Darien volleyball co-captains Cristina Escajadillo, Gabby Highton, and Lindsay Bennett had one main goal in mind as they prepared for the new season: Everyone should be having fun on the court.
“The three of us worked very hard coming into this season to make that gym a really good place to be, and to make sure this team had really good chemistry,” Highton said. “We’re really excited and happy and proud with how it’s worked.”
The Wave is indeed having fun and, as an added plus, has pushed back near the top of the FCIAC standings after two uncharacteristically down seasons.
Darien shut out rival New Canaan 3-0 in a road match on Monday — it’s second win over the Rams this fall — and is now 11-4 overall and 10-2 in the FCIAC, holding down third place in the conference behind St. Joseph and Westhill (both 11-1).
With four matches remaining, the Wave is in great shape to earn a home match for the FCIAC quarterfinal round, and judging by the smiles on the court, may be leading the league in having fun.
“We’ve focused on making the gym a good place to be in,” Escajadillo said. “We’re having fun while we play and doing well is a side effect of that.”