Staff Reports
BRATTLEBORO, Vt. — Triumphant at last, the Hartford High girls hockey team tasted victory Wednesday, beating Brattleboro, 5-3, at Nelson Withington Rink to end a 28-game winless streak and a 21-game losing skid.
Junior forward Ryelee Potwin scored twice and freshman defender Caitlin Slider posted a goal and an assist for the Hurricanes (1-17-0), who held a 40-20 shot advantage. Zoe Pfeiffer made 17 saves.
“I told the girls to stay calm, and we didn’t fall apart and start worrying about losing,” said third-year Hartford coach Bill Goldsworthy, who won for just the fourth time with the program. “Even at the end, yes, they were happy and celebrated, but it was a quiet bus ride home, because they had drained all their energy in the game. I’m very proud of them.”
Brattleboro (6-12-0) opened the scoring after just 40 seconds, but Slider answered with an unassisted tally to produce a 1-1 tie after one period. The Colonels scored the next two goals and led, 3-1, in the second period, but Potwin scored off a Nora Knudsen pass 30 seconds later to pull the visitors within a goal.
Hartford’s Isabelle Stack scored with an assist from Brianna Roberts with two minutes remaining in the second period for a 3-3 tie, and Potwin struck off an Ada Acker pass 17 seconds later. The Hurricanes led, 4-3, entering the final stanza and added a Ceci Spaulding goal with 4 minutes, 30 seconds to play. Slider earned the assist.
Brattleboro had twice beaten Hartford by a goal earlier this season. The teams are part of a six-member VPA Division III grouping that will participate in the upcoming Division II playoffs. The Hurricanes host North Country/Lyndon (12-7) on Saturday and close the regular season against U32 (6-10) four days later.
Lebanon-Stevens-Kearsarge 2, Concord 1
CONCORD — The Barber sisters both hit the back of the net with quick shots, and the Raiders (8-6-2) rode Paige Hoegler’s 26-save goaltending for a big NHIAA Division I win over the Crimson Tide (12-2-0) at Everett Arena.
Greta Barber got Lebanon started with her first varsity goal 4½ minutes into the contest, with Maya Barnett and Marissa Pickman getting the assists. The game stayed 1-0 until the third period, when Lily Barber picked up a Pickman pass and zipped home a shot to double Lebanon’s lead.
Concord’s only score came with 4:39 left off the stick of Joanna Dustin.
“Obviously, this is one of the big ones; they’ve had two losses all year,” Lebanon coach Mike Sheehan said. “We had a couple of tough losses in our last two, but to put things together — and to knock them off at their rink — is a huge win for us. I hope the girls realize what we’re capable of going forward into the playoffs.”
The Raiders close their regular season at Kingswood on Tuesday.
North Country-Lyndon 4
Woodstock 3
JAY, Vt. — The Wasps (6-12-1) couldn’t quite come back from surrendering three goals in the first period at Jay Peak’s Ice Haus rink.
Woodstock opened the scoring with an unassisted goal by Skylar Haley. The Blades then scored the next three goals to lead, 3-1, after one.
Faye Stevens brought Woodstock within one early in the second period, scoring with an assist to Lizzy Peck. Sami Yates, assisted by Mackenzie Yates, added a goal later in the second to make the score 4-3.
Woodstock had four different power-play opportunities in the third period but couldn’t manage to score the game-tying goal. Netminder Ava Dodson had several key saves to keep it a one-goal game in the final period.
The Wasps host Rutland to close out the regular season Friday night.
BOYS HOCKEY
Hartford 4, U-32 0
MONTPELIER — Colby Boyce turned aside 23 shots for his sixth shutout of the season, and his teammates backed him with a four-goal second period as the Hurricanes (12-6-1) blanked the Raiders at the Central Vermont Civic Center.
Kyle Hamilton and Aidan Boonyaharn struck for power-play goals early in the middle stanza to get Hartford going. Jake Dwinell added an unassisted tally, and Colston Allen closed it with 1:15 left in the period.
