox61.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/using-robotics-talents-student-helps-ct-frontline-workers/520-653bac14-9a9c-437e-9eb5-11500c6baf34https://www.fox61.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/using-robotics-talents-student-helps-ct-frontline-workers/520-653bac14-9a9c-437e-9eb5-11500c6baf34https://www.fox61.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/using-robotics-talents-student-helps-ct-frontline-workers/520-653bac14-9a9c-437e-9eb5-11500c6baf34https://www.frc7153.com/outreachhttps://www.frc7153.com/outreach

Academic and

Book Awards By Morgan Frye

After the cancellation of the spring Book

Awards and Academic Awards ceremony last spring,

East Catholic has finally honored all students who

earned them by hosting the ceremony on October 8th

and 9th, 2020. Honorees from the class of 2021 re-

ceived book awards from various colleges and uni-

versities and academic

awards from their classes

the year before.

Every year sopho-

mores, juniors, and seniors

come together to celebrate

these great academic

achievements. The two

award ceremonies, in

which everyone was appro-

priately distanced, were

livestreamed for all family

members so all could enjoy

the ceremony. On October 8th, first period was

dedicated to those receiving Book Awards and the

October 9th, all other students were honored for their

academic excellence.

In order to receive a Book

Award, students were recom-

mended by school counselors

and then chosen by a college

or university based on aca-

demic standing, community

service, and extra curricular

involvement. All awards re-

cipients have reason to be

proud of how they represent

themselves and the school.

Congratulations, everyone!

Congratulations to all

award winners!

Book Review:

Dogs of God By Katie Green

Dogs of God by James Reston, Jr. has the

flow and pacing of a novel, yet it is a serious

work of history, detailing the horrific crimes of

the Spanish Inquisition during the fifteenth cen-

tury. The title of the book comes from the con-

temporary Latin nickname given to the Domini-

can Order of Monks, who spearheaded the Inqui-

sition: Dominicanes punned to Domini Canes,

“Dogs of God.”

The book fleshes out the life experiences,

attitudes, successes and flaws of the people be-

hind the famous names from history class, such

as the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella,

explorer Christopher Columbus, Cardinal Rodri-

go Borgia who would later become Pope Alexan-

der VI, and the infamous Grand Inquisitor Tor-

quemada. In doing so, the book created a color-

ful and fascinating cast of characters that dramat-

ically and irrevocably stained the history and

reputation of the Catholic Church.

The book begins by detailing the early life

and history of Isabella, who would become

Queen of Spain and champion of the Inquisition.

Reston emphasizes her unique personal strength,

bravery, and competence in a world in which

women were most often little more than proper-

ty. She played a major role in military operations

and strategy during the Holy War, which was

fought to reclaim Spain from Muslims who, at

that time, still controlled the southernmost por-

tion of the Iberian Peninsula. This war, however,

was financed via the persecution of Jewish con-

verts to Christianity, or conversos, whose devo-

tion to the Christian religion was constantly sus-

pect and put under intense, threatening scrutiny.

In this time, practicing Jewish traditions or

celebrating Jewish religious holidays were con-

sidered heretical crimes. Those who were ac-

cused of heresy had their property confiscated by

the government, so it could be used to pay for the

Holy War against the Muslim Moors. The con-

versos who were deemed “recalcitrant” to the

faith were burned alive in order to purify Spain,

in time for the anticipated Second Coming of Je-

sus Christ. To mark them as “enemies of the

state,” the Inquisition forced Jews to wear identi-

fication badges on their clothing and live in ghet-

tos, policies that Adolf Hitler later resurrected as

a prelude to his genocidal final solution.

In a time when our society is more diverse

than ever, and there is an unprecedented interac-

tion between a multitude of different religions

from all over the world, this story emphasizes the

importance of religious tolerance, of living in

harmony with people no matter their faith. Dogs

reflects on how intolerance, if allowed to evolve

into hysteria, can end in awful, inerasable vio-

lence. Now, with anti-Muslim intolerance fo-

mented in the US, we must keep constantly in

mind the message of altruism and justice at the

core of Jesus’ message.

