Cross Country Goes 8-1

-By: Jack Bushell-

The overcast afternoon did not seem to have any effect on the boys cross country team. The team bought its record to 8-1 on Tuesday at Fairfield Warde. The team took on Ludlowe, Harding, Stamford and host school Fairfield Warde. Senior Jake McCauley was the number one finisher for the Blue Wave, but came in second overall to senior Sam Parton from Fairfield Warde. Right behind McCauley was junior John Conley, senior captain Alex Reynoso, sophomore Charlie Baird (pictured) and junior David Watson rounding out the top five for Darien. (Top runners place for their respective teams in a cross country meet) An injured knee – rumored to be a damaged meniscus - sidelined senior captain Brandon Tripodi who hopes to run on Saturday. The next meet for the Blue Wave will be an invitational at Wilton on Saturday. (10/3)

Darien Destroys Danbury

-By: Brian Curry-

After a disappointing loss to open the season at Fairfield Warde, Darien came out with something to prove on Saturday, as they steamrolled the Danbury Hatters 31-0. Darien took control of the game from the opening drive, which was capped off by a 15-yard run from junior running back Graham Maybell. Maybell added a second touchdown later in the quarter, to go up 14-0 after the first quarter. Darien then added a field goal in the second by senior John Gardner and two touchdowns in the fourth, one a 14 yard pass from senior George Benitez (pictured) to junior Jake Weil, the other a run by senior Stevenson Bone. This put the icing on the cake for Darien's first victory. The Wave's defense shut down Danbury: a bit of a surprise for the Hatters who had put up 33 points in their opening victory over Brien McMahon on September 17. The next game for the Wave is at St. Joseph's in Trumbull on Saturday, October 3, where the Wave will try to go 2-1.

Crew Rows Into A New Season

-By: Andi Cara-

Four students from Darien High School participated in the GMS regatta in New Milford. Junior Christine Bragg, and seniors Emily Pik, Chrissy Weigand and Michelle Bravo raced in the event last Sunday. (9/20) The race was 6,000 meters long. Maritime Rowing Club, where all the four rowers participate at the competitive level, sent three boats. The rowers were from schools across Fairfield County. All three boats came in first place. Bravo said "The GMS regatta was a great way to kick off the season, and we hope to keep winning more races."

Girls Cross Country goes 2-1

-By: Dan Campbell-

The girls cross country team traveled to St. Joes in Trumbull on a cloudy 75 degree day for an XC meet. They faced Danbury and St. Joe's in a 5k race, losing to Danbury 21-37 but easily beating St. Joes 17-45. The top three finishers for Darien were junior Megan Keane (pictured right), senior Hannah Lyons, and senior Kelly Brophy. Keane finished third overall at 20:21. Lyons also had a strong showing running 20:28. Senior Kelly Brophy also finished in the top 10, coming in 9th overall at 22:13. The next meet for the team is next Tuesday at Fairfield Warde, where they will be facing Ludlowe, Stamford, Warde and Harding.

Conley Wins as Darien XC Falls to Danbury

-By: Kevin Cassidy-

The Blue Wave Boys’ Cross Country team traveled to St Joes in Trumbull for a dual meet with St. Joes, Danbury, and Bassick on Tuesday. Darien had a strong race but they were not able to come away with the sweep on the very hilly course. The Wave stopped St. Joes and Bassick but fell to Danbury 29-26 (low score wins). “We executed our plan against Danbury and ran a smart race, however Danbury exceeded our expectations” senior captain Willem Sandberg said. DHS was not ready for Danbury’s secret weapon - a star freshman runner. One high point was junior John Conley who received first in the overall meet followed by a third place finish by senior captain Jake McCauley (pictured). The team travels up to Trumbull Saturday morning for the Golden Eagle Invitation; we wish the team best of luck for the rest of the season as they look to go 16-1.

Boy's Cross Country off to a Fast Start

-By Jake McCauley-

The Darien Boy's Cross Country team took off to a very successful start of the season Tuesday. In the team's first meet, the Blue Wave took on Ridgefield, Westhill, and Bridgeport Central at the tough and hilly Ridgefield course. Senior Jake McCauley was the pace-setter for the Wave, taking the first mile out quite fast. Ridgefield's seniors Richie Hume and Christian Kearns as well as Wave junior John Conley, surged halfway through the race catching up to McCauley. With a mile to go, Ridgefield had the lead 27-28. However, the Wave shined in the last mile, the top seven Wave runners moving in front of Ridgefield's five. Ridgefield's Hume won the race, followed closely by McCauley and Conley. Ridgefield's Kearns was followed quickly by senior Alex Reynoso, who ran a great race. Rounding out the Wave's top five were Charlie Baird and David Watson, who both moved with a mile to go sealing the victory for Darien. The Wave will next have to take on FCIAC powerhouse Danbury High School at St. Joe's next Tuesday. (Jake McCauley and John Conley pictured)

Cheerleading to the Next Level

-By: Sam Nelson-

The DHS Cheerleading squad is bringing on a new coach this season. AJ Dixon(pictured right) has signed onto coach the girls after the departure of three-year veteran Lisa Damiano. Dixon will bring in hard work and determination, as well as an impressive resume to back him up.
Coach Dixon started coaching recreational gymnastics and recreational cheerleading in 2002, and then was offered a job to coach at an All Star gym called Georgia Elite in Alpheretta, GA. Dixon led all star teams to six national titles.
While coaching at Georgia Elite, Dixon worked with Chattahoochee High School, as he coached Varsity, JV and freshman teams. After coaching high school, he was offered a job at a gym called The Empire All Stars in Duluth, GA, where he coached two Senior Co-Ed teams, winning three national titles in total. Peachtree Ridge High School was AJ’s next high school, where he won the state cheer championship three times. The next job he took was in Stone Mountain, GA where he worked at the Platinum Elite All Stars Gym. AJ’s current gym is located in Danbury, which is Champion All Stars.
With all his success in his past, Dixon has high hopes for this year’s squad. Coach Dixon said, “I believe the squad's commitment to improving its cheerleading skills is what separates them from the previous teams that I have coached in the past.”
Dixon hopes that the team will “showcase its talent and change people’s opinion about cheerleading.” He has high expectations for his team. He said “My Goal for the squad this year is to show the school and the community the athleticism of cheerleading and that this sport is more than just waving pom poms and yelling at games. I want to show that we can be completive and have the school spirit it takes to be number one,” Dixon said. (picture courtesy of Darien Times)