On its journey toward winning the FCIAC Tournament title and advancing to the semifinal-round of the CIAC Class LL Tournament, Greenwich High School’s varsity girls volleyball team amassed 23 victories, while losing just one single match, with that one loss coming to Fairfield Warde.

Well, the soaring Cardinals certainly avenged that one regular season loss to the Mustangs when they teams faced each other with a berth in the CIAC Class LL final at stake on Nov. 12th at Westhill High School.

Carrying the momentum throughout while playing exceptionally well offensively and defensively, second-seeded Greenwich wasted little time displaying its dominance, sweeping third-seeded Fairfield Warde, 3-0, in the Class LL semifinals.

The highly impressive win propelled No. 2 Greenwich into the championship match of the Class LL Tournament, where it will play fourth-seeded Glastonbury in today’s (Nov. 15th) title matchup at East Haven High School. The Class LL state final is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. Greenwich is hoping to claim its fourth Class LL state championship. The Cardinals won the Class LL championship in 2010, 2017 and 2021.

In the semifinals, the Cardinals topped the Mustangs by game scores of 25-23, 25-18, 25-21.

“We went the whole season undefeated, except losing to Warde in the regular season, so using that hunger and kind of our revenge moment – I think that pushed us through,” Greenwich junior middle hitter Kayah Armstrong said after GHS defeated Warde in the state semifinals.

Armstrong powered Greenwich offensively and defensively, recording 16 kills, seven digs, three blocks and one ace. Junior setter Victoria Sullivan ignited the offense as well, effectively passing the ball to the Cards’ hitters. Sullivan posted 36 assists, to go along with six digs and three aces for the victors.

“It’s so exciting, we’ve worked really hard this season and it’s paying off,” Sullivan said. “Our passes were on point and we were moving the ball around so we could get our hitters away from the block. So, they were putting the ball away consistently and that really helped us.”

Junior outside hitter Heidi Zieme was a force throughout, as she has been all season, for the Cardinals. Zieme registered 13 kills, five digs, two aces and one block in the semifinal-round match versus the Mustangs.

Greenwich seemed to keep Warde on its heels in this semifinal-round contest, showcasing its vaunted offense.

“Our biggest thing offensively was mixing up where we were setting,” Zieme said. “That’s what took us far offensively. In the beginning, we were setting it high a lot and then we decided to switch it up.”

Senior outside hitter/co-captain Aleena Jacobsen turned in another sensational showing, tallying 11 digs, six kills and an ace for the championship match-bound Cardinals. Indeed, losing to Fairfield Warde, 3-1, on Oct. 20, was a source of added motivation for Greenwich.

“Coming into this game we were really excited and really hungry, because this is the only team that beat us all season and we knew we had it in us and we wanted to prove to them and every other team that we could do it,” Jacobsen said. “We’re just super excited and we’re ready to work, we’re ready to play hard and we’re ready to win.”

Sophomore libero Bailee Dayon had another standout defensive effort, notching 25 digs, while serving three aces. In the opening game, Greenwich jumped out to a 7-1 lead on Warde, behind a pair of kills from Armstrong and a kill from Sullivan.

After the Mustangs made a run, senior middle hitter Tea Saidi posted a kill for the Cards, putting them ahead, 9-6. The Mustangs rallied, taking the lead at 15-13 on an ace by junior setter Laila Henry. A kill by Zieme put GHS on top, 19-18. Warde took the next two points, but Jacobsen’s kill evened the score at 20-20.

Saidi and Sullivan each followed with kills, making it 22-20 in favor of the Cardinals and prompting a Mustangs timeout.

The first set was closed out by Jacobsen, who put down another kills for GHS.

“The main thing was to stay focused the entire time,” Jacobsen noted. “If we made one mistake, we had to bounced back and come back the next point. We couldn’t let ourselves make more than one error in a row.”

Of course, momentum was key and the Cardinals had it the majority of the match.

“We were super focused and very well prepared,” Greenwich coach Marianna Linnehan said. “We knew it was going to be an easy match and we knew it was going to be point-for-point. We knew that if we gave them too much of a lead it was going to be really hard to come back against a team like that.”

In the second set, Greenwich pulled away to a 17-12 lead on kills from Armstrong and Zieme. Consecutive kills by Armstrong, gave the Cards a 21-17 advantage later in the second set. Armstrong was in the zone throughout this semifinal showdown.

“It’s great, once you get one or two, it’s a lot easier, your confidence is up,” Armstrong said of going on a run of kills. “That’s what I was going through in that moment, I wanted to contribute to my team, so that was great. We had a good time of keeping that momentum, throughout, we were pretty consistent.”

A Jacobsen ace and a Zieme kill concluded Greenwich’s 25-18 second set victory.

“We wanted to show them that we deserved to win FCIACs, especially since we lost to them in the normal season,” Zieme noted.

“Dominating and showing them from the beginning that we deserved FCIACs and that we worked hard is what we wanted to do,” Zieme added.

Greenwich played from in front the majority of the third game on its way to earning a berth in the Class LL final for the first time since 2021.

“We were just very focused,” Linnehan said. “They were swinging and swinging and swinging. Rallies were going on and we were just being very aggressive at the net.”

Warde received 29 assists from Henry and eight kills and four blocks from senior middle blocker Ivy Ann Feay. Greenwich’s opponent in today’s state final, Glastonbury, defeated Farmington in the semifinals, 3-1.

“They were the only team that beat us in the regular season, so they are a really skilled team,” Sullivan said of Fairfield Warde. “We were able to focus and play hard and that’s how we were able to come back this game.”

Greenwich enters every match motivated with a positive mindset.

“We said before the huddle, nothing drops we were hitting hard,” Armstrong noted. “We know what we could do physically, it’s just that mental aspect of it. We had a good time of keeping that momentum, throughout, we were pretty consistent.”

“Energy is such a big thing for us and it not only comes from us on the court, it comes from our bench and our parents,” Jacobsen said. “Every point when we cheer, it makes us work harder and play for each other.”

For even more pictures of Greenwich’s state semifinal win over Warde, please visit: https://www.06878photography.com/girls-volleyball—ciac-semi-final—greenwich-high-school-vs-fairfield-warde-november-12-2025