Oxbow sent off a senior class with one of the more remarkable records in high school softball on Thursday in Bradford with a performance that showed just how capable the team is of making a little more history.
The Olympians broke a 3-1 game open with an 11-run avalanche in the third inning to cruise to an 18-4 win over visiting Thetford.
“Positive attitudes, wanted to win for the seniors, trying to make it a good day for them,” Oxbow coach Chuck Simmons said of what his team did right. “They’re just ready to rock and roll and cheer on their team.”
Oxbow never trailed and saw no batters strike out. That wealth of contact finally led to the breakthrough just a few innings in.
Thetford, in a year of transition after losing an influential senior class, fielded well and had the hit of the day in the top of the third when Brooklyn Chaffee blasted a leadoff solo homer deep into the right-center alley.
The combination of local rivals, many of whose players play club softball together for Simmons’ 8zero2 team in the summer, made for a fun affair on senior night.
“It’s pretty tight knowing that a lot of the girls are friends off the field as well,” Simmons said.
Several times during the game, Simmons mixed in compliments to Thetford players during his usual stream of positive feedback to the Olympians from his spot in the third base coaches box.
Positivity from Simmons is one of the constants for an Oxbow team that’s otherwise seen some turnover this year. Star pitcher Anastase Bourgeois, winner of five state championships in the circle, graduated to the NCAA ranks.
The senior class — Noemi Rosa, Maize Bourgeois, Braylee Phelps and Makenna Houston — suffered the only loss of their high school careers so far on April 28th to D-II Lyndon, breaking what was a 68-game winning streak.
“I think knowing teams are going to hit us, and just being ready to play some defense and we’ve been working on that,” Simmons said. “And I think that’s what’s going to take us to keep pushing forward, is knowing that we will have our ups and downs. As long as we stay positive and work hard, we’ll be fine.”
Oxbow plays three more regular season games, all on the road, before the playoffs and the road to Castleton for a shot at a sixth consecutive Division III state championship begins.