Rugby the Favorite Going into Next Game

-By: Patrick Smith-

Next Wednesday Darien Boys Rugby team is the favorite heading into a match against the Harvey School at home. The Darien team is coming off a big win against Greenwich this week. Junior Connor McCarthy (pictured below) said, “After some major injuries in the past few weeks it will be a tough game, but I think we will be victorious.” The game against the prep school based in Katonah, New York will take place at Royle Elementary. Be sure to attend.

Congrats to Coach Brameier: 400th Victory

-By: JP Walsh-

On Tuesday this past week, Coach Brameier celebrated his 400th career win as head coach of the Darien Varsity lacrosse coach. With an average of around 17 games per season, this win signifies the work that Coach has put into the program that he started himself 26 years ago. With a sweeping victory of 11-2 against Fairfield Ludlowe, the seniors of the team helped Coach B celebrate the occasion with a commemoratory plaque and a refreshing “bucket bath” at the final buzzer. Although the team has started out with a few disappointing and somewhat unexpected losses, they are most definitely getting back on track and will plow through the rest of the season with tremendous determination and force. Their next game is tomorrow at Trumbull High School, another win under the belt of the inexorable Blue Wave lacrosse team. With the team planning on not having anymore losses this season, they are ready to take both the FCIAC and state championships by storm to continue the 4-year winning streak.

Girls Golf Roundup

-By Lizzie Kirst-

Girls Golf won its first match against Trumbull on Tuesday, April 28th at the Country Club of Darien. The final scores was Darien 210 - Trumbull 227. Darien players included co-captains senior Meg Ardery and junior Stephanie Ko as well as senior Clare Baldwin, junior Nel Thalhamer and sophomores Nicole Granath and Kendall Kyritz. The girl’s team is currently 3-2 for the season and is looking forward to finishing on a high note. The next match is against Fairfield Ludlowe on Thursday, April 30.

Girls Varsity Tennis Starts the Season with a Smash

-By Britt Gordon-

Girls Varsity Tennis team crushed Brien McMahon this Tuesday, winning in an easy 7-0 victory. The team only lost three games total, where #2 Alex Budd, a junior, #3 sophomore Lonneke Eenkema Van Dijk (pictured right) , and #4 sophomore Sophie Doering, all won their singles matches without dropping a game. Senior Annie Wilson, the #1 singles player for the match, won 6-2, 6-0, and all three doubles teams won without much competition from Brien McMahon. The team looks pretty strong this year, with a current record of 4-1. The only loss so far was to Wilton, which was a close matchup but Wilton went home with the win, 4-3 in matches. The more difficult matches are coming up against Ridgefield this Friday and New Canaan this Saturday, and the team looks to be victorious. With Alex Budd back on the court after being out with a wrist injury and all the players constantly improving, the girls varsity tennis is hoping to be very successful this season.

Superstar Klein Quits Lacrosse

-By: Will Wygal-

After his superstar performance on the football team this past fall senior Greg Klein (pictured below) is once again trying his hand at lacrosse. After not playing his junior year he signed on for his senior year. Shortly after, he quit. When talking to this accomplished athlete, he claimed these were the reasons for quitting. "I quit lacrosse because seeing Tyler Foley more than I have to every day makes me angry. Just listening to him whine on the field disgusts me, but the coaches know if they say something to him he’ll cry and ruin practice," Klein said. Now the former laxer is moving onto to a new sport: girls’ softball. "I decided to spend some time with Coach Nick DeMaio in the training room and take on an apprenticeship with him instead, which includes helping out with the softball team. I do everything from taping up kids to mowing the softball field on Coach DeMaio’s personal riding mower." And then there are those non-athletic activities Greg is lending a hand. "I have taken up a great effort in getting rid of the gremlin problem in the school. I have done this by hanging signs and trying to warn people of the problem as well as patrolling the drafting room in order to make sure they don’t gather there to hold meetings," Klein said. There you have it; from football, to lacrosse, to school vigilante, Greg Klein is a loose cannon of justice and safety.

