By Andy Hutchison

WESTPORT – Westport is home to water polo enthusiasts, including Staples High sophomore standout Virginia Ferrari and her Staples co-op club teammates and captains Stella Savone and Olivia Kulga, also of Westport. The rest of the lineup comprises student-athletes from surrounding/ nearby communities.

Water polo continues in the school club offseason for Ferrari. She is in her fourth year playing club water polo and in her second as part of the Olympic Development Program (ODP) North East zone team.

The ODP is a training program designed to identify and develop athletes for the U.S. National Teams. It serves as the primary pathway for athletes that want to represent the country in water polo, meaning Ferrari has aspirations to advance in her career.

The country is divided into 13 regions and the athletes compete to be selected for a spot in the team of their zone. The program starts at the beginning of the fall season with ODP Zone camps, followed by regional championships and, potentially, national championships. 

“I enjoy playing with the development team very much. Playing with them gives me the opportunity to learn new plays and challenge myself even more. Also playing with different people every year is very exciting and fun,” Ferrari said.

Whether she is on the pool representing the Staples co-op club squad or competing for ODP Ferrari enjoys water polo because “it is a team sport and even if it is very tiring and I need to sacrifice the time with my friends and most of my weekends, I really enjoy spending my time in the water,” she said.

Ferrari is a utility player. In practice she asks the coaches to help her master different positions so the coaches and the team can rely on her ability to perform across the pool. “For this, I practice to my very best everywhere and try to be prepared when I have a game,” she said.

“I love playing on the Staples Water polo co-op team, because first, I’m very proud to represent Staples and second, because it is an opportunity to make new friendships with kids from other schools in the area. But mostly because of the team spirit. Ever since I have joined the Staples team, the electricity and enthusiasm that the team brings to every game or practice is amazing,” Ferrari said.

Global experience to bring back to the local team

Ferrari was part of the Staples swim team her freshman year but unfortunately, due to an injury could not join the team at the beginning of her sophomore year. Ferrari plans to be part of the swim team again in the fall of 2025.

During the Staples offseason Ferrari practices water polo at Greenwich Aquatics which is the most competitive level you can play water polo in the state, she said. “I travel a lot with them also because most of the tournaments are in California.”

During the last spring break Ferrari also played in Italy with a team from Sicily. “It was an incredible experience for me because in addition to learning different plays, I also met amazing players that made me feel immediately part of the team and I’m looking forward to the next opportunity to play with them,” she said.

Ferrari said she would like to convince others to join the Staples club water polo team because even it requires a lot of effort and stamina, it is a lot of fun. The more experienced players combine efforts with coaches to help the newer player develop.

“Together with the Staples coaches we have taught kids from all different grades how to learn to play the sport just by taking it step by step but definitely you need to have a strong background in swimming,” Ferrari said.

The Staples co-op is led by coaches Danillo Sierra and Kade Ramirez. Sierra notes that the sport has grown tremendously in Westport and the area.

“Water polo has taken a turn in the last three years at Staples High School and Fairfield County. Since 2004 when water polo started as a club program at Staples it has been a challenge increasing the popularity and level of the sport. Two seasons ago, things changed when Staples opened the door to athletes from other schools that wanted to take part in their program and train, play, and travel against other schools — mostly private and club teams — all over the county and New England region,” Sierra said.

The level of play and popularity has increased leading to the formation of the Northeast Water Polo Club, a local program that has been targeting and helping young athletes to learn more about water polo and helping their transition to high school and college, Sierra said.

“Our main goal is to keep growing and make sure all athletes can have an easy transition from middle to high school and create more opportunities for scholarships so they can play water polo at a collegiate level,” Sierra added.

Ferrari certainly has enjoyed her water polo playing experience and is hopeful of continuing at the next level.

“One thing I’m sure about is that I would like to go to a college that has a high level of water polo but that also has very good academics. It won’t be easy since there are not many colleges with women’s teams but I will definitely work hard to achieve this goal,” she said.

Many water polo student-athletes from the Staples program have gone on to play the sport at schools including Connecticut College, the University of Connecticut, Fordham, Boston College, Brown University and the University of Southern California.

“We would like to invite more young athletes to join our water polo program so we can share with them the passion we feel from the sport,” Sierra said.

Andy Hutchison has been covering school sports — including Staples athletics — as well as news and feature stories in Fairfield County, since the 1990s.

QUÉBEC — The fans broke a record, but Canada came up just short in Volleyball National League action on Saturday at Centre Videotron.

More than 12,030 spectators watched Canada fall to France 3-2 in the best-of-five match, including the tense 15-6 tiebreaker. The fan count is the largest audience the Canadian senior men’s team has entertained on home soil, and is a VNL North American record.

Brodie Hofer and Xander Wassenaar Ketrzynski led the scoring for Canada with 15 points apiece. France’s captain Trevor Clevenot, part of the Paris 2024 gold-medal winning team, led all scorers with 24 points.

“We let the game slip away from us, I think, we played well and maintained a pretty good level, but I don’t think this is anywhere near our maximum capabilities,” said Canada captain Fynn McCarthy. “We played a pretty good solid base level but that’s not good enough against France.

“(Trevor) Clevenot kind of ran away with it in the end and he’s a really good player, so credit to him, but we should be doing a better job against his service pressure … I’m proud of the guys. Lots of our guys have never played in front of crowd like that so it was amazing.”

France, which won the VNL title last year, led overall in attack points (72-67), blocks (8-4) and made a couple fewer errors. Canada led in aces 5-2.

