MONTPELIER — Sophomore guard Jonah Cattaneo went 7 of 8 from the foul line in the fourth quarter Saturday, lifting Montpelier to a 54-41 boys basketball victory over Mount St. Joseph.
“It was a gutsy win,” Montpelier coach Nick Foster said. “We played really good defense and rebounded well enough. And then we we were able to take care of the ball and make some free throws down the stretch.”
Cattaneo (18 points), Tyler Ricker (15 points), Will Bruzzese (eight points) and Leo Riby-Williams (eight rebounds) powered the Solons. Foster was encouraged by his team’s 19-of-28 overall performance from the charity stripe, with Ricker going 6 of 8 in the fourth quarter.
“MSJ started fouling intentionally at the end,” Foster said. “We had to make a lot of free throws, and most of it was 1-and-1. We shoot a lot of free throws at practice when we’re tired, and we didn’t have great results in our first two games. We were 10 of 28 against U-32, and even worse against Hartford.”
A slow first quarter ended with Montpelier in front 7-6. The Mounties carried a 25-19 advantage into halftime before the Solons dug deep defensively to surge ahead 31-30 entering the final quarter.
“They have two really big, strong kids: Dave Mercure and Jake Williams,” Montpelier coach Nick Foster said. “And Andre Prunty is a sophomore point guard who’s a really good player. He does all the ball-handling for them and he made five 3-pointers.”
Prunty (20 points) and Williams (12 points) were MSJ’s top scorers. The defending Division II champs struggled to make offensive adjustments during a lackluster second half and quickly watched Montpelier erase the six-point deficit.
“Some of it was us getting the motor going a bit,” Foster said. “We sent more double teams on Prunty, making him give it up early and trying to get it back. And I think we tired him out eventually. He had a nice game, but he had to do a lot. And Will Bruzzese changed the game defensively for us. He was end-to-end today and he carried us on defense.”
Montpelier (3-1) will travel to play Hazen at 7 p.m. Monday. The Mounties (1-3) will visit Windsor the same day.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
BFA-Fairfax 40, Williamstown 32
WILLIAMSTOWN — The Bullets made their foul shots when they counted to rally past the Blue Devils on Sunday.
Williamstonwn led 20-9 at halftime and held a 21-17 advantage after three quarters. Paige Superneau and Jaycee Douglas both made two big free-throw attempts in the final quarter to give BFA the upper hand.
“We got down by four and had to foul the last 1:30,” Williamstown coach Sid Sweet said. “And credit to them: They hit their free throws and we couldn’t get a bucket.”
Superneau finished with 13 points, while Hazel Albee added seven points for BFA (3-2). Albee added another big free throw at the end.
“They had eight girls who scored, and a lot of them on putbacks,” Sweet said. “We’re not very tall. We dress a 5-11 (player) and a 5-7, and the rest are under that. And our 5-7 is our point guard. They had one girl who was 6-foot and another who’s 5-10 or 5-11. Length is what hurt us.”
Brianna McLaughlin (13 points) and Fasika Parrott (five points) led the way for Williamstown. The Blue Devils (0-3) will travel to play Hazen at 7 p.m. Thursday.
“We only dress seven right now because we have one player out sick,” Sweet said. “I think we ran out of gas today. We had 12 defensive rebounds in the first half and limited them to a lot of one-and-done’s. And in the second half it was a whole different story. They got a lot of second and third opportunities and they were wearing us down. And because we lost on the defensive end, it definitely hurt us on offensive end.”
Randolph 44, Northfield 36
RANDOLPH — Sophomore guard Ella Davignon scored all 15 of her points on 3-pointers Saturday, helping the Galloping Ghosts rally past the Marauders.
Northfield was in charge for most of the game, building a 10-7 lead in the first quarter. The Marauders led 23-17 entering halftime and held a 30-27 advantage after three quarters.
“We just started being a little more patient,” Randolph coach Scott Lafreniere said. “We adjusted our offense to what Northfield was giving on defense. The girls followed through on what we talked about at halftime and hit open shots that were available. I was proud of them for keeping their composure and not forcing things and just playing basketball.”
Davignon made two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. She gave her team a 36-34 lead and the Ghosts never trailed again. Sara Rea (10 points) and Becky Johnson (seven points, eight rebounds) also had solid performances for Randolph. Piper Mattson (22 points) and Zoe Jacobs (five points) paced Northfield.
Thetford 59, Blue Mountain 36
THETFORD — Six players scored at least six points Saturday for the Panthers, who handed Blue Mountain its first loss of the season.
Casey MacVeagh led the way with 10 points. Teammate Emi Vaughan chipped in with eight points, eight assists and five steals. Emma Colby recorded seven points for Thetford (3-1), while teammates Macey Smith, Lily MacVeagh and Becca Wells tallied six points apiece.
The Panthers led 16-10 after one quarter and 37-16 after two. Lauren Alley (14 points), Kolby Nelson (seven points) and Emma Gray (six points) paced BMU (3-1).
“We had a good overall game today against one of the better D-IV teams,” Thetford coach Eric Ward said. “We are adjusting as we go. Due to illness and injuries, we started some different people today who did a nice job. We are having better ball movement and adjusting to a new defense. The second quarter probably was our best quarter of the season. We rebounded better today and eleven of the thirteen who played today scored. Casey and Lily MacVeagh had nice games off the bench and Kelsey Smith played very well in her first start. Emma Colby has become very steady for us. I’m excited to see what we can do as we move forward.”