Baseball Goes Down to Ridgefield

-By: Jack Bushell-

The Darien Blue Wave went down to the Ridgefield Tigers 6-5 at home on Wednesday. The team was winning throughout the game, but lost control in the last two innings. Junior David Hickey got the start for the Blue Wave, but the hitting couldn’t get him the win. What offense the Wave had came from seniors Chris Bruno and Teddy Malley. Ridgefield provided one error from the second baseman. Darien had two errors in the field, which didn’t help the pitching. Hickey was relieved by junior Ricky Hodges, who was then taken out by senior Ryan McDonald, all of whom pitched in a losing effort. Some good advice came from the JV field where starting pitcher junior Mike Miller came up with three innings of no hit baseball and led the team in winning 3-0. The next game will be in Trumbull against Saint Joes at 3:45pm on Friday May 1st.

Rugby Edges out Greenwich

-By: Jose Corte-Real-



An intense rivalry match went down this week when Darien rugby hosted Greenwich at Royle School. Darien eked out a close win of 17-15 on Tuesday. Junior Henry Glavin, sophomore Sam McCarthy and captain Connor McCarthy helped lead the victory. “It was magical,” McCarthy said. The game was an athletic display of courage and fitness played in sweltering 90+ degrees heat. Be sure to catch the rugby team’s next match at Royle School on Wednesday, May 6.

Danbury Gets Served

-By Richard Stile-

On Monday, April 27th, the boys and girls varsity tennis teams played Danbury. The girls, who played at home, won 6-1. “Everyone on the team did really well,” sophomore Amanda Brodsky said. Lonneke Eenkema van Dijk played for Annie Wilson who was injured and couldn’t play. The boy’s team also won their game which took place in Danbury. They won 7-0. "We all played very well despite the heat and wind," junior Britt Gordon said. The team plays New Canaan on Saturday at New Canaan High School.

Darien Loses a Close Meet

-By: Christian Panier-

Boys track team lost to Trumbull 78-72 on the DHS track on Tuesday. But all was not lost after they pulled out a victory against Trinity Catholic. Darien had a good showing in the 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash and the 4 X 400 meter relay. Junior Sean Gill finished second in the 110 and 300 meter hurdles and seniors Kevin Knapp and Matt Liguori placed first and second in the 100 meter dash. Standout sprinter Knapp won both the 100 and the 200 meter dash and also had a split of 51 seconds in the 4X400 relay. Trumbull’s Julian Saad was edged out by DHS senior Artem Skobrev (pictured right) who also ran a great split in the 4X400 relay. The 4 X 400 was one of the most intense races of the season as both teams lined the track with Darien landing the victory.

Another Crushing from Blue Wave Girls Lacrosse

-By: Clemmy Little-

Darien Blue Wave Girl’s Lacrosse won 23-2 against Norwalk High School last night. With a ridiculous 12 goals in just the first eight minutes, the girls knew they had this one in the bag. Senior and co-captain Kat Nestor said, "It was a fun game! We knew it wouldn’t be too impossible so we got a chance to work on a lot of our weak hand stuff as well as our new plays which was good." When Nestor says ‘work on a lot of our weak hand stuff’ it's quite funny because they look far from weak out there! With a dominating record right now beating every in state team by 10 points and a record of 9-0-1 so far their post season is looking quite bright! They have not played a strong Wilton team but have played Greenwich and New Canaan and have come out with two solid wins. They beat Greenwich (14-4) and and New Canaan (17-6). So be sure to watchthem play Wilton at 4pm next Thursday May 7 in Wilton.

