State Tournament Draw Set; Wreckers Get 1st-Round Bye
Play begins Friday in the state “LL” (extra large schools) tournament.
The defending champion Wreckers won’t be playing.
No worries. The reason is a good one: Ranked #1, with a 15-0-1 regular season record, they earned a first-round bye. The 4 other top teams in the 5-round (32-team) event also sit out the opening game.
Staples’ first match will be Monday (November 9, 2 p.m., Wakeman Field). They’ll face the winner of #16 Danbury vs. #17 East Hartford. That contest is set for 5 p.m. Friday, in Danbury.
That’s a well-deserved reward for finishing with the best record in the tournament. Otherwise, they’d have to play less than 48 hours after Wednesday night’s FCIAC championship (6 p.m. at Fairfield Ludlowe, vs. Stamford).
The Wreckers and Hatters are 2 of 10 FCIAC teams in the LL tourney. The others are #5 Trumbull (bye); #6 Greenwich (vs. #27 Kennedy-Waterbury), #8 Stamford (vs. #25 West Haven), #10 Ridgefield (vs. #23 Manchester), #15 Brien McMahon vs. #18 Fairfield Warde, #24 Darien (vs. #9 Norwich Free Academy), and #26 Fairfield Ludlowe (vs. #7 Fairfield Prep). Four FCIAC “LL” teams failed to meet the .400 winning percent qualification mark: Bridgeport Central, Westhill, New Canaan and Norwalk.
Wilton is the lone FCIAC team in the “L” (large schools) division. Seeded 8th, they host #25 Bristol Eastern Friday at 4 p.m.
St. Joseph — the smallest FCIAC school — did not qualify for the “M” (medium) division.
Click here for the full “LL” bracket.
