The Wilton High School Boys’ Varsity Basketball team has made history already, even before stepping onto the court for tonight’s FCIAC championship game. It’s the first time the Warriors have ever made it to the finals. What makes it even more exciting? They’re taking on Wilton’s rivals to the north–Ridgefield–a team that has also never made it this far in conference post-season play. And after the season this Wilton team has had–seeded 5th, they finished 11-5–it’s no surprise the team’s fans, and everyone else, is pumped up for tonight’s game.
With the expectation that the match-up will draw huge crowds, tonight’s game has been moved to Fairfield University, a larger venue than the playoff’s original host, Fairfield Warde High School. According to Dave Ruden, the sports writer whose Ruden Report website covers Fairfield County sports, Wilton’s fans have had an impact and stand out among league teams.
He wrote about the presence the Warriors Tribe had at Tuesday night’s semi-final, when Wilton beat Trumbull 72-66: “One word: Wow. Make that two words: Wow, wow. There is no way to measure this, but no one can remember a bigger student fan base at an FCIAC basketball game than the approximately 400-500 Wilton brought to the game [Tuesday] night. They filled up nearly a quarter of the stands at Warde.”
Ruden also gave a well-deserved shout-out to the team’s coach, Joel Geriak, who game his players the goal of making the finals at season’s start. “Geriak has changed the culture of the sport in town. He has built a program that spurred hundreds of students to make the trip from Wilton to Fairfield last night.” It speaks volumes that Geriak’s chosen team’s motto is “Heart Over Hype.”
Fairfield U’s Alumni Hall fits 2,800 spectators, so the night promises to be a rollicking one when the Wilton Warriors take on the Ridgefield Tigers. Tip off is at 7 p.m., Thursday, March 2. Admission is $5 for students and $8 for adults.