More and more schools around Vermont are adding lights so sports teams can play at times when more people can come to the games.
Bellows Falls Union High School has become the latest to join the ranks of the presenters of after-sundown athletics. Thanks to a bequest from Alvin Southwick, the school is installing lights on the baseball and football fields at Hadley Field, and night games will be on the schedule this fall.
Southwick, a Westminster resident who died last year at the age of 85, was a Navy veteran who served during World War II and the Korean War. He was also the assistant manager of the American Legion Post 37 baseball team for more than 25 years, according to his longtime friend, Frederick Yates of Bellows Falls.
Yates said that Southwick put so much time and effort into the Legion team, he decided he would leave $250,000 to Post 37 to light the baseball diamond at Hadley Field. But, as it turned out, the cost of installing the lights was low enough that they could also install lights at the football field too, as well as new scoreboards for both fields.
The high school is also in the process of ordering new scoreboards for the soccer and field hockey fields, also donated in Southwick's memory. Yates said the hope is that a night homecoming football game will be scheduled this fall where the lights and scoreboards will be officially dedicated.
Southwick's donations are also helping out other athletic programs in the Bellows Falls area. The Westminster Cal Ripken League, the Pleasant Valley Hockey Association, the Bellows Falls Middle School baseball team and others have also been beneficiaries.
In addition to the money Southwick left to Post 37 for the lights and new scoreboards at Hadley Field, an undisclosed amount was left to the Legion baseball team to fund uniforms for the organization for years to come.
Baseball
• If Bellows Falls plays night games at Hadley Field next season, they are probably hoping for better results than what happened last Thursday night at Tenney Field in Brattleboro.
The Terriers got clobbered by Brattleboro, 12-4, as the Colonels scored three runs in the fourth and five runs in the fifth to put the Terriers away. Brattleboro's Sawyer Olson was the winning pitcher, he struck out five batters.
It was the second win of the day for the Colonels. Earlier, Brattleboro beat up on Springfield, 10-2, in a rare day-night doubleheader at Tenney Field. The Colonels broke open the game with a seven-run second inning that featured a two-run single by Chris McAuliffe and RBI singles by Tommy Heydinger and Kevin Paculli. Soren Pelz-Walsh scattered seven hits in a complete game victory.
The Colonels finished the week at 12-1 and still hold the top spot in the Division I rankings. The Terriers are now 10-3, and fell to No. 3 in Division II.
• Rain forced Leland & Gray to play three games in two days last week. On Thursday, the Rebels crushed Arlington, 12-1. On Friday, they split a doubleheader with Otter Valley, winning the first game, 6-3, and dropping the second, 4-0.
Brandon Reilly had a 3-for-3 day against Arlington, and had another three hits against the Otters. Robbie Litchfield went 3-for-5 in the Arlington game, while Zach Wilkins did likewise in the Game 1 win over Otter Valley. Litchfield and Drew Barnum were the winning pitchers as the Rebels finished the week at 10-3, and hold the No. 4 spot in Division III.
Softball
• Kayla Wood overcame a shaky first inning to throw a no-hitter last Wednesday, as Brattleboro beat Springfield, 6-1.
After giving up an unearned run in the first, Wood and the Colonels settled down and completely dominated the Cosmos. She struck out 14 and walked two for the victory.
Brattleboro tied the game in the third, got the go-ahead run in the fourth, then pulled away by scoring a pair of runs in both the sixth and seventh innings. McKenzie Bover hit two triples, while Mary Richardson hit a pair of sacrifice flies. Bailey Paige, Alyssa Bezanson, Daisy Giroux and Wood also had base hits.
On Friday, the Colonels eked out a 4-1 win over Otter Valley at Sawyer Field, as the Colonels ended the week at 11-2 and moved up to No. 3 in the Division I rankings.
• Twin Valley put it all together in a 13-0 win over Long Trail last Wednesday. Pitcher Kate Corey struck out six and walked just one batter to get the win. Sammy Cunningham-Darrah went 3-for-4 and drove in three runs, while Abigail Putnam also had three hits, and Jordan Niles and Corey contributed two hits each.
