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But fifth-year coach Eric Deegan hopes that Canton will be able to play with the top teams in the North Central Connecticut Conference this winter. But he admits, it won't be easy with teams like Tolland, East Windsor, Suffield and Avon.
Canton went 13-11 a year ago and won two games in the CIAC tournament for the first time since 1982. Northwestern Regional outlasted Canton, 65-60 in the Division IV quarterfinals. But earlier in the tournament, Canton snapped a 21-game losing streak dating back to 1996 with a first round victory over Avon, 57-51. And then, Canton stunned No. 1 Old Saybrook, 61-53 in the second round.
All-NCCC guard Mike Connon (16.9 points, team-high 55 three-point goals) graduated along with Matt Valley (11.5 ppg) and Ian Bossert (10.7).
This year, the Warriors are a little faster and a lot bigger. Sophomore forward Chris Robitaille is 6-foot-5 while senior Matt Getz is 6-foot-3. Coming off the bench is 6-foot-5 junior Matt Zukowski and 6-foot-7 junior Tyler Smith.
Robitaille and Getz start along with 6-foot guard Joey Dionne, 6-foot-1 guard Dwayne Rivers and 6-foot guard Jimmy Purcell, all seniors. Dionne is the only returning starter while Rivers had extensive playing time two years ago as a sophomore.
Freshman guard Andrew Crowley (5-10), junior forward Brian McClellan (6-1) and senior guard Ian Lockaby (5-10) should also see plenty of playing time.
"We need to get a little more consistent scoring," Deegan said. "That has been up and down for us. We're still trying to find out who we are."
Canton won its first two games of the season. In the season opener against Portland, Canton trailed most of the way but rallied behind eight points from Smith in the fourth quarter as the Warriors pulled out a 53-48 victory. Rivers led Canton with 10 points while Robitaille and Smith finished with eight each.
Against Suffield, the Warriors used defensive pressure to build an 18-point lead at halftime as they cruised to a 63-48 victory. Dionne and Rivers each had 15 points for Canton.
"We played much better against Suffield," Deegan said. "Defense was the main thing and we took much better care of the ball."
Canton travels to Stafford on Friday (Dec. 22) for a non-league contest before hosting Portland on Thursday, Dec. 28, at 7:15 p.m.
WRESTLING: Junior Mike Rossley went 4-0 with four pins at 119 pounds to win his first-ever tournament championship at the 17th annual Derby Invitational. Rossley won the title with a 49 second pin of Derby's Vin DelPrete. Rossley had just 12 pins in 27 matches a year ago.
Three other Warriors finished third - Ryan Magleitti (130), Dana Nappi (152) and Dan LeDuc (160). Freshman Stephen Carpenter (103) and Brandon Leach (140) finished fourth.
Canton finished tied for fifth in the tournament with Housatonic (93 points). Derby easily won the title for the second straight year over Morgan, 193-101.
Branford and Darien were tied for third with 96 points.
Nappi dislocated his elbow in the consolation semifinals but still beat Derby's Dan Grady when it popped back into place. With his elbow taped, Nappi beat Hamden Hall's Nick Alberino, 10-2. Nappi could miss a few weeks to let the injury heal.
Magleitti and LeDuc each went 3-1 with three pins in the tournament. Leach lost twice to Gilbert's James Dombrowski. Magleitti pinned Darien's Justin Marks in 2:34 to take third while LeDuc pinned Darien's Alex Shirmer in 2:46 to finish third.
Canton lost its initial dual meet to Portland, 59-19. Carpenter, who weights just 92 points, won his varsity debut at 103 pounds by pinning Portland's Ryan Enright in 1:43. Maglietti (130) rallied from a 6-0 deficit to outlast Shane Kelly, 14-10. LeDuc (171) also won for the Warriors.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Sarah Getz had a team-high nine points but the Warriors (0-3, 0-0 NCCC) dropped a 56-25 decision to Granby last week.
