-There were two of our local teams that made it all the way to their respective championship games - the Bellows Falls Terriers team in Division III softball and the Leland & Gray Rebels in Division IV baseball.
The second-seeded Terriers were expecting a trip to the state finals, while the sixth-seeded Rebels had to pull off a pair of upsets on the road to get to the title game. Unfortunately, both teams had to face the defending champions in the finals, and both teams came up short.
Top-seeded Blue Mountain won their second straight Division IV baseball championship with a 6-3 win over the Rebels on June 14 at Centennial Field in Burlington, while top-seeded Oxbow took their fourth straight Division III softball title with a 37-2 win over the Terriers on June 15 at Vermont State University-Castleton.
• After knocking off third-seeded Proctor, 7-4, in the quarterfinals, the Rebels had to travel to Orford, New Hampshire, on June 10 to face the second-seeded Rivendell Raptors in the semifinals. Again, the Rebels were spoilers as they held off a seventh-inning rally by the Raptors to hang on to win, 9-8.
This was a victory made possible by the young and old. Eighth-grader Ryan Peloso pitched five solid innings to get the win and drove four runs with a pair of hits, one of them a three-run homer in the second inning. Freshman Spencer Claussen went 2-for-5, stealing five bases and scoring two runs, and finished up the game on the mound for a save.
The seniors also came up big as Theo Kelloway got the game-winning hit in the sixth inning and Cody Hescock scored two runs as he went 2-for-2 with a pair of walks and an RBI.
Beating two of the top three seeds in Division IV wasn't a fluke. The Rebels played 10 of its 16 regular season games against high-division opponents, which helped toughen them up for the postseason.
The win gave the Rebels a trip to historic Centennial Field to take on the Blue Mountain Bucks, and the Rebels came very close to completing a miraculous season. The game was tied 3-3 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning, when the Bucks scored three runs to take the lead for good.
Hescock was the losing pitcher, scattering 10 hits with three walks and three strikeouts over six innings. Owen Murray got the complete-game win for the Bucks, holding the Rebels to just three hits, with five walks and seven strikeouts.
Despite the loss, it was a tremendous season as first-year coach John Lonardo guided this young team to the school's first baseball championship game since the Rebels won three straight state titles in 2008, 2009, and 2010.
• When the Vermont Principals' Association held its first state softball tournament in 1974, Bellows Falls was a finalist. It took another 50 years for the Terriers to return to the state finals, but this year's team knew it had what it takes to make to the championship game.
BF punched its ticket to Castleton with a 9-5 semifinal win over Thetford on June 11 in Westminster. The Terriers scored all their runs in the second inning as Grace Hayes, Jaelyn Fletcher and Natalie Noyes had two runs batted in apiece for Bellows Falls. Nine different players scored for the Terriers in that inning. Winning pitcher Izzy Stoodley struck out nine batters and held Thetford to five hits.
Beating Oxbow was a big ask for the Terriers. The Olympians came into the title game with three straight championships and a 44-game winning streak, including a 26-0 victory over the Terriers on May 17. Oxbow made sure there would no surprises as they ambushed the Terriers with 14 runs in the first inning and 10 runs in the second inning.
While the lopsided loss on June 15 did not come as a shock, the 13-6 Terriers took solace in making it to the finals and ending a 50-year drought. And BF coach Don Laurendeau is bullish on the future of softball at the school, as the middle school program is booming and taking inspiration from the success of the varsity program over the past couple of years. We don't know when the Oxbow dynasty will end, but BF should be in the Division III mix for some time to come.
Terriers fall in baseball semis
• The second-seeded Bellows Falls Terriers lost to the sixth-seeded BFA-Fairfax Bullets, 4-2, on June 10 in a Division III semifinal at Hadley Field.
Ryan Sheehan was the winning pitcher, he struck out eight and walked no one in holding BF to just three hits over four innings. He also keyed the Bullets' three-run second inning with a two-run single.
Jaxon Clark took the loss for the 10-7 Terriers. He lasted 4 1/3 innings before giving way to reliever Steven Joslyn. Walker James hit an RBI single in the BF fifth to cut the Bullets' lead to 4-2, but the Terriers could not get any closer.
Bears ousted by CVU in boys' tennis semis
• After an undefeated regular season, and a grueling 4-3 quarterfinal victory over Essex, Brattleboro's season came to an end on June 10 with a 5-2 loss to second-seeded Champlain Valley at the BUHS courts.
The top-seeded Bears got a 6-1, 6-2 win at No. 1 singles from senior Nate Kim. The two-time state individual champion completed an undefeated season with the victory. The next stop for Kim is Ursinus College, where he will be on the men's tennis team next season.
