Wilton Boys Lacrosse Falls One Goal Short Against Darien

The Wilton boys lacrosse team came agonizingly close to ending Darien's five-year reign as CIAC Class M state champions.

But the Warriors could never get the game tied, despite three times pulling within a goal in the second half, and suffered an excruciating 10-9 defeat to the second-seeded Blue Wave on Saturday in another classic game between the storied rivals.

Wilton's Jonathan Andrews scored the game's final goal with 25 seconds remaing. Darien gained control on the next  possession and was able to run out the clock.

Once again, the Warriors couldn't overcome their Darien hurdle, as Saturday's defeat marked the third straight year in which they were  eliminated in the state tournament by the Blue Wave.

Darien beat Wilton, 17-11, in the state championship game last season and posted a 13-7 victory over the Warriors in the quarterfinals in 2008.

Wilton, the seventh seed, concluded somewhat of an up-and-down season at 12-7.

Darien meets another bitter rival - New Canaan - in the semifinals on Tuesday in what could be the de facto state championship game. 

Alden Frelinghuysen and Henry West each scored three goals for Darien (16-3), while Michael Greco, Christopher Nugent and Michael Serpa each netted a pair for Wilton.

The Warriors surprised the Blue Wave early, grabbing  a 2-0 lead on goals by Daniel Bartram and Greco less than a minute a part.

Darien responded with six straight goals.  Frelinghuysen scored two goals and  Bryan Annechino and Henry West one each to give the Blue Wave  a 4-2 lead after the first quarter

West and Brian Gleason continued the run early in the second, extending Darien's margin to 6-2.

Nugent and Serpa scored for Wilton, pulling the Warriors within 6-4 in the back-and-forth contest.

After another goal by Frelinghuysen, Michael  Francia and Nugent tallied, as the hard-charging Warriors climbed within a goal.

But Gleason registered a critical goal for Darien with 11 seconds left in the first half to provide a two-goal cushion at the break.

The second half was more of a defensive struggle.

Serpa opened the second-half scoring for Wilton, only to have Bobby Nolan answer for Darien.

Greco made it 9-8 before West netted his third  to restore the Blue Wave's two-goal margin and complete Darien's scoring.

In the end, the Warriors were left chasing the Blue Wave, like they have for most of the past decade.