This spring is, indeed, a season of change for the Greenwich Academy Varsity A lacrosse team, which graduated seven seniors from last year’s successful squad and is back in the Fairchester Athletic Association.

Greenwich Academy, which featured a standout group of seniors in 2023, has returned to FAA competition this season, after not playing in the league the past several years.

“This is a different group than last year, we lost seven seniors, it’s a brand new group,” GA coach Halley Quillinan Griggs said. “We had a lot of newcomers come in, we’re proud of our leadership and the girls are having fun – they’re working hard.”

Greenwich Academy played FAA foe Hamden Hall Country Day School in its home-opener/season-opener this past Thursday and displayed its strengths on both ends of the field, cruising to a 16-2 victory.

The Gators’ 2024 captains who are providing a wealth of valuable leadership and impressive play are seniors Brooke Bertrand, Dylan Casazza and Molly Moore.

“I’m super excited, everyone brings a lot of energy every day to practice and everyone is really excited to get the season going,” said Bertrand, who also helped captained the school’s varsity field hockey team this past fall.

Competing in the FAA after a hiatus for several seasons is a welcome change for GA’s Varsity A lacrosse team. In previous years, GA played just a couple of FAA teams, while playing against powerful boarding school squads and premier regional opponents. The Gators will still play some formidable non-league foes this spring, two of which they faced on Saturday – St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes and Collegiate School at the Spring Fling Tournament.

“We’re really excited to be back in the FAA,” said Casazza, who will play lacrosse at Princeton University next year. “I think we’re going to try to keep our run as strong as possible in that area and we always have super competitive games against some of the prep schools and Sacred Heart. We have such a good variety in our schedule.”

“It’s really exciting to join the FAA now, because we have a lot more games and we have a wide range of teams we are playing, so everyone gets to play a lot this season,” Bertrand said. “Everyone is super excited to see how it goes this season.”

Moore, a defender, is sidelined for the season. She tore her anterior cruciate ligament during GA’s soccer season this past fall. Next season, Moore will continue her lacrosse career at the University of Notre Dame.

“I go to every practice, I’m at every game, so being there with the team is always fun,” Moore said. “I try to give them a few tips that I learned over the past four years with the team. I think our team looks really strong so far, we definitely have a young team, we lost a lot of seniors last year. They all mesh with the team really well.”

Casazza returns at the attack position for the Gators, who excelled offensively in their recent home victory against Hamden Hall.

“Dylan has really been a quarterback for this team the past few years,” Quillinan Griggs said. “I’m excited to see her continue to lead on the field and be that QB for us. I can’t say enough about her leadership. She’s such a tremendous captain, she’s so mature. Her, Brooke and Molly do a great job of leading this team on and off the field.”

Bertrand is a defensive midfielder, who will help anchor GA defensively.

“She gives us versatility back there,” Quillinan Griggs said of Bertrand. “She is a defender/defensive middie and she is so well conditioned she gives us the option of playing straight defense or come in out of the box and give our midfield more depth too.”

In Greenwich Academy’s decisive 16-2 win over Hamden Hall on Thursday, junior attack/midfielder Claire Maruszewski recorded two goals and two assists, while freshman attack Perry Casazza tallied three goals and two assists and freshman midfielder Abby Iles had three goals and one assist.

“It was such an all-around team win,” Casazza said of GA’s victory against Hamden Hall. “I feel like so many different players got looks and we got to see a lot of offense generated by our new people, which is fun and it’s always good to get a team win and we’re excited for the rest of the season.”

Cordelia Blanc, an eighth grader, posted one goal and two assists, while sophomore midfielder Chloe Cleaves, junior attack Chloe Cook, junior attack Eliza Babyak, junior attack Katie Barr, junior attack/midfielder Anniston Mahaffy, Dylan Casazza, Watts and Bertrand each had one goal.

“I think our team looks really strong so far, we definitely have a young team, we lost a lot of seniors last year,” Moore said. “We are kind of building up for the younger ages. I feel like they have all stepped up to the challenge.”

Dylan Casazza brings skill and experience to the attack position, which also features Barr (a Dartmouth commit), Cook, Blanc and Dylan’s sister, Perry Casazza. Babyak, Maruszewski and Mahaffy are also being relied upon to spark the squad’s offense.

“Katie Barr has been our leader in goals since her freshman year,” Quillinan Griggs noted. “She is a phenomenal scorer and the way that she’s rounded out her game offensively has been nice to see.”

Sophomore Lily Lyons, a star cross country runner, and junior Persia Shipman give the Gators a pair of speedy goalies accustomed to playing in pressure-packed moments.

“Lily Lyons must be the fastest goalie in the country,” Quillinan Griggs noted. “Persia Shipman also brings a wealth of experience in goal. They bring a lot to our team in goal.”

Junior Ruby Montanez is a threat in the midfield with her speed and aggressiveness. Montanez is also a skilled defensive player who brings versatility to the GA team. Cleaves is one of the players the team is relying on for draw control responsibilities, along with providing a spark at the midfield position. Caroline Watts, an experienced Varsity A athlete, is also a draw control specialist and key midfielder.

Bertrand, junior Lila Volpe, junior Lila Cabot, senior Maya Tillman, senior Grace Martucci, sophomore Elizabeth Watts and sophomore Reese Quinn are expected to solidify the Gators’ defense. Watts is also a midfielder who should help out on the draws.

“All the defenders are great at communicating,” Bertrand said. “We all help each other out.”

Eliza DeChristopher joins the team as a freshman midfielder, as does Iles. Greenwich Academy hosts FAA neighborhood foe Greenwich Country Day School on Friday at 4 p.m.

“We want to grow as individual players and get better as a team every day,” Quillinan Griggs said. We’re excited about playing in the FAA. Most of our girls are multi-sport athletes and they love competing for something at the end of the season.”

“We have a really talented squad this year and we’re excited about the season,” Casazza said.

Moore appreciates the time she has spent as a member of the school’s lacrosse team.

“I really like the GA lacrosse program,” she said. “Each coach has been amazing and they taught me so much about the sport.”

Like her fellow captains, Bertrand enjoys being in a leadership role.

“I have some experience being a field hockey captain, so it’s made it a little easier,” Bertrand noted. “Dylan and Molly have been such excellent co-captains. It’s been so easy to be a captain for our teammates, because they are all such great kids.