HOSTS FOOD DRIVE
Come Fight Hunger!!
Donations will be given to:
Drop Off Location:
3277 Berlin Turnpike
Newington CT 06111
Dates: Nov 7th-20th
Times: 10am to 6:30pm
Monday – Friday
9am to 4:30pm Saturday
*Non-Perishable Foods Only Please*
"Thanks for the dance Mark Lovell of Tallahassee."-Crusher #99
NIGP Clam Bake in Hartford, CT
Sunday August 5, 2007
"Playing for Crush is proof football not just for guys!"
Thursday June 21, 2007
BY ROGER CLEAVELAND
Copyright © 2007 Republican-American
Veronica Coty
Veronica Coty went to the Connecticut Women's Expo
in Hartford last September to appeal to the
more feminine side of women. She left there
with a curiosity about her own competitive nature.
In addition to being a fiscal administrative assistant for the Connecticut Department of Mental Retardation, the 30-year-old from Waterbury also runs her own business, Temptations Parties. She goes into women's homes and teaches them how to get in touch with their sensuality.
While Coty displayed party products at the Expo, her husband Jamie took a walk and became intrigued by the Connecticut Crush women's semi-pro football exhibit. He asked his wife to check out the team's booth.
"I ended up going to a tryout," Coty said.
"I worked out for 2 1/2 hours and hurt
for like three weeks. But I convinced myself
that if I was forced to do this a couple times
per week, I would have no excuse not to
be in shape." Eventually, the incentive for
staying active blossomed into a surprising
passion for football that her husband's seven
years as a Pop Warner football coach never
came close to drawing out of her.
"I'm definitely a girly-girl," Coty said. "I am the makeup queen who has to have her hair done just right and wants to look feminine. My nick name on the team is Barbie. Nobody looks at me and says, 'There is a football player.' They will look at me funny when I tell them I play and say, 'You're joking right? Are you the water girl?'
Coty, all 5-foot, 135 pounds of her” is a starting cornerback for the Crush despite being a rookie.
She is one of six Greater Waterbury players on the team's roster. The others include:
Shari Casolo of Waterbury,
Jennifer Stango of Oakville,
Michael Breakell of Ansonia,
and Christin Morgatto of Seymour.
They will all be in action Saturday night at 7 at Sage Park in Berlin as the Crush (6-2) play the first playoff game in their seven-year history against the Cleveland Fusion.
"We're ecstatic about it," Stango said. "We missed the playoffs last year by one game, so to actually get to host a game this year is incredible. "I'm psyched. I'm ready to put the pads on right now." Stango, a second-year linebacker and running back, said she thought about going out for the Sacred Heart High football team but opted to play soccer instead. Her interest in football was peaked again in college, because her assistant soccer coach, Christine Huber, and her softball coach, Dawn Spellman, played for the Crush.
Once Stango graduated, she gave football a chance, and she couldn't be happier. "It is one of the best teams I have ever been on," the 23-year-old teacher said. "We are one giant family that goes out there to work hard and prove ourselves in a sport most people (including her five brothers) think just guys can play.
"We have the mentality, "Kill girl, get ball!' and we are motivated to go out there and be just as physical as the guys. My oldest brother asked me after a game, 'Did you get hit last night?' and I was like, 'Yup, and it was great!'"
Even a girly-girl like Coty has learned to love the physical nature of the game.
"The first time I hit someone, it was an amazing feeling," Coty said. "It is incredible to take someone off their feet and keep going. The first time I got hit, I was like, 'Wow! OK, we want to avoid that at all costs.'"
Yet, in Coty's third game, her first start, she hyper extended her right shoulder, elbow and wrist trying to brace a fall on the first play. She didn't tell anyone about the injury, because she had worked too hard to earn her position.
"The bruises heal and the sprains mend," said Coty, the mother of a 2-year-old daughter named Samantha. "I want to keep doing it as long as I am physically able, because the challenge is fantastic for the mind, the body and the spirit.
"People are still a little amazed I play football. I think it is great inspiration for girls. You don't have to leave your feminine side behind if you want to get out on the field and kick butt."
The women are dedicated. They begin practicing 2-3 times per week in November to get in shape, and practice at least twice per week once the season begins in April. If they keep winning, their season could last until the Super Bowl in Nashville, Tenn. July 21.
Both their losses this season were to their arch rivals, the Mass Mutiny. If they win Saturday they could play the Mutiny again. It's something the team wants badly, because the Crush lost the second game by a touchdown after leading most of the way.
"I still have nightmares about it," Stango said. "We really believed going into the season we were an 8-0 team. This is just as great. We only lost to one team, and we know we can beat them. If we do, we think we can go all the way."
For the Story click on link below!
Playing for Crush is proof football not just for guys!
Wedensday June 20, 2007
On Wedensday June 20, 2007 The Connecticut Crush Women's Professional Football Team aired on Power 104.1 with Spank B.U.D.A. at 7pm. Click on the audio player below to listen!!!
Representing the Connecticut Crush were:
Captain Sheronna Black #90
Captain Sheila Dawson #72
Yvonne Howard #18
Kelly Woodard #70
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