The Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference’s (FCIAC) top-seeded Fairfield Warde Mustangs defeated the Staples Wreckers 6-4 on May 3, handing Staples their sixth loss of the season and fourth in FCIAC play.
Despite Staples opening up the scoring to take a 1-0 advantage, Warde responded with a three-run home run and five-run inning to put them up 5-1 after the third. There was a glimpse of hope for Staples after Max Jossen ’24 hit a two-run shot in the bottom of the fourth to bring the score to 6-4, but Warde was ultimately able to close the game out through stellar pitching from their senior Grady Schopps.
“After going down 5-1 early, I think we did a good job of showing lots of resilience and fight to put ourselves in a situation to win the game in the last inning,” Jake Goldshore ’25 said. “Although we ended up losing, hopefully we can learn from the game and use it as fuel to close out our regular season strong and then help us get ready for the postseason.”
This was the second time the two FCIAC powerhouses have met this season, with the Mustangs completing the sweep over the Wreckers after beating them 5-0 in their first meeting.
“Warde is a great team, but I think that our performance showcased how we can play at a high level and battle them until the very last pitch,” Noah Saed ’25 said. “We hope to see them in the playoffs and finally beat them.”
Staples will compete in five more regular season ties and then prepare for the FCIAC and Class LL CIAC tournaments, where a Warde rematch could certainly be on the cards yet again.
