Connecticut

On CT Adoption Day, 40 children find their forever homes

Published

1 year ago

November 23, 2024

On CT Adoption Day, 40 children find their forever homes

Judge Matthew Larock asked Ryan Soto if he had a statement to make. Soto was sitting next to 11-year-old Gabriel in a Torrington court room on Friday, finalizing his adoption.

Soto stood up and turned toward the gallery. The courtroom benches were filled with family members and case workers from the state Department of Children and Families, wearing proud smiles. This was a good day.

First, Soto thanked the many people who had helped make the adoption a reality. Then, he looked at his son.

“Gabe, I am honored that you came into my life. You are such an intelligent, kind kid. Thank you for making room in your heart for me as your dad, because we all have options here,” Soto said. Then, Soto addressed the rest of the room, and even the imagined audience that might be listening beyond:

“There’s so many kids out there and a lot of older youth, they need help, and oftentimes we forget that they are still kids. They still yearn for love and family. So, we can make a difference. I didn’t do this alone — we made a difference in Gabe’s life.”

Ryan Soto addresses the courtroom gallery on Friday during his son Gabriel’s adoption ceremony in Torrington. Credit: Laura Tillman / CT Mirror

Soto gave Gabriel a kiss on the forehead and took a seat.

Gabriel was one of 40 children who were adopted across Connecticut on Friday, CT Adoption Day. DCF spokesman Peter Yazbak said that around 350 children are expected to be adopted this year in Connecticut.

DCF Commissioner Jodi Hill-Lilly joined the ceremonies in Torrington on Friday, with balloons, toys and cake to celebrate. Once Soto finished his comments, Hill-Lilly said a few words.

“What a tribute. I just personally want to say thank you for stepping up and doing what I consider to be God’s work,” Hill-Lilly said. Hill-Lilly urged other families to consider taking on a fostering role.

“I would be remiss if I didn’t say you too can be an adoptive or a foster parent,” Hill-Lilly said.

After the ceremony ended, Soto shared a little more of his journey to adopting Gabriel. As a gay man who wanted to be a dad, “for obvious reasons it wasn’t happening naturally.” So, he started considering fostering a child to adopt, and imagined a kid under 5 years old.

But then, DCF sent him Gabriel’s profile, a 9-year-old looking for a forever home. “I said why not? Let me give him a chance.”

There were challenges. Gabriel had a hard time building trust with Soto, and sometimes grated against his rules. Those, Soto said, are typical challenges with older kids. “But when that wall comes down, it’s a big wall.”

That wall started to come down when Soto attended an awards ceremony at Gabriel’s school. “He was able to count on someone to be there, and I think from there he started trusting — trusting that somebody could care,” Soto said.

Gabriel is still in contact with his biological family. His 4-year-old half-sibling, Elias, who had been adopted by another family, was also present at the event.

DCF has made a major effort in recent years to place children with relatives if they can’t remain with their birth parents. That means the number of children eligible for adoption to non-biological families has gone down. But there remains a bigger need for foster parents who are willing to serve as temporary placements for children who may need a home until they can return to their families.

Natalia Liriano, the director of foster care for DCF, said that many of the children who do need adoptive homes may be older children, or children with significant health issues. People can learn more about those kids by visiting the DCF Heart Gallery page.

“We’re talking about teenagers who can give you a run for your money but they still need love and they still are deserving of being in relationships, children with medically complex needs who need to be in longstanding relationships,” Liriano said.

Earlier on Friday, 1-year-old Corrina was adopted by mom Michelle Gonzalez. Corrina, dressed in a pink tutu, took to the courtroom like a massive play area. She batted at the heart-shaped balloons, smiled at reporters, enjoyed bites of cake, and hugged her mom when it all got to be too much.

When the ceremony was over, Richard Federico, a judicial marshall walked through the court room, taking in the happy faces and tutu-clad toddler.

“This is probably the best thing to happen here,” he said.

