GNH clashes with Ansonia in season opener

GNH's Owen Riemer, no. 8, finished with 35 reception yards and 15 rushing yards in the first half.
Photo by Riley Klein
GNH's Owen Riemer, no. 8, finished with 35 reception yards and 15 rushing yards in the first half.
WINSTED — The Gilbert/Northwestern/Housatonic Yellowjackets football team lost the season opener on home turf to the Ansonia Chargers 42-7 on Saturday, Sept. 14.
Ansonia relied on its powerful run game to pile up the points and drain down the clock. The Chargers amassed more than 450 rushing yards in the game.
GNH strung together several promising drives with long passes from quarterback Ty Devita. Despite the lopsided score, big plays energized the crowd even late in the game and gave a sense of optimism for the coming season.
Last season, GNH ended with a record of 7-5 and departed the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) Class SS playoff tournament in the semifinal game with a loss to Watertown. This year, GNH has just seven seniors on the roster.
Ansonia finished with a 10-2 record last year and ended on a loss to Cromwell/Portland in the semifinals of the CIAC Class S tournament.
The 2024 season-opening match was well attended with approximately 250 fans paying admission to enter Van Why Field in Winsted. It was about 77 degrees at kick off with a light breeze and strong sun.
Ansonia set out on the ground from the start. QB Matteo Sorrentino and RB Quintez Whittle created a powerful one-two punch in the backfield. The Chargers marched into the end zone on the opening drive and led throughout.
Ansonia's Quintez Whittle, no. 9, had three touchdowns and 207 rushing yards in the Saturday, Sept. 4 game between Ansonia and GNH.Photo by Riley Klein
GNH found a scoring chance in its first possession when Owen Riemer reeled in a 35-yard reception at the five-yard line. Ansonia locked down the goal line and prevented a touchdown to maintain a 7-0 lead.
GNH wide receiver Wes Allyn leapt for a high pass in the end zone late in the second quarter, but Ansonia corner back Jahzari Lawson snatched it out of his hands for a mid-air interception. Ansonia took a 28-0 lead by halftime.
Ansonia proceeded to run down the clock and add two more scores in the second half. In the fourth quarter, GNH got on the board when QB Ty Devita snuck out of the pocket and dove into the end zone for a nine-yard touchdown. The game ended 42-7.
Ansonia was led offensively by Quintez Whittle with three TDs and 207 rushing yards. QB Matteo Sorrentino rushed for two TDs and totaled 157 rushing yards. Chrishon Fogle rushed for 76 yards and a touchdown and Jayden Jackson rushed for 25 yards.
GNH’s QB Ty Devita passed for 140 yards and scored a rushing touchdown for the Yellowjackets. RB Mason Sobol ran for 42 yards and WR Everett Rigby ended with 68 receiving yards. Owen Riemer finished with 35 reception yards and 15 rushing yards in the first half. He did play the second half after taking a hard hit to the head late in the second quarter.
GNH will travel to Municipal Stadium in Waterbury Thursday, Sept. 19, to play Kennedy High School. The Yellowjackets return to Van Why Field Friday, Sept. 27 to host Torrington High School under the lights at 7 p.m.
Emergency responders block Amenia Union Road in Sharon Saturday, Oct. 11, while responding to the vehicle crash.
Updated Oct. 13, 9:25 a.m.:
SHARON — Shea Cassidy-Teti, 17, of Salisbury, died Saturday, Oct. 11, in a tragic car crash on Amenia Union Road in Sharon.
Connecticut State Police reported Charles Teti, 62, was driving his Jeep Grand Cherokee northbound on Amenia Union Road when, for an unknown reason, the vehicle crossed the southbound lane and exited the roadway where it struck a tree and home. Airbags deployed.
Teti and front seat passenger Aidan Cassidy, 63, sustained serious injuries. Teti was airlifted to Hartford Hospital and Cassidy was transported by ambulance to Sharon Hospital for treatment.
Shea Cassidy-Teti was in the back seat and sustained fatal injuries. He was pronounced dead on scene.
Cassidy-Teti was a senior at Kent School. He played on the football and tennis teams.
The residence that was struck is located at 35 Amenia Union Road.
The case remains under open investigation. Witnesses are asked to contact Trooper Lukas Gryniuk at Troop B 860-626-1821.
LAKEVILLE — Rhys V. Bowen, 65, of Foxboro, Massachusetts, died unexpectedly in his sleep on Sept. 15, 2025. Rhys was born in Sharon, Connecticut, on April 9, 1960 to Anne H. Bowen and the late John G. Bowen. His brother, David, died in 1979.
Rhys grew up at The Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, where his father taught English. Attending Hotchkiss, Rhys excelled in academics and played soccer, basketball, and baseball. During these years, he also learned the challenges and joys of running, and continued to run at least 50 miles a week, until the day he died.
In 1982 after graduating summa cum laude from Harvard College, Rhys returned to Hotchkiss to teach biology, where he met his wife of 35 years, Rebecca (Becky) Snow. After two years of teaching, he worked at a research field site in Borneo, then went on to the University of California, Davis where he earned a PhD in Animal Behavior in 1995.
