With Division I playoffs looming, the Brattleboro Colonels' girls lacrosse team is in a bit of a slump, having suffered three straight losses, two of them by very close margins.
After dropping a 9-8 game to East Longmeadow, Mass., on May 16, the Colonels lost, 10-7, on May 19 at Rutland. Marina Rotella led the Raiders with three goals. Anna Bucia and Hannah Lynde each scored a pair of goals for Bratteboro.
In a rock-'em, sock-'em game at Natowich Field on May 21, the Colonels lost to Burr & Burton, 14-12, in overtime.
In the first half, the teams traded goals until Brattleboro got the final two tallies in the last minute to take an 8-5. The Bulldogs took control of the game with five unanswered goals in the second half and had a two-goal lead in the final minute of regulation.
Brattleboro rallied back with two goals to tie the game at 11-all and send it into overtime. (Alex Fellows put in the tying goal.) Morgan Bazyk then scored three of her game-high seven goals to win it for the Bulldogs.
Hannah Lynde scored five goals to lead Brattleboro. The Colonels finished the week at 6-5 to tie with Burlington for the No. 8 seed.
Boys' lacrosse
• Brattleboro suffered its first loss of the season to a Vermont team on May 21 in a 13-8 defeat at the hands of Burr & Burton in Manchester. This game was a back-and-forth affair until the third quarter. Trailing 8-7, the Bulldogs tied the game on an extra-man possession and scored three more times to take an 11-8 lead into the fourth.
The Colonels could not mount a comeback in the final quarter, while the Bulldogs picked up a couple more goals. Brennen Zolnoski, Sam Siegel, and Tanner Freeman each scored two goals, while Conner Elliott-Knaggs and Jack Gagnon had one goal each as Brattleboro fell to 10-3.
Softball
• Brattleboro was the victim of another great pitching performance by Otter Valley's Taylor Aines in a 2-0 loss in Brandon on May 19. Aines struck out 12 hitters and walked four in holding the Colonels to three hits - two of which were rapped by McKinlie Carpenter.
Shortstop Maddy Derosia celebrated her 17th birthday on May 21 with a 4-for-4 day at the plate, driving in seven runs as the Colonels clobbered Keene, N.H., 12-3, at Sawyer Field.
The Colonels improved to 9-5 with the win as pitcher Hannah Wilson threw a strong game. She struck out three and enjoyed great defense.
• Twin Valley pitcher Colton Butler threw a no-hitter as the Wildcats beat Bellows Falls, 10-2, in Wilmington on May 19. Butler struck out five and walked four. Both BF runs were unearned.
Murphy Hicks took the loss for BF, striking out three and walking seven. Savannah Nesbitt had two hits and three RBIs; Abby Putnam drove in two runs with a pair of doubles; Butler also drove in two runs.
Butler wasn't as sharp two days later in Chester against Green Mountain but kept the Wildcats in it until an eighth-inning RBI single by Kristina Knockhauer gave the unbeaten Chieftains a 2-1 win.
Stephanie Knockhauer threw a three-hitter to get the win. Butler gave up eight hits and walked six, but spaced them out so that GM couldn't do any major damage.
An 8-7 loss to Springfield the next day dropped the Wildcats to 5-8 on the season.
• Leland & Gray struggled against Windsor on May 19 - that is, until the Rebels scored five runs in the fifth inning and went on to win the game, 6-4.
A two-run single by Jordan Gouger and a two-run double by Jessi Stockwell were the big hits in the fifth. Emily Thibault (who started the big inning with a double) and Elizabeth Symanski each had two hits in the game.
The Rebels fell to the Hurricanes, 9-3, two days later in Hartford. Elizabeth Gallup had two hits in the loss, which ended a three-game winning streak for the 5-7 Rebels.
• Bellows Falls lost to Poultney, 13-7, on May 20. The Blue Devils had a 13-1 lead after six innings, but BF made a comeback to make the final result more respectable. Aly Bashaw had two hits for the 5-5 Terriers.
