Bellows Falls is rampaging through Division II football this season, and is two wins away from an undefeated regular season. Who can stop the Purple Gang?
“Right now, we are the only ones who can beat us,” said BF coach Bob Lockerby.
On the field, they have dominated opponents. The latest beatdown delivered by the Terriers was a 43-14 win over the Spaulding Crimson Tide on Oct. 8 at Hadley Field.
But playing a season in the shadow of a pandemic means there is little margin for error. Several teams in the state have had games canceled because of COVID-19 outbreaks.
Lockerby says the Terriers are 100 percent vaxxed and are being as careful as can be to avoid situations where the coronavirus might be lurking.
“They know they have to stay safe, stay healthy, and keep up their grades so they can stay eligible to play,” he said. “They know they can accomplish something special this year, so they know they need to keep focused and do the right things.”
Against the Tide, the Terriers rolled to a 43-0 lead by halftime. While senior running back Jed Lober, as usual, battered his way to three touchdowns on 11 carries for 153 yards, senior quarterback Jonathan Terry showed he could throw the ball a little too.
Terry, who had a 30-yard touchdown run, connected on three passes for 56 yards. Junior fullback Caden Haskell, who ran for one touchdown, had two catches and senior tight end Max Hooke had a 26-yard catch.
“Everyone knows we're going to run the ball, so we have to throw it once in a while to keep teams honest,” said Lockerby. “If Max was on a team that threw the ball a lot, he'd be a star. But he does a lot of other things for us in a quiet way. Every team needs players like that.”
Senior running back Jeb Monier had seven carries for 49 yards and a touchdown, and was perfect on his point after kicks, but he really stood out on defense. Monier and fellow senior linebacker Harrison Gleim combined for three sacks. Sophomore defensive back Jesse Darrell had a first half interception, and Lober recovered a fumble on Spaulding's opening kickoff.
With a running play clock in the second half, Spaulding got both of their touchdowns against the BF reserves. Quarterback Andrew Trottier, who spent most of the first half running for his life against the ferocious BF line, threw a 25-yard touchdown to Zack Wilson and a 67-yard TD to Christian Titus.
The 6-0 Terriers will host Springfield this Friday in the annual game for “The Trophy.”
Colonel gridders keep playoff hopes alive
• After losses to Mount Anthony and Hartford, the Colonels needed to get back on the beam, and they did so against one of the top teams in Division II with a 20-6 road victory over the U-32 Marauders on Oct. 8 in East Montpelier.
Brattleboro struck first on a five-yard run by Cam Frost, and Reed Sargent's point-after kick made it 7-0 with 11:45 left in the second quarter. U-32 was poised to tie it after 6-yard touchdown run by Henry Beling, but running back Cameron Comstock was stopped a yard short of the goal line on the two-point conversion attempt.
That left the Colonels clinging to a 7-6 lead with 6:13 left in the first half. The Brattleboro defense did the rest, holding the Marauders scoreless.
Sargent connected on a 22-yard field goal in the final minute of the first half, then booted a long field goal midway through the third quarter. Tristan Evans then closed out the scoring with a 30-yard touchdown catch early in the fourth quarter.
Now 2-4, the Colonels will be at Fair Haven this Friday night.
Field hockey
• Brattleboro held their own against two of the best teams in Vermont not named Bellows Falls. On Oct. 6 against Burr & Burton, the Colonels lost, 1-0. Colonels goalie Brittney Wright made 17 saves. The only goal in the game came in the third quarter from Burr & Burton's Serena Harris off an assist from Kaelin Downey.
The top team in Division III, Windsor, eked out a 1-0 win over the Colonels on Oct. 8 at Sawyer Field.
• Undefeated Bellows Falls kept rolling along with a 5-2 win at home over Otter Valley on Oct. 9. The Otters joined Brattleboro as the only teams to have scored goals against the Terriers.
Boys soccer
• In a wild game in the rain at Natowich Field on Oct. 4, Brattleboro's Ryder Sullivan scored the game-winning goal with three seconds left in regulation for a 5-4 win over the Rutland Ravens.
The winless Ravens trailed 3-1 at the half, then battled back to tie the game at 4-all.
Tate Chamberlin scored two goals and Reed Sargent and Max Naylor also scored for the Colonels. Goalkeeper Paul McGillion helped set up the game-winning goal with a booming 60-yard goal kick as the clock ticked down, and Jordy Allembert, Emlio Ogden and Charlie Kinnersly were all credited with assists.
Against the Stevens Cardinals on Oct. 7 in Claremont, N.H., the Colonels could not get the ball by goalkeeper Cooper Moore as the Cardinals pulled out a 1-0 victory.
• Everett Mosher had four goals as Green Mountain crushed Bellows Falls, 10-1, on Oct. 2. The Chieftains put 35 shots on BF goalkeeper Chris Leary. On Oct. 4, the final score was closer for the Terriers, but the result was another loss, 2-0, to Rivendell.
