-The Bellows Falls Terriers have hit the midpoint of the high school football season with a 4-0 record and a string of dominant performances in their wake.
In the 112th edition of the rivalry game with the Springfield Cosmos at Hadley Field on Sept. 26, the Terriers cruised to a 49-8 victory to retain "The Trophy" for the 15th straight season. This game featured 447 yards of rushing by the BF offense, while the defense intercepted Springfield quarterback Maddox Wilson four times.
Even with the lopsided score, the 3-1 Cosmos performed credibly on offense. Wilson completed nine passes for 152 yards in the first half as Springfield exploited some shaky pass defense by the Terriers. It made no difference, as BF had a 30-0 lead at halftime. It was the fourth straight game that the Terriers shut out their opponent in the first half.
The one-two rushing punch of sophomore Jaden Bazin and senior Patrick Connors did its job as each ran for more than 100 yards in the first half. Bazin scored on a 10-yard run on BF's first possession and ran in the two-point conversion for a 8-0 lead with 9:15 left in the first quarter. After the BF defense forced a punt on the Cosmos' first possession, the Terriers had another scoring drive with another 10-yard touchdown run by Bazin. A two-point conversion pass to Connors upped the lead to 16-0 with 3:29 left in the first.
Then came what arguably was the turning point of the game. Springfield started throwing the ball and receiver Dimitri Jasinski had a pair of great catches to get the ball down to the BF 2-yard line. Connors then came through on defense when he intercepted Wilson near the goal and ran up the sideline 94 yards before he was run down by Springfield's Braiden Wheeler on the Cosmos' 3-yard line. Three plays later, BF senior quarterback Declan Lisai scored on a 1-yard sneak, and senior fullback Stefan James ran in the conversion for 24-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
BF's final scoring drive in the first half ate up most of the second quarter as Bazin ran in his third touchdown from 13 yards out. A penalty negated a two-point conversion run by Connors, and Lisai was intercepted by Wilson on the Terriers' next drive as BF went into halftime leading 30-0.
Springfield got its lone touchdown on the first play of the second half with an 80-yard reception by Wheeler. The conversion pass failed, but the Cosmos broke up BF's shutout bid. BF responded to the quick score with a long 63-yard scoring drive that ended with a 25-yard touchdown pass from Lisai to Connors. The conversion pass was incomplete, but BF had a 36-6 lead with 5:36 left in the third quarter. Saul James then picked off a Wilson pass at midfield, which led to Connors scoring on a 30 yard run. The conversion pass failed, but BF now had a 42-6 lead with 3:38 to go in the third.
The BF starters gave way to the reserves in the fourth quarter and they made the most of it as Bryar Barnett scored on a 1-yard run and Brody Davignon intercepted a pass.
Aside from their pass defense - Wilson finished with 282 yards of passing for the Cosmos - and a handful of ill-timed penalties, this was another strong effort by the Terriers. Connors had 11 carries for 157 yards, Bazin had 17 carries for 150 yards, and Lisai ran for 36 yards.
Bellows Falls now holds a 64-45-3 advantage against Springfield in this rivalry which dates back to 1894. The Terriers will have a big test this Friday at 7 p.m. when they host the Fair Haven Slaters.
Slaters blank Bears, 35-0
• Brattleboro is still looking for its first win after a 35-0 defeat at the hands of Fair Haven on Sept. 26.
It looked promising for the visiting Bears in the first quarter after linebacker Colby Bristol forced and recovered a fumble to stop the Slaters' first drive on offense, and linebacker Luke DiZiglio forced another Slaters fumble that wasrecovered by defensive back Hunter Roth.
But after a scoreless opening quarter, the Slaters' offense got going. Sam Kyhill caught two touchdown passes from Cody Adams, and Adams also scored on a quarterback sneak. Caleb Long bounced back from his first quarter fumble with two long touchdown runs for the Slaters, the longest being a 75 yard romp through the Bears' defense.
The 0-4 Bears travel to Manchester this Friday to face the Burr & Burton Bulldogs.
Girls' soccer
• Bellows Falls remains unbeaten, upping their record to 7-0 with a 1-0 win over Leland & Gray in Westminster on Sept. 27.
It's pretty amazing what head coach Holly King has accomplished so far this season. She has only one substitute on her bench. There's no middle school or junior varsity program to develop future players. And soccer plays second fiddle to Bethany Coursen's field hockey juggernaut that competes for state titles nearly every season.
But what BF does have is a good goalkeeper in senior Natalie Douglass, who has three shutouts this season. They also have a knack for winning in overtime, with victories over Long Trail and Proctor both being settled with penalty kicks. And they have a playmaker in Gracie Patterson, who has had two three-goal games this season.
Two years ago, the Terriers won two games. Last year, they won five. This year, it's seven wins and counting. King kept the faith through the lean seasons, and now the payoff could be one of the most successful years in school history.
• Reese Croutworst scored both goals for visiting Brattleboro and the Bears defeated Rutland, 2-1, as the teams played through a downpour in a night game on Sept. 23. Croutworst scored the deciding goal on a 25-yard shot with 9:21 left in the game. Her other goal came late in the first half.
Despite the rain-slicked conditions, Bears goalkeeper Naima Harris turned away numerous Rutland shots. Rutland's only goal came from Maisha Hendrickson with 25:54 left in the second half. That tied the game before Croutworst booted in the game winner. The Bears are 6-2 after sweeping the season series with Rutland.
• Twin Valley split a pair of home games at Hayford Field in Wilmington last week. On Sept. 23, the Wildcats edged Proctor, 2-1. West Rutland routed the Wildcats, 8-1, on Sept. 26 to drop Twin Valley's record to 3-4.
