The fall high school sports season is over. Now, it's time for the playoffs and the chase for a championship.
The pairings for the soccer and field hockey tournaments were announced by the Vermont Principals' Association on Oct. 23. Buckle up and get ready for an exciting fortnight of athletic drama.
Football
• Bellows Falls clinched a home game for the first round of the Division II playoffs with a 56-18 beatdown of the U-32 Raiders on Oct. 20 at Hadley Field.
It was the Terriers' Senior Night, and it was fitting that the seniors who were part of last year's state championship team and who have led this team all season had huge nights on both sides of the ball.
Logan Cota ran for two touchdowns, threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to McGregor Vancor, ran back a kickoff return 90 yards for another touchdown, and caught a two-point conversion pass from Shane Clark.
Clark ran for 245 yards and a touchdown, made a couple of nice catches, and was a force on defense with several outstanding open field tackles.
Spencer Clark, Griffin Waryas, and Julian Christiansen all added short touchdown runs as the Terriers racked up 359 yards of rushing.
The game started out competitive, as Bellows Falls had a 26-18 lead on U-32 at the end of the first half. The second half was all BF, especially after Raiders quarterback Logan Wolf had to leave the game with a knee injury.
Wolf threw a pair of long touchdown passes in the first half, but after he was sidelined, U-32's offense disappeared.
With the win, BF (6-2) earned the No. 4 seed in the playoffs. They will host No. 5 Milton (4-4) for a first-round game this Friday at 7 p.m.
• Without a playoff spot at stake, Brattleboro traveled to Colchester to spoil the Lakers' chance to nail down the eighth and final seed in Division I.
Colchester had to beat the Colonels to punch their postseason ticket, and the Lakers punched it emphatically with a 55-13 rout of Brattleboro on Oct. 20 to earn their fourth consecutive playoff berth.
The Lakers used a balanced attack on offense. Kevin Otto, Thurman Dusablon, and Quentin Hoskins all had rushing touchdowns and Steve Emmons caught an 11-yard score from quarterback Zach Morin.
Colonels quarterback Tyler Millerick threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Chris Frost and Kyle Derosia threw a halfback option pass to Malick Mane for a touchdown.
Brattleboro (1-7) was seeded No. 13 in Division I, and will play a consolation game with No. 9 Spaulding (1-6) in Barre this Friday at 7 p.m.
Boys' soccer
• After going 0-4-1 in their previous five games, the Colonels put together a great effort against Mount Anthony, with a 4-2 win on Oct. 18 at Tenney Field.
After Franklin Cody scored in the 12th minute to give the Patriots the lead, the Colonels responded with a quick strike a minute later, with junior forward Nate Lewis tucking a shot into the left corner past the diving MAU goalkeeper, Jack Rogge, to tie the game, 1-1.
Cody struck again on a similar play in the 25th minute to put the Colonels ahead, but Mount Anthony midfielder Josua Schmid got the equalizer with 2:46 left in the first half.
Brattleboro controlled the pace in the first half, but Mount Anthony came out flying to the ball in the second half. However, despite all the energy expended, it was the Colonels midfielder Jackson Buettner who got the goals. His first came in the 57th minute, beating Rogge with a one-on-one move. His second goal came on a penalty kick with 11:42 to play.
“It was a good, competitve game,” said Colonels coach Paul Sather. “We've had a lot of games this season where the effort was there, but we didn't get a good result. Tonight, we got rewarded for our effort with a good win.”
With a record of 5-8-1, the Colonels secured the No. 12 seed in Division I. They were scheduled to face No. 5 Middlebury (9-1-3) in a first-round playoff game on Oct. 24.
• Leland & Gray picked up a 3-1 home win over Mill River on Oct. 16. Patrick McDonald, Liam Towle, and Riley Barton got the goals for the winners.
The Rebels then celebrated Senior Day with a 4-1 win over Otter Valley on Oct. 18 in Townshend. The Rebels swept their season series with the Otters as McDonald had a pair of goals and Barton and Pat Meyer also scored.
