The Brattleboro Colonels girls' soccer team played their home opener on a cold and rainy Thursday afternoon at Sawyer Field.
The conditions were less than perfect for the Colonels, but the result was: a 2-0 shutout of Mill River for their first win of the season.
After a scoreless first half where Brattleboro had a couple of good chances, senior forward Becca Bird put the Colonels on the board in the first minute of the second half.
Before the Mill River defense had a chance to get settled, Libby Annis took a pass in the right corner from Chiara Leven, and put a shot on Mill River goalkeeper Alyssa Turgeon. The shot deflected off Turgeon and Bird pounced on the rebound to knock it in.
The Colonels' insurance goal came in the 76th minute. Sophomore forward Molly Gurney caught Turgeon out of position in the goal area and tapped the ball into the open net.
Brattleboro goalkeeper Tori Svec was kept busy, but she and her defense preserved the shutout.
Overall, it was a good effort for the 1-1-1 Colonels, especially considering the amount of patching that coach Edwin De Brujin had to do to his lineup. He has four players out with injuries and lost a fifth, senior Ava Myette, late in the second half. Junior midfielder Maddie Rollins had to be moved into a defensive role against Mill River.
Boys' soccer
• In the 43rd annual John James Tournament in Bennington over the weekend, the two-time champs could not three-peat.
The Brattleboro Colonels lost to Mount Anthony, 1-0, on Friday night. Nick Harris scored the game-winner in the 71st minute to break the Colonels' hold on the James trophy.
Last Tuesday, a 22-yard strike by Jesse Brown in the second overtime gave the Colonels a 4-3 win over Springfield at Tenney Field. Cesar Moore, who scored earlier in the game, assisted on the game-winning goal. Logan Given and Dominic Italia also scored as the Colonels improved to 2-0.
• Midfielder Matt Marchica gave Bellows Falls the only goal it needed to beat Windsor, 1-0, on Sept. 12. Despite being outshot, 18-9, and despite having nine freshman make their varsity debut, the Terriers played a poised game.
Against Leland & Gray in the annual Josh Cole Tournament in Ludlow Friday, the Terriers lost 5-2.
• With the win over BF, Leland & Gray made it to Saturday's Cole Tourney championship. The Rebels defeated Green Mountain, 4-2, to win the tournament for the second straight year. Chase Jarvis, Hunter Buffum, James Crowther, and Nick Lawley scored the goals for the 3-0 Rebels.
In Friday's game against BF, Bobby Culver had 2 goals while Mike Bergeron, Buffum and Jarvis each added a goal.
• Twin Valley lost its season opener to Green Mountain, 5-3, in Chester last Tuesday. Colin Lozito, Tony Tarr, and Dal Nesbitt got the goals for the Wildcats, while Morrow Bernard and Ricardo Pereira each picked up an assist.
On Friday against Stratton Mountain School, Lozito had three goals and an assist in the Wildcats' 5-2 victory. Brian Doucette and Dal Nesbitt also scored for the Wildcats. Freshman goalkeeper Sam Molner had seven saves, and assisted on Lozito's first goal.
Girls' soccer
• For the first time in 10 years, the Bellows Falls Terriers won a season opener. Sara Dumont scored 3 goals, Brit Moyna added 2, and Ashley Palmisano also scored as BF defeated Mount St. Joseph, 6-3, last Tuesday. The Terriers put 30 shots on goal, while BF goalkeeper Enny Mustapha had 9 saves.
• Twin Valley fell to Proctor, 5-3, in their first game of the season last Tuesday. Sammy Cunningham, Jordan Niles and Shannon Lozito were the goal scorers for the Wildcats.
On Friday against Stratton Mountain School, the Wildcats eked out a 1-1 tie. Shannon Lozito got the equalizer in the 63rd minute, as goalkeeper Bit Aekus made 10 saves.
Both of Twin Valley's soccer teams will be playing their home games at Deerfield Valley Elementary School, as Baker Field suffered major damage from Tropical Storm Irene.
• Leland & Gray got clobbered by Arlington, 5-0, last Tuesday, and then lost 3-2 in overtime to the Woodstock Wasps on Saturday.
Ashley Goddard and Nicole Sherman scored for the 1-2 Rebels, who gave up the Wasps' winning goal in the eighth minute of overtime. Kathleen McAllister and Elizabeth Gallup split the goalkeeping duties and combined for 17 saves.
Football
• A slow start ended up costing the Brattleboro Colonels, as they lost 14-6 to the Rutland Raiders at Natowich Field on Friday night.
The Colonels did a great job on defense, holding Rutland to just a pair of first half touchdowns, and keeping them out of the end zone in the second half. But the offense sputtered. A 16-yard touchdown run by Mac Paige late in the first half accounted for all of Brattleboro's points.