• Leland & Gray hammered Burr & Burton, 16-2, last Thursday and got by Mill River, 8-7, on Friday. Against the Bulldogs, the Rebels rang up nine runs in the fifth inning, including a solo home run by Kiara Wilhite, and Summer Bills hit a two-run double in the sixth.
Ashley Goddard was the heroine for the Rebels on Friday, with a walk-off home run in the seventh to win the game, and drove in three other runs with a bases-clearing double. Chelby Nystrom went 2-for-2, while Jackie Hazard added a two-run single. Rebels pitcher Nicole Sherman had a combined 21 strikeouts in both victories.
Lacrosse
• Heading into the home stretch of the season, the Brattleboro boys are looking good. On Tuesday night, they defeated Mount Anthony, 8-5, at Natowich Field. Colin Campbell scored three goals in the second half to lead the Colonels. Connor Elliott-Knaggs scored twice in the first half, Jon Thomson had a pair of goals, and Jesse Brown also scored.
The Colonels then beat Rutland on Thursday night, 7-3, at Natowich Field. Galen Finnerty had two goals, and Nik Rancourt, Aaron Prue, Conner Elliott-Knaggs, Greg Disilva and Campbell also scored. Romello Lindsay made 18 saves in goal.
• The Brattleboro girls are developing a penchant for playing tense, gut-grinding games. In the latest win for the Cardiac Colonels, Maddie Rollins buried a shot in the final seconds of regulation for a 12-11 win over Keene, N.H., on Friday night at Natowich Field.
It was the second goal of the night for Rollins, who also had two assists. Ava Myette scored five goals to lead the 8-5 Colonels, Becca Bird had four goals, and Carli Gossard had a goal and an assist.
Gaia Unan made an emergency start in goal for Marissa Semenovich and made 18 saves.
Tennis
• The Brattleboro boys took care of Bellows Falls with a 5-1 victory last Monday. In singles play, No. 1 Asa Lane beat Zack Boyce 6-0, 6-0, while No. 2 Cuyler Cunningham defeated Mike Gideos 6-1, 6-2. No. 3 Seth Marcil blanked Tim Guyon 6-0, 6-0; and Benson May won at No. 4 singles, 6-0, 6-1.
BF's only win came by forfeit in the second doubles match. At No. 1 doubles, Brattleboro's Tony Acevedo and Hassan Obeidat defeated Gus Slater-Dixon and Connor Neathawk 6-1, 6-3.
Last Wednesday, the Colonels whipped Burr & Burton, 6-1, but two matches needed tiebreakers in the third set to decide them. Brattleboro's Jordan Davie-Stefanick beat Brennan Webb 6-2, 2-6, 10-8 at No. 2 singles, while Burr & Burton's Kyul Go defeated Jordan Renouf 6-3, 4-6, 10-8 at No. 4 singles.
Isaiah Ungerleider, Asa Lane, and Cuyler Cunningham all won their singles matches for the Colonels, and the doubles teams of Seth Marcil and Benson May and Acevedo and Obeidat both won in straight sets.
• The Brattleboro girls lost at Rutland, 5-2, on Friday. The two wins came at No. 1 and No. 5 singles, respectively, as Caroline Dinicola-Fawley defeated Sam Hart 7-5, 4-6 and Libby Annis beat Olivia Vitagliano 6-4, 7-6 (7-4).
Tennis courts open at BOC
• Now that we are heading into the end of May, the six outdoor clay tennis courts at the Brattleboro Outing Club are open for the season.
The BOC Tennis Club has no waiting list to join and tries to be accessible to as many people as possible by maintaining a welcoming, casual atmosphere for adults, youths and families. The full season membership is $185 per adult (a $50 volunteer discount can be applied in future years). Junior membership, for youths under 21 whose family does not have membership, is $40.
The BOC offers private individual and group lessons, as well as a variety of adult clinics from the club pros. There are also youth programs at all skill levels for kids from ages 5 to 17. General information, registration forms, and details about programs are available on the club's website http://brattleborooutingclub.org/tennis, or by contacting Pam Bolduc at brattleborotennis@gmail.com or 802-387-2109.