Tournaments

Westhill volleyball sweeps Greenwich, advances to Class LL semifinals

Westhill High School’s Betsy Sachs and Greenwich High School’s Erin O’Keefe meet at the net in the Class LL volleyball quarterfinal played at Westhill. — Scott Mullin/Hearst Connecticut Media photo

STAMFORD — After losing to Trumbull in the championship game of the FCIAC Volleyball Tournament, Westhill was determined to get back on the court and go after a title that’s eluded it for a long time — the Class LL championship.

Three wins later, the Vikings are only two victories away from accomplishing their ultimate goal.

Dictating the points and carrying the momentum from the outset, third-seeded Westhill registered a convincing 3-0 victory over 11th-seeded Greenwich in the CIAC Class LL Tournament quarterfinals.

The host Vikings advanced to the Class LL semifinals, where they will face either Amity or Cheshire on Wednesday. Westhill (22-3) won Saturday’s matchup against the Cardinals by set scores of 25-15, 25-17, 25-20.

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Wilton’s season ends with loss in state quarterfinals

For Simsbury, a long bus ride felt shorter on the way home. Continuing their string of road upsets, the 19th-seeded Trojans defeated 11th-seed Wilton, 1-0, in a Class LL girls soccer state quarterfinal game Friday at Kristine Lilly Field. Simsbury will look to continue its unexpected tourney run in Monday’s semifinal against reigning Class LL … Read more

NE Cross Country: Staples boys, Danbury girls lead FCIAC at championship meet

Forty-five runners representing eight FCIAC schools participated in the 84th Annual New England Interscholastic Cross Country Championships Saturday at Derryfield Park in Manchester, N.H., on Saturday. The field features runners from Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. The top 25 individual runners and the top six teams from those states qualified. The Staples … Read more

Updated FCIAC state tournament schedule and scoreboard

The FCIAC will have 42 teams in action as the CIAC’s soccer, volleyball, and field hockey tournaments get underway this week. Scores will be updated here as the games are completed. Scroll down for previous rounds. Saturday, Nov. 10 Boys Soccer – Class LL Quarterfinals • Click here for the complete bracket East Hartford 1, … Read more

Ridgefield beats Darien, 1-0, advances to state semis

Carolyn Donovan (center, shown in a game earlier this season) and the Ridgefield High girls soccer team are headed to the state semifinals. — Andy Hutchison photo Whenever the Ridgefield High girls soccer team scores first, head coach Iain Golding usually notices a spike in his confidence level. It’s what happens when you have a … Read more

Defending champion Ridgefield edges Darien to reach state semifinals

RIDGEFIELD — Whenever the Ridgefield High girls soccer team scores first, head coach Iain Golding usually notices a spike in his confidence level. It’s what happens when you have a defense that concedes less often than Florida politicians.

But Golding found himself unable to exhale after Tasha Riek’s goal less than three minutes into the second half staked seventh-seed Ridgefield to a 1-0 lead and eventual win over No. 18 Darien in Friday afternoon’s Class LL state tournament game at Tiger Hollow.

“Darien was putting us under a lot of pressure,” said Golding, whose team improved to 19-2-1. “I wasn’t feeling as good as I normally do when we get the first goal. I was still nervous.”

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State Open Cross Country: Danbury girls complete triple crown, FCIAC runners star at meet

MANCHESTER – All five of those finishing surges, every final kick to either outkick another runner or hold off an oncoming runner, and all the accompanying physical pain Danbury’s first five runners had to tough it out with while running up the long hill and into the Wickham Park finishing chute at the CIAC State … Read more

Greenwich upsets top-seeded Xavier in OT, advances to face LL defending champ Glastonbury

MIDDLETOWN — The postseason is not a time for a team to lose its sense of urgency. Yet it happened with Xavier on Thursday and spelled the end to the Falcons’ 17-win soccer season. After a scoreless regulation, Greenwich broke through on Christopher Cruz’s goal in the 82nd minute to beat the top-seeded Falcons 1-0 … Read more