Tennis Crushes Danbury

-By: Alex McGuire-

Boy’s Tennis destroyed Danbury 7-0. With co-captain and #1 singles player Dane Gebauer sidelined with a cracked skull, the team was still able to completely overpower the much weaker Danbury team. The game was played at Danbury High School on Monday. Co-Captain and senior Chris Martin won his # 1 singles match 6-2, 6-1. Senior James Critelli played #2 singles and won 6-1, 6-1. Junior Britt Gordon played at #3 singles and also defeated his opponent 6-1, 6-1. In all seven matches, no blue wave player dropped a set. The team extended its undefeated season to 5-0. They play New Canaan on Wednesday, where they’re looking to keep the streak alive. “Our team looks really strong this year, and hopefully we can build off of our success and accomplish our goal of becoming state champions,” Gordon said.

Girls Softball Beat Trinity Catholic

-By: Meg Murphy-

After a tough loss last Thursday, the girls’ softball team regained its confidence beating Trinity Catholic 2-1 on Friday. They had a strong defense and senior captain Christina DeMaio pitched a three-hitter and had 10 strikeouts, an exciting accomplishment. Offensively, they tried really hard and were able to get two runs in. Senior captain, Reilly Horan hit a double towards the end of the game, which ended up driving in the winning run. Senior Jorden Cappiello said, “"We had a tough first loss to Wilton on Thursday, but we picked it right back up and beat Trinity. We are now 5-1, and we have a big week ahead of us." This upcoming week, the girls will play Greenwich on Tuesday on their home field. Wednesday they will travel to play against Ridgefield and come back on Friday to play against St. Joe’s.

Girls Track Sets New Records

-By: Elizabeth Crafford-

The Wave turned the tides Saturday, after the girls’ and boys’ track and field teams participated in the annual O’Grady Relays in Danbury. Darien girls’ placed second to Danbury who won the meet by just six points. Twenty five teams competed. Darien had outstanding performances including two new school records. Seniors Hadley Reigel, Amanda Koslo, Erica Long, and Caroline McDonough ran the 1200 400 800 1600 relay and set not only a school record, but a meet record as well with a time of 12:32.24. Standout athlete, junior Christy Gasparino also crushed the 34’11 foot school record in the triple jump with a final jump of 37 feet. The girls’ track team is currently 2-0 and will be competing at St. Joe’s on Monday April 27th.

Girls Track Wins Again

-By: Laura Durham-

Girls’ track has started off its season strong; remaining undefeated for their first three meets. DHS competed against Trumbull and Greenwich at Greenwich on Tuesday. The track girls had a vast lead over both Trumbull (97-48) and Greenwich (124-20). The 4 X 100m relay team consisting of junior Meredith Jordan, and seniors Grace Doering, Meg Gilbert, and Caroline Zuckerman took first place with a time of 51.4 seconds. Pole vault was another strong event with sophomores Elizabeth Crafford and Charlotte Phillips tying for first with a height of seven feet, six inches. The strongest event seemed to be the 200m race, Doering, Zuckerman, junior Kelly Mahoney, and Jordan took the top four places, respectively. Senior Caroline McDonough placed first in the 3200m race with a time of 11:15.3. Gilbert came in first in the long jump with a jump of 15 feet, followed by junior Mackenzie Jones placing fifth with 13 feet, ten inches. The high jump was also a strong event for the Blue Wave with junior Christy Gasparino, Gilbert, and senior Emily Cordner taking the top three spots. Senior Amanda Koslo, sophomore Alex Iqbal and juniors Kelly Mahoney and Sam Simon took first place in the 4x400m relay with a time of 4:18.2.Gasparino took first place in every event she competed. She won the 100m and 300m hurdles, high jump, and the triple jump with all qualifying times for the Class M CIAC meet. Hopefully the girls’ track team will keep up the good work and maintain their undefeated record.

Can the Celtics Do It Again?