Book Review:

The Dark Days

Club By Morgan Frye

The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman is

the first book in the trilogy, The Dark Days

Club. This story in Regency England follows the

main character Helen on her journey to discover-

ing her role in society and the power she

holds. Confronted with supernatural problems

and the annoying, yet charming, William Carl-

ston, Helen must find out who she is and how

she’s going to help. This historical fantasy is full

of intrigue, suspense, action and a little bit of ro-

mance that will keep you up all night long. It is

followed by The Dark Days Pact and this beauti-

ful, page turning trilogy ends with The Dark

Days Deceit. Earning 3.8 stars out of 5 on

Goodreads and 98% of people on Google enjoy-

ing this masterpiece, it is

a story you cannot miss.

Book Reviews 5

Image Retrieved from Goodreads

6 Recipes

Vegan Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies

By Emma Dutil

Ingredients 1. 1 Cup of oats 2. Ripe banana 3. Handful of chocolate chips

Instructions Preheat the oven to 350. Mash the banana in a bowl and incorpo-rate the oats into the mashed banana. Stir in the chocolate chips (make sure that they are dairy free). Scoop the cookies onto a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Press down cookies into wanted thickness. Bake for 15 minutes until lightly browned at the edges.

Brownie Cupcakes By Norah McCauliffe

Retrieved From: https://www.twosisterscrafting.com/brownie-cupcakes-for-halloween/

Ingredients

White Cake Mix Brownie Mix Oil Water Eggs

Cupcake Liners Sprinkles: cupcakes need sprinkles. Orange Food Coloring

Instructions 1. Using the directions on the box of the Brownie mix, make the brownie batter. 2. Make White Cake Mix using the directions on the box and when the batter is finished, color it with orange food coloring. If you want the

brightest orange color, use “egg whites only”. 3. Add a spoonful of brownie mix to the cupcake liners. The brownie batter should only go about 1/3 of the way up the cupcake liner. You want

more cake batter than brownie batter in the liners. 4. Then cover the brownie batter with the orange cake batter until the cake batter has filled the cupcake lines about 3/4 full. (If you add too much

cake batter the cupcakes will overflow over the edges of the cupcake liner when they bake.) 5. Bake the cupcakes as you normally would, 15-20 minutes in a 350 degree oven. 6. Allow the cupcakes to cool and frost. 7. Decorate with sprinkles.

Buttercream Frosting (optional) Retrieved From: https://www.twosisterscrafting.com/buttercream-frosting/ Ingredients Powder Sugar Butter Vanilla

Milk Instructions

1. First step is to measure the powdered sugar. 4 cups 2. You can sift the powdered sugar if it is really lumpy. 3. Add 1 cup (2 sticks) of softened butter 4. Add 2-3 teaspoons of vanilla. 5. Mix the butter and the vanilla on low. 6. Add the powdered sugar to the mixer. 7. Start your mixer (or beaters) on the lowest setting. I usually put a clean dish towel around my mixer to keep the sugar from flying out. 8. Keep on low until the butter and sugar are incorporated and then kick your mixer up to medium high. 9. Once fully incorporated at the milk and continue mixing. 10. You can apply the frosting with a knife or pipe it on by putting the frosting in one corner of a sandwich bag, closing it, twisting out the air, and

then cutting the bottom corner off so the frosting will come out from there.

Sprinkle Cookies By Norah McCauliffe

Retrieved From: https://butterwithasideofbread.com/halloween-cookies-sprinkles/

Ingredients

1 cup butter room temperature 1 cup granulated sugar 2 eggs 3 tsp vanilla 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour 2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 1 cup orange and black sprinkles

Instructions 1. Preheat the oven to 350°. 2. Either using a stand mixer or a handmixer, cream together the butter

and sugar. Cream for about two minutes or until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

3. Add in the eggs and vanilla and mix until well combined. 4. Add in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix until fully incorpo-

rated. The dough will be sticky. 5. Pour your sprinkles into a bowl. Scoop the cookie dough out of the

mixing bowl and place in the sprinkles. Roll the dough around in the sprinkles until it is fully covered. Reshaped the dough into a ball be-fore placing on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

6. The cookies will spread quite a bit while baking, so I suggest limit-ing each cookie sheet to about eight cookies.

7. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes. 8. To make sure that the cookies stay soft it is important to pull them

out of the oven before they start turning brown on the edges. Just watch the tops of the cookies, pull them out when the tops are no longer glossy.

9. Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack. 10. The cookies will stay fresh in an airtight container for 2 to 3 days.

https://www.twosisterscrafting.com/brownie-cupcakes-for-halloween/https://www.twosisterscrafting.com/buttercream-frosting/https://www.twosisterscrafting.com/buttercream-frosting/https://butterwithasideofbread.com/halloween-cookies-sprinkles/

The Foundation By Emma Dutil

The foundation of a house is built on good soil In a pretty field where you can create memories

As you start to lay the foundation The soil keeps you grounded and in touch with the earth

You build up slowly Sidestepping passing storms and winds that knock you

down You build up and the foundation proves to be so strong So strong that you feel as if you can reach the peaks of

the highest mountains You create little homes throughout the house

All of which hold memories of where you started and paintings of the journey you’re headed on

Once you reach the upstairs, you create a space to fall in love with someone

A someone that must be able to fit perfectly Into the foundation of the house already created

You two start to grow and the house fills The house fills with kids that walk over the creaking

floor boards The creaking floorboards sound like music from the first

feet to touch the wood As you reach the peak of the house, the mountain top

you were meant to reach You look down from the roof and see

The foundation of the house is built on good soil

The Almost

Assassination of

Cinderella II — Part

III By Katie Green and Farah Suede

The boy’s grip tightened on my arm as we

passed a soldier in black, dressed just like the assassins.

It had been ten hours since I’d escaped the palace, ten

hours since they had presumably killed my mother, Cin-

derella. The fact that anyone could murder the queen

struck me as absurd. The strangeness of everything al-

most made me laugh, despite being dragged along by a

complete stranger past dozens of men who probably

would’ve shot me had they known my identity. Memo-

ries of the night I’d just spent running through the pitch

black woods surrounding my home, fleeing the soldiers

and locking myself in a hidden panic room deep in the

forest, came back to me in snatches as I entered this

small, pretty village I had never visited. It was less than

fifteen miles from the castle; I quickly buried the famil-

iar resentment I felt at never being allowed to leave. I

walked as casually as I could, looking down at the beau-

tiful red-bricked road, the neat little houses and shops on

either side of us in my peripheral vision. Mystery Kid-

napper Guy frantically threw my hood back over my

head when two more armed men, dressed all in black,

marched past us. We eventually reached a homey, love-

ly cottage, and we walked inside, my tension headache

reaching a crescendo and my heart rate increasing un-

bearably.

The moment we were inside and he let go of my

arm, I whirled on him and pulled out the knife that was

strapped around my leg— the one I’d grabbed from the

hideaway. “Whoa, please put that away. No one’s about

to hurt you,” he gasped out. He walked over to the coun-

ter in the kitchen and put his head down, letting out a

pained, exhausted groan. “Elle,” he said, using the same

name for me that the newspapers used, “These people

want to kill you, don’t they?”

“Who are you? What do you know about what

happened last night?” I said, my voice shaking. He told

me his name was Henry, and that the entire town had

been told this morning that the king and queen had

been attacked. What Henry said next sent the pain in

my head radiating into my chest: there was a task

force searching for their daughter, recognizable by

their black uniforms. If anyone found me, I was to be

taken directly to them. My knees nearly buckled; I

grabbed the counter to keep myself upright.

“The men we passed on the street tried to kill

me last night. They probably killed my parents,” I

told him, the knife still in my hand, unable to keep

the tremor out of my voice. Then, seized by a sud-

den, horrible idea, I suddenly asked, “Are you about

to turn me in?” He looked absolutely stunned. “W-

What? No, of course not. But… they’ve got every-

one in this town believing they’re the private securi-

ty force the crown hired to get you back from

“kidnappers”. They told us nothing else about them-

selves, nothing about where the king and queen

were. I’ve certainly never seen or heard of them be-

fore. They’re doing a pretty terrible job at hiding the

fact that they’re insurgents,” he finished with a

chuckle. I struggled to figure out what exactly about

this situation was funny. He offered me some food,

and I watched him make both of us a meal. I didn’t

eat mine until he ate his; he noticed and apparently

thought this was silly enough to laugh at. He had no

idea that this protocol had been drilled into me years

ago.

