Darien Boys Swim Team Swamps New Canaan, 104-81

Editor's Note: Send any write-ups on youth or recreational games in your town to michaeld+sports@patch.com. Here's some information on the recent Darien-New Canaan swim meet from the Darien swimming coach, Jason Cochran, received late Thursday evening (Darien won its season-opening meet, 104-81).

"We opened with New Canaan which is always a big meet for us.  The boys were excited and ready to go and it showed as they swam and dove their way to great first meet performances.  New Canaan has a great tradition and they knocked us off in both the regular season and Class M Finals last year.  To open the season with a win over a rival will give us great momentum going forward. 

"I will say that I am happy with the win, but we have a lot of work to do in order to reach the goals we have this season.  I always tell the guys that nothing will be handed to them, especially in the FCIAC.  Hard work and dedication is the key to success. 

"Our three captains: Jack Bair, Chris Janson, & Tyler Gould had some good early season swims and provided big points and great leadership for our younger swimmers.  I feel that these guys will keep everyone focused and will be great leaders for us.  James Baker won the 200 free and followed it up wih a good 100 fly.  Will Smelser also started off well in both the 200 & 500 freestyle events. 

"Diving was a big event for us with Jackson McGoldrick, Lee Christensen, and Kyle O'Donnell combining to take 1st, 3rd, and 4th.  I am excited to watch them all year as it is great to have three freshman come in that are as talented as they.  A big change for us this year was that we finally broke through a bit in the 100 breaststroke.  Christian Weeks and Sam Gillespie took 3rd and 4th which was huge for us.  Last year New Canaan swept us in that event. 

"Our relays are a work in progress as we took 2nd in the medley and 200 free, but we did post a nice 400 relay time in winning the event.  There are several guys in the running for relay spots so there will be healthy competition all year.

"Overall, a good start to the year but plenty of areas we must improve in.  We are back in the pool next Wednesday vs. Norwalk.

Girl's basketball

Off to a 2-0 start, thegirls basketball team has a tough test on Friday when the Blue Wave visits fellow unbeaten St. Joseph. 

 Meg Marren had eight points, 15 rebounds and five steals Wednesday as the Darien defeated Ridgefield 38-34 on Wednesday in a defensive struggle. Lesley Yuen also had eight points for the Blue Wave.

St. Joseph improved to 3-0 with a 58-56 victory over New Canaan. The Cadets survived a spectacular performance by the Rams' Sarah Mannelly, who scored all 23 of her points in the second half.

The Darien boys basketball team, meanhile, could be in for another long night as the Blue Wave host defending Class LL state champion St. Joseph, which is ranked second in the New Haven Register preseason top 10 media state poll.

The Cadets crushed New Canaan 90-35 on Wednesday while Darien was overwhelmed 70-20 at Ridgefield. The Blue Wave trailed 64-8 after the third quarter.

THURSDAY'S SCHEDULE

No games scheduled

FRIDAY'S SCHEDULE

Boys basketball

St. Joseph at Darien, 7 p.m.

Girls basketball

Darien at St. Joseph, 7 p.m.

Girls hockey

Darien vs. Fairfield, 3:30 p.m., at Wonderland of Ice

Boys indoor track

Darien at New Haven Invitational, 4 p.m.

Girls indoor track

Darien at New Haven Invitational, 4 p.m.

SATURDAY'S SCHEDULE

Boys hockey

Darien vs. West Haven, 1 p.m., at Bennett Rink

Wrestling

Darien at Derby, 10 a.m.

Boys track

Darien at Reindeer Relays, 9:30 p.m., at Wilton High School

STANDINGS

BOYS BASKETBALL

West Division

FCIAC Record

Overall Record

Central Division

FCIAC Record

Overall Record

East Division

FCIAC Record

Overall Record

0-1

GIRLS BASKETBALL

West Division

FCIAC Record

Overall Record

Central Division

East Division

0-3

BOYS HOCKEY