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09/02/2022 12:27 PMLast year, the East Haven football team’s season was marred with layoffs and injuries, resulting in games where they Yellowjackets were playing with just 16 athletes on their roster and a final record of 1-8.
Head Coach Scott Benoit said that the Yellowjackets are ready to put last season behind them and prove that they’re ready to compete as they take the field with a young and hungry squad this fall.
Coach Benoit is impressed with how his team has been performing in its practices throughout the preseason. East Haven’s players have been working on the basics and making sure that they have the fundamentals down. As the Easties head into the 2022 season, Benoit said that they’ve already made great progress and are ready for the first whistle of the year. The Yellowjackets will kick off their campaign by hosting Ledyard at East Haven High School at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 9.
“I’m very pleased with how the team has progressed. It has been a very productive preseason,” Coach Benoit said. “We’re focusing on practicing well, making sure the kids show up every day, making sure they’re doing the right things.”
This season, East Haven is implementing a new Wing-T offense, which is more of a ground-based attack. Benoit was happy to see the Yellowjackets run the ball well when they hosted Platt Tech for a scrimmage on Aug. 24. East Haven’s rushing attack features a trio of sophomores in Nick Bilides at left halfback, Alex Dombrowski at fullback, and Rocco D’Amato at right halfback.
Senior captain Dom Salato will be leading the Easties’ new offense as their quarterback this season. Benoit said that Salato’s skillset translates well to the Wing-T and that he’s come on strong during the latter half of the preseason, demonstrating that he’s ready to command the pocket.
“This offense is much more suited to his skillset. He has done a good job,” said Benoit of Salato. “He has gotten a lot better in two weeks. He has really come along nicely.”
Salato will be throwing to a receiving corps that includes senior Garrett Benson, sophomore Dante Rodriguez, and freshman Josh Hutchinson. In the trenches, East Haven’s offensive line features senior captain Jason Toth, seniors Mekhi Morrison and Mateo Caputo, junior Antonio Consiglio, and freshman Dom D’Ambrosio.
Morrison and Toth will also be playing a big role on defense for the Yellowjackets as outside linebackers. Morrison moved over from the defensive line after earning All-SCC Tier 3 honors at that position last year. Toth will continue playing outside linebacker on defense, while shifting from tight end to guard on offense. Benoit said that both players are doing a great job of leading the team’s defense thus far this year.
East Haven features Caputo and sophomore Joe Allen at the inside linebacker position. The Yellowjackets’ defensive line includes first-year senior Chris Devlin, senior Gio Caputo, and Consiglio. In addition to playing quarterback, Salato is also one of the Easties’ starting safeties next to Dombrowski. Bilides and D’Amato are playing cornerback for East Haven.
Coach Benoit said that defense is an area where the Yellowjackets need to improve this season. They plan to give numerous athletes an opportunity to get playing time on the defensive side of the ball. With a small roster, Benoit understands the challenge of going up against the top offenses in the Southern Connecticut Conference. However, Benoit is expecting the Easties’ defense to grow as the year goes on and ultimately find its best recipe for success.
“We’ve got to get better defensively. We’ve got to understand our assignments better. But that will come in time,” Benoit said. “Practice is challenging at times. We don’t have a lot of kids. It’s hard to emulate what we’re seeing from week to week. But we will figure it out.”
Salato and Toth are serving as East Haven’s senior captains this year. Coach Benoit said that both athletes are hard workers whose efforts emanate throughout the entire roster. Salato, Toth, and all of their fellow seniors have been leading the Yellowjackets at practice and doing everything they can to bring the team together.
“They’ve both done a good job. Jason is one of the hardest workers we have here. Dom, as well. They do a great job of encouraging their teammates,” Benoit said. “The entire senior class has stepped it up nicely in the past two weeks. They’ve done a great job leading.”
East Haven’s roster features plenty of talented underclassmen, and several of them are slated to be starters for the team this season. A few of those athletes have already seen ample playing time. Allen, Dombrowski, and Bilides were all starters last year, while D’Amato and Rodriguez started the Thanksgiving game. Coach Benoit said that the Yellowjackets’ young athletes have been looking good on the field, and he feels that bodes well for his team.
The 2021 season was unlike any other that the Easties have ever had after COVID-19 rocked the high school sports landscape and forced the cancellation of the 2020 campaign. As his players aim to build off of that experience, Benoit said that East Haven’s clear-cut goal is to return to the winning ways of his first few seasons with the Yellowjackets.
“We need to obviously improve on last year’s record. We need to develop the momentum we had before COVID. We need to get back to that level,” said Benoit. “The more success we have, the more apt kids are to start playing football again. Play it one game at a time. That’s what we’re going to do.”
With that goal in mind, Coach Benoit said that his players are eager to help the East Haven football team succeed this season. Last year is in the rearview mirror for the Yellowjackets, and Benoit said that this year’s squad is ready to hit the gridiron better than ever.
“The way we’re headed, I think it’s starting to come back. Kids are excited at practice. They’re pushing each other. They’re doing a really nice job,” Benoit said. “I can’t put a lot of stock in last year. We just had to field a team week to week. I think we’re done with that. Matter of fact, I know we’re done with that. We’re trying to get back to where we were in 2019.”
2022 East Haven Football Schedule
Friday, Sept. 9: vs. Ledyard at 7 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 16: at E.O. Smith at 6 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 23: vs. Bethel at 7 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 1: vs. Bassick at 10:30 a.m.
Friday, Oct. 7: at Foran at 7 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 21: at Lyman Hall at 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 4: at Wilbur Cross at 6 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 11: vs. Jonathan Law at 7 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 17: vs. Guilford at 7 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 24: at Branford at 10 a.m.