Suddenly, the front door flew open and a little

girl, maybe eight years old and rocking blonde dou-

ble dutch braids, ran in and excitedly yelled, “Henry

what is Princess-” Henry grabbed her, his eyes wide

and threatening, and clapped a hand over her mouth

before she could wonder too loudly why the heir to

the throne was standing in her kitchen.

“Alice,” he muttered to the stunned little girl,

his voice low and emotionless, “I need you to be

very quiet. I need you to take Elle into the cellar.

Can you do that for me?” He let go of her. She was

clearly smart; she sensed that whatever was going

on here was serious. Henry’s head jerked to the

right, seeing movement outside the front window. A

man, dressed all in black, a weapon slung across his

chest, was walking up to the front door. Shock regis-

tered on his face for only a second. He shot to his

feet and shoved us over to a door that opened onto a

shadowy, but clean, flight of cement stairs leading

down. Alice took over from there, dragging me into

the little basement. I took note of a door in the wall

to my right that hopefully led to the outside, and I

mentally prepared to have to run for my life.

I heard a man’s voice stutter at Henry upstairs in

the kitchen: “S-son, what are you doing home?”

Henry answered smoothly and calmly, “I had to

come home early-- one of the horses at the stable

threw me off and I landed bad. But I didn’t know you

were assigned to the task force-- was this your first

day?” He sounded genuinely interested in his father’s

new “job”. I wondered how he had mastered playing

dumb.

The man answered with a lie. “Yes, it was; I

actually just found out late last night that I had been

chosen to look for the princess, which is why I could-

n’t come home… How many days off did Mr. Stew-

art give you?” A clumsy change of subject; the un-

easiness in his voice was obvious. Their conversation

blended into inaudible murmurs as they moved to

another room. Alice stood next to me, close to the

door I was planning to escape through, deathly silent,

exactly as her brother had told her to be.

I thought I heard more conversation, Henry’s

voice shouting goodbye to his father as he walked

back out the front door to continue his manhunt.

Footsteps on the stairs told me Henry was coming

down. “Elle, my father’s in the insurgent group.” I

looked down at Alice just then, her face a painful

twist of confusion. “You can’t stay here. We’ve got

to leave right now.”

...To be continued in the next edition of the

ECHO…

Crossword Puzzle By Jack Green

Use the annotation feature on the iPad or open with

Microsoft Edge to interact and write your responses

to the crossword below.

Creative 7

Across

1. Something many have been inclined to do when they are

given a task due to a lack of motivation

3. An activity that has seen a rise in popularity as of late;

observing our avian friends

4. A popular Netflix documentary watched during the

Pandemic, Tiger ________

6. This type of bread has been especially popular for those

wanting to bake, but do not want the hassle

7. A kind of fever, restlessness, from being stuck at home

9. Places that had been closed, but are now reopening to

serve hungry customers

11. A kind of book that has seen an increase in purchases

during the pandemic

12. A popular streaming service that has seen an increase in use

13. Something that was cancelled last year, but they are

holding now; athletic events

14. Updates as to the current global and National situation;

has been disheartening lately

15. Something many are praying will end this pandemic; an

inoculation

Down

2. A heated topic, two candidates are currently trying to win this

5. Something that has been in drastic shortage, used to clean

hands

7. The kind of virus that has caused so much strife this year

8. The kind of debates that have been occurring between Joe

Biden and Donald Trump

10. Something many of us have been required to wear (begins

with M)

Student Advice

to

Underclassmen By Khang Dang

After interviewing several upperclassmen, here is

some advice for making the best out of high school!

“I think my advice for underclassmen and incoming

students is to talk to people in your classes and make

friends because high school is so much better when

you have friends. Also, try not to stress yourself out.