Canada’s head coach Dan Lewis said: “I’m extremely proud of the guys, they never quit and they are growing with every game. We need a good start in the fifth and make better choices. But it’s great that we’re learning to execute at a higher level on a regular basis. I’m super proud.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2025.

The Canadian Press

Focus on the front row

Lots of front row talent

How much does money talk?

Photos: Wisconsin volleyball battles UW-Green Bay in spring exhibition match

EUGENE, Ore. – The Texas Tech women’s track and field team wrapped up its season scoring 22 points Saturday evening at Hayward Field. The women end the year 12^th overall in the team standings.

In the first event of the day, the discus throw, Shelby Frank finished a career-high at the meet third place throwing a PB 63.37m (207-11) – new PB by just over four feet. Over two days, Frank scored 14 points for the Red Raiders – second in the hammer throw Thursday. She finishes her career in the discus with three-straight First Team All-America honors.

In the high jump, Temitope Adeshina placed fifth clearing 1.87m (6-1 ½). Meanwhile in the triple jump, Victoria Gorlova finished fifth bounding 13.53m (44-4 ¾).

Notables

·      Zoe Burleson finished 13^th in the discus

·      Tamiah Washington finished 10^th in the triple jump

NASHUA – With the top seed and an undefeated record, the Coe-Brown Northwood Academy boys’ volleyball team consistently showed it was the best in the state. On Saturday, the Bears finished the job. 

Coe-Brown (19-0) was able to neutralize Hollis-Brookline’s Ethan Norris, arguably the best player in the state, and dropped a set for only the second time this season, but responded to defeat the Cavaliers (16-3) in four sets, 25-17, 25-18, 22-25, 25-19, to win the program’s first championship.

The result halted Hollis-Brookline’s bid for a fourth consecutive state championship, but not before the Cavaliers handed Coe-Brown its third dropped set all season and pushed the unbeaten Bears deeper than most opponents had managed all year.

The only other time Coe-Brown dropped sets was in a 3-2 victory over Dover on May 8.

“We played with a lot of heart and intensity,” said Cavaliers head coach Jake Balfour. “Taking a set from Coe-Brown, which has only happened once this season, I couldn’t be prouder. It just wasn’t our day.”

The first set was evenly matched through the opening points, with both teams tied at 8-8. Coe-Brown pulled ahead following a pair of Hollis-Brookline attack errors and an ace from senior Carter Brown. That short surge forced a timeout from Balfour, but the Bears kept applying pressure. Senior Bruce Marshall delivered two straight kills to give Coe-Brown a 16-12 advantage.

Hollis-Brookline responded with a block from senior Mateo Morel to trim the deficit to 17-16, but Coe-Brown regained control late as junior Tyler Fuller closed the set with three kills in the final stretch, powering the Bears to a 25-17 win.

Coe-Brown carried that momentum into the second set, opening on a 4-0 run that included two aces from junior Oliver Ford. Hollis-Brookline never fully recovered, allowing three separate 5-0 scoring runs in the frame. Struggling to gain traction, the Cavaliers dropped the second set 25-18 and found themselves facing a two-set deficit.

“They changed their offense, and we weren’t ready,” Balfour said. “Once we figured out how to get them out of system, we started gaining momentum.”

That turning point came in the third set, led by the play of senior captain Ethan Norris. Norris recorded four straight kills to give Hollis-Brookline a 10-9 lead, energizing both the team and the fans in the stands. Morel added another timely block, and Norris continued to dominate at the net, ripping four more kills and combining for three shared blocks to stretch the lead to 18-13. That run prompted Coe-Brown to burn their first timeout of the match.

Although the Bears responded with back-to-back kills from junior Luke Corriveau to cut the margin to 19-17, the Cavaliers held firm. Norris tallied three more kills down the stretch to seal the set 25-22. The victory marked just the third time all season that Coe-Brown had dropped a set, and Hollis-Brookline became only the second team to do so.

With a spark ignited, Hollis-Brookline came out firing in the fourth set. Norris picked up where he left off, delivering three of the team’s first five kills as the Cavaliers grabbed a 6-4 lead. An ace from senior Jamil Patel extended the advantage to 9-6. Coe-Brown answered behind Marshall and Fuller, who helped even the score at 9-9.

From there, the teams traded points up to 12-12 before Corriveau sparked a decisive Coe-Brown push. He recorded two kills and an ace during a 5-0 run that gave the Bears a 17-12 cushion. Hollis-Brookline made one final rally, cutting the lead to 18-16 after a kill from Morel, but it was not enough. Marshall and junior Istvan Miko combined for five of Coe-Brown’s final six kills as they closed out the match 25-19 to claim the Division I state title.

Corriveau led the Bears with 15 kills and four blocks. Norris finished with 25 kills, three blocks, and an ace, while Morel contributed seven kills and five blocks to lead the Cavaliers.

“Great game. We knew it was going to be a grind,” said Coe-Brown head coach Ryan Smith. “After the third set, we got in our heads a little. Coming into the fourth, we told the kids to be confident, get swings on the ball, and play connected.

“We have five senior leaders who are experienced, but it was a team effort – all 15 players contributed at some point. Ten years ago, we were 0-16, and now we’re champions. These kids deserve it.”

(Dan Attorri contributed to this report.)

Joseph returned to Eugene for the second consecutive year after she earned Honorable Mention All-American in the same event a season ago. 

In her final outdoor season, she tied the second best marks in Brown history in the triple jump (13.15m) and long jump (6.29m). She ends her career as a two-time All-American. 

 

 
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