STORRS—The memories of a state championship loss remained with the players on the St. Paul softball team for a year.
When they returned to UConn for Saturday’s CIAC Class S championship game, they planned to write a different final scene as they squared off with a familiar opponent—last year’s champion North Branford.
With Breyona Demora having another dominant pitching performance and each of the nine starters having at least one hit, the top-seeded Falcons won their first state title in school history with an 11-3 victory over the Thunderbirds.
The Falcons put the finishing touches on the coronation by scoring six times in the sixth inning in a rematch of the 2025 Class S final. When Demora’s final pitch resulted in her 14th strikeout, gloves were hurled into the air and screams of joy quickly followed.
“We all played great,” St. Paul’s senior third baseman Bella McCulloch said. “This is exactly how I would want to win a state championship. We practiced, we were hungry, we wanted to win and we were all prepared for this moment. We came back and we won.”
Did they ever.
Sophomore Kaitlyn Wood had three of St. Paul’s 14 hits. Lily McCulloch, Peighton Giambra and Sydney Yanavich added two hits each. The hits were not exactly seeing-eye singles. Even some of the outs were of the loud variety. From the time they held their first practice, the ultimate goal was to finish what they started during the 2025 run to the Class final.
“It motivated us a lot,” said Demora, who was named the Class S championship game MVP. “We all had to try really hard to get here. We had a lot of games this season. We all have a really great bond, we all get along and there is no drama ever. We are really close friends, so it is fun and you play with your friends.”
Getting production throughout the lineup was a strength of the team all season long. It was only fitting that they were all get up to the plate ready to take care of business.
“We like to stay connected,” Wood said. “We have our inside jokes, we are definitely connected as a team, everybody is welcome.”
St. Paul’s lone loss during the regular season came to Class L finalist New Milford. That game provided more tonic for the Falcons.
“When New Milford lost today, I said to them that losing to you midseason was possibly the best thing to ever happen to us,” St. Paul coach Gary Hovhanessian said. “It made us know what it takes to win and to win. They have been fighting all year long.”
Hovhanessian was thrilled to see many of his former players during his 22 years coaching the Falcons in the stands on Saturday.
“A piece of the trophy goes to every kid who ever put on the uniform,” Hovhanessian said. “There were some former players in the stands cheering us on. It is outstanding.”
North Branford made St. Paul work for that final out. A strike away from seeing the game come to an end, North Branford outfielder Madi DiStefano hit a two-run homer in the seventh inning. Demora struck out the next batter to give the Falcons that long-awaited state title.
“His girls played hard, they were awesome,” North Branford coach Nick DeLizio said. “They capitalized on mistakes that we made early and they didn’t let up. They put their foot on the gas and just hammered it down. They are a really good hitting team. There is not an easy out in that lineup. When it rained, it poured and it definitely poured on us today unfortunately.”
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