Heather Washburn

Posted on September 1, 2015November 22, 2016

Heather Washburn played high school volleyball at Morgan High School from 1994 through 1997. When she played, her team won! In her high school career, their team record was 85 and 3. They not only won their league title all four years, they also won the state championship all four years.

Heather averaged 20 kills and 8 digs per match and her serving percentage was 90%. She was named 1st Team All-Conference, 1st Team All-State, and the New Haven Register’s All-Area Athlete.

Heather went on to attend Le Moyne College in Syracuse, New York where she played volleyball and softball and earned her Bachelor of Science degree in biology with a minor in chemistry and in 2007, earned an advanced degree in veterinary medicine from Ross University.

Lisa M. Barbaro

Posted on September 1, 2015November 22, 2016

Lisa’s remarkable career began in 1993 at the Morgan School in Clinton. She was a three-sport athlete, playing volleyball, basketball and softball; she was outstanding in all three. During her four years there, she left an amazing legacy. Lisa was a four-year starter on the volleyball team and served as captain. In those years, her team amassed an 85-3 record, finished 22-0 in 1995 (an undefeated season for the first time in school history), won three conference championships and won the CIAC Class S State Championship four years in a row. Lisa’s contribution to her team’s success is evident in her numerous awards. She was 2^nd team All-Conference in 1994, 1^st team All-Conference in ’95 and ’96. , All-Middlesex County in ’94, ’95, ’96, All-Area 1994, ’95, ’96 and 2^nd team All-State in 1996. As if this were not enough, Lisa was equally successful in her other two sports. She was captain of the basketball and softball teams as well, and she was selected to the All-Conference, All-Middlesex County, All-Area and All-State teams in BOTH of these sports. In her junior year, all three of her teams won state titles. This is believed to be a state record for the most consecutive state titles won in one year for a single high school girl’s athletic program. To cap off her career, Lisa was chosen the New Haven Register Connecticut Female Athlete of the Year in 1996, an honor she would receive again in 1997.

After graduating high school, Lisa attended Coker College in South Carolina and Southern Connecticut State University. She has continued to share her love of sports and competition by working at numerous volleyball clinics and camps, and through coaching. Lisa was head volleyball coach at Branford High School for two years, where she developed a more skilled, unified and successful program. In 2004 she was named head women’s volleyball coach and softball coach at her alma mater, SCSU. Her drive, dedication and disciplined coaching style have already helped to improve these programs.

Joseph Grippo

Posted on August 30, 2013November 28, 2018

Joe Grippo is an outstanding basketball coach. His teams have played in four state championships winning two and have also won six Shoreline Championships. He has also been recognized with awards for his accomplishments.

However, it is in volleyball that Joe has really made his mark. He started coaching volleyball at Morgan High School in 1983 and will finish his 30th volleyball season this year. His teams have won 23 Shoreline Championships, including 21 in a row from 1992 to 2012.

For 29 out of his 30 seasons, his team qualified for the state tournament. They played in 18 State Championship games. They won eleven State Championships including seven in a row from 1992 to 1998, and were runner-ups seven times. Prior to this year, his career record is 553 wins and 93 losses. Joe has been recognized many times for his success. In 1997, he was awarded the Doc McInerney Coach of the Year award and was named the New Haven Area Coach of the Year. In 1996, he was named the Connecticut High School Coaches

Association’s Coach of the Year. He was also a National Coach of the Year Finalist three times, in 1999, 2001, and 2005.

Kate Barile-Cotto

Posted on September 1, 2012November 22, 2016

Katie played at the Morgan School in Clinton from 1995-98.

In her first year, Kate was a conference and state champion. In fact, for all four of her high school years, Kate’s team was conference and state champions.

In Kate’s junior year, she was named 2^nd team all-state and a Shoreline Conference Scholar Athlete.

Named captain in her senior year, she led her team back to the state finals. She averaged 18 kills per match during the regular season. Then throughout the tournament she averaged 30 kills per match. She was named Most Valuable Player of the Class S Tournament. The New Haven Register named her both Most Valuable Player and to the All-Area Volleyball Team and Connecticut High School Coaches Assoc. also named her to the All-State team.

Kate finished her high school career with an 82-2 record, four conference championships and four state championships. She went on to play that the University of New Haven where she again distinguished herself as an outstanding volleyball player.