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Connecticut

Final Connecticut High School Football Top 25 Rankings – Dec. 14

Published

1 hour ago

December 14, 2025

Press Room

Final Connecticut High School Football Top 25 Rankings – Dec. 14

The Connecticut high school football’s CIAC postseason wrapped up with the state championships this past weekend on Saturday.

Finishing in the No. 1 spot in this week’s final Top 25 rankings out of the Constitution State is Avon Old Farms after they defeated The Williston Northampton School, 35-21, in the Drew Gamere Bowl to end their season a few weeks ago. New Canaan sits right behind as they repeated as Class L champs. Which other teams from around Connecticut high school football deserves to be in the final set of Top 25 rankings for the 2025 campaign?

The Massey Ratings, officially used during the BCS era, is a model that ranks sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule, and margin of victory.

Here are the last Connecticut high school football rankings for 2025, according to Massey as of Dec. 14.

1. Avon Old Farms Beavers

Avon Old Farms (10-0) opened up the Connecticut high school football season by avenging a loss to Brunswick School from last season and have set the tone for the rest of the campaign. The Beavers have a talented offense that’s averaging 40.7 points per game, led by quarterback Matthew Baer, running back Kharon Craig, and offensive tackle Charlie Thom (Notre Dame commitment).

The Beavers have concluded their season play out of the New England Preparatory School Athletic Counci (NEPSAC) when they defeated The Williston Northampton School last week in the Drew Gamere Bowl, 35-21. Avon Old Farms finishes as the No. 1 team in the Connecticut high school football rankings.

2. New Canaan Rams

The defending Class L state champion New Canaan Rams (13-0) have done it once again as they defeated Cheshire, 34-13.

The Rams have won back to back playoff games versus Darien and Weaver with ease, winning by a combined 85-13. New Canaan won its 16th state championship in head coach Lou Marinelli’s legendary career. With the win, New Canaan clinched their fourth undefeated season in program history for the Rams (1968, 1969, 2008, 2025).

New Canaan has used a high-powered offense to cruise past opponents this fall, with quarterback Maddox Hoffman throwing for 1,936 yards and 21 touchdowns. Running back Henry Stein leads the ground game as he’s rushed for 916 yards and seven touchdowns.

3. Choate Rosemary Hall Wild Boars

Choate Rosemary Hall (8-2) saw its 18-game winning streak snapped back in Week 1 when they lost against New Hampshire’s Phillips Exeter Academy in a battle of top-ranked teams in their respective states.

The Wild Boars will finish likely within the Top 5 of the rankings after they ended their 2025 season in exciting fashion as they avenged that defeat by beating Phillips Exeter Academy in the Leon Modeste Bowl in a 44-42 thriller.

In 2024, the Wild Boars had completed their second consecutive perfect season after defeating Brunswick School. They have lost only four games over the last four Connecticut high school football seasons and only allowed only four opponent to score double digits.

The Wild Boars are another prep school that features multiple future Division I players, including Tanner Raymond (Rutgers) and interior offense lineman Will Tellers.

4. St. Thomas More Chancellors

St. Thomas More (1-3) remain steady as the No. 3 team in our latest set of Connecticut high school football rankings after a 50-21 loss to New Jersey’s No. 3 team, Hun School to end their season.

The Chancellors only losses from the 2024 season came against Maryland’s St. Frances Academy, Hun School, and Florida’s IMG Academy, respectively. St. Thomas More doesn’t have anymore scheduled games left on their 2025 slate.

Among the players the Chancellors feature on their roster are four-star edge rusher Alhassan Iddrissu (UCF), cornerback Terron Johnson, running back Malichi Greaves, and linebacker Christian King.

5. Daniel Hand Tigers

The Daniel Hand Tigers (13-1) has dominated in the Class SS playoffs, dominating all three opponents by a combined score of 122-32, after defeating the Killingly Trailblazers, 37-13, on Saturday.

