Ellington Boys Soccer Wins Miraculous State Title

HARTFORD, CT — Ellington High School's boys soccer program is a winning tradition, no doubt.

But that was little consolation for the Knights, who were staring at a heartbreaking 1-0 CIAC Class M state championship game loss to the Weston Trojans Saturday.

But that didn't happen.

And following intense play and magnificent drama, the EHS Knights took the proverbial monkey off their back and won a hard-fought, if not miraculous, state title, 2-1.

With nearly 3 minutes left in the game, Ellington senior Ethan Mallett took a pass from senior Andrew Velasquez and tied the game on a powerful shot that settled into the lower, right portion of Weston's goal, past Weston goalkeeper Edward Maglione.

The clock dwindled to "0" and extra time was required.

As Mallett explained after the game, the ball bounced around in front of Weston's goal and, ultimately, it ended up at his feet.

"I knew, bottom right on this goalie, he's not going to save it," an ecstatic Mallett said after the game. "This feels beyond amazing. It feels great to prove some people wrong."

Following Mallett's miracle, Ellington senior star Owen Hoffman was then taken down in the box in extra time, clearly prompting a penalty kick with two minutes to go in the first extra time.

Hoffman calmly buried the shot, rolling it to the right side of the goal, with Maglione diving to his right in an attempt to cover the left side of the goal.

He said amid the postgame celebration that he's Ellington's man when it comes to taking PKs.

"I usually take the penalty kicks for this team, so I knew I had to step up," Hoffman, who was named the game's most valuable player, said.

Hoffman said his cheeky, slow-rolling shot to the goalkeeper's left was planned, as he was shooting for accuracy, not power.

"I usually try to place it to the corner and, luckily, he guessed right," Hoffman said.

It gave Ellington a 2-1 lead and had them dreaming of a state championship that ended a drought that saw them make, and lose, the state finals every year since 2018.

Mallett's clutch goal, meanwhile, sent Ellington's fans into delirium, postponing their heartbreak and paving the way for ultimate bliss.

Hoffman's penalty kick sent the crowd into hysteria, then, ultimately, anxiety — for Weston, fear of a loss, for Ellington, fear of blowing a huge opportunity for redemption.

The day's drama had fans from both side standing in the wind during extra time, trying to will a championship-winning goal, one that came via an obvious takedown and a clean penalty kick.

For Ellington, it was meant to be as a frustrated Weston desperately tried for an equalizer, one that would have resulted in penalty kicks.

2022's tournament marked the return of penalty kicks being used to decide a title holder if necessary, ending the prior practice of "co-champions," an unsatisfactory outcome for teams after battling on the field in full time, then extra time.

In the end, PKs were not needed, though not without one tense moment when a header with 50 seconds left was grabbed by Ellington goalkeeper Cole Leavitt.

Following a scoreless first half, which saw Weston repeatedly pushing into Ellington territory with the Knights having their moments as well, the scoring began.

Weston sophomore Casper Leary ended a tight 0-0 draw with 26 minutes to go in the second half with a nice goal on the right side, finishing off a three-on=two break with senior Spencer Quinn notching the assist.

The pretty goal gave Weston a 1-0 lead, potentially plunging another dagger into the hearts of Ellington.

Late in the game and prior to Mallett's miracle, Weston just missed a goal opportunity that, likely, would have clinched a state title for the Trojans, when a shot went just wide.

Ellington won the state title most recently in 2014, but has been the runner-up in every state title game since 2018.

From Nov. 17: 'CT Championship Previews: Soccer, Volleyball, Field Hockey, Swimming'