-By Reece Pelley-

The news that came out of Boston last Friday shook both Celtic fans and Boston apartments for hours. Unlike the news that erupted in the city two years ago with the announcement of the big three trade deal this news was on a darker note. Coach Doc Rivers informed the throng of sports reporters and television camera’s that super star Kevin Garnett will be missing the rest of the playoffs. The loss of the team’s leader makes fans across the country question if the Celtics are now down and out.

Coming into the playoffs as one of the top seeds in the East as well as the defending NBA champions, the Celts lost at home 105-103 against the rookie filled Chicago Bulls. Without KG, the men in green failed to win the battle in the paint and struggled throughout the game with their perimeter shot.

The loss was obvious and to anyone who had been watching the Celtics this season it looked as if there was a 6-11” whole in the team. The hole left by the big man, who averaged 15.8 points per game along with 8.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, left them without a focal point in the defense. It is clear the offense cannot be filled by any other Celtic. That’s even with the youngster Glen “Big Baby” Davis putting on a show by his standards with 18 points and 3 rebounds.

Even though both Ray Allen and Paul Pierce can easily lead the team questions arise when the Celts can’t even blow out the Bulls if they will even be able to compete with the Cleveland Cavaliers if they face each other in the playoffs. The number 1 seeded Cavs are led by potential NBA MVP LeBron James who is on a war path for an NBA championship. Charging through the regular season with 66 wins (leading the entire league) the Cavs and James seem to be unstoppable with his average of 28 pps. The one weak point that the injured Celts might be able to use against the Cavs is the fact that their bench lacks depth. In the second game against the Detroit Pistons, the Cavs secured a 25-point lead with 10 minutes left in the fourth but once Cleveland benched their starters the Pistons went on a 20-0 run forcing the Cavs to put King James back into the mix which led to an eventual 20-point victory.

If Boston has any hope for another celebratory parade led by the big 3, or now the big 2, they must rap up their series with the Bulls and start looking towards knocking off James and his beast from the East, Cavaliers.

Darien Sailing Team Goes 9-2

-By Tally Thoren -

The Darien High School Sailing Team is getting ready for the O’Day Cut Race on this Saturday. They currently have a 9-2 record.

“This weekend is going to be difficult but I think we have a chance!” junior Ines Castro said.

The team beat Greenwich Academy, Greens Farms Academy, Brunswick, and Greenwich High School out of Greenwich Harbor on April 15. In other regattas, the Blue Wave defeated Fairfield Prep and Hotchkiss School.

The team traveled up to Lakeville to sail against Hotchkiss and also Portsmouth Abbey last Saturday. Though the races were close, Darien lost.

Darien is currently ranked in the top 15 sailing teams in New England. They will face some tough teams in Portland, Maine, Cape Cod, and Rhode Island.

Varsity sailors are Captains Maarten Eenkema van Dijk and Mackenzie Milne, Willem Sandburg, Ines Castro, Justin Marks, Tally Thoren, Olivia Crane, Katie Maren, and Mathias Amyotte.

Rugby Gets beat in Jersey

-By: Dan Campbell-

The Darien rugby team traveled to Jersey City on Sunday but lost to St. Peter’s Prep 26-17. The team started out strong, going up 12-0 in the first few minutes on tries by Kevin Keller and Peter McDonough. But St. Peter’s maintained pressure the rest of the half and scored before halftime. The teams traded scores in the second half, including another try by McDonough who had two in the game, before St. Peter’s pulled away. The loss drops the Blue Wave to 1-2 on the season, but the team was still positive after the loss. "The game was fantastic," captain Connor McCarthy said. The team's next game is next Tuesday against Greenwich

45th Seed Stuns Girl's Lacrosse

-By: Claire Dickson-

Girl's Varsity Lacrosse team lost to the Garden City, New Jersey team on Saturday. This loss comes on top of DHS’s defeat last year to the 45-seeded team in the nation. For the beginning of the game, the Wave seemed to be coming out strong and challenging Garden City's stellar defense. However, the Garden City offense would not back down and the team only let the Blue Wave jolt ahead by two goals. As the second half began, defensive players Jenny Joy, Kat Nestor, and Corey Vernon were challenged by a headstrong Garden City offense that, unfortunately, was too much for Blue Wave to handle. Wave lost their lead quickly and was brought down by Garden City with their win of 19-12 over the Blue Wave girls. Hopefully the team will use this loss to improve their team fundamentals, and come together for another strong regular and post-season.