Life is so much harder when you worry about every

little thing. If you feel yourself getting too stressed,

take a break or talk to a friend because getting over-

stressed about something doesn’t benefit you or any-

one else. Moreover, join clubs or sports because not

only does it look good on a college resume, but it helps

you meet people you might have never talked to before

-- so it's a win-win situation. Lastly, have fun! Study

with friends if that’s your thing. High school isn’t

about staying cooped up in your house studying or do-

ing homework. Get out and enjoy these four years with

your friends. It goes by fast so don’t waste any time!”

—Gina Brooks

“I would definitely tell new students to make sure that

they study as much as they can for any tests. It’s al-

ways good to start building a good GPA as early as

you can. I would also urge students to take classes that

are out of their comfort zone, especially higher level

classes. This will allow you to discover new interests

and it makes you look better when you apply to colleg-

es. In short, here at East Catholic, if you try your best,

you can do your best.”

—Ethan Canna

“My advice would be to not be so

intimidated by the upperclassmen

or seniors. Also, ask questions if

you have any. When I was a

freshman, I had so many ques-

tions, but I was too afraid to ask anyone.”

—Colleen Truman

“Don’t let fear of the unknown get in the way of you

joining a club or extracurricular that interests you. Be-

fore you know it, it’ll be senior year and you’ll regret

not joining. Also, joining clubs is one of the best ways

to make friends!”

—Abigail Kiser

Angela Gerard’s Tips on How to Study:

Studying is a skill that takes practice to perfect, and

even if you’re not good at it, there are tips and tricks I

use to help myself perform the best that I can during

the school year.

Tip #1: The first tip is to review the chapter or sec-

tion that the test is on. Even though notes from class

can be just as effective, having an extra bit of

knowledge can sometimes be the key to a failing or

passing grade.

Tip #2: The next tip is to create keywords. What I

mean by “keywords” is simply acronyms or sentences

that help you remember certain words or phrases.

“Keywords” don’t even have to be words, they can be

symbols or colors! Whatever helps you remember

something easier is the way to go!

Tip #3: The third tip is to practice. I know, sometimes

practicing problems or working out languages can be

tiring, but by training yourself to overcome these

challenges, taking tests may become easier.

Tip #4: Finally, a fourth and final tip is to ask for

help. Sometimes, concepts are tricky to master. Even

as a senior, I struggle to grasp concepts that my peers

understand. However, asking for help is never some-

thing that you should be ashamed of. Teachers are

there to help you, and sometimes all you need is to

hear it again. Nowadays, there are many ways to ask

for help, from emailing your teachers, to scheduling

after school sessions, or even just a quick, five minute

chat about a certain topic. No matter how you go

about it, help is always available.

Birding

Reflections and

Advice By Jack Green

It is a dim, cloudy New Year’s Day. I and three

other birders walk through a small parking lot, blasted

by a freezing wind. We head toward a boat launch

and, shivering, finally spot what we came for: a small

group of redheads! And by redheads, I am referring

not to people of course, but to a species of diving

duck that breeds in the western part of our continent,

most easily recognized by its rusty colored head. This

was only one of over sixty species that we would see

that day.

We journeyed all across the shore, doing our best

to locate as many species as we could find. The day

was chock full of hawks, ducks, sparrows and gulls.

Among the most notable finds were a gull from Ice-

land, of course named the Iceland Gull, a Snow

Goose, which breeds in the arctic and normally

doesn’t venture to the eastern part of the United

States, and a pair of Peregrine Falcons, which can di-

ve from the sky at over 200 miles per hour.

Fast forward to February twenty-ninth. An

alert on my phone tells me of a Harris’s sparrow at

Hammonasset Beach State Park - a bird that nor-

mally keeps to the central parts of the U.S. and

Canada and has only been recorded in Connecticut

twelve times in history. Time to go birding again!

What exactly am I describing when I use this

word, “birding”? Essentially, I am referring to the

action of deliberately seeking out a bird. There are

many ways in which one can do this. Some go out

to photograph birds, and others carefully note

birds’ behavior for a scientific study. The most

popular choice is to list the species one finds in the

hopes of recording as many species as possible in

one year, and to maximize the number of bird spe-

cies found over their lifetime.

