By Andy Hutchison

WESTPORT — In a rematch of last year’s FCIAC and state championships, the Staples High field hockey team made a resounding statement Friday in a possible preview of this year’s playoffs.

The Wreckers won a battle of unbeaten-in-the-FCIAC squads with a convincing 5-2 win over visiting Darien. It was a battle of teams unbeaten in the conference and the Wreckers, whose only loss came out of state, handed the Blue Wave its first defeat.

Darien and Staples came into the contest ranked 1 and 2, respectively, in Class L.

If the Wreckers need any more confidence, this is the kind of win that will bolster a team’s positiveness.

“It definitely is, but we need to be humble throughout the whole season,” said Emma Larit who had a goal in the win.

The Wreckers have feasted on most of the competition this fall and this game posed a tough challenge.

“This is the best game of the season for us — it always is,” Staples Coach Ian Tapsall said.

Staples dominated out of the gate, jumping on Darien with a pair of first-quarter goals and one more in the second for a 3-0 halftime lead. 

Sophia Fidalgo opened the scoring midway through the first quarter. Fidalgo assisted Storey Ahl late in the opening stanza, and Ahl netted her second about nine minutes before halftime.

The Blue Wave pushed hard in the third and, Tapsall noted, took advantage of a couple of in-game Staples player injuries to finally break the seal with two goals. Tapsall called timeout and order was restored. The coach said he left it up to the players to simply do what they were capable of. 

“They know what to do,” Tapsall noted.

Fidalgo scored with 2:54 left in the third and Emma Larit netted an insurance marker less than a minute into the fourth quarter.

Strong defense from Tyla Ozgen, goaltender Paige Knesich and company held the Wave in check for most of the game.

A key to Staples’ scoring success has been using its speed to capitalize in transition and the Wreckers did some of that to top Darien.

“Once we get the counter-attack going we’re pretty lethal,” Tapsall said.

The Wreckers hope to ride their speed back to the state pinnacle and avenge last year’s FCIAC title game setback. It stands to reason that it could come down to Darien and Staples once again.

“We’ve got to be careful,” said Tapsall, noting that Wilton, Greenwich and Fairfield Ludlowe are potentially in the way. Ludlowe has just one regulation loss and Greenwich and Wilton each have a pair of defeats in conference play.

Staples handed Wilton one of its losses the day before the Darien contest, on the road. This was another 5-2 decision, with Larit scoring twice and Catherine Cirasuolo, Fidalgo and Ahl also finding the back of the cage.

Staples visits Danbury at 4 p.m. Monday. The Wreckers then get a look at Greenwich (on the road at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday) and Ludlowe (home, 4 p.m. Monday, Oct. 21) to close out the regular slate. (Game schedules are subject to change; click for the latest updates.)

In addition to these tough teams potentially standing in the way of championship success, the Wreckers will also have to contend with slower playing surfaces than their home turf, Tapsall noted.

“It will be a different game,” said the coach, adding that if the Wreckers can adjust as needed they should have a chance to win.

Andy Hutchison has been covering school sports — including Staples athletics — as well as news and feature stories in Fairfield County, since the 1990s.