Eight seniors - Riley Faulkner, Nathan Claussen, Adam Culver, Karson Petty, Dakota Fillion, Grayson VanHendrick, Meyer and McDonald - were all honored before the game.
The 9-4-1 Rebels got the fifth seed in the Division III tournament. They were scheduled to host No. 12 Richford (2-12) in a first-round game on Oct. 24.
• Jack McHale and Logan Park each scored two goals as Twin Valley blanked Green Mountain, 5-0, in Chester on Oct. 17. James McGovern contributed with a goal and an assist, while Colin McHale, Owen Grinold, and Jack Kehoe each were credited with assists. Goalkeepers Logan Boyd and Josh Carpenter-O'Hearn combined for three saves and the shutout.
In the regular season finale, Jimmer McGovern got two goals as Twin Valley shut out Arlington, 4-0. Dylan Dupuis and Jack McHale also found the back of the net. Colin McHale, Jack McHale and Dupuis all had one helper. Josh Carpenter-O'Hearn made three saves in goal.
The 13-1 Wildcats are the third seed in Division III and are scheduled to host No. 14 Oxbow (1-13) in a first-round game in Wilmington on Oct. 24.
• Derek Almond scored the game-winning goal seven minutes into overtime to give Proctor a 3-2 win over visiting Bellows Falls on Oct. 17. Joe Valerio and Tyler Carrington scored in regulation time for the Phantoms, while Mike Morse and Lucas Saunders scored for the Terriers.
On Oct. 19, Mt. St. Joseph whipped Bellows Falls. Brennon Crossmon and Ezra Robichaud had two goals apiece, while Keaton Wright-Chapman and Cortland Husak also knocked in goals. Delshon Norwood and Steve Descolline had assists. Goalkeeper Eric Kim recorded the shutout.
The Terriers finished with a 1-12-1 record and are the No. 13 seed in Division III. They were scheduled to travel to Morrisville to face No. 4 Peoples Academy (9-3-1) on Oct. 24.
Girls' soccer
• In the regular season finale in Townshend on Oct. 17, Leland & Gray honored seniors Kelsi Bostrom, Mariah Hazard, Rebecca Winot, and Hannah Petronic and then beat Bellows Falls, 5-1.
The Rebels' five goals came from Arin Bates and Petronic. Bates scored three, while Petronic knocked in two in her final regular season game.
Bates' third and final goal came on a penalty kick early in the second half after goalkeeper Shanice Fischer was red carded and ejected after a collision with Rebels forward Ellie Longo in the box.
Layla Maiocco scored BF's goal for the visitors with 13:29 left in the first half, spoiling Bostrom's shut out bid in goal.
With an 8-6 finish, the Rebels secured the No. 7 seed in Division III and are scheduled to host 10th-seeded Randolph (5-8) in a first-round game on Oct. 25 at 3 p.m.
The Terriers ended the regular season with a 1-13 record. As the 16th seed, they are scheduled to face top-seeded Green Mountain (14-0) in their first-round playoff in Division III on Oct. 25 at 3 p.m.
• Twin Valley honored seniors Tatyanna Bowman, Jordyn Bolognani, Tayler Courchesne, and Callie Dix in the finale at Hayford Field on Oct. 18, but lost to Windsor, 2-1.
Ava Sutton and Evelyn Paige got the goals for Windsor, while Bowman scored the Wildcats' only goal, assisted by Jarrett Niles.
The Wildcats (4-9-1) were seeded eighth in Division IV, and are scheduled to host No. 9 Sharon (4-5-5) on Oct. 25 at 3 p.m.
• Brattleboro finished 3-12, but will not compete in the Division I playoffs. Needing two more wins to qualify, the Colonels lost at home, 2-0, to Mount Anthony on Oct. 17, and 1-0 on Oct. 19 at Burr & Burton.
Field hockey
• Bellows Falls completed their second straight undefeated regular season on Oct. 19 with a 6-0 home win over Brattleboro.
