Thetford
The Panthers defeated Windsor, 6-0, on Monday after beating undermanned Oxbow, 14-1, on Saturday to kick off the season.
Connor Brown led the charge with three goals, earning the second consecutive hat trick (after four goals Saturday) of his senior campaign.
The striker set the tone for Thetford’s intensity by playing relentlessly throughout the contest despite the one-sided nature of the affair.
“You’ve still got to play like it’s 0-0 or you’re down 1-0,” Brown said. “You’ve got to keep working for those next games like Harwood and those harder teams.”
Brown’s fired-up approach to the game is in line with the teachings of his coach, Mark Weigel.
“(Weigel) really makes us play like it’s the last five minutes the entire game,” Brown said. “He gives us that mentality of play hard 24/7, never give up.”
Weigel returned this year as Thetford’s boys coach to a post he held in the early 1990s (winning a Vermont Division III title in ‘93). He was also the Panthers’ girls coach for two tenures, including a five-year span that ended last season. He knows an impact player when he sees one.
“(Brown) is just a really talented player,” Weigel said. “He draws so much attention, and he’ll continue to draw a lot of attention.”
“He motivates us because he’s always playing hard,” said Thetford’s Jackson Hall, who assisted the game’s first goal with a textbook through ball at eight minutes elapsed.
Brown received Hall’s pass in stride, launching it directly at Windsor goalie Ryan Saucier, who had left the goal to make an aggressive pursuit of the ball. Saucier stopped the shot, but the rebound ended up back at Brown’s feet for the finish.
Nick Moses scored for Thetford three minutes later on a blast that was set up by a Brown through pass. William Bosco and Sachin Rampersaud also contributed to the scoring spree for the Panthers (2-0).
The hosts used passing finesse to set up an array of powerful shots. Saucier deflected 14 shots in a game that easily could have seen the Academy score in the double digits once again.
“It’s part of the game,” Saucier said about the lopsided loss. “I try to do my job and let everyone else do their job. Win, lose or draw, we do it as a team.”
Saucier and his teammates, who defeated Oxbow, 9-0, for Windsor’s lone victory, knew Monday would be a tough test.
“We were just way too flat, and Thetford’s such a skilled team,” Windsor coach Andy Tufts said. “We expect them to be skilled.”
In addition to being skilled, the Panthers appeared to be well-conditioned on Monday, beating their opponents to the majority of loose balls.
“It’s more intense than it was last year,” explained senior defender Mitchell Higgins when asked about Thetford’s new-look program. “(Weigel’s) more strict and gets us going a little quicker. We’ve been doing a lot more running and a lot of different drills.”
Weigel, also a veteran high school basketball coach, provided a brief insight Monday into his mentality this fall.
“It’s like a new challenge,” he said. “Anytime something is new, it’s exciting. … It feels like home, it’s good stuff. …
“It’s still early and we’re still making typical mistakes that we can improve upon, but I can’t be more pleased with how well they’re working in practice and gelling as a team. They’re motivated and they’re fun to be around so it makes it easy.”
Throw-ins: Thetford goalies Anthony Stoffel and Cordell Benjamin combined to help the Panthers lock up the shutout. … According to Higgins, TA needed to guard against overconfidence Monday. “After Saturday’s game, I was a little worried that we would be a full of ourselves,” Higgins said. “But we came out with our heads clear and stayed open minded.” … The Panthers have already achieved half of their win total from last year. Last season’s four wins included an upset of Williamstown in the postseason. … Thetford will play its next game Wednesday at Blue Mountain before a Capital League clash Saturday at Harwood. Windsor will play Friday and Saturday at Black River’s Josh Cole Tournament.