WOODBURY — Blood, sweat, and tears. Two teams wanting the league title more than anything else. Nonnewaug and Lewis Mills were neck and neck in the Berkshire League from 1991 until just a few years ago. 

Nonnewaug boys soccer coach Toby Denman says that these games were the highlight of his coaching career. 

“Initially it was a little more heated than it had ended up; eventually it was mutual respect, the coach and I got along well,” Denman says. “We always wanted to beat each other. It was always two teams interested in winning more than anything else.”

Nonnewaug’s rivalry with Lewis Mills was hottest in multiple sports: soccer, basketball, tennis, and more. Not having the game on the schedule anymore – Lewis Mills left the Berkshire League in 2019 – was something that upset Denman, so he decided to do something about it. 

“We missed having the game on the schedule. It was always the game,” Denman said. “A reporter would always cover the Mills-Nonnewaug game. They were absolute classic games, as well as some of the highlights of my coaching career here.”

Regarding the past rivalry, senior Gavin Sandor knew a lot about the rivalry over the years. Denman scheduled a non-league game against Mills this past season in hopes that it would bring back some type of heat towards the old rivalry. Denman informed the team about the history of the rivalry before facing the Spartans in October. 

“I knew a lot about the rivalry because I grew up watching both the girls and boys high school teams play Lewis Mills,” Sandor said. “However, he really emphasized how deep rooted, and strong this rivalry was. It wasn’t just your normal rivalry like against Shepaug, it was something that had been growing for years going back and forth between the schools. He described how the league [title] would always go back and forth between Nonnewaug and Lewis Mills, and how the rivalry wasn’t just between the schools, but the towns as well. It is a well known rivalry in the state that coaches [and] teams from all over Connecticut know about.” 

Being able to play Lewis Mills non-league, and having a past with them, can be a weight on a player’s shoulders, but Sandor said it was fun in the long run. 

“It was very exciting to play Lewis Mills and get a chance to beat them. Getting a shot at last year’s state champs gives you a game to prove your ability,” Sandor said. “Even though we tied, it was a competitive, end-to-end, and passionate game. Definitely a highlight of the season, and one of my favorite soccer games ever.”

“I felt like I needed to perform my best during the game. It wasn’t just about winning or getting bragging rights over a rival; it was also about proving that Berkshire League schools could keep up with the other conferences.  Even though we tied, it definitely felt like a win for Nonnewaug and the rest of the Berkshire League,” Sandor continued.  “A notice to the other conferences that we are serious competitors. Also being the only Berkshire league team who played them this year and didn’t lose, further solidified the ability and work rate of this year’s team.”

FNL. Calendars were marked for this fight on the turf. Large crowds from both sides caused the rivalry to only grow larger than it already had been.

Nicholas Sheikh, a science teacher, coach and former two-sport athlete at Nonnewaug, believes that these games were always the games to attend.

“Everybody marked their calendars for those Lewis Mills games because they knew those were the big games to be at,” Sheikh said. “They knew it was definitely gonna be a battle.”

Mills Out, Shepaug In

But the rivalry didn’t continue for long after that.

According to The Register Citizen, “Region 10’s board of education had voted to move Lewis Mills’ athletic program from the Berkshire League to the Central Connecticut Conference (CCC) in the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year.”

When Lewis Mills left the Berkshire League, it seemed to be making it easier for Nonnewaug to compete in the BL, even though, we could use the competitiveness/ a good challenge.

“A piece of the Berkshire League puzzle was going away,” Sheikh said. “Although it kind of left a void, it’s one less team to contend with. However it was good to have that test [against Lewis Mills] prior to states.”

Shepaug has always been a neighboring rival, and since Mills’ departure, Shepaug has been Nonnewaug’s top rival. Denman agrees that Shepaug has always been a good opponent, and the proximity heightens this competitiveness.

“If you ask the kids now about Shepaug’s rivalry, they wouldn’t know much about Lewis Mills. Shepaug’s kind of the natural rival being right next door,” Denman states. “Our guys know their guys and vice versa. You add in the fact that some of those guys play football together. They also have the ability to see each other outside of school, which also can add to local bragging rights.”

Shepaug co-ops with Nonnewaug in football, lacrosse and hockey, which may add a little more rivalry when athletes compete against each other in basketball or soccer.

Junior Brady Herman plays football with Reed Woerner, a senior who attends Shepaug. But Woerner also plays basketball for the Spartans and just dropped 40 points in Shepaug’s win over the Chiefs on Feb. 7.

“It’s weird; you’re friends with these guys for a couple months [and] you get really close with them,” Herman said. “But when basketball starts, you are rivals with them. It’s competitive. But after the game, we go up to each other and give a small hug.”