Darien finishes atop the final coaches poll
Darien and Joel Barlow, which completed undefeated seasons with shutout wins in the CIAC finals, topped the final Connecticut Girls Volleyball Coaches Poll for 2022.
Darien (25-0) earned the top spot, riding the No. 1 ranking wire-to-wire this season. The Blue Wave swept the FCIAC and CIAC Class LL championships, winning each of the two titles for the first time since 2014. Darien now has 23 FCIAC and 18 CIAC titles in program history. They took 26 of the 29 first-place votes.
Barlow (24-0) regained the SWC championship and won the Class L championship. The Falcons have won eight of the last nine SWC titles, and now have two state crowns in program history. Barlow took one first-place vote.
RHAM (24-3), this year’s only repeat state champion, won the Class M title over Woodland and took the No. 3 spot in the poll. The Raptors took two firts-place votes.
Trumbull cracked the top 10 for the first time this season after finishing as the runner-up in both the FCIAC and Class LL tournaments.
Southington (22-3), the CCC champion and a Class LL semifinalist, finished at No. 5.
East Hampton (22-2), which rallied from a twoset deficit to defeat Hale Ray 3-2 in the Class S final, winning the program’s first state crown, jumped into the top 10 at No. 6. The Bellringers also won the Shorelines conference championship.
Six conferences were represented in the final Top 10 poll. The CCC led the way with three teams, the FCIAC and SCC had two each, and the SWC, Shoreline and NVL had one apiece.