-The eighth-seeded Brattleboro Bears were pushed hard by the No. 9 Colchester Lakers, but managed to come away with a 55-47 win in a Division I girls’ basketball first-round playoff game at the BUHS gym on Feb. 25.
While Brattleboro never trailed in this game, the Lakers overcame an 11-0 run by the Bears in the first 4:30 of the opening quarter and almost pulled even by late in the second quarter. The Bears steadied themselves and finished the first half with a 25-21 lead.
The rebounding muscle of Parker and Destiny Thibault, combined with the offense of Juliette Pals, Hailey Bristol, and Reese Croutworst, helped the Bears maintain the lead whenever the Lakers tried to make a run.
“We talked a lot [at halftime] about controlling the controllables,” said Bears head coach Sarah Landers. “Going to get the basketball, positioning, bumping the cutter, being on help-side defense, communicating with each other. So all the things that we were in control of is what I wanted to keep up with.”
Croutworst got into foul trouble late in the first half, and sat for a good part of the third quarter. Ninth grader Caylen Morse took her place, and the Thibault sisters and Pals did the rest as the Bears took a 39-31 lead going into the fourth quarter. Landers also switched defenses in the second half, alternating between a zone and man-to-man pressure to keep the Lakers off balance.
Pals and Parker Thibault each had 14 points to lead the Bears, Croutworst added 13 points and Bristol chipped in eight. Emerson Frehsee, Destiny Thibault, and Morse scored two points each. Colchester’s Harlow Hier had a game-high 17 points.
The reward for beating Colchester was a long bus ride to Jericho to face the top-seeded Mt. Mansfield Cougars in the quarterfinals on Feb. 27. The Bears were competitive, but ultimately lost 48-33.
Landers said after the Colchester win that she thought her team had a chance against the Cougars, given the Bears’ performance in a 54-42 loss to Mt. Mansfield in Jericho on Jan. 31. However, the 20-1 Cougars took care of business as Maysa Long had 18 points and 16 rebounds, and Alyce Dorman added 18 points, seven rebounds, and five steals. It was the 13th straight victory for the Cougars.
Brattleboro got strong games from Croutworst and Parker Thibault. Croutworst scored 21 points, while Thibault had two points along with 13 rebounds and five blocks. The Bears ended their season with a 10-12 record. With two straight trips to the quarterfinal round, the Bears continue to build up their program.
Terrier girls whip Winooski, fall to Vergennes
• Bellows Falls, the No. 4 seed in Division III, rolled over the No. 13 Winooski Spartans in a 53-31 win in the opening round of the Division III girls’ basketball tournament at Holland Gymnasium.
The Terrier guards filled up the score sheet as junior Abby Nystrom led the way with 15 points, sophomore Gracie Patterson and senior Veronica Moore each had 11 points, while sophomore Avery Maxfield added eight points. BF went on an 11-0 run and took a 23-6 lead after one quarter, and a 34-13 advantage at halftime.
With the win, BF advanced to the quarterfinals for the third straight year, but the Terriers struggled against the fifth-seeded Vergennes Commodores on Feb. 28. Despite having home court advantage in a quarterfinal for the first time since 2008, Vergennes came away with a 44-38 victory.
BF went 2-for-16 from the free throw line and the shots that were falling in against Winooski were not falling in against the Commodores. Both teams played great defense in the first half as BF trailed 9-7 after one quarter and 20-16 at halftime.
The Terriers stayed close in the third quarter and trailed 32-29 heading into the fourth, but the Commodores pulled away with a 10-2 run to start the final quarter and seal the victory.
Ava Francis scored 19 points to lead Vergennes, while Nystrom and Maxfield were the top scorers for the Terriers with 14 and nine points, respectively. BF ended its season at 16-6, and will lose Moore, Addison Bacon, Olivia Hallock, and Candace James to graduation.
