-Bellows Falls has had a lot of great running backs over the years, but they have not had many with so much talent at such a young age as sophomore Jaden Bazin.
Possessing a perfect balance of speed and power, Bazin is a scoring threat every time he touches the ball and is rewriting the Terriers' football record book with every game he plays.
Against the third-seeded Mt. Abraham Eagles in a Division III semifinal game on Nov. 7 at Hadley Field, Bazin ran for three touchdowns and threw a pass for another score as Bellows Falls rolled to a 44-14 win.
Bazin carried the ball 19 times for 188 yards to bring his season total to 1,842 yards, setting a new single-season school record. His first touchdown came in BF's first series as he raced 40 yards up the right sideline to the end zone. The two-point try failed, but BF led 6-0 with 10:25 left in the first quarter.
On BF's next possession, Bazin ran 45 yards for a touchdown. Quarterback Declan Lisai connected with running back Pat Connors for a two-point conversion to make it 14-0 with 6:41 left in the first.
The Eagles failed to get a first down on its first two possessions, which opened the door for Bazin's third first-quarter TD, a 22-yard run, when BF got the ball for the third time in the quarter. Tight end Jake Tostrup then caught a two-point conversion pass for a 22-0 lead with 1:07 left in the first.
The Terriers' defense was superb in the first quarter, and got even better in the second quarter as they held the Eagles to 24 yards of total offense in the first half. After Connor Perry sacked Eagles quarterback Clark Crary to end the first quarter, Crary was intercepted by Andrew Goyette, who ran it back to the Eagles 2-yard-line. Connors then punched the ball in with a 2-yard run. The conversion try failed, but BF had a 28-0 lead with 11:46 left in the first half.
Mt. Abe showed some signs of life near the end of the second quarter when Cole Gagnon took a direct snap on a fake punt attempt and ran the ball down to the BF 21. They could not cash in on the big play, however, as a pair of penalties and good defense by the Terriers stopped the Eagles cold as the first half wound down.
After a 90-yard kickoff return for an apparent touchdown by Crary was nullified by a holding penalty, Gagnon then keyed a good opening drive for the Eagles in the third quarter with a 43-yard run. A 14-yard yard pass from Crary to Ryan Wright got the ball down to the BF 5, but once again, the Eagles came up empty.
BF responded with a five play, 90-yard scoring drive capped off by a one-handed grab by Tostrup of a Lisai pass over the middle that was good for a 40-yard touchdown. Bazin ran in the conversion for a 36-0 lead with 4:22 left in the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Gagnon ran for a pair of touchdowns - a 56-yarder and a 70-yarder - that were sandwiched around a 17-yard TD pass from Bazin to Goyette. Tostrup caught a conversion pass from Lisai to complete the BF scoring.
Connors finished with 68 yards of rushing on nine carries, Stefan James ran for 20 yards on five carries and had an interception on defense. And, with Tostrup and Goyette both catching touchdown passes, BF proved it can occasionally move the ball through the air.
Mt. Abraham ended its season with an 8-2 record. Bellows Falls improved to 9-1 and now faces the only team that beat them in the regular season, the Woodstock Wasps, in the Division III championship game on Saturday, Nov. 15, at South Burlington High School.
Rec. Dept. offers youth basketball programs
The Brattleboro Recreation and Parks Department will be offering youth basketball this winter for those in kindergarten through sixth grade. Here are the programs that will be offered:
• Kindergarten Basketball: This program is for children in Kindergarten only. The fee is $45 for Brattleboro residents and $60 for non-Brattleboro residents.T-shirts are included in this fee. This program will be once a week and runs from Monday, Jan. 5, to Monday, Feb. 9. This program does not meet on Jan. 19. Participants will learn the basics of basketball such as dribbling, shooting, passing, etc.
• Instructional Coed Basketball: This program is for children in grades 1–2. The fee for the program is $45 for Brattleboro residents and $60 for non-residents. T-shirts are included in the fee. This program gives children a great opportunity to learn basic basketball skills while getting exercise, instruction and having loads of fun. The season runs from December through February. Players will have a practice once a week; all games are on Friday evenings.
• Girls Youth Basketball League: This league is for girls in grades 3–6. The Senior Division is for girls in grades 5–6, and the Junior Division for girls in grades 3–4. The fee for the program is $60 for Brattleboro residents and $75 for non-residents. T-shirts are included in the fee. The season runs from December through February. Players will have one practice and one game a week. Games will be held on Saturday mornings. Games will be played at the Gibson-Aiken Center or in neighboring towns as part of the Tri-County League.
• Boys Youth Basketball League: This league is for boys in grades 3–6. The Senior Division is for boys in grades 5–6, and the Junior Division for boys in grades 3–4. The fee for the program is $60 for Brattleboro residents and $75 for non-residents. T-shirts are included in the fee. The season runs from December through February. There will be one practice and one game per week. Games will be held on Saturday mornings. Games will be played at the Gibson-Aiken Center or in neighboring towns as part of the Tri-County League.
All participants in the programs should wear sneakers and bring a water bottle to each practice and game.
Individuals can register online at vtbrattleboroweb.myvscloud.com/webtrac/web or in person Monday–Friday 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4:30 p.m. at the Gibson-Aiken Center. You can also register when you arrive for the program. A $10 late fee will be assessed after Nov. 17. Registrations will be accepted until Nov. 28; at that point, anyone wanting to sign up will be added to a waitlist.
Volunteer coaches are still needed for all age groups. For more information, contact the Recreation & Parks Department at 802-254-5808 or email recreation@brattleboro.gov.
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. Football coverage was assisted by Dan Barile of springfieldareasportspage.com.
This Sports column by Randolph T. Holhut was written for The Commons.