The FCIAC awards Exemplary Scholar-Athlete honors to players from its 16 member schools every season. Each week, the league will be announcing eight of those award winners, two each from four schools, with bios and photos on FCIAC.net.
Here is the second set of honorees for the Winter, 2025-26 season from Darien, Fairfield Warde, New Canaan and Norwalk:
Elise Hole – Darien
This dedicated student-athlete has a 4.3 GPA while balancing her passion for sports with a demanding academic schedule including many AP and honors classes.
Elise is a member of the National Honor Society, Science National Honor Society, and Spanish National Honor Society. She completed an immersion program in Conil de la Frontera, Spain, the summer after her sophomore year.
She’s a three-sport athlete who is co-captain of the girls’ varsity basketball team, previously earning All‑FCIAC Honorable Mention in both her sophomore and junior seasons.
Elise also was a soccer goalkeeper in her junior and senior years, culminating in being selected to the 2025 All-FCIAC Girls Soccer First Team. During the spring seasons she’s been a hurdler and high jumper for the girls’ outdoor track and field team since her sophomore year.
She’s volunteered for Person to Person, The Darien Depot, and Building One Community and she works as a lifeguard for the Town of Darien in the summer.
Elise will attend the University of Florida in the upcoming fall, where she plans to study Biology.
Chase Dolan – Darien
Chase is a third-year varsity player and senior captain of the boys’ basketball team.
He has achieved a weighted GPA of 4.22, taking mostly AP and honors classes. He is currently an AP Scholar with Honor and was inducted into the National Honor Society as a junior.
Chase is a third-year member of the Spanish National Honor Society and has earned the Connecticut Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish. He challenges his Spanish skills by tutoring Spanish-language students at Building One Community.
Chase is a varsity baseball player and will serve as captain of his baseball team in the spring. He has also played soccer and golf at his high school.
He shares his love of sports with children with special needs as a volunteer for the Darien Little League Challengers Program and DSA Epic Soccer.
Chase will be attending the Carroll School of Management at Boston College in the fall.
Alexandra Morgan – Fairfield Warde
Alexandra is a senior at Fairfield Warde High School with a 4.0 unweighted GPA and High Honors recognition, taking mostly AP and honors courses.
She competes in both cross country and track, serving as a team captain and earning All-State honors in all three seasons, along with All–New England recognition in indoor track.
Last winter Alexandra was runner-up in the 1,600-meter run with her time of 5:14.33 at the 2025 FCIAC Indoor Track and Field Championships. She also had a great cross country career. She was a state champion during her junior season when she won the 5-kilometer (3.1 miles) race with a time of 19:19 at the Class L state championship meet and this year she placed second at that same meet.
Alexandra has committed to the University of Connecticut, where she will continue her track and cross country career at the collegiate level.
Caden Quigley – Fairfield Warde
Caden is a member of the National Honor Society and has achieved a 4.6 GPA and has been a High Honors Scholar in all four years of high school while taking the challenging course load of only AP and honors courses.
He was a recipient of the Trinity College Book Award for being one of the top members of his Class of 2026.
Caden is also a senior leader as captain of Fairfield Warde’s boys’ basketball team, and he played so well in two consecutive tournament games in late December that he was selected to the Fairfield Holiday Classic All-Tournament Team.
Caroline Richey Elliott – New Canaan
Caroline is a member of the National Honor Society, has achieved an unweighted 3.92 GPA, and is a High Honor Roll student in AP and honors classes.
She was on the girls’ soccer team in the fall and has been a member of the girls’ varsity track and field team all four years and is a captain for both the indoor and outdoor seasons as a senior.
This versatile senior performed very well in several events and was a key contributor who helped lead the Rams to the team title at the 2025 FCIAC Girls Indoor Track and Field Championships.
Caroline contributed significant points during that conference championship meet last winter with her performances in three events to help New Canaan win by five points (71-66) over runner-up Greenwich.
She scored four individual points when she placed fourth in the 55-meter hurdles (9.55), and Caroline was also a member of the sprint medley relay and 4×400 relay teams which both also placed fourth. She made the All-FCIAC Second Team.
Caroline is co-chair of the New Canaan Turkey Trot Committee, she coaches figure skating and gymnastics, and referees for New Canaan Youth Soccer.
She will be attending the University of Virginia in the fall.
Henry Chandra – New Canaan
Henry is a member of the National Honor Society, a National Merit Commended Scholar, a Conrad Innovator, and Steadman Philippon Research Institute Summer Scholar.
Additionally, he is an AP Scholar with Distinction, having excelled in 12 AP classes. Henry is interested in STEM and excited to study mechanical engineering in college.
He is a multi-sport athlete who is currently captain of New Canaan’s boys’ basketball team during this 2025-26 winter season. He has also played for the boys’ varsity soccer team.
Henry made the 2025 All-FCIAC Boys Basketball Third Team last year and three years ago he earned FCIAC Freshman All-Star Team honors.
He has followed up with a very good year midway through the 2025-26 season. Henry averaged 21 points and eight rebounds in two victories while helping the Rams win the Shelton Holiday Tournament for the fifth consecutive year and he was selected the tourney MVP for the second straight year.
Outside of school, Henry enjoys volunteering with Full Court Peace, leading projects in underserved areas to help more people access basketball. He is also a second-year board member of the NCHS Service League of Boys.
Chloe Ballard – Norwalk
Chloe is a senior student-athlete at Norwalk High School and a four-year member of the track and field team who has demonstrated strong dedication, consistency, and work ethic as a competitive athlete throughout her high school career.
Chloe has balanced her athletic commitments with academic success, maintaining a 3.7 GPA.
In addition to her athletic career, Chloe has been involved in the marching band for five years and has served as Drum Major for the past two years, a leadership position that reflects her ability to lead peers, manage responsibility, and perform under pressure.
Chloe will be attending Springfield College, where she plans to continue her athletic career while pursuing her academic goals.
Benjamin Barkan – Norwalk
Benjamin is a four-year High Honor Roll student and member of the Kevin M. Eidt Chapter of the National Honor Society with a Weighted GPA of 4.15.
Benjamin is captain of Norwalk’s boys’ indoor and outdoor track and field teams during the winter and spring seasons of 2026. His dedication to his teammates and coaches, and mentoring newcomers has earned him this special distinction.
In addition to track, Ben also enjoys volunteering at various local charities and tutoring fellow students.
Ben has been accepted into Quinnipiac University’s Civil Engineering Program. He has been accepted into the Honors Program and awarded direct entry into the Dual-Degree Program.