That said, birding does not have to be compet-

itive, and most, even those that try to track down

the highest number of species, are not doing it be-

cause they want to “win the competition,” but ra-

ther, because they simply want to see Connecticut's

wonderful array of species, and locate the several

rarities that appear annually. The only reward you

get for finding a bird is the knowledge that you

found that bird. Because this is the only reward, it

is really a love of birds that drives many to go out

and see them.

I love birding. I have always felt there is

something truly magical about it. Getting up early

on a spring morning and searching through the

misty forest for a singing Warbler, or gazing out

over the serene shoreline and watching seabirds

drift by, makes me really feel like I am a part of

Nature. Watching the birds as they feed or interact

with each other has always had a sort of hypnotiz-

ing effect on me. Of course, I doubt I would enjoy

the sometimes unfavorable weather conditions if it

weren’t for my love of birds.

Thus, I encourage everyone to give birding a

try. It is certainly not for everyone, but I sincerely

believe it can truly foster a love for not just birds

but nature as a whole. Furthermore, all birds are at

risk, now more than ever. I feel that if more people

take the time to discover and appreciate these

winged wonders, they will find that these creatures

are worth protecting. Additionally, this is a great

activity amidst the Coronavirus outbreak, as it can

be done with anyone but doesn’t require any sort

of contact. So, in the hopes of fostering an appreci-

ation for birds, my message to all is to grab a pair

of binoculars and go birding!

8 Special Interests

Image Retrieved from Flickr

Volleyball By Emma Dutil

Volleyball has been having a great year so far. The Var-

sity team is cur-

rently 1-7. The

volleyball team

has played Glas-

tonbury, South

Windsor, East

Hartford, EO

Smith, Tolland,

and Manchester. The volleyball team has been taking

Covid-19 precautions and has been able to carry out a

safe season. Some notable players include this year’s

Seniors: Allie Long, Annabelle Stabach, Lauren

Trymbulak, and Ellie DeSantos. They are so happy to

be back playing the sport that they love!

Varsity Swim By Norah McCauliffe

EC swimmers are working hard even with the pre-

cautions of COVID in place: wearing a mask outside

of the pool, social distancing, moving locations for

practices, and checking temperatures on arrival at the

pool. The meets are now virtual, which can be difficult

to adjust to and become motivated for as swimmers

never actually see their opponent. To see who the win-

ner is they compare the times that were individually

recorded, which may allow more room for human error

because milliseconds matter to determine a winner, but

at least there is the opportunity to compete! The team

had a change of scenery when they moved from Trini-

ty College pool to the Ellington YMCA pool for prac-

tice. The pool now has a limit of two people per pool

lane, and after a block is used, it is disinfected. Cur-

rently the number of meets have been reduced to five

due to COVID. They continue to work hard and get

stronger, especially with notable swimmer and Senior,

Mallory Moriarty. Other swimmers and Seniors that

make the team promising this season include Cora

Zorger, Phoebe Allyn, Maddy Bolduc, Jailyn Harrigan,

Kelly Queen, and Maeve Williams. Good luck girls!

Football By Jack Barry

The East Catholic Football team has had to over-

come adjust to the challenges brought upon by the

new rules established for Covid-19 as both teams,

Varsity and JV, are currently 0-3. Our practices have

been cut in half from previous years and players no

longer need to prepare with protective equipment

because the CIAC has permitted only non-contact

interaction for practice and games. Games are also

now 7 vs. 7 and one hand touch for quarterbacks,

running backs, and receivers. There are also compe-

titions for the linemen to prove their skills. We are

also only allowed to play schools that are in close

proximity to East Catholic which puts us in the posi-

tion of playing teams ranked in higher classes. The

unfortunate circumstances of Covid-19 have not

seized the efforts of the football players, however, as

we still work hard at practice every day after school.

Captains Ryan Heslin, Jack Barry, Mick O'Connor,

and Chris Connelly have been putting in an immense

amount of hardwork and leadership into the team

this year. Quarterback, Matthieu Zazzaro, has done a

great job adjusting to this new play style and has had

an outstanding connection with his receivers, such as

Timmy Wilson. Ben Carso and Juan Rivera have

been playing lock down defense this year by master-

ing their spots as well as staying disciplined. The

team hopes to turn the season around in their final

three games of the fall season and use this as practice

for their up and coming spring season!

