The Brattleboro boys' hockey team is trying to get it together after a dismal start to the season.
On Wednesday at Withington Rink, the Colonels beat the Missisquoi Thunderbirds, 2-1, for their third victory in a row. The win was even more satisfying for the Colonels in that it came against one of the top teams in Division II.
After a scoreless first period, the T-Birds took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Dylan LaFountain in the second period. Brattleboro got the equalizer later in the period on a one-timer from the blue line by Phillip Perkins.
Adam Griffin then got the game-winner with 6:44 left in the third, set up by Romello Lindsay and Andy Harris. Good goaltending by Hunter Neilson and good defense by the Colonel blue-liners made Griffin's goal stand up.
On Saturday, the Colonels played host to Northfield, and kept it close until Jackson Tucker got the game-winner with two minutes left as the 10-2 Maurauders skated away with a 3-1 win. Jack LaPorte scored the lone goal for the Colonels, who put 28 shots on winning goaltender Grayson Lavigne.
Now 4-7, the Colonels finished the week ranked seventh in Division II,
Boys' basketball
• Brattleboro's Big Three - Travis Beeman-Nesbitt, Jay Vinci, and Soren Pelz-Walsh - have been the power that's driving the Colonels to success.
Last Monday's 51-44 victory over the Conant Orioles at the BUHS gym was an example of how good the Colonels can be when the Big Three, and their supporting cast, are playing well on both ends of the court.
Vinci had 12 points and 14 rebounds. Beeman-Nesbitt scored 14 points, including some key free throws in the final minutes. Pelz-Walsh added 13 points, and provided some shutdown defense when it counted against Conant's Devin Springfield. He sank six three-point shots to make the game close in the final quarter, but Pelz-Walsh held Springfield scoreless over the final 4 minutes.
Tommy Heydinger and Evan Mitnik also contributed as the Colonels handed Conant its first loss of the season.
On Friday night at Windsor, the Colonels cruised to a 65-36 win to finish the week at 9-1. Nine different players scored for Brattleboro, led by Beeman-Nesbitt with 12 points, and Heydinger and Mitnik with 11 each.
• Bellows Falls lost its first game of the season, a 55-50 decision to Leland & Gray at Holland Gymnasium on Friday night. It was a great game between two evenly matched teams, but the 7-2 Rebels had just a little more at the end. Bobby Culver led the way with 15 points. Chris Lasch added 14 points, and Brandon Reilly scored 13.
The Terriers, now 6-1, got 18 points from Michael Hall and 16 from Kendrick Mills. With that first loss, the Terriers slid to No. 5 in Division II.
• Twin Valley ran into a buzzsaw in Arlington last Monday night, as the Eagles ripped the Wildcats, 68-36. D.J. Jennings had 25 points and 17 rebounds for Arlington, which avenged the pair of losses to the Eagles last year.
The only bright spot for Twin Valley was their three-point shooting, as the Wildcats sank 9 threes. Hunter Therrien was high scorer with 14 points.
Girls' basketball
• Good pressure defense by Leland & Gray led to three wins last week. Last Monday, the Rebels completely overwhelmed Mount St. Joseph, 61-27. The Rebels forced 39 turnovers and prevented MSJ from getting into any sort of rhythm on offense.
Ashley Goddard led the Rebels with 14 points, 17 rebounds and 10 steals. Haley Buffum finished with 11 points and 6 rebounds, while Calie Ginter added 9 points.
On Thursday in Townshend, the Rebels again used defensive pressure and their size to defeat Arlington, 53-41. Goddard again dominated the boards with 17 rebounds, while Buffum had 12 rebounds and Alex Morrow had 9.
That trio helped give Leland & Gray a 43-19 advantage in rebounding, which led to a lot of fast-break baskets. Ginter scored 17 points, while Goddard and Samantha Russ each added 9.
Leland & Gray finished up the week with a 54-19 dismantling of Black River on Saturday in Townshend. The Rebels forced 43 turnovers and befuddled their opponents with a variety of zone defenses. Morrow had 14 points, 10 rebounds, 5 steals, and 4 blocked shots, while Chelby Nystrom scored 12 and Gintner added 9.