Baseball
• Brattleboro is making a big push for the playoffs, riding a six-game winning streak and a 9-5 record.
On May 19 at Tenney Field, the Colonels shut out Otter Valley, 9-0. Pitcher Jimmy Mills scattered six hits for the complete-game victory, with two strikeouts and a walk. Chris McAuliffe led the offense by going 3 for 3 and driving in three runs. Hunter Smith had a pair of hits; Kevin Tao and Jimmy Mills each posted an RBI.
The Colonels traveled to Keene the next day and eked out a 3-1 win over the Blackbirds under the lights at Alumni Field. Chris McAuliffe went 2 for 3 and scored a run for Brattleboro, and Smith chipped in two hits, a run, and an RBI. Ryan McAuliffe also had a pair of hits and an RBI, and Adam McPhail scored a run. Dan Richardson was the winning pitcher, allowing one run on just three hits.
• Bellows Falls is also rolling toward a playoff spot. After losing three of their first four games, the Terriers have won seven of their last eight games. Their latest win was 12-4 over Woodstock at Hadley Field on May 21.
BF took advantage of four errors and 11 walks, the combined gift of three pitchers. The Terriers also stole eight bases as they rallied from a 4-0 deficit to score 12 unanswered runs. Brady Illingworth had two of BF's five hits. Colby Howe, Jacob Streeter, and Chris Armstrong shared the pitching duties for BF.
• Dal and Cade Nesbitt teamed up for a two-hit shutout, and Colin Lozito went 3-for-4 to lead Twin Valley to a 10-0 win over Leland & Gray on May 19 in Townshend. Josh Donna and Adam Beattie each had one hit for the Rebels.
The Wildcats lost to Green Mountain two days later in Chester, 12-2, ending a five-game win streak for 8-5 Twin Valley.
Track and field
• Brattleboro hosted a four-team meet at Freeman Track on May 19. Both the boys' and girls' teams came away winners.
Eve Pomazi won the 100 and 200 to lead the Colonel girls, while Asha DiMatteo-LePage won the discus and shot put. Also in the winners' circle: Nevada Powers (3,000), Gwen Harris (400), and the 4x100 relay team of Kiwi Lewis, Aisha Schor, Christol Long, and Danielle Wood. Brattleboro racked up 134 points, followed by Woodstock (89), Rutland (38), and Twin Valley (13).
Jonathon Burdo swept the 110 and 300 hurdles to lead the Colonel boys. Other winners included John Lonardo (discus), Declan King (pole vault), and Ryan Gilligan (3,000). BUHS was first with 102.5 points, followed by Woodstock (73.5), Rutland (64), and Twin Valley (3).
Go paddling with the BOC
• The Brattleboro Outing Club presents a series of summer paddling excursions that are free and open to all.
Upcoming paddles are set for Wednesday, May 28, and Saturday, June 14, at Lake Whtingham; Wednesday, June 4, at Herrick's Cove in Rockingham; Wednesday, June 11, at Pisgah Reservoir in New Hampshire; Wednesday, June 18, and Sunday, Sept. 28, at Somerset Reservoir; Saturday and Sunday, June 21 and 22, at Connecticut River and North Hartland Lake (option to camp by reservation); Saturday, Sept. 6, at Connecticut River (Vermont and Massachusetts); Wednesday, Sept 10, at Lowell Lake (Vermont); and Sunday, Sept 14, at Chittenden Reservoir/Lefferts Pond (Vermont).
And you can learn to row with the BOC, which, in partnership with the Putney Rowing Club, is offering a great rowing clinic. Expert coaches include Tim Whitney, Grahame King, Thom Collins, and Kristin Dawley.
Sessions are on the West and Connecticut rivers at both rowing clubs. New rowers will get experience rowing in single sculls and four-person sweep boats. Choose six sessions from the remaining weekend and Wednesday evening clinics. The fee is $150.
For more information on both programs, visit www.brattleborooutingclub.org.