The No. 1 doubles team of seniors Ben Berg and Leo Bodett also completed an undefeated season with a 6-2, 6-3 win.
Kim, Berg, Bodett, Dorian Paquette, Eben Wagner, Thomas Hyde, and Wyatt Cudworth will all be graduating this week, but Brattleboro coach Ben Brewer has a strong group of underclassmen returning for 2025.
Gragen, LaRoss to compete in Twin State field hockey game
• Brattleboro forward Emma Gragen and Bellows Falls forward Ava LaRoss have both been selected to represent Vermont in the annual Twin State field hockey game against New Hampshire.
The game will take place at the Dave Wolk Stadium at Vermont State University-Castleton on June 27 at 6 p.m.
Hartford's Heather Scudder will serve as the head coach of the Vermont team while Bellows Falls' head coach Bethany Coursen and Rutland's Kayla Battles will serve as assistant coaches.
'Brattle Paddle' is June 30
• The Brattle Paddle races on the Connecticut and West rivers return on Sunday, June 30. There will be races for canoes, kayaks, SUPs, and surf skis, and all skill levels are welcome.
According to Sandy Harris, one of the race organizers, last year's event attracted 80 participants from all over the Northeast and the event raised nearly $3,000 for charity. This year's proceeds will go to Interaction (formerly known as Youth Services).
Races will begin at 10:30 a.m., with separate starts for each class of racers. Awards and a light lunch for all registered participants will follow the race. The entry fee is $25. Register at paddleguru.com or on the day of the race from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. For more information, contact Harris at 603-762-2046 or [email protected].
Higley sheds 'interim' tag, named head football coach at Castleton
• Vernon native Tyler Higley has officially been selected as the fourth head coach in Vermont State University-Castleton football history, VTSU Castleton Director of Athletics Tim Barrett announced on June 13.
"We are thrilled to remove the 'interim' tag from Tyler's title and promote him to head coach," said Barrett in a news release. "He has shown great leadership during his time at Castleton, and is someone who cares deeply about the University and the football program. His familiarity with the program is a strong asset and we look forward to all that he will accomplish in this role."
Higley, who was named interim head coach in May, will look to make his mark on the program in his elevated role. No stranger to the Spartan football program, he suited up as a player for four seasons before spending one season as a volunteer assistant coach.
After his one-year stint as a volunteer, he was elevated into a two-year appointment as a graduate assistant for the Spartans. During that time, Higley was the positional coach for defensive backs and served as the team's video coordinator. He continued his coaching career as the special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach at Western New England University before returning home to Castleton in 2022.
"It is with tremendous pride that I accept the opportunity to lead the Vermont State University Castleton football program," Higley said in a news release. "It is an honor to coach the young men in our program and lead them into a new era of Castleton football. I want to thank Tim Barrett and our administration for this opportunity, as well as my wife, Kelly, for supporting me throughout my career to make this possible."
Senior bowling roundup
• Week 7 of the spring/summer season of the Brattleboro Senior Bowling League at Brattleboro Bowl on June 13 saw Half Normal (29-6) have another 5-0 week to stay in first place, Slo Movers (25.5-9.5) was also 5-0 to hang on to second place, followed by Misguided (20.5-14.5), Fab 4 (19-16), Three Musketeers (18-17), Spare Change (17-18), Split Happens (16-19), Stayin' Alive (13-22), Hi Rollers (9-26), and Incredibowls (2-8).
Nancy Dalzell had the women's high handicap game (248), while Kathy Wehner had the high handicap series (682). Duane Schillemat had the men's high handicap game (254), while Skip Shine had the high handicap series (701). Half Normal had the high team handicap game (886) and series (2,530).
Shine had the men's high scratch series (590) with games of 209, 199, and 182. Marc Shelley had a 586 series with games of 209, 197, and 180, while Milt Sherman had a 585 series with games of 212 and 192, and Schillemat had a 558 series with games of 211 and 182. John Walker had a 527 series with a 219 game, Chuck Adams had a 547 series, Gary Montgomery had a 545 series with games of 187 and 181, and Charlie Marchant had a 507 series. Other notable games included Warren Corriveau Sr. (193), Marty Adams (185 and 184), and Al Dascomb (182).
Dalzell had the women's high scratch series (496), while Pam Greenblott had the high scratch game (172), and Shirley Aiken had games of 155 and 150.
Randolph T. Holhut, deputy editor of this newspaper, has written this column since 2010 and has covered sports in Windham County since the 1980s. Readers can send him sports information at [email protected].
This Sports column by Randolph T. Holhut was written for The Commons.