In the big picture, Darien picked up a much-needed win as it attempts to stay within striking distance of the FCIAC playoffs. Darien entered the game trailing Norwalk, Stamford and Staples (all 9-5 in FCIAC play) for the final three FCIAC tournament slots and tied with Fairfield Warde and Westhill (both 8-6 in FCIAC play) for ninth place. The free throw represented the Warriors' first point in eight minutes of play, and the layup was their first field goal in 10 minutes. Bushell got her team back on track by laying up a shot and converting the ensuing free throw for the three-point play. On Wilton's next possession, Stein stole the ball and converted a layup, and Marren also drained a layup and converted the free throw after being fouled. The Warriors (11-5 overall), which haven't lost back-to-back games all season, will look to keep that streak intact when they travel to Danbury on Monday at 7 p.m. With no margin for error as it pertains to their standing in the FCIAC playoff picture, Darien (10-7 overall) plays host to Stamford on Friday at 7 p.m.

RIDGEFIELD - The Darien girls hockey team had four players light the lamp and held off a late Wilton charge for a 5-2 victory Monday afternoon at the Ridgefield Winter Garden. The win locked up a spot in the four-team FCIAC playoff tournament for Darien, which currently sits in third place in the standings, behind New Canaan and Greenwich and ahead of Ridgefield. The Blue Wave required just over five minutes of play to take a 1-0 lead when Emily Tropsa cleanly won a faceoff from the right circle back to Amanda Sload. According to Scribano, the combination of early Blue Wave goals and strong defensive play made her job far easier. Wilton, which currently sits in fifth place in the FCIAC standings, needs a win to help its fading FCIAC playoff chances in its next conference game against Ridgefield at the Ridgefield Winter Garden on Saturday at 8:50 p.m. With its playoff ticket punched, Darien's focus is maintaining -- or perhaps improving -- its seed when it takes on Greenwich at the Darien Ice Rink at 6:50 p.m. Finishing in fourth place would force the Blue Wave to face off against undefeated New Canaan in the first round of FCIACs.

Darien boys track team finishes sixth at FCIAC Championship The Staples High School boys indoor track team won the FCIAC Team Championship, snapping a string of five consecutive league titles by the Danbury High boys. The central figure in Staples' triumph was junior Henry Wynne, who ran to FCIAC championship gold in the 1,000 meters, 1,600 and added a gutty second place finish in the 3,200. Staples pulled away for good Thursday when Dean Hefnaway (13-feet-6) and Matt Mula finished 1-2 in the pole vault. In the boys 4 x 200 meter relay, the Greenwich quartet of Marcus Motill, Elijah Dume, Nick Pulitano and Ryan Kelly were crowned FCIAC champs in 1:32.24. Since our relay won at the Yale Invitational, we felt we could put up a special time. In the 4 x 800 meter relay, the new Ridgefield High foursome of Billy Arnold, Blake Liebling, McCall Keller and Connor Findlay took first place in 8:27.10, nipping runnerup Staples (8:27.67). In the 55 meter hurdles, Norwalk's Adam Robertino was crowned FCIAC champ in 7.78 seconds. In the sprint medley relay, the New Canaan foursome of George Bennett, Austin Deery, Henson Orser and Alex Spinu won in 3:42.24 ahead of Ludlowe (3:44.38) and Danbury (3:44.46). In the shot put, New Canaan's Rami Hanadan was crowned FCIAC champ with a throw of 49-feet-7.75.

Darien girls track team takes second place at FCIAC Championship NEW HAVEN -- Since the season began in December, Greenwich girls track coach Evan Dubin has been telling anyone who would listen that the Cardinals were the team to beat in the FCIAC. Behind strong relays and a stellar showing from Abby Markowitz, the Cardinals backed up Dubin's prediction, winning the FCIAC championships at the Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven Thursday night with 92 team points. Greenwich 4x200 relay team of Amanda Michaud, Claire D'Etiveaud, Emily Johnson and Naomi Leeds won with a time of 1:48.11, well ahead of second-place finisher Trumbull, which came in at 1:50.81 and the third-place team from Danbury (1:51.69). Because I am running to other events, my goal was not to get the fastest time but to go for place so having someone like her (Loh) there made my time faster. The Cardinals expected to win certain events, but it was the second-, third- and fourth-place finishes that pushed them over the top.

Matched up on the road against a struggling opponent, the Norwalk High boys basketball team cruised from start to finish on Friday. The Bears turned to a punishing inside game on offense and used a variety of different looks on defense to overpower Darien on the way to a 53-32 victory. Forward Roy Kane Jr. proved to be a tough cover for Darien throughout the evening, scoring a game-high 15 points while grabbing 10 rebounds. Forward Saeed Soulemane scored seven points and recorded seven rebounds and five assists, and Bobby Stringfellow had five points, six rebounds and three blocks off the bench. On the offensive glass, we boxed out, got easy offensive rebounds and put backs. After watching Darien score 10 points in the first, the Bears held the Blue Wave to single digits in each of the final three quarters.

