Darien Seventh-Graders Win Joe Coppo Tournament

Editor's Note: Send any write-ups on youth or recreational games in your town to michaeld+sports@patch.com

Youth basketball: Darien’s seventh grade boys A travel basketball team coach Shawn Grant is very good at his job. Grant has taken his 10 players and put them into two, five-man units. The two units play different styles, each suiting the respective strengths of that group.

With each player only going about one half of a game each, no one player is piling up fancy stats. However, the one stat that is looking good is the ultimate stat - a 4-0 won-loss record and tournament title in their first weekend of play.

This past weekend, the team took the Joe Coppo preseason tournament title in New Canaan. It beat Wilton 49-33, Greenwich 59-55, Newtown 44-38, and Westport 53-46. Last year, under a different coach, Darien was 1-5 against those four teams.

One unit has “Twin Tower” size dominance in 6-foot-1 Casey Brown and 6-foot-1 Alex Preston. It has defensive speed in Riley Stewart, a zone-busting sharp shooter in Will Stevens and a savvy point guard, Joe Hardison, who makes it all hang together.

The other set of five are just flat-out nasty. Their defense is led at the point by the withering ball pressure of Jackson Ryan and anchored at the back by one of the county’s top rebounders, Charlie Wright. They score from the outside with long bomber, Carter Scott, and on the inside from the relentless toughness of Wright, Jack Farren and Charlie Sealy.

In the Wilton game, Wright put up a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Casey Brown also put up 11 points and Farren pulled down seven rebounds.

Against Greenwich, Brown put up 13 points and pulled down nine rebounds. Charlie Sealy scored a dozen. Wright, Preston, Stevens and Stewart all scored six.

 The accompanying video weblink (produced by Natalie Kelchner) shows some video action from the Newtown game. In that one, Wright ran the floor and banged down low for 13 points. Brown had 10 rebounds. Scott, Ryan and Hardison stole the ball seven times.

in the fourth game, Westport tried to sag down on Wright and Sealy, so Scott lit them up with 16 points, which including four 3-pointers. Westport also tried to sag around the Twin Towers, but that didn't work, either. Brown had 10 and Preston added eight. Hardison also burnt that strategy, hitting two open 3-pointers.

Keep in mind, all of these individual game stats basically came from about two quarters of play per game per player.

Next Saturday, Darien 7 Blue opens Fairfield County Basketball League A Division play by hosting Newtown in a rematch.

Boys soccer: After orchestrating a dramatic turnaround in his first season, Darien's Jon Bradley was named FCIAC boys soccer coach of the year.

After a 2-6-7 record last year, the Blue Wave exceeded expectations in 2011, finishing third in the FCIAC during the regular season and posting a final record of 14-4-3.

Darien reached the semifinals of the FCIAC playoffs and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Class L state tournament. In the second round, the Blue Wave eliminated archrival and defending state champion New Canaan.

Darien finally was eliminated by Bunnell, which went on to the win the Class L title and was voted the No. 1 team in the state.

Elliott Helgans and Brennan Branca were named to the All-FCIAC first team, the first time Darien had two first-team picks since 1998.

Helgans also invited to play in the Senior Bowl on Nov. 28 in Middletown, an honor extended to 88 seniors throughout the state. Bradley coached in the exhibition.

Field hockey: Darien placed a league-high three players on the all-FCIAC first team.

Earning the honors were midfielders Kat Huber and Galen Rohn and defender Julia Cobb. Goalie Danika Hornick and Lilly Cassidy were named to the all-FCIAC East squad.

After graduating 13 seniors, the Blue Wave posted another undefeated regular season, but they were stunned by Staples in the semifinals of the FCIAC tournament, ending their 82-game winning and 93-game unbeaten streak, the third-longest in high school field hockey history.

Darien then was dethroned as four-time state champions by Wilton in the Class M semifinals. The Blue Wave finished the season with a 19-2 record.

Girls volleyball: Darien placed two players on the all-FCIAC first team: Kate Stueber and Charlett Stevenson.

Kelly Kosnik was a third-team pick and Kelly Kosnik earned honorable mention honors.

Darien (23-1) won its 10th consecutive FCIAC title but lost to Southington in the Class LL semifinals.

It marked the second straight year that Darien's only loss came in the state tournament. Last year, the Blue Wave were dethroned as nine-time state champions by East Lyme in the Class L finals.

Here is a scrimmage schedule for the Darien boys basketball and hockey teams:

Boys basketball

Tuesday -- vs. Immaculate, 4 p.m.

Boys hockey

Saturday -- FCIAC Jamboree, 6:30 p.m., at Terry Conners Rink

MONDAY'S RESULTS

No games scheduled

TUESDAY'S SCHEDULE

No games scheduled

WEDNESDAY'S SCHEDULE

No games scheduled

THURSDAY'S SCHEDULE

No games scheduled

FRIDAY'S SCHEDULE

Girls basketball

Darien at Fairfield Ludlowe, 7 p.m.

Girls hockey

Darien at Glastonbury, 8:40 p.m.

STANDINGS

BOYS BASKETBALL

West Division

FCIAC Record

Overall Record

Central Division

FCIAC Record

Overall Record

East Division

FCIAC Record

Overall Record

0-0

GIRLS BASKETBALL

West Division

FCIAC Record

Overall Record

Central Division

East Division

0-0

BOYS HOCKEY