• West Rutland didn't have enough players for their game against Twin Valley on Oct. 5, and had to forfeit the game.
Girls' soccer
• Karsyn Bellomo scored off a corner kick from Camryn Kinsman in the 72nd minute to give Rutland a 1-0 win over Brattleboro at Natowich Field on Oct. 7. Rutland dominated the game with seven corner kicks and a 27-7 advantage in shots.
• Stratton Mountain School sophomore Skylar Koeppe is an up-and-coming snowboarder, but she appears to be a pretty good soccer player too. She scored three goals to lead SMS to a 7-0 win over Bellows Falls on Oct. 6.
Cross-country
• Leland & Gray's Emma O'Brien is putting together a good season, as she finished second in a girls' varsity race on Oct. 5 in Dorset with a time of 24 minutes, 13 seconds.
In the boys' race, Nick Petronic placed sixth in 22:45 and Peter Broussard 10th in 23:59 to lead the Rebels.
Libardoni, MacPhee inducted into VPA Hall of Fame
• Congratulations go out to two fixtures on the southern Vermont sports scene - Alan Libardoni and Doug MacPhee - who were recently honored by the Vermont Principals' Association with induction into their Hall of Fame.
The VPA Hall of Fame, established in 2001, honors those who have supported high school sports in Vermont as administrators, coaches, game officials, media members, athletes, and contributors.
Libardoni, a longtime physical education teach at Brattleboro Union High School, has been a top basketball official and baseball umpire in Vermont for the past 35 years. He has been a mentor to many other officials and umpires over the years.
MacPhee was the PA announcer at Bellows Falls football games for more three decades, and has been a correspondent and photographer for news outlets across the state. No matter what the sport, you will find him on the sidelines rooting for the Terriers.
Adult basketball season begins at Gibson-Aiken gym
• The Brattleboro Recreation & Parks Department will be offering men's and women's adult basketball open gym and pickup games for players 18 and older at the Gibson-Aiken Center gym, 207 Main St.
This program is by donation. The women will play Mondays from 6 to 8:30 p.m., beginning Oct. 18, while the men will play Wednesdays and Fridays from 7 to 8:30 p.m., beginning Oct. 20. Both programs will run until league season games begin. Masks are required.
The Men's League organizational meeting will be on Wednesday, Oct. 13, at 6 p.m., at the Gibson-Aiken Center, while the Women's League has its organizational meeting on Monday, Oct. 18, at 6:30 p.m., at the Gibson-Aiken Center.
For all programs, events, facility information, online fillable registration forms, and more, visit the Recreation & Parks website at www.brattleboro.org.
Golf tournament raises nearly $3,500 for Prouty Center
• On Sept. 20, the Southern Vermont Board of Realtors (SVBR) held a charity golf tournament at the Mount Snow Golf Course in West Dover.
SVBR president John Hatton presented a check for $3,454.10 to Chloe Learey, executive director of Winston Prouty Center for Child & Family Development. Hatton said SVBR is “very grateful to Matt Conroy and the staff at Mount Snow Golf Course. Everyone there made sure the event was a hit.”
The best team score award went to Adam Palmiter, Brian Knowles, Ryan Powers, and Eric Barnes, with second place going to Kevin Ryan, John Keegan, Mike Kondracki, and Jimmy Casterline. Third went to Coop Bills, Linda Jane Parson, and Nancy and Alan Morris, and fourth place to Donna Brown, Tobin Twelves, Tori Welsh, and Jesse Bensin.
The longest drive prize went to John Keegan and Linda Jane Parson, while the closest to the pin prize went to Mike Kondracki and Donna Brown.
Senior bowling roundup
• Week 6 of the fall/winter season of the Brattleboro Senior Bowling League at Brattleboro Bowl on Oct. 7 saw Stayin' Alive (22-8) hang on to first place. Old Farts (16-14) remained in second place and Alley Katz (16-14) remained in third, followed by Team Four (15-16), Pin Setters (14-16), Rolling Stones (12.5-17.5), Pin Falls (12.5-17.5), and Trash-O-Matic (12-18).
Roberta Parsons had the women's high handicap game (234), while Doris LaFortune had the high handicap series (632). Jerry Dunham had the men's high handicap game (234) and series (658), and Pin Setters had the high team handicap game (865) and series (2,450).
In scratch scoring, Robert Rigby led the men with a 578 series, with games of 221 and 205. Warren Corriveau Sr. had games of 212 and 182 as part of his 561 series, while Chuck Adams had a 191 game as part of his 539 series, and Jerry Dunham had a 187 game as part of his 517 series.
Carole Frizzell had the high scratch game (176) and Carol Gloski had the high series (464) to lead the women. Gloski rolled a 175 game.