Seniors Lead the Way as Darien (Conn.) Opens 2026 With Statement

<a href="https://preplacrosse.com/2026/03/2026-preseason-public-school-rankings-who-else-but-garden-city/">Ranked No. 2 among public schools heading into the year</a>, Darien opened its season in style with a commanding 12–4 win over a young Fairfield Prep squad. The Blue Wave got on the scoreboard about 90 seconds into the game and never relented, building a 5–0 halftime lead and holding the Jesuits scoreless until midway through the third quarter. From there, Darien continued to pour it on, going on a 6–0 run before inserting several backups and conceding three goals in the final four minutes.   Led by [player_tooltip player_id='82271' first='Wes' last='Scallen']'s four-goal outing, the senior-led offense put on a clinic, doing so without highly touted Georgetown commit [player_tooltip player_id='17846' first='Ben' last='Bilodeau']. In addition to Scallen, classmates [player_tooltip player_id='17753' first='Max' last='McBride'] (Lafayette) and [player_tooltip player_id='16397' first='Ryan' last='Thurlow'] (Villanova) each added multiple goals, as did sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='142871' first='Bruce' last='Hopkins'].   Darien's defense was smothering all day, limiting quality looks from a Fairfield Prep offense still coming together after key graduations. In net, sophomore Blake Wilson made his first career start and looked composed, recording an unofficial six saves, while senior Jack Bryer added three stops in relief.   Now, a closer look at the standouts, featuring four seniors and a promising sophomore:    Watching Darien's defense, your eyes go straight to No. 11, long and rangy with above-average athleticism. The Skidmore commit has stepped into a role down low after taking LSM runs last year, and so far, he's looked the part. I was impressed with his tenacity and ability to run with opposing dodgers. On the occasions in which they were able to get a step on Davis, he recovered incredibly well and used his length and stick to his advantage. He got the ball off the floor, knocked down passes, and snagged the ball out of the air, and was particularly impressive as a stalwart on the Blue Wave's man-down unit, eating up space and communicating properly. To me, it's noticeable just how much more confident the senior captain is playing than a year ago, and he's clearly saving his best for last.     The fact that Hopkins started as a freshman for the Blue Wave speaks volumes about him as a player, and his two-goal, one-assist outing against Fairfield Prep showed signs of even better things to come. Possessing the kind of athleticism that puts constant pressure on the opposition, he has crazy burst and acceleration, kicking things into another gear to glide underneath defenses. He's a stud on both ends of the field, too, and looked perfectly comfortable playing whatever role was asked of him. Hopkins was constantly creating offense, making the correct reads, and attacking his matchup without forcing the issue. In one situation, he dodged a shortstick, stepped back to create room for himself, then fed [player_tooltip player_id='82271' first='Wes' last='Scallen'] for a jumper. After scoring from range from the left side in the third quarter, he followed that up with a beautiful individual effort in the fourth quarter before going five-hole. From what I gather, Hopkins is an excellent wide receiver as well.     I'm not going to pretend to know the specifics of Levine's recruitment or his desire to play at the next level, but it's always been head-scratching not to see a college program attached to his name. A senior captain, Levine continued to look every bit of a college prospect in Darien's opener. Although he was seldom tested 1v1 against a Fairfield Prep offense that struggled to get through the Blue Wave backline, Levine made an impact in numerous ways and showed off superb stick work. He was a vacuum off the ground on the wings of face-offs, and made his presence felt on and off-ball, affecting shots and knocking down passes. In one quick flurry, he threw a poke check to jar the ball loose, then had a brilliant close-out a few seconds later. With the third quarter winding down, Levine took the ball on a restart and tossed a 25-yard pass upfield that ended with one of the two goals that [player_tooltip player_id='17753' first='Max' last='McBride'] scored on the day right before time expired. He may not be the biggest, but Levine is certainly a disruptor who plays with high energy.     Posting four goals against the Jesuits, Scallen was the best player on the field that day. He had quite the junior season and was named First Team All-FCIAC and Second Team All-State, yet he seems to have taken his game to an even higher level. The High Point-bound lefty is a commanding presence who draws slides at will, and his production is a byproduct of how hard he works without the ball, among other things. When chugging upfield, he's a long strider, and when going after his matchup, he's got a full bag of moves to get his hands free. He has the tendency to leave his feet for jump shots, but when he does, Scallen brings tremendous power and explosiveness without sacrificing accuracy. His first tally came on an absolute laser on EMO that found the top left corner, with his next two coming on lefty jumpers, before his last of the day was a brilliant individual effort. All in all, Scallen looks like he's on a path to fighting for early minutes under John Crawley, who added the athletic midfielder late in the game back in October.     Helping make up a fantastic recruiting class for 'Nova, Thurlow is one of the more intelligent and fundamentally sound players in the entire Class of 2026. He netted two goals against Fairfield Prep, though he had some narrow misses and pipes on shots that I'm sure he'd like back, too. With the change of direction and first step that he brought to the table, he had defenders chasing shadows and got his man hung up on multiple occasions. As assertive as he is, he lets the game come to him and does an awesome job of protecting his stick to limit turnovers. Overall, he's just someone who can be relied upon to orchestrate the offense and create scoring opportunities both from X and from the wings.

Ranked No. 2 among public schools heading into the year, Darien opened its season in style with a commanding 12–4 win over a young Fairfield Prep squad. The Blue Wave got on the scoreboard about 90 seconds into the game and never relented, building a 5–0 halftime lead and holding the Jesuits scoreless until midway through the third quarter. From there, Darien continued to pour it on, going on a 6–0 run before inserting several backups and conceding three goals in the final four minutes.