Varsity Girls

Soccer By Norah McCauliffe

The girls have started off the season by working hard

and are excited to get back onto the field. There are

some precautions they take now like wearing masks,

shortening their practices by half an hour, and disin-

fecting their hands with

hand sanitizer when off

the field. Their current

record consists of 3

wins, 4 losses, and a

tie. They are focusing

most of their time to

work on things they are struggling with, such as de-

fense and shooting. Notable players to look out for

include Ally Ansaldi, Anna McDowell, Ava Kriak,

and Kayliana Salazar. Good luck girls!

Cross Country By Norah McCauliffe

Even though Cross Country is a

low contact sport, they have tak-

en certain precautions. These

precautions are wearing masks

when not running, staying in co-

horts less than 10, and, of course,

socially distancing. Our runners

are focusing on the little things

right now that will help them in

the future, such as form and endurance. Some nota-

ble runners include Lindsay O’Neill, Israel Caro,

and Greg Sadlak. Keep working hard!

Cheerleading

By Alexis Modeen

As a cheer team this year, things have been different

due to COVID-19, but as a team, we have been able to

overcome and rise above the challenges the pandemic

has brought. We are not sure what the future holds for

our team or if there will be a competition later in the

season, but thanks to our amazing coach, Ms. Burby,

we have been able to have practice at least one or twice

a week. Usually we cheer at Football games, but due to

the changes in their season this year to comply with

health and safety standards during the pandemic, we’ve

been mainly cheering at the soccer home games. As for

stunting, we have been getting our new stunt groups

and pyramids for the upcoming games and they have

been going well. Of course stunts fall and things hap-

pen, but we work together to get better and grow as a

team. Cheerleading isn’t as easy as it seems and takes

hard work, but it’s worth it! We have been working

very hard and doing everything we can so that things

can get back to normal as soon as possible. We have

many new people on the team this year who have al-

ready shown so much improvement since camp this

summer. I wanted to acknowledge Molly Ellis, a Fresh-

man, whose fly on the first day of stunting was amaz-

ing. She has also been doing great with her extensions

and part of the pyramids. I also want to acknowledge

our captains, Lizzie Adams, Kenzie Talavera and Lulu

Spielman, who have been working hard so we can do

our best at games. As a response to health and safety

regulations, only half the team can go to games to pre-

vent having too many people in one area. Nonetheless,

as a team, we are excited to see what happens in the

future as we cross our fingers for the hope to perform at

the pep rally this year.

Sports 9

Field Hockey By Meghan Croyle

The East Catholic Field

Hockey team is one of the

select few sports teams

that has been lucky

enough to have a season.

However, because of pre-

cautions and restrictions

due to Covid-19, our

schedule was limited to

fourteen games this sea-

son. At the beginning of

the season, we were re-

quired to practice in co-

horts, which made it challenging to prepare for game-

like situations. But, just like every other adversity we

have faced during this global pandemic, we found a

way to adapt and overcome. This season, we have one

varsity team that consists of 12 talented players. Our

roster includes Kiley Brannon, Julia Reís, Shannon

Splain, Mallory Bartlett, Sophia Ferruolo, Ashley

Maningas, Meghan Croyle,

Margo Kamis, Lindsey

Wearne, Alyssa Brannon, Car-

oline Carlson, Katie Batman,

Ava Eklund, and Morgan

Rhoades. The team’s captains,

Ava Eklund, Katie Batman,

and Morgan Rhoades are a

huge contribution to our team

both on the field and off the

field. Ava and Morgan are two

crucial pieces to our offense

while Katie is the glue to our defense from inside the

goal. Moreover, Alyssa Brannon, Mallory Bartlett,

Meghan Croyle, and Ashley Maningas are huge assets

to the team’s offensive success. Junior Sophia Ferru-

olo plys a huge role not only in terms of the team’s

offensive and defensive skills, but overall spirit and

morale. On defense, Lindsey Wearne, Margo Kamis,

Shannon Splain, Kylie Brannon, and Julia Reis hold

their ground and protect our goalie with their strong

defensive skills.