A.J. DeBois had a pair of assists, with Connor Tierney, Blaine Gour and Simon Spaulding earning single assists. Hartford closes its regular season at Lyndon on Wednesday.
Lebanon-Stevens-MRA 2
Berlin-Gorham 2 (OT)
BERLIN, N.H. — Jon Cloud’s shot from a sharp angle caromed to the far post, where Andrew Duany knocked it in with 0.8 seconds remaining to salvage a tie at Notre Dame Arena. The Raiders (6-10-1, 6-8-1) won a faceoff in the offensive zone to set up the game-tying play.
Berlin-Gorham (12-2-0), an NHIAA Division III program, scored the first period’s only goal. Division II Lebanon forged a 1-1 tie two minutes into the third period when Duany scored off assists from Griffin Auch and Cloud. The Mountaineers took a 2-1 lead with 12 minutes remaining in the third period. An eight-minute overtime was scoreless.
Lebanon was outshot, 42-22, but received strong goaltending from Toby Cromwell. The Raiders, who are battling to earn a berth in the nine-team Division II playoffs, host first-place Merrimack (10-3-0) on Saturday and entertain Keene (9-2-2) four days later in their regular-season finale.
Concord 6, Hanover 1
WEST LEBANON — Linemates Matt Hauschild, Ryan Doherty and Brooks Craigue accounted for four power-play goals and five tallies altogether as the Crimson Tide (14-1-0) overwhelmed the Marauders (10-7-0, 8-6-0 league) at Campion Rink.
Hauschild posted a hat trick with an assist for Concord. Doherty had four assists, and Craigue accumulated three. Brendan Brigham had Hanover’s lone tally on passes from Rowan Wilson and Patrick Daley.
Hanover coach Dick Dodds lauded the play of Daley, who had been moved back from forward to defense and was largely responsible for an improved Marauder breakout, Dodds said.
Ben Plottner had 30 saves for Hanover, which goes to Exeter on Saturday.
KUA 0, Proctor Academy 0
ANDOVER, N.H. — Veeti Kohvakka kept up his end of the shutout with a 41-save gem as the Wildcats (22-6-2) skated to a scoreless draw with PA.
Kimball Union forwards hit the goalpost four times and were unsuccessful on six power plays.
Kimball Union heads to Holderness on Friday.
Woodstock 4, Harwood 2
WOODSTOCK — Dylan DeSchamp potted the unassisted tie-breaking goal and Andrew Gubbins added an empty-net clincher to finish off the Wasps’ four-goal third period, handing the VPA Division II-leading Highlanders just their second loss of the season.
Harwood (16-2-0) held a 1-0 lead entering the final stanza. Riley Shepherd converted a Charles Greene pass to tie the game only to have the visitors go back in front. Greene’s unassisted strike brought Woodstock (13-3-2) into a 2-2 tie, setting the stage for the late heroics.
Henry Greene stopped 24 shots for the Wasps, who host Northfield for senior night on Saturday.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Mascoma 35, Hillsboro-Deering 26
HILLSBORO, N.H. — The Royals fought hard for a win on the road during Hillsboro-Deering’s senior night.
“We grinded it out. They (Hillsboro-Deering) played really hard; they’re going to miss the playoffs, and with nothing to lose,” Mascoma coach Walt Hammond said.
Emily Moulton had a pair of 3-pointers and 12 points to pace the Royals, who closed the game on an 11-5 run. Michaela Dowd added 10 points, and Nikki Williams had six.
Mascoma (7-10) closes the regular season at InterLakes on Friday night.
Lebanon 58, Coe-Brown 19
NORTHWOOD, N.H. — Rebecca Wright had 18 points, Sally Rainey had 10 points and Megan Gradijan finished with nine for the Raiders, who led, 40-13, at halftime of their NHIAA Division II contest.
Catherline Cole added eight points and Izzy Fabry netted six for Lebanon (15-4, 13-3), which is at Laconia on Friday.
