The reign of the Darien Blue Wave is over.
The Newtown Nighthawks scored the first 16 points of the game and then held off the three-time defending champions in the second half for a 26-15 victory in the CIAC Class LL football quarterfinals Tuesday night at Blue and Gold Stadium.
Much like their loss to New Canaan in last week’s Turkey Bowl, turnovers were a big part of the Wave’s downfall on Tuesday.
“You can’t make those kind of mistakes against a team like Newtown,” Darien head coach Rob Trifone said. “They’re a very good football team and I give them a lot of credit. But we had two crucial turnovers in two crucial spots when we had momentum, so we gave it right back.”
For the Nighthawks, the SWC champs who went unbeaten during the regular season, the victory was huge, as they’ve had several quick exits from the playoffs over the years.