• Bellows Falls had a 33-27 edge in rebounds over Twin Valley. Unfortunately, the Terriers had problems taking care of the ball. The Wildcats had 26 steals on the way to a 41-20 road win over BF last Wednesday.
Savannah Nesbitt led the 6-3 Wildcats with 12 points and six steals. Abbi Molner finished with 8 points, 7 rebounds and 4 steals, while Colton Butler and Sammy Cunningham combined for 9 steals. Enny Mustapha led the Terriers with 11 points.
• Twin Valley followed up the win in BF with a 36-31 victory over Green Mountain in Wilmington on Friday. Three-point shooting was the key for the Wildcats as Lexi Reinertson, Shannon Lozito, and Cunningham each hit a three to break open a close game.
Lozito finished with 9 points, while Molner had 8 points and 12 rebounds as the Wildcats finished the week at 7-3. Reinertson had 8 rebounds and Nesbitt had 5 steals.
• Brattleboro started the week with a 48-42 loss to Wahconah Regional in Dalton,Mass., last Monday. The Colonels fell behind 26-11 at the half, but closed to within two points by the start of the fourth quarter.
Alyssa Bezanson led the 3-5 Colonels with 12 points, 9 of them coming in the second half. Abby Lesure had seven steals.
Nordic skiing
• Another meet, another win for Brattleboro's Halie Lange, who covered the course at the Mountain Top Resort in Chittenden last Tuesday in 14 minutes, 16 seconds. Combined with top 10 finishes by Leah Silverman (seventh in 17:40), Emma Straus (ninth in 17:59) and Linnea Jahn (10th in 18:03), it gave the Colonels girls a team win in the meet.
The Colonel boys finished third out six schools in their meet. Brattleboro's Graham Glennon and Jacob Ellis and Mount Anthony's Alex Romac finished in a dead heat for eighth place, as all three were clocked in 14:37. Woodstock's Jordan Fields was the fastest boy in 12:19, and led his team to a first place finish.
Hockey
• Claudia Gee and Kristen Dukette set each other up for goals in the third period as the Northfield Marauders rallied to beat the Brattleboro girls, 2-1, on Saturday.
Maddie Rollins scored Brattleboro's only goal in the second period as the Colonels finished up the week at 4-5-1.
• The BUHS boys hockey annual spaghetti dinner fundraiser will be held on Thursday, Jan. 26, between 6 and 8 p.m. at the Brattleboro Elks Club.
The meal includes spaghetti, meatballs, sauce, salad, rolls, a soft drink and a dessert. There will also be a raffle which will include prizes such as two tickets to the Celtics vs. Trailblazers game on Friday, March 9 at TD Garden, and two all-day lift tickets to Mt. Snow.
Tickets for the dinner at the door are $10 for adults and $6 for children under 12. Takeouts are welcome.
Biathlon series begins at Grafton Ponds
• Now that there's some natural snow to go with the stuff they made, Grafton Ponds Outdoor Center has begun its winter biathlon series. It is the only biathlon course offered in southern Vermont and uses safe laser guns, making biathlon an activity for all ages and abilities.
A biathlon consists of a race in which contestants ski around a cross country track, and where the total distance is broken up by either two or four shooting rounds, half in prone position, the other half standing. Depending on the shooting performance, extra distance or time is added to the contestant's total running distance/time. As in most races, the contestant with the shortest total time wins.
For each shooting round, the biathlete must hit five targets; each missed target must be “atoned for” in one of three ways, depending on the competition format. In the case of Grafton Ponds, it will mean having 10 seconds added to the skier's time.
Races are held on Saturdays and begin at 10 a.m. They are open to all ages and abilities. The cost is $10 per person. Private course runs and groups are welcome with advance notice. Call 802-843-2400 for more information.
Indoor Wiffle Ball comes to Gibson-Aiken Center
• If you'd rather think about spring and baseball diamonds, head down to the Gibson-Aiken Center in Brattleboro on Wednesday mornings from 9:30-11 for indoor Wiffle Ball.
Men and women of all ages are welcome to join in batting practice and pick-up games, just bring your swing and a pair of sneakers. Experience is not required, just an appreciation of exercise and fun. Contact Sam at [email protected] if you have any questions.