Greenwich swim team edges Darien in clash of FCIAC powerhouses GREENWICH - In a battle of two long-time FCIAC boys swimming powerhouses, Greenwich edged Darien 97-89 on Friday Greenwich High School. The Cardinal quartet of Alex Lewis, Iain Edmundson, Julian Fraser and Ed Moss combined to give their team an early lead by winning the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:44.55. For Greenwich, the early first place finish was a key to the Cardinals' ability to hold off the Blue Wave. Darien struck back in the 200 freestyle, as Jack Bair won the event in 1:47.47, followed by Greenwich's Thomas Dillinger and Will Belmont in 1:50.34 and 1:52.36, respectively. Greenwich is always the toughest team in the league, Janson said. Darien divers Lee Christianson and Jackson McGoldrick were instrumental in giving the Blue Wave their first lead of the day at 40-38. Christianson won the event with a score of 240.15, followed by Jackson with 233.75 and Greenwich's Jeff Aselin with 226.10. Darien dominated the 500 freestyle by placing swimmers first, second and fourth to increase its lead to 68-58. In the 200 freestyle relay, Greenwich's team of Max Zim, Julian Fraser, Moss and Matt Fraser clocked in at 1:32.49 for first place, narrowing Darien's lead to 72-68 in the process. Greenwich dominated the 100 backstroke, placing swimmers in first, third and fourth place.

The Darien girls basketball team spread out the scoring in Norwalk on Tuesday night on its way to a 50-34 win over Brien McMahon for its fifth win in its last six games. With the regular season winding down and so many teams vying for the final few spots in the FCIAC tournament, Darien was well aware of the importance of defeating McMahon. McMahon, which has only one senior (Karly Barreno) on its squad and three freshman starters (Kayla Croswell, Aleigh Fitzpatrick and Yasmine Walker), struck back with a layup by Fitzpatrick and a trey by Taylor Close to within 10-5. Darien essentially sealed the game by the end of the third quarter, as it outscored McMahon 15-8 in the frame to take a commanding 35-20 advantage heading into the fourth. With the loss, the young Senators (3-13) have been eliminated from playoff contention, but McElween is hopeful that his group embraces the challenge of playing spoiler to some FCIAC playoff hopefuls.

Without a clear cut preseason (or midseason) favorite in boys hockey in 2012, the FCIAC and State tournament crowns may end up with the team that gets hot at the right time. Not to be overlooked, junior goalie Max Rothston turned in another solid performance between the pipes, making several tough saves late in the game to preserve Darien's one-goal lead in a scoreless third period. Since I've been here, we've never put wins up like this. Ironically, Darien's signature win of the season may be its lone victory which has not occurred in its current winning streak: a lopsided 6-1 win over rival New Canaan on Dec. 19 which boosted the Blue Wave's record to 1-2. After a close call at 3-10 Trinity Catholic on Jan. 14, Darien's fourth win in its current eight-game winning streak, team captain Nick Bruno doesn't seem to believe that taking a team lightly is a mistake that the Blue Wave will make twice. The Blue Wave had a solid season in 2011, finishing with a regular season record of 10-9-1, but the team struggled with consistency for the better part of the campaign.

McMahon (2-12 overall, 2-10 FCIAC) struggled at times on offense, failing to muster a double-digit scorer. [...] the young Senators were rewarded with a victory. With senior captains Jeff Leeker (ACL) and Matt Lee (ankle) both out of action, the Blue Wave just could not produce anything in the way of consistent offense. Sophomore George Phillips did his best to lead Darien to the home victory, scoring a game-high 17 points to go along with seven rebounds. The Blue Wave turned the ball over 14 times over the first two quarters, and after Phillips hit his only 3-pointer to end the first, didn't score again until sophomore point guard Bobby Fitzpatrick found his way to the basket on a layup with 1:20 left before halftime. [...] McKinney was still McMahon's best player, pulling down eight rebounds, sparking the defense with four steals while doing a great job distributing the ball, finishing with a game-high five assists. McMahon also showed balanced scoring with nine players hitting the scoresheet, including a nice night of shooting by senior Darkym Stroud (nine points, six rebounds).

Following two undefeated seasons, Darien rugby team to play Division-I in 2012 Fresh off of an undefeated 2011 campaign which also included winning the New York Metropolitan League and the Connecticut High Schools Tournament, the Darien rugby team has been bumped up to Division-I in 2012. For the Darien rugby team, which is in its fifth season of existence, the long-term goal is to ultimately achieve varsity status. [Varsity status] would give the sport more legitimacy in the eyes of parents and players. According to John McCarthy, the team has already had some "very informal practices" and is looking to pick things up at the end of February when the winter sports conclude.