Groton

Fight between players at NFA vs. Fitch High School football game under investigation

NBC Universal, Inc.

A fight between players at the Norwich Free Academy and Fitch High School football game in Groton on Friday is under investigation. This comes after the game was postponed from Thursday and heightened security and additional safety measures were implemented.

Officers assigned to work the NFA/Fitch High School football game reported a disturbance between the field house and the concession stand at the end of the game around 6:45 p.m. Friday. The fight reportedly was between players from both teams.

The incident was quickly disbursed and no injuries were reported. At this time, no arrests have been made, but the incident remains under investigation.

Members of the Groton Town Police and the Board of Education staff from both schools are working to identify the students involved. Anyone with information is asked to contact Groton Town Police Department at (860) 441-6712.

The fight comes after the game was postponed from Thursday. It was originally supposed to be played Thursday at 6 p.m., but was postponed after school administrators and police were notified of possible safety concerns.

NFA security first contacted Groton police around 1:45 p.m. about the possible safety concerns and police decided to add more officers to be at the game, according to police.

Later on Thursday, students at Fitch notified the school resource officer about concerning social media posts about the game, police said.

Due to the nature of the threats, officials from Fitch and NFA, along with Groton police, decided to postpone the game until 4 p.m. on Friday. The decision was made out of an abundance of caution and to give officials time to institute additional safety measures and protocols before the game, police said.

Groton Police Chief Louis Fusaro praised the students for coming forward about the social media posts.

"We encourage students, parents, and citizens who are made aware of concerning posts and potential threats they view on social media to immediately bring them to attention of public safety and/or school officials. This simple act can help identify bad actors and help deter and prevent disruption of events. We applaud these students for having the courage and concern to connect with their SRO to help prevent potential problems at yesterday’s game," Fusaro said in a statement.

Police said the social media posts were made by people who are not associated with Fitch High School or the game.

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