Baseball falls to New Fairfield

-By: Jack Bushell-

The Darien Blue Wave lost to the Rebels of New Fairfield 5-4 on Saturday. Starting pitcher David Hickey pitched six innings. He did not allow a hit in five innings. Hickey also showed off his pick-off move, catching two base runners at first base. Senior Kevin Sousa was able to drive past two runs with a single and senior Teddy Malley had two RBI’s and a double. The major downfall was the amount of runners left on base and errors on the field. New Fairfield was able to get runners on base and score its first run off errors. The Blue Wave is now 5-1 on the season. They are still 3-0 in FCIAC play. The next game is against Wilton at home at 4pm on Monday April 20th.

Boy's Track

-By Jake McCauley-

The Darien Boy's Track Team sent a few competitors to the Irving Black Invitational in Trinity College yesterday. The team sent up juniors Jake McCauley and Alex Reynoso, as well as senior Rob Hendrickson to compete in the 5000 meter run which had a large field of 35 runners. McCauley finished 5th with a personal best time of 16:11, Hendrickson 15th with also a personal record of 17:07, and Reynoso 19th with 17:18. The 4x800 team of seniors Garrett Loeffelman, Cam Bogie, Peter Watson, and James Carroll also competed and placed 11th. Sophomore John Conley was dominant in the JV mile, winning the race with a time of 4:40 against a field of 90 competitors coming in from all over the state. Freshman Charlie Baird also competed in this event, finishing 14th and breaking the 5:00 barrier with a time of 4:59.92. The team will also be sending up more runners this Saturday, and hope to continue its hot streak at the meet.

Gasparino Jumps into New Season

-By: Jorden Cappiello-

Track super star, junior Christy Gasparino, had a successful winter season and ended it by earning the role of captain for next year. On January 24th at the SCC Coaches Invitational, Gasparino tied the indoor high jump record with a height of 5’ 6’’.
Recently, Gasparino competed for the first time in the National Scholastic Indoor Championships for the pentathlon. The pentathlon consists of high jump, long jump, 55-meter hurdles, shot put and an 800-meter run. Gasparino scored 2,947 points landing in eighth place.
“I didn’t have that much time for preparation. I only started to prepare for it a couple weeks before,” Gasparino said.
Junior Meg Murphy ran hurdles with Gasparino last spring and is good friends with her. “She excels at what she does, but never brags about her accomplishments,” Murphy said.
Next year, Gasparino will be the indoor track captain along with juniors Meredith Jordan, Kelly Mahoney, Kelly Brophy, and Cat Thomas. The girls’ goal is for their team is to become FCIAC and State champions again.
“We have a great team. We all really come together and work hard,” Gasparino said. “Every person on our team makes a difference and we all work together to achieve our goals.”

Manhasset Beats Darien

-By Chris Shaker-

The Boys Varsity Lacrosse this Saturday had a surprising loss to Manhasset. This was their first game of the season. “Both teams played very well, but we should have been the ones on top,” sophomore J.P. Walsh said. Freshman Case Mathies scored five goals, over one third of the team’s total. The final score was 13 Blue wave 14 Manhasset. Come watch the Darien Lacrosse team take on Wilton at DHS on Saturday, April 25.

Keys to Victory for the Final Four

-By Jay Alter-

VILLANOVA:

• Be up at halftime. Villanova is 21-1 when leading at the half.


• Tenacious defense #1: Stop UNC’s guards from dribble penetration and stop Hansbrough from dominating the post.