Rather than follow an academic tenure track, Rhys preferred the solitary focus of field ornithology, and he spent several decades researching the ecology of bird species in California and on Cape Cod and the Islands. Rhys believed passionately in supporting biodiversity through habitat preservation. His proudest achievements, therefore, came through his work for the Lakes Region Conservation Trust, in New Hampshire, where he served on committees and the Board of Trustees for twenty years, including three years as Chair.
Deeply intellectual and curious, Rhys learned Homeric Greek so he could read The Odyssey and The Iliad in their original language. An amateur Melville scholar, he would wax poetic about reading Moby-Dick for the umpteenth time.Rhys’s spirit was filled by the performing arts. Concerts by the Handel and Haydn Society and Boston Early Music Festival often brought tears to his eyes, while Boston Bluegrass Union shows delivered toe-tapping fidgetiness.
Rhys will be missed by his wife, Becky Snow, his mother, Anne Bowen, extended family, friends, and anyone who had the pleasure of knowing him.
A service will be held at The Hotchkiss School chapel on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025 at 1 p.m..
In honor of Rhys’s memory, donations can be made to the Lakes Region Conservation Trust.
LAKEVILLE — Kelsey K. Horton, 43, a lifelong area resident, died peacefully on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025, at Norwalk Hospital in Norwalk, Connecticut, following a courageous battle with cancer. Kelsey worked as a certified nursing assistant and administrative assistant at Noble Horizons in Salisbury, from 1999 until 2024, where she was a very respected and loved member of their nursing and administrative staff.
Born Oct. 4, 1981, in Sharon, she was the daughter of W. Craig Kellogg of Southern Pines, North Carolina, and JoAnne (Lukens) Tuncy and her husband Donald of Millerton, New York. Kelsey graduated with the class of 1999 from Webutuck High School in Amenia and from BOCES in 1999 with a certificate from the CNA program as well. She was a longtime member of the Lakeville United Methodist Church in Lakeville. On Oct. 11, 2003, in Poughkeepsie, New York, she married James Horton. Jimmy survives at home in Lakeville. Kelsey loved camping every summer at Waubeeka Family Campground in Copake, and she volunteered as a cheer coach for A.R.C. Cheerleading for many years. Kelsey also enjoyed hiking and gardening in her spare time and spending time with her loving family and many dear friends.
In addition to her husband and parents, Kelsey is survived by her two beloved children, Hunter Horton and Aryanna Horton, both of Lakeville; a step-brother, Jason Tuncy of East Hartford, Connecticut; her mother-in-law, Frances “Fran” Horton and her brother-in-law, Benjamin D. Horton III and his wife Penny of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, and their son, Alec, and several aunts, uncles, cousins and many dear friends. She was predeceased by her father-in-law, Benjamin D. Horton, Jr. in 2017.
There are no calling hours. A Celebration of Life will take place on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, from 11 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Millerton American Legion Post # 178, Route 44, Millerton, NY 12546. A time to celebrate Kelsey and share stories and memories. Memorial contributions may be made to The Jane Lloyd Fund. Please make checks payable to Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation (please note in memo line, The Jane Lloyd Fund) and mail to: Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, 800 N. Main Street, Sheffield, MA 01257.
To send an online condolence to the family, flowers to the service or to plant a tree in Kelsey’s memory, please visit www.conklinfuneralhome.com
Arrangements have been entrusted to the Scott D. Conklin Funeral Home, 37 Park Avenue, Millerton, NY 12546.
SHARON — On Sept. 27, Eliot Warren Brown was shot and killed at age 47 at his home in New Orleans, Louisiana, in a random act of violence by a young man in need of mental health services. Eliot was born and raised in Sharon, Connecticut, and attended Indian Mountain School and Concord Academy in Massachusetts. He graduated from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He and his wife Brooke moved to New Orleans to answer the call for help in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and fell in love with the city.
In addition to his wife Brooke, Eliot leaves behind his parents Malcolm and Louise Brown, his sisters Lucia (Thaddeus) and Carla (Ruairi), three nephews, and extended family and friends spread far and wide.
Normally at this point one might list some interests, but in Eliot’s case, it’s easier to list what he wasn’t interested in: watching sports.
Eliot made a living as a fine craftsman and carpenter, but at heart he was an artist. He was well versed in music, painting, literature, biking, travel, Mardi Gras costumes, poker, pranks, street performance and on and on and on.Having previously hiked the entire Camino de Santiago in Spain and Portugal, he recently achieved another dream of summiting the highest stratovolcano in North America.
Eliot’s creative ability was astounding. His creations were designed to bring joy to others. He didn’t seek recognition or praise, and a large part of his work was anonymous. Pieces of art would appear in the community, encouraging people to think, connect and enjoy.
From the precociously funny and determinedly defiant boy that grew up in the Northwest corner of Connecticut, Eliot grew into a brilliant, gentle souled, boundlessly creative, ever mischievous, perpetually scraggly, and astoundingly wise and caring man who made an indelible impact on those who were lucky to have him in their lives.
In honor of Eliot, please consider making donations to organizations that work to end gun violence, support the arts, or provide mental health services. A service will be held at the Congregational Church in Salisbury on Sunday Oct. 26 at 2 p.m.