• Leland & Gray and Springfield played to a 1-1 tie under the lights at Brown Field on Sept. 23. The Rebels ended their week at 0-6-1.
Boys' soccer
• Carson McHale scored a pair of first half goals as Twin Valley shut out Springfield, 2-0, under the lights of a soggy Brown Field on Sept. 24.
McHale sat out the Wildcats' next game in Brandon against Otter Valley on Sept. 27, but it didn't matter as they rolled to an 8-0 win. Brayden Brown had five goals and an assist, and Alex Sullivan, Landon Brown, and Jude Myska each had a goal and an assist. Twin Valley had a 26-4 advantage in shots, and goalkeepers Kaelyn Lackey and Davis Cole combined for three saves to earn another shutout for the 9-0 Wildcats.
• Brattleboro picked up a pair of home wins last week with a 4-3 victory over Mount Anthony on Sept. 26 and a 3-0 shutout against Hartford on Sept. 27. The Bears ended the week at 5-3.
Cross country
• The Brattleboro boys continue to turn in some solid performances against quality competition. In the Manchester (N.H.) Invitational on Sept. 20, against some of the top schools in New England, the Bears finished 16th out of 42 teams in the small schools division. Nico Conathan-Leach placed fifth at 16 minutes, 58.6 seconds on the 5K course, followed by Willow Sharma (19th, 17:37.4), Jackson Farriera (115th, 19:33.6), Charlie Vaughan (151st, 20:26.2), and Walker Korb (208th, 21:40.1).
On their home course at Fort Dummer State Park on Sept. 23, the Bears won a four-team meet with Conathan-Leach finishing first and breaking the 5K course record in 17 minutes, 14 seconds. Sharma was second in 19:10 and Farriera was third in 20:05.
The Bears finished the week with a win in the Eno Invitational on Sept. 27 in Westminster. Once again, Conathan-Leach was the winner, covering the 5K course in a personal best time of 16 minutes, 21 seconds. Sharma was second in 18:03, followed by Jonas Ackerman-Hovis (fourth, 18:30), Farriera (sixth, 18:45), Liam Conathan-Leach (seventh, 19:00), Vaughn (eighth, 19:57), and Korb (10th, 20:04). In team scoring, Brattleboro bested Mount Anthony, 21-37.
Field hockey
• Bellows Falls had a pair of home wins last week, with a 2-1 victory over Colchester on Sept. 25, and a 3-2 win over Woodstock on Sept. 27.
In the Woodstock game, Veronica Moore had a goal and an assist and Kenna Applegate and Avery Maxfield also scored. Brook Parker had four saves in goal as the Terriers improved to 6-1-1.
• The scoring drought continued for Brattleboro in a pair of road losses last week. The Bears lost to Hartford, 2-0, on Sept. 22 and fell to Otter Valley, 4-0, on Sept. 26.
Not too late to register for Going the Distance ride
• There's still time to register for the Boys & Girls Club of Brattleboro's biggest fundraiser of the year, the Going the Distance bike tour Saturday, Oct. 4, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The event begins and finishes at the New England Youth Theatre on Flat Street in Brattleboro. Cyclists can choose from road rides of 40, 60, or 75 miles, or scenic gravel routes of 27 or 39 miles. All rides include rest stops, great food from The Porch, and support along the way. New this year is a 1-mile walk/run for families and kids.
After the ride, there will be a party with live music, a barbecue, ice cream, and community fun on the NEYT lawn. Walkers/runners are asked to raise $25 each, while bikers are asked to raise at least $100. Register at bikereg.com/gtd, or visit bgcbrattleboro.org/going-the-distance for more information.
Senior bowling roundup
• Week 4 of the fall/winter season of the Brattleboro Senior Bowling League at Brattleboro Bowl on Sep. 25 saw Ricochet (17-3) remain in first place, with 3 Plus One (14-6) taking sole possession of second place. Slo Movers (13-7) is third, followed by Pinocent Bystanders and Stayin' Alive (both 10-10), Strike Away (9-11), Strikers (both 8-12), SOS (7-13), and Lucky 7 and Wayne's World (both 6-14).
Pam Greenblot had the women's high handicap game (219) and series (729), while Fred Ashworth had the men's high handicap game (253) and Rich Pietro had the high handicap series (576). 3 Plus One had the high team handicap game (887) and series (2,541).
Kevin Napaver had the men's high scratch series (718), with games of 279, 227, and 212, while Pietro had a 576 series with games of 205 and 203, and Robert Rigby had a 555 series with games of 200 and 184. Peter Deyo had a 545 series with games of 209 and 189, Gary Montgomery had a 537 series with games of 193 and 186, and Wayne Randall had a 505 series. Notable games included Fred Ashworth (191) and Charlie Marchant (186).
Greenblott had the women's high scratch series (540), with games of 196 and 186. Diane Cooke also rolled a 186.
An end note
• I missed the BF-Springfield football game because I had a procedure earlier in the day to remove a small squamous cell cancer from my face. I caught it early, so the good folks at Dartmouth-Hitchcock did not have to carve me up too much.
Early detection is everything when it comes to skin cancer, which is why I've been getting yearly screenings for more than two decades. If you have a family history of skin cancer, get checked. It really makes a difference.
And a thank you to Dan Barile and Doug MacPhee of springfieldareasportspage.com for helping out with the coverage of the BF-Springfield game. Dan - who used to be the sports editor for the Eagle Times in Claremont, New Hampshire, until that paper went under this summer - started a website to cover sports in the towns that the Eagle once covered. It's worth checking out.
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 news@commonsnews.org.
This Sports column by Randolph T. Holhut was written for The Commons.