Featured Athlete

The Bobcats’ Ball Hawk

Featured Athlete: Dom MacNeil

Nihaal Thakran and Adam Albaghdadi • November 14, 2024

Dominic MacNeil warms up before the Bobcats game versus Stamford.

Dominic MacNeil is a junior safety for the South Windsor Bobcat football team, sporting #22, as he has been for his entire football playing career. MacNeil has been making a name for himself during his junior season, using his experience and aggression to his advantage to make big plays for the Bobcat defense.

Dom has been playing football for 9 years, and started because his older brother inspired him to. He’s played the same position the majority of his life as well, due to him being one of the faster and smaller players on the field since he started. However, his lack of size has never stopped him from forcing turnovers.

MacNeil has 3 interceptions on the season, the first coming against Berlin and the other two during the recent Senior Day game versus East Hartford on November 9th. MacNeil forced two interceptions, and tipped another into the hands of teammate Ethan Burke to force a third turnover against the Hornets.

Dom has been recognized by his teammates as one of the most aggressive and hard hitting players on the team, despite his size, as senior captain Adam Saada would agree.

MacNeil has 42 tackles on the season, and does not shy away from contact, even if the ball carrier is larger than him. Along with that, he has 6 deflections, and 2 fumble recoveries. His stats show how well he has performed this season.

MacNeil earned the nickname “Ball Hawk” due to the chipped paint on his helmet, which is the result of his aggressive playstyle.

Teammate Ryan Laguardia has played beside MacNeil for 9 years now, and agrees with the “Ball Hawk” nickname.

“He has always been a hard hitter and tough kid. I’m glad I got to play with him for as long as I have,” Laguardia said.

MacNeil hopes to go out on a high note with the end nearing for the 2024 season, and he’s looking forward to adding more to his season statline for the Cats with Simsbury on November 15th and Enfield on November 22nd.

About the Contributors

Nihaal Thakran, Staff Writer

Nihaal Thakran is a senior at South Windsor High School. He is the fourth time returning class president, and is a varsity captain for the Bobcats football team. Nihaal loves sports and has played football for 7 years now. He loves listening to music, and he listens to music the majority of his day. He works at the local Dairy Queen during his free time, as well.

Adam Albaghdadi, Social Media Editor

Adam Albaghdadi is a senior at South Windsor High School. Albaghdadi is the Social Media Editor for The Bobcat Prowl. He oversees all The Prowls social media content, along with helping other staff writers with their articles. He also plays varsity football and lacrosse for SWHS. Albaghdadi enjoys spending time with family and friends, and can be found at football and LAX games.

Nirvaan Thakran, Staff Writer

Nirvaan is a freshman at South Windsor High School. This is his first year in Journalism writing for The Bobcat Prowl. He is currently playing for the SWHS football team, and is planning on playing Lacrosse in the spring. Nirvaan loves sports and has been playing them since he was very little. He enjoys spending time with his family, and listens to music to calm him down.

Eli Schwartzman, Multimedia Editor

Eli Schwartzman is a third year journalism student at South Windsor High School and is entering his junior year. He is the Multimedia Editor for The Bobcat Prowl. He oversees all the video content for The Prowl. Schwartzman loves sports, both playing and watching. He plans to cover many different sports games this year and write about them. When he’s not in the classroom, you can find Eli taking pictures at a sports game, spending time with his friends, or with his four dogs. Last year, his article, “The King of Hearts”, won a Best of SNO award, as well as finishing fourth in the NSPA sports article division.