Thetford will travel to play White River at 7 p.m. Thursday.
Danville 73, Montpelier 63 (OT)
DANVILLE — Four Solons reached double figures Saturday but the Indians outscored MHS 10-0 in overtime to walk away victorious. Colleen Flinn (24 points, 15 rebounds), Rylie Cadieux (11 points, 15 rebounds), Autumn Larocque (11 points) and Jasmine Esposito (10 points). Mikayla Luke-Currier (16 points), Ryleigh Chamberlin (15 points), Cypress Levitt (11 points) and Bella Luhr (12 points). Montpelier (0-2) will host Twinfield at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday.
BOYS HOCKEY
Missisquoi 7, U-32 4
EAST MONTPELIER — Corbin Schreindorfer scored twice for the Thunderbirds on Saturday, while teammates Hunter Mason, Charlie Gate and Jackson Porter both recorded one goal and one assist. Kyle Gilbert and Owen Kane also scored for MVU. Logan Carbo recorded a hat trick for the Raiders and teammate Hazen Stoufer also scored. U-32 will host Milton at 4:15 p.m. Saturday.
Stowe 6, Brookline (Mass.) 2
MIDDLBEURY — Atticus Eiden, Alex Tilgner and Henry Paumgarten powered the Raiders’ offense during Saturday’s championship game of the Middlebury Tournament. Eiden registered one goal and two assists, while Alex Tilgner and Henry Paumgarten both recorded one goal and one assist. Oli Paumgarten, Eames Eiden and Rowan Keller also scored for Stowe. Teammate Ethan Brown made 26 saves in goal. Middlebury earned a 6-2 victory over Saranac Lake/Lake Placid the consolation game.
GIRLS HOCKEY
Spaulding 3, Middlebury 2
MIDDLEBURY — Freshman Camryn Bell scored the game-winning goal with 14 seconds left in overtime on an assist by Molly Parker.
Zoe Tewksbury gave the Crimson Tide a 1-0 lead with 51 seconds left in the first period after beating two defenders. Merry Kimble tied the score midway through the second period. Taylor Moulton and Bella Gale recorded assists. Spaulding’s Molly Parker recorded her first varsity goal on an Emily Morris assist at the start of the third period. Middlebury pulled even with 2:22 remaining in regulation when Taylor Moulton scored on assists by Avery Gale and Bella Gale.
Bell had the final word in overtime after skating out wide and firing a forehand shot with a defender at her side. She beat Middlebury goalie Abby Hodsden (27 saves) with a shot to the lower corner. Goalie Mattie Cetin made 16 saves for Spaulding.
“Middlebury is so well-coached,” Spaulding coach David Lawrence said. “Matt Brush is one of the best and his girls gave us all we could handle. They are a great team. And our girls just didn’t quit. When Middlebury tied it late I reminded them, ‘We’re OK, nothing changes, you’re going to win if you stick with it.’ We’ve still got a lot to work on but I’m so proud of how hard these girls are working for each other. (It was a) full team effort, team first.”
Spaulding will host U-32 at 3:30 p.m. Saturday.
Harwood 4, Hartford 0
WATERBURY — Clara Griffin scored twice for the Highlanders and Louisa Thomsen and Olivia Kaplan added one goal apiece Saturday. Harwood goalie Kaylee Thayer stopped 17 shots, compared to 25 saves by Hurricanes goalie Zoe Pfeiffer.
“We played pretty well,” Harwood coach Mike Vasseur said. “Hartford stiffened up on defense and we took our foot off the accelerator a little bit. It was a 50-50 game in the second period. We came up big in the third and scored a goal, and their goalie made some key saves.”
Harwood (4-1) will travel to play Burlington-Colchester at 7 p.m. Saturday.
GYMNASTICS
Milton 105.3, Montpelier 100.65
WATERBURY — Saturday’s meet came down to the wire before the Yellowjackets’ depth proved to be the difference-maker against the Solons.
Montpelier earned a podium sweep in the all-around competition. Jenna Krussman placed first with a score of 31.6. She was followed by teammates Eva Stumpff (31.55) and Luna Pompei (30.9).
The top performers on vault were Stumpff (8.0), Krussman (7.8) and Milton’s Alexis Drown (7.7). Leading the way on bars were Pompei (7.15), Stumpff (6.6) and Krussman (6.2). Stumpff and Krussman tied for first-place honors on beam with matching scores of 8.4. Close behind were Milton’s Alexa Jackson and Drown, who recorded identical scores of 7.7. Pompei registered a 7.45 on beam. Krussman (9.2), Pompei (8.7) and Stumpff (8.55) were the top performers on floor.
“We had such a great meet today,” Montpelier coach Shannon LeBoeuf said. “We met a lot of personal goals, especially without having a full team and taking three zeroes. Our two independents, Peyton Lombardi from Spaulding and Leah Brown from U-32, also competed for their first high school meet today. I had set a goal in my head to break 100 for the team score, and the girls did just that. They had pretty clean and powerful routines today, and I couldn’t be more proud of them. They take on the challenge of only having three scores count on three events and do their very best on each of the events that we are missing a score from.”
The Solons will return to action Saturday with a 3 p.m. meet against St. Johnsbury at the Central Vermont Gymnastics Academy.
