Soccer is thought of as a safer alternative to football, with a seemingly lower risk of injury compared to the violent collisions that are common in football.
But concussions are not uncommon in soccer and, with them, the increase risk to athletes of developing conditions like chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease that can develop from repeated head impacts. Over time, it can cause behavioral, mood, and cognitive changes even if the patient has no new head trauma.
Lots of sun and reasonable temperatures for a November morning in Vermont greeted runners on Thanksgiving for the Red Clover Rover's annual Turkey Trot on Upper Dummerston Road in Brattleboro. There were 198 runners at the starting line for the 3-mile race, which was won by Peyton Joslyn, 16,
Triathlons are not for the faint of heart, and the Ironman - a 2.4-mile swim, followed by a 112-mile bike ride, followed by a 26.2 mile run - is strictly for the fittest of the fit. Elizabeth "EBiz" Bianchi of West Chesterfield, New Hampshire, went to Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, to...
The Vermont Division IV state soccer championships came to Applejack Stadium in Manchester on Nov. 4, with the defending champion Leland & Gray Rebels in the girls' final taking on the top-seeded Arlington Eagles, and the undefeated Twin Valley Wildcats facing the defending champions, the Winooski Spartans, in the boys' final. In a pair of games that showcased the four of the best soccer programs in Vermont, Arlington defeated Leland & Gray, 2-1, while Winooski kept its crown with a...
Injuries are unavoidable in high school football and it's rare for most teams to reach the playoffs with the same lineup that started the season. Unfortunately, Bellows Falls has been hit harder than most. Quarterback Eli Allbee was knocked out in Week 2 against Hartford with a broken collarbone. Running back Walker James suffered an ankle injury against Lyndon in Week 7, and running back Blake Bertrand suffered a concussion against North Country in Week 8. "We've only played one...
One championship down, one to go. The Twin Valley boys' soccer team finished the regular season undefeated with a 3-2 win over the Randolph Galloping Ghosts on Oct. 20 and, in the process, captured the Southern Vermont League C Division title. After a season filled with routs over less skilled teams, Wildcats coach Buddy Hayford viewed the showdown with Randolph as the perfect tuneup for his team heading into the Division IV playoffs. "We're playing our best soccer of the...
Reeling after two big losses to Hartford and Keene, the Brattleboro Bears varsity football team have dusted themselves off and are now starting to play their best at the right time of the season. After outlasting Bellows Falls for a win on Oct. 6, the Bears put together another solid effort in defeating Rutland, 21-7, in the Senior Night game at Natowich Field on Oct. 13. Against Rutland, it was Bears running back Noah Perusse's time to shine. He ran...
The Brattleboro Bears played their best football game of the season in a 26-20 win over the Bellows Falls Terriers on Oct. 6 at Hadley Field. Bears quarterback Karson Elliott, who played the entire game, threw for three touchdowns - two to Jackson Emery and another to Alex Papadimitriou - and ran for a 60-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, providing the margin of victory. Brattleboro's defense also turned in a strong performance, recovering three fumbles and not allowing BF's...