Dani Marchica and Molly Kelly each scored two goals for the 14-0 Terriers, who finished the season with the top seed in Division II.
Madison Streeter and Reaghan Baldasaro also scored for the Terriers, who have now won 37 games in a row. Goalies Kylie Comstock and Emma Lober teamed up for the shutout. Brattleboro goalie Natalya Forkin finished with 16 saves.
BF honored Marchica, Baldasaro, Paxton Santorelli, Sarah Scarlett, and Kylie Comstock on Senior Night.
The Colonels (4-10) were seeded seventh in the Division II standings. They were scheduled to play No. 10 Springfield (0-9-3) in a first-round game at Bellows Falls Union High School on Oct. 24. The VPA doesn't consider Tenney Field a suitable playoff site, which is why this game will be played at BFUHS.
As for the Terriers, they are off until this Friday, when they will host the winner of the U-32/Middlebury playoff game in a quarterfinal at 3:30 p.m.
Cross-country
• Brattleboro swept the Marble Valley League large schools championship meet on Oct. 17 in Westminster.
The Colonel boys placed five runners in the top 20 to win the seven-team meet with 45 points. As usual, they were led by Isaac Freitas-Egan, who covered the course in 16 minutes, 13 seconds to finish first. Teammates Colin Costa-Walsh (third, 16:49),Trevor Kipp (11th, 17:48). Bram Tabachnik (14th, 17:57) and Evan Koch (16th, 18:07) all ran well.
Bellows Falls came in fourth in the boys' event. Ian Wallace (ninth, 17:27) and Tim Salter-Roy (10th, 17:44) were the top BF runners.
The Colonel girls had three runners in the top 10 to win their meet, edging Mount Anthony 55-62 for the top spot. Thetford (68 points), Burr & Burton (103), Rutland (125), Bellows Falls (133). and Woodstock (156) also competed.
Sarah Gallagher led the way with a first-place finish in 19 minutes, 17 seconds, and Elery Loggia (22:28) and Mollie Patenaude (22:34) placed sixth and seventh, respectively. Finishing in the top 20 were Annie Takacs (10th, 21:11), Emilia Dick Fiora del Fabro (11th, 21:20), Alexandra Miskovich (15th, 21:40). and Liz Morse (17th, 22:10).
Lia Clark was the top runner for the BF girls with a fifth place time of 20:30.
The state championship meet will be run at Thetford Academy on Oct. 28.
Hoops at the Rec
• The Brattleboro Recreation & Parks Department would like to remind players in the Men's Basketball League that rosters are due on Oct. 26 at 4 p.m., at the Rec Dept. office, 207 Main St.
Rosters for the Women's Basketball League are due on Nov. 2 at 4 p.m. at the Rec office. Women's pick-up scrimmages will be held on Mondays, from 6 to 8 p.m., in the Gibson-Aiken gym through Nov. 20. For information, call 802-254-5808.
Senior bowling roundup
• The top three teams after Week 7 of the fall season of the Brattleboro Senior Bowling League are still in the same spots they were the previous week, with Team 7 (24-11) in first place, Team 1 (21-14) in second, and Team 10 (20-15) in third. Team 8 (19-16) vaulted into fourth place, followed by Team 3 and Team 5 (both 18-17), Team 2 (17-18), Team 9 (14-21), Team 6 (13-22), and Team 4 (11-24).
Josie Rigby and Edna Fletcher both had the women's high handicap game (235), while Sally Perry had the high handicap series (664). Fred Bump had the men's high handicap game (273) and Ken Chamberlin had the high series (707). Team 8 had the high team handicap game (922) and series (2,524).
Marty Adams (586) had a 500-plus series with two 200-plus games (237, 205). Robert Rigby rolled a 570 series with a 221 game, and Josie Rigby had a 552 series with a 204 game. Others rolling 500-plus series included Jerry Dunham (550), Warren Corriveau Sr. (558), Peter Cross (512), and Fred Ashworth (500).