Our defense is

also led by senior

Caroline Carlson,

whose contribu-

tion to the team

is more than just

her skill. She

supports and encourages her teammates on defense

even when the circumstances are difficult. The team

is still working towards their first win, as the current

record is 0-8, and is preparing for their games this

week against Northwest Catholic and Wethersfield

High School. With each game, the team is getting bet-

ter and more confident, which is very important be-

cause a lot of the players are still learning the sport.

Nevertheless, the team

is determined and does

not give up. Playing on

the East Catholic Field

Hockey team is a fun

and unique experience

for which all of the

players are very grateful.

Boy’s Soccer By Joey Maulucci

So far, the East Catholic Boy’s Soccer team has a rec-

ord of 5 wins and 3 losses. The team started off slow-

ly, losing the first 3 games, allowing 13 goals from

opposing teams and only scoring 4 for East. Since

then, the team has surged to win their last 5 games in

a row, only conceding 1 goal, while scoring 6 for

East. These included 2 wins over Manchester High

School, and a win against E.O. Smith, RHAM, and

Tolland. Some players have made an impact on the

team, such as Trent Sargent, a Junior, who has held

the back line strong while also netting 2 goals, senior

captain Kyle Esoian has also played terrific over the

stretch, and Junior Kevin Leger has also netted two

goals. The team looks to keep improving and they

face South Windsor this week in hopes of redemption

from an early season loss. Good luck boys!

Baseball — Fall

League By Luke Wearne

The Northeast CT fall league came to a close on the

weekend of October 24th and 25th, ending in five

well-played games by all teams. The season consisted

of games almost every Saturday and Sunday for each

team, with the traditional structure of seeding based

on wins and losses. The Capitals Blue team steadily

held the first seed

throughout the season,

going 7-0-1, followed

by the Western Mass

Rockies, 5–3-0, The

CT Rivals, 5-3-0, The

EC Eagles, 3-2-1, The

CT Capitals Red

team, 3-5-0, The SNE Nighthawk, 2-6-0, and in last

place The SNE Spirit, 1-7-0. Practices were held

weekly and were great opportunities to play baseball,

considering how hard it has been to play any sport

this year. All of the players rostered on the EC Eagles

are current students at East Catholic High School.

Over the weekend of the

24th and 25th, The Eagles

faced many challenges. For

the first game, the quarter

finals, The Eagles faced the

Capitals Red, who they beat

7-1 with senior Ethan

Utermarck on the hill pitch-

ing lights out and going a full 7 innings. Offensive

standouts include seniors Michael Wearne and Trevor

Juan, both with multiple doubles, and senior Frank

Mozzicato with a two-run homerun. In the semi-

finals, Mozzicato battled East Catholic sophomore TJ

Winn of the Capitals Blue team in a true pitchers’ du-

el. The final score was 3-2 in favor of the Eagles. Ja-

cob Paulhus delivered a key hit to score the game

winning run with two outs in the sixth inning. Defen

sive standouts in that game were seniors Ryan

Shaw and Hank Penders and junior Jaden Saun-

ders. This big win led the Eagles into the cham-

pionship game against the Western Mass Rock-

ies. Junior Luke Wearne pitched five shutout in-

nings en route to the championship victory. De-

fensive standouts for the championship game

were junior Kevin Canny and seniors Michael

Wearne and Ryan St. Jean. Ryan Shaw delivered

the game-winning hit to score Jaden Saunders,

putting the Eagles on top 5-4. After that, the Ea-

gles never looked back. Other notable players

this season include junior Ryan Turco and senior

Sam Neves. Despite a few setbacks, the Eagles

had an all-in-all solid season. We look forward to

an even better season in the spring!

10 Sports Cont.

ECHO STAFF

Contributors: Jack Barry, Meghan Croyle,

Khang Dang, Emma Dutil, Morgan Frye, Jack

Green, Katie Green, Alison Jarmoszko, Norah

McCauliffe, Joey Maulucci, Alexis Modeen, Farah

Suede, and Luke Wearne