Thetford 55, Oxbow 29
THETFORD — The defending VPA Division III champion Panthers shook off a rough shooting night to overturn the Olympians in a late-season neighborhood showdown.
TA (16-2) hit just 22 of 69 field-goal attempts on the night, but the Panthers’ defense held the O’s (12-5) to just 10 made baskets in response. Grace Davis hit for 20 points and Emma Colby had 13 for Thetford.
Emma Parkin and Arianna Bolles topped the Oxbow ledger with eight points apiece.
Fair Haven 56, Windsor 33
WINDSOR — The undefeated Slaters (17-0 in VPA Division II) opened the game on a 15-4 run to hand the Yellowjackets (15-3 in D-III) a loss at home.
“I’m not really sure (about the slow start),” Windsor coach Bruce Mackay said. “We tried to come back, but they’re a good enough team where they’re not going to allow you to do that. We’ll start over tomorrow and get back into it.”
Olivia Rockwood led Windsor with 12 points. Reese Perry added eight points. The Jacks visit Mill River on Tuesday.
KUA 45, Brewster 43
MERIDEN — Junior guard Jenna Santos had the hot hand, scoring a game-high 26 points to give the Wildcats (6-12-0) won their second straight victory.
Kimball Union stages a rematch with Brewster in Wolfeboro, N.H., on Saturday.
BOYS BASKETBALL
Mascoma 70, Fall Mountain 31
WEST CANAAN — Connor Thompson scored 17 points, 15 of them from behind the arc, and Gabe Rock had 10 points as the Royals improved to 11-6 overall and 10-5 in NHIAA Division III action.
Liam Hemmerling had 12 points, Ben Schwarz had nine points and Josh Evans added seven for Mascoma, which hosts InterLakes on Friday.
Rivendell 39, Green Mountain 33
CHESTER, Vt. — Using only six players, the Raptors (18-1) ground out a Southern Vermont League win over the Chieftains to set up a winner-take-all finale with Twin Valley for the top seed in the upcoming VPA Division IV state tournament.
Zach Gould led Rivendell with 17 points, followed by 12 from Luke Senn.
“It’s just the way the game went,” Rivendell coach Ross Convertino said of using a short bench. “No real intentions; just the matchups. It was a tough game.”
The Raptors and Wildcats (17-2) meet on Friday in Whitingham, Vt.
Sharon 52, West Rutland 46
SHARON — Ian Robertson tallied a career-high 13 points to help the Phoenix (9-9) pick up a big comeback win over the Golden Horde.
Down 33-31 entering the fourth quarter, Sharon rode a 10-point final stanza from leading scorer Ty Chapin (26 points) while also getting six of Olly Skeet-Browning’s seven point on the night. Robertson completed a double-double with 10 rebounds.
Sharon hosts Blue Mountain for senior night on Thursday.
Springfield 43, Windsor 40
SPRINGFIELD, Vt. — Noah Zierfus posted a game-high 17 points and the Cosmos withstood two late shots from the Yellowjackets (7-12) to get the win at Dressel Gym.
“We got behind, got back, cut it to one, but just couldn’t make a play,” Windsor coach Harry Ladue said.
Jordan Place paced the Jacks with 14 points, followed by nine from Owen Abrahamsen. Windsor closes its regular season at Mill River on Friday.
Burr & Burton 75, Woodstock 68
WOODSTOCK — Harrison Morse had 25 points and 13 rebounds, but the Wasps fell to 2-17.
Emmet Mahoney and Corey White each had 13 points and Tyler Bean had nine points for Woodstock, which hosts Hartford on Friday.
WOMEN’S SWIMMING
Dartmouth sets school relay mark
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The Big Green opened the Ivy League championship meet by breaking the school record in the 800-yard freestyle relay.
Ashley Post, Summer Martin, Christina Cianciolo and Mike Leko combined on a time of 7 minutes, 14.02 seconds, breaking the record set last year by two seconds. The quartet finished fourth in the race, and Dartmouth produced a seventh-place result in the 200 medley relay as well.
The Big Green is fifth through the first day of the four-day meet.