60 For 60: Week 9
It’s here! Our final “60 For 60” entries — and Staples soccer’s 60th anniversary celebration. We look forward to seeing you on The Hill today (Saturday, October 13) for our 1 p.m. tailgate, and huge 2 p.m. match against Darien.
Meanwhile, enjoy some more intriguing factoids from our remarkable 6 decades:
— For several years in the 1960s and ’70s, Staples fielded varsity, intermediate (11th graders not on varsity) and junior varsity (10th grade only) teams.
— The 2009 team’s 4-0 victory over New Milford in the state championship was the biggest margin of victory ever in the largest schools division final.
— Staples’ greatest comeback: Down 3-1 vs. #3 West Haven in the 2014 state tournament with less than 17 minutes to go, the #18 Wreckers won 4-3 — in regulation time.
— Shane Kennedy ’72 became a goalkeeper midway through his senior year. He went on to set an NCAA record for career shutouts at Babson College.
— The 2009 team set a record for most wins in a season: 22.
— Eric Lund was a Brien McMahon star in 1967. When he died of leukemia in 1972, his last words were: “Have to get back to Westport. Can’t find the way. Please, mom, help me. Westport?” He was recalling the great Staples-McMahon rivalries. His mother Doris told that story in her best-selling book “Eric.”
The 2009 team celebrates it state championship.
