FCIAC Teams Dominate First Round Of Girls Soccer State Tournament

The FCIAC always been one considered one of the top leagues in the state for girls soccer and it certainly flexed its muscle in the first round of the state tournament.

Of the 12 FCIAC teams that made postseason play, nine advanced to the second round, and two (Fairfield Warde and Danbury) were eliminated by other FCIAC foes.

In non head-to-head matchups in the first round, FCIAC teams went 7-1. The only one to lose was Fairfield Ludlowe, which dropped a 2-0 decision to defending state champion Shelton.

Two FCIAC squads advanced with wins over high-seeded opponents as No. 25 Ridgfield upset No. 8 West Haven, 3-1, and No. 20 Staples, which didn't even make the FCIAC playoffs, defeated No. 13 New Milford 3-1, and No. 18 Trumbull ousted No. 15 Norwich Free Academy 3-2 on penalty kicks.

Also advancing in Class LL were: No. 5 Westhill (2-0 over No. 28 Danbury), No.7 New Canaan (2-0 over No. 26 Middletown), No. 9 Greenwich (3-1 over No. 24 Manchester) and No. 16 Darien (1-0 over No. 17 Fairfield Warde).

In Class L, No. 10 Wilton defeated No. 23 New Fairfield, 5-0, and in Class M, No. 4 St. Joseph blasted No. 29. Killingly, 8-1

Saturday's second-round lineup includes another all-FCIAC matchup as No. 9 Greenwich, the defending two-time league champion, hosts Ridgefield.

Also, Westhill is home for No. 12 Masuk and No. 7 New Canaan entertains No. 23 Hamden while Darien visits top seed Glastonbury and Staples takes on Shelton. Trumbull, which played in tournament opener on Friday, is at No. 2 seed South Windsor.

In other second-round contests, Wilton heads to No. 7 seed Berlin, and St. Joseph, the FCIAC regular-season champion,  entertains No. 13 Griswold.