MICHIGAN STATE:

• Knock down the three’s like they did against Louisville.


• Keep UConn off the glass and keep the game fast paced, not letting Uconn slow the game up with their dominant half court offense.

UCONN:

• Second chance points. Rebounding has been a main component in UConn’s success and also alter there drives.


• Keep Michigan State in a half court game and not let them control the tempo.
  A.J. Price and Kemba Walker need to step up and outplay Michigan State’s talented guards.

NORTH CAROLINA:

• Hansbrough needs to take Cunningham down low and not let him turn and shoot from 10-16 feet. He knocks it down every time.


• They need to tire Villanova out with the depth of there bench and speed.

All-FCIAC Selections Made

-By Richard Stile-

Two DHS seniors were selected for a spot on the All-Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference Boys Ice Hockey First Team. The league’s coaches chose forward J.D. Juterbock and defenseman Ryan MacDonald.

Three gymnasts were also selected for the All-Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference Girls Gymnastics First Team. Sophomore Charlotte Morgan, freshman Katie Southworth and senior Kaylyn Van Sciver were chosen as the best of the best freshman Kiriko Masek and senior Liz Morrissey received honorable mentions.
“I’m very excited to be chosen to be on the All FCIAC first team. I hope to make it the next 2 years as well.” Charlotte Morgan said of the exciting news.

Kenyan Runners Join DHS Track Team

-By Jake McCauley-


The DHS Boy's Track and Field team is ecstatic about the recent additions to the team. Junior Samuel Wanjiru, distance runner, will be a powerhouse in the state this season. Wanjiru, who competed in this past summer's Olympics winning the marathon, will completely dominate all the competition his senior XC year. "We are all really pumped up for next year," junior Willem Sandberg said, "We are going to have the best runner in the state". Joining Wanjiru will be Eluid Kipchoge. Kipchoge also competed in the Olympics last year with his felllow countrymen. He finished 2nd in the 5000 meter run. "Kipchoge and Wanjiru will easily be the best in the state if not the country next year," said assistant coach Mike Orr, "Next year might be the first year that the Cross Country team will compete at Nike Cross Nationals." It should be a very interesting year next year, and the team will be extremely sucessful.


.... April Fool's!

Bobsled Bumps LAX

-By: Clemmy Little-

Tally Thoren: “Ay man, you gon ride for da team?”
Allie Townsend: “Yes! Totally! I’m so amped! I’ve never done this before but we should probably make FCIAC’s as well as States!"
It’s in-EVERYONE! The famous Darien High School Blue Wave is replacing its boys and girls lacrosse program with a coed bobsled team!
The whole school is thrilled about the news, “ lacrosse has never been good ,so I think the bobsled team will not only add diversity to our sports but will just raise the bar that much higher for athletics here at DHS, because lacrosse sure wasn’t doing it!” senior, Helen Robinson said. Surprisingly, Boys Lacrosse Head Coach Jeff Brameier doesn’t appear to be upset either, as he has quit his job as a gym coach and is now dedicating the rest of his career to the bobsled team.
Try outs will be held in the B-Wing hallway where Head Coach Neil Matthews says, “they’re will be extra depth for the sled in this hallway, it’s like the hallway was designed for this team.” The whole school population is thrilled to hear this news and is anxiously awaiting the team’s season opener in Jamaica on June 18th. Flights will go fast so book soon!

...April Fool's!

Corte Real Steals the Title of Captain from Undeserving Upperclassmen

-By: Connor McCarthy-

Congratulations to José Corte Real for recently being named captain and all time best player of the Darien High School Rugby Team. José has been a huge asset to the team, and without him, the team may have suffered a bigger loss against Staples on the 14th of March, but with José’s magical kicking skills and big tackles helped rocket the team to their first try of the season, something that took them four games to do last season. His ability to be a true soldier on and off the field is one that really aids the team in their practices and in their games. Well done José!

...April Fool's!