Seven Years Later:Newtown football title brings joy on painful anniversary

NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP) — Newtown marked the seventh anniversary of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School with vigils, church services and a moment of joy when the community’s high school football team — with a shooting victim’s brother as linebacker — won the state championship Saturday in a last-minute thrill.

The Newtown High School Nighthawks won the Class LL state championship on a 36-yard touchdown pass as time expired, beating Darien 13-7. The title was the first for Newtown since 1992. The team ends the season undefeated.

Ben Pinto, whose brother Jack was among those killed in the shooting, played linebacker for Newtown.

“The whole town showed out on this special night,” senior Jared Dunn told The Hartford Courant. “We knew we had to bring it home for our town.”