Fueling the Daniel Hand offensive attack is the strong play of senior signal caller Bobby Reh, who has thrown for 2,194 yards and 29 touchdowns to only three mere picks. Junior running back Lucca Boyce leads the ground game with 1,272 yards and 14 touchdowns.

6. St Joseph (8-2)
7. Cheshire Academy (7-3)
8. Windsor (12-1)
9. Brunswick School (6-4)
10. Greenwich (8-2)

11. Newtown (8-2)
12. Killingly (11-1)
13. Fairfield College Preparatory (8-2)
14. Wilton (10-2)
15. The Taft School (5-4)

16. Bunnell (10-3)
17. Kingswood-Oxford School (8-2)
18. Berlin (12-0)
19. The Loomis Chaffee School (3-6)
20. Darien (6-5)

21. Brookfield (8-3)
22. Staples (5-5)
23. Cheshire (8-3)
24. Southington (7-3)
25. Mark T. Sheehan (10-3)

For Connecticut high school football fans looking to keep up with scores around the nation, staying updated on the action is now easier than ever with the Rivals High School Scoreboard. This comprehensive resource provides real-time updates and final scores from across the Constitution State, ensuring you never miss a moment of the Friday night frenzy. From nail-biting finishes to dominant performances, the Rivals High School Scoreboard is your one-stop destination for tracking all the Connecticut high school scores and football rankings.

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Connecticut

Central Connecticut State hands Bearcats second straight loss

Published

14 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Press Room

Central Connecticut State hands Bearcats second straight loss

VESTAL, NY (WBNG) — In a second straight doubleheader Saturday following up a Bearcats women’s win, the Bearcats men’s team dropped their second consecutive home game, 84-67 to Central Connecticut State.

In a closely contested matchup early on, the Bearcats stayed in it heading into the break only trailing by seven points.

In the second half, Binghamton brought it to within four points before the Blue Devils pulled away once again and went on an 11-0 run and went up by as much as 20 points.

Darin Smith Jr. finished with a game high, 23 points for the Blue Devils.

The Bearcats were without center, Demetrius Lilley which led to junior forward, Zyier Beverly, having an increased role.

Beverly led Binghamton with 21 points and five rebounds.

After back-to-back losses at home, the Bearcats now go on the road for a three game road stretch starting on Wednesday, Dec. 17 against Pittsburgh at 7p.m.

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Connecticut

Watch New Canaan vs. Cheshire in Connecticut Class L football championship: Live stream

Published

1 day ago

December 13, 2025

Press Room

Watch New Canaan vs. Cheshire in Connecticut Class L football championship: Live stream

New Canaan faces Cheshire in the 2025 Connecticut high school Class L football state championship on Saturday afternoon.

The game begins at 4 p.m. EST on Saturday, Dec. 13, at Veterans Stadium in New Britain, Connecticut.

The game will stream live on the NFHS Network.

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What: Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) Class L football championship

Who: New Canaan vs. Cheshire

When: Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025

Where: Veterans Stadium in New Britain, Connecticut

Time: 4 p.m. EST

Stream: NFHS Network

Tickets: $11,50

Record, MaxPrep state rankings: New Canaan 12-0, No. 1; Cheshire 9-3, No. 11

Here’s more information about the game from the Hartford Courant, via the Tribune News Service:

New Canaan is going for its 16th state title and fourth straight under veteran coach Lou Marinelli and New Canaan outscored its playoff opponents, 85-13. Cheshire’s last finals appearance was 2009, when coach Don Drust was an assistant for the Rams’ team, which beat Staples in overtime to win a Class LL title. Cheshire rallied from a 19-point deficit against Fairfield Ludlowe to win the Class L quarterfinal game and beat Ridgefield 21-0 in the semifinals. QB Aiden Gregorich’s pass to Liam Suomala proved to be the game-winning touchdown with 10 seconds left in the quarterfinal.

What is the NFHS Network?

The NFHS Network covers more than 30 sports across the country. NFHS Network costs $13.99 per month or $79.99 per year.

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