Athletic award winners at Housy

HVRHS seniors Kyle McCarron, leading the pack at left, and Tessa Dekker, dribbling at right, were selected as Athlete of the Year in 2024-25.
Riley Klein

HVRHS seniors Kyle McCarron, leading the pack at left, and Tessa Dekker, dribbling at right, were selected as Athlete of the Year in 2024-25.
FALLS VILLAGE — The Housatonic Valley Regional High School Athletic Department had its spring season and senior sports awards ceremony on May 29. The following student-athletes were honored at the ceremony:
Girls Tennis:
Most Improved: Mia DiRocco
Sportsmanship: Mia Belter
Tyburski: Abby Perotti
Most Valuable: Victoria Brooks
Baseball:
Most Improved: Wesley Allyn
Sportsmanship: Austin Bachman
Tyburski: Logan Miller
Most Valuable: Anthony Foley
JV MIP: Daniel Moran
Stevenson: Logan Miller
Boys Track & Field:
Most Improved: Anthony Labbadia
Sportsmanship: Patrick Money
Most Valuable: Kyle McCarron
Tyburski: Owen Shnepf
Girls Track & Field:
Most Improved: Gabriela Titone
Sportsmanship: Harper Howe
Tyburski: McKenzie Lotz
Most Valuable: Amelia Dodge
Boys Tennis:
Most Improved: Gustavo Portillo
Sportsmanship: Jassim Mohydin
Tyburski: Baxter Hayhurst
Most Valuable: Manasseh Matsudaira
Girls Lacrosse:
Most Improved: Lily Danforth Gold
Sportsmanship: Katelin Lopes
Tyburski: Annabelle Carden
Most Valuable: Lou Haemmerle and Lola Clayton
Softball:
Most Improved: Madison Gulotta
Sportsmanship: Abby Hogan
Tyburski: Payton Wagner
Most Valuable: Kylie Leonard
JV MIP: V Salazar
Stevenson Award: Camdyn Tallon
The Mountaineer Award
Given to 9th through 11th grade students who participated in all three seasons:
Wesley Allyn, Peter Austin, Hayden Bachman, Wyatt Bayer, Mia Belter, Nico Bochnovich, Olivia Brooks, Victoria Brooks, Hunter Conklin, Katerine Crane, Arianna Danforth Gold, Lily Danforth Gold, Adelyn Diorio, Braeden Duncan, Lydia Fleming, Chloe Hill, Hannah Johnson, Jonas Johnson, Madelyn Johnson, Luca Flordis, Anthony Labbadia, McKenzie Lotz, Finian Malone, Simon Markow, Jackson McAvoy, Meadow Moerschell, Owen Riemer, Carson Riva, Vilija Salazar, Ryan Segalla, Silas Tripp, Federico Vargas Tobon, Nathan Young, Ivy Zheng.
Master of Sport
A senior who is a member of a varsity team all three seasons during their senior year:
Zach Bezerra, Daniela Brennan, Tessa Dekker, Amelia Dodge, Sam Marcus, Kyle McCarron, Khyra McClennon, Lola Moerschell, Patrick Money, Gabriela Titone
4 year award:
Zach Bezzera (Track), Kyle McCarron (Track), Patrick Money (Track), Gabriela Titone (Track), Harper Howe (Track), Sara Huber (Track), Lola Moerschell (Track), Lola Clayton (Lacrosse), Tessa Dekker (Lacrosse), Lou Haemmerle (Lacrosse), Olivia Peterson (Lacrosse), Austin Bachman (Baseball), Daniela Brennan (Softball), Madison Dewitt (Softball), Abigail Hogan (Softball), Kylie Leonard (Softball), Abigail White (Softball), Manny Matsudaira (Tennis).
Athlete of the Year:
Kyle McCarron and Tessa Dekker
CAS CIAC Scholar Athlete:
Daniela Brennan and Manny Matsudaira
Pinnacle Award:
Daniela Brennan and Manny Matsudaira
The HVRHS boys rejoice around Jackson McAvoy after he scored the game-winning goal against Shepaug with just two minutes left to play.
WASHINGTON — Housatonic Valley Regional High School’s boys varsity soccer team advanced to the Berkshire League tournament final after a 1-0 win over Shepaug Valley High School in the semifinal game on Friday, Oct. 24.
Jackson McAvoy scored the game-winning goal with just two minutes remaining.
The victory marked HVRHS boys soccer’s first victory over Shepaug since 2020.
“Finally,” said HVRHS Coach Adolfo Portillo after the game.
HVRHS will play top-ranked Nonnewaug High School in the BL final. Nonnewaug advanced to the title game by beating Northwestern Regional High School in penalty kicks (4-3) after a 2-2 draw in regulation time.
The championship game will be played at Nonnewaug beginning at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 28.

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As the chilly breeze settles in, Halloween approaches and the community yearns for spooky festivities — HVRHS has answered that calling. An event held annually for the past eight years, the HVRHS haunted house has returned.
The event is organized by the current senior and junior year classes — 2026 and 2027 respectively — and held to raise money that goes toward the junior and senior class’s activities such as senior week, prom, the senior class trip, and more.
The haunted house is a significant event for HVRHS students, with the Class of 2026’s Vice President Richie Crane saying it is “actually one of our bigger fundraising events.” The profits raised by the classes are split based on how much either class participates, as Crane explained: “We split evenly between the juniors and the seniors, so if the juniors help as much as the seniors then we split the profit with them.” The profits shared between the classes is typically “a couple thousand dollars,” said Anne MacNeil, HVRHS’s sports director and one of the chaperones at the first haunted house.
In regards to planning such a large event, there are “several meetings that first start off with getting a theme … then finding a leader for each section … and then recruiting the people to participate.” MacNeil said. Costs going into planning the event are minimal, as they try to reuse as much materials as possible. If there are materials that need to be purchased, the cost is covered from the profits made at the end of the event, Crane said.
Working at the HVRHS haunted house provides students with an invaluable experience where they learn leadership skills, organizational skills, and teamwork. During the planning process, some students volunteer for leadership roles, where they are in charge of a designated section of the school and the people within that section. As a section leader, the student is in charge of setting up props, managing their area, and ensuring the people in their section are on task. Leaders dedicate “almost 12 hours of [their] day to a section of Housy” said Crane, giving the students a great opportunity to practice leadership skills.
The HVRHS haunted house is a holiday tradition that brings fun, community, and opportunities to the high school. MacNeil finds it to be “a lot of fun for the students to put on and a great thing for the community to enjoy.” Come support the Class of 2026 and 2027 and see the HVRHS haunted house for yourself on Nov. 1, 2025.