The Darien News and The Hour of Norwalk are reporting that Lisa Lindley, the very successful girls lacrosse team coach for , has been put on administrative leave after she publicly confronted the team's goalie at a recent game.
Pictures of the incident were caught by a Hearst newspapers photographer, showing Lindley grabbing the helmet of the goalie during the confrontation. The incident occurred last Friday, May 25, at the FCIAC girls lacrosse finals when Darien played Greenwich High School at a Brien McMahon High School field in Norwalk.
Local sports in Fairfield County can be intense for coaches, players and parents. One of the more recent incidents that brought criticism to coaches in the area occurred in New Canaan last year, when youth football coaches encouraged kids to .
Lindley confronted the goalie during a time-out in the first half of the championship game, which Darien won, 17-14.
Darien schools Superintendent Stephen Falcone confirmed that Lindley has been put on administrative leave with pay while the team competes in the state championship, but did not state why or even confirm that the administrative leave was connected to the incident, both newspapers reported.
Lindley is also a gym teacher at , but is continuing to teach there without interruption, the Hour reported. She is also the lacrosse director at Sono Field House in Norwalk, according to the Darien News.
A report in The Hour described Lindley as a "fiery, out-spoken and super successful" coach of the team. She has been coaching it since 1994, according to the Darien News..
Editor's note: This article was originally published at 10:42 a.m. The time stamp has been changed for layout purposes on the Home page of Darien Patch.