Paige finished with 63 rushing yards on 14 carries. Quarterback Tyler Higley completed 7 of 17 passes for 88 yards, including six catches by Soren Pelz-Walsh for 70 yards. The 1-2 Colonels will play at Hartford this Friday night.
• Bellows Falls fell to 0-3 after a 35-34 loss to the Burr & Burton Bulldogs in double overtime on Saturday at Hadley Field.
Burr and Burton quarterback Jake Stalcup completed 22 of the 35 passes he threw for 257 yards and 5 touchdowns. Receiver Jake Oliver had 5 receptions for 54 yards and 3 touchdowns, but made the biggest impact in the game with his foot. After missing 2 field goals, Oliver kicked the extra point that was the margin of victory in the game. He also had two successful onside kicks that set up the Bulldogs' first two scores.
Running back Bruce Wells led the Terriers with 157 yards on 16 carries for 2 touchdowns. Quarterback Jeremy Kilburn threw for 44 yards and 2 touchdowns. Running back Cooper Long also threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Will Bourne, the first of his 2 touchdown receptions in the game. Receiver Trevor Wilson had the other touchdown grab.
Field hockey
• Brattleboro started the week with a 2-1 loss to Otter Valley in Brandon on Sept. 12. Kyle Lafantano scored the Colonels' only goal.
• Bellows Falls got blanked by Woodstock, 4-0, in a road loss on Sept. 12. The Terriers kept Woodstock off the scoreboard for the first 26 minutes, but it was all Woodstock after that. Shea Wilkinson had 11 saves in goal for BF.
On Friday, Mariah Barnett scored BF's first goal of the season as the Terriers played Burr & Burton to a 1-1 tie.
Cross country
• Brattleboro's Jacob Ellis was the fastest boy in a six-team meet at Thetford Academy last Tuesday. Ellis finished in 18:22. Rounding out the Colonels' top five were Spencer Olson (ninth in 20:05), Allen Unaitis (10th), Austin Nichols (19th) and Dylan Newton (27th).
Woodstock, however, won the team event with 31 points. Bellows Falls was second with 59 points and Brattleboro was third with 65. The BF boys were led by John Punger and Jamie Moore, who finished sixth and eight, respectively.
The Colonels were second to Woodstock in the girls' meet. Hannah Reichel led the way with a seventh place finish in 25:11. Leah Silverman was eighth in 26:08, Helen Manning finished 10th in 26:19, Emma Straus was 18th in 27:36 and Kasey Kidder was 20th in 29:26.
Anna Clark, who was the only competitor for Bellows Falls in the girls' meet, placed third.
Keets Brook All Stars win wiffleball title
• All summer in Guilford, an adult wiffle ball league has been in full swing.
Sept. 10 was the Keets Brook League's season finale. The hometown Keets Brook All Stars salvaged the second game of a wiffleball doubleheader, outlasting the New Hampshire Survivors in a 13 inning marathon, 8-6.
Dan Lynch's homer broke a 4-4 tie and Jim Woodberry later followed with a three-run shot to provide some insurance runs. The Survivors won the opener, 7-1, behind four home runs and three shutout innings by Mitch Speaks.
The players for the Survivors were Dan Rath, Larry Welkowitz, Jeremy Hoffman, and Speaks. Players for Keets Brook were Lynch, Woodberry, Mick Durante and John Ungerleider.
Durante is one of the organizers of the league. He said that “new enthusiastic players are welcome, but they have to have a good sense of humor and put recreation before competition.” If you fit the bill, drop Mick a line at [email protected].
Karate tournament in Bellows Falls
• The Vermont State National Karate Tournament will be held on Saturday, Sept. 24, at Bellows Falls Union High School in Westminster.
Open to the public, competition starts at 8:30 a.m. with dynamic Demo Team Forms competition. There will be Weapons, Forms, and Sparring competition from children to adults. Email [email protected] for more information.
Hiking for the homeless
• Morningside Shelter, the only year-round homeless shelter in southeastern Vermont, presents its first-ever Hike for the Homeless on Saturday, Oct. 8, on Mount Wantastiquet at the Mountain Road trailhead on Route 119 in Hinsdale, N.H. The rain date for this event will be Sunday, Oct. 9.
Whether hiking to the summit or walking along the river trail, participants can begin their hike any time between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Hikers can raise funds individually or as a team. Individual participants are encouraged to raise a minimum of $50. The suggested minimum for teams is $250. Participants may also register by donation on the day of the hike. Registered participants receive a free gift and refreshments.
All proceeds benefit Morningside Shelter to help house the homeless in Brattleboro and its surrounding communities. For more information, visit www.morningsideshelter.org, or contact Knowles Wentworth at 802-257-0066, ext. 101 or [email protected].