Wildcat girls lose in first round
• The No. 10 Twin Valley Wildcats lost on the road to No. 7 Rivendell, 35-24, in the opening round of the Division IV girls’ basketball playoffs on Feb. 24.Twin Valley finished its 2025-26 season at 9-11, as the Wildcats continue to show steady improvement after winning just two games in 2023-24 and seven games in 2024-25.
Boys’ basketball
• The Vermont boys’ basketball playoffs began this week. Brattleboro, which finished its season at 8-12, got the No. 9 seed in Division I and, at press time, were scheduled to play No. 8 Mt. Mansfield in Jericho in a first-round game on March 2.
• Bellows Falls (8-11) was seeded 12th in the Division III tournament. The Terriers will travel to Vergennes to face the No. 5 Commodores in a first-round game on March 4.
• Twin Valley (16-4) got the No. 5 seed in Division IV. At press time, the Wildcats was set to host No. 12 Poultney in a first-round game in Whitingham on March 3.
• Leland & Gray finished 4-16 and will sit out the Division IV tournament. The Rebels wrapped up the regular season with a 62-17 loss to Mount St. Joseph in Rutland on Feb. 25.
Making Tracks with Grace Cottage
• The third annual Grace Cottage Make Tracks for Health is set for Saturday, March 7, from 10 a.m. to noon, at the Nordic Center at Stratton Mountain Resort. It’s an opportunity to go snowshoeing or cross-country skiing on the Nordic Center’s groomed trails, while helping Grace Cottage Family Health & Hospital in its mission to provide healthcare to the West River Valley.
Rental equipment is available if you register in advance. Afterward, you can reward yourself with treats and a warm beverage by the fire. Tickets are $30 in advance, and $40 on the day of the event with kids under 5 free. Raffle tickets will be on sale at the event. All proceeds will go toward patient care at Grace Cottage.
To sign up, visit gracecottage.org/events. For more information, email info@gracecottage.org, or call 802-365-9109.
Brattleboro Little League sign-ups begin next week
• Sign-ups for the Brattleboro Little League’s 2026 season will take place at American Legion Post 5 on Linden Street in Brattleboro on the following dates: March 10, 11, 12, and 19, from 4 to 6 p.m., each day and Saturday, March 21, from 10 a.m. to noon. You can also sign-up online by visiting their website and in person if you would like assistance in signing up. Go to brattleborolittleleague.org/contact for all the details.
Boys and girls need to be 9 to 12 years old in order to play Little League Baseball. Players must live in Brattleboro, Dummerston, Putney, Newfane, Vernon, Guilford, Halifax, or Marlboro. Additionally, players residing in Chesterfield and Hinsdale, New Hampshire are eligible to join the league. The fee this year is $85 for the first player in a family, and $40 for a second player.
Senior bowling roundup
• Week 8 of the winter/spring season of the Brattleboro Senior Bowling League at Brattleboro Bowl Feb. 26 saw Bad Boys (28-12) remain in first place, followed by Wayne’s World (27-13), Strikers (22-18), Three Strikes (19.5-20.5), Slo Movers (19-21), Spare Time and Lucky 7 (both 18-22), Candy Men (17-23), Bowling Stones (16-24), and Serious (15.5-24.5).
Carol Gloski had the women’s high handicap game (227) and Mary Piliski had the high handicap series (648). Dick Cooke had the men’s high handicap game (260) and Larry Macintosh had the high handicap series (688). Wayne’s World had the high team handicap game (899) and series (2,602).
Robert Rigby again had the men’s high scratch series (657) with games of 232, 214, and 211, while Peter Deyo had a 593 series with games of 223 and 202, and Warren Corriveau Sr. had a 562 series with games of 223 and 199. Gary Montgomery had a 542 series, Wayne Randall had a 519 series with a 193 game, and Stan Kolpa rolled a 199.
Gloski had the women’s high scratch series (481) and had the high scratch game with a pair of 181 games. Nancy Dalzell had games of 165 and 155, and Deb Fantini had a pair of 156 games.
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.