Williston Observer

Oct. 29, 2009

By Mal Boright

Observer correspondent

Stellar play in September resulted in Athlete of the Month nominations for Champlain Valley Union High’s KK Logan in field hockey and Konnor Fleming for football.

Logan, a senior, scored eight goals and assisted on three others as the defending Division 1 champions rolled undefeated through the month. Logan also scored winning goals in overtime victories over Essex High and South Burlington High, both games on the road.

Fleming, a junior, helped the football Redhawks to a 4-0 mark by rushing for nine touchdowns and passing for four more. On defense, Fleming snared two pass interceptions to help preserve a 7-0 triumph over Middlebury Union High.

Logan is one of five nominees in the girls division of the Vermont Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association program.

Others are Brittany Pfaff of Rice Memorial High soccer, Jenna Griffith of Colchester High cross country, Jessica Edwards of St. Michael’s College cross country and Courtney Chadburn of Castleton State College soccer.

Joining Fleming as boys nominees are Max Librizzi of Essex High football, Jason Burnett of St. Michael’s College soccer, Gavin Callahan of Windsor High football, Jeff Sutherland of Mount Mansfield Union football, Evan Cassidy of Castleton State football, Dummerston road runner Justin Fyffe, Richie Hackett of Lake Region Union High soccer and Scooter Hayford of Twin Valley Union soccer.

September winners are expected to be announced within a week. All monthly winners are honored each summer at an awards luncheon.

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Bugged in districts, harriers chase state title Saturday

Oct. 29, 2009

By Mal Boright

Observer correspondent

“The championship could be decided by sickness,” recovering Champlain Valley Union High cross country coach Scott Bliss said over the telephone Sunday.

“It depends on who gets hit this week,” the coach said with a cough.

Bliss lost a top runner and himself to the flu in last weekend’s districts, plus another runner to mandatory school testing.

Bliss and his Redhawks are looking ahead to Saturday’s Vermont Championship competition at Thetford Academy. The boys and girls teams had to settle for runner-up finishes in the districts last Saturday at Missisquoi Valley Union High in Swanton.

For the girls, who bowed to a winning Essex team 39-54, a seven-year string of district crowns came to an end.

With Adrienne Devita sidelined by illness, CVU’s girls still took second in the individual finishes as Summer Spillane captured the spot. Aleksey Jordick came in fourth.

Essex runners grabbed the next four places to land the coveted team title.

Zach Pete had a solid second place run for the boys team, which wound up 12 points (43-55) behind titleholder Mount Mansfield Union High. Justin Mckenzie joined teammate Pete in the top 10 by taking sixth place.

Will the team be healthy for this Saturday? Bliss was asked.

“Knock on wood, I think so,” he replied.

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Second game postponed to Thursday

Oct. 29, 2009

By Mal Boright

Observer correspondent

As the Champlain Valley Union High field hockey team is finding out, southern cooking is more than black eye peas and hush puppies.

The 15-0 Redhawks had to handle 11-3-1 Mount Anthony Union High’s recipe of a combination of goals and defense Wednesday afternoon in Hinesburg in a semifinal playdown. CVU needed a win in the game, played after press deadline, to punch a return ticket to the Division 1 championship test at Castleton State College on Friday or Saturday. The date and time of the title game had not been announced before deadline.

The Patriots gained Wednesday’s test with CVU with a 1-0 victory over Rutland High on Monday, a contest postponed from Saturday. That delay caused the scheduling change of the semifinal game, originally scheduled for Tuesday.

As was the case Friday, second season victories do not come easy. The defending champion Redhawks had to bear down hard to nudge past Middlebury Union High, 1-0, in a home field quarterfinal match.

Emmaleigh Loyer stroked the game’s lone goal some 12 minutes into the first half, whacking in a rebound. It was her 11th score of the season.

Loyer, who leads the team in assists, sort of had another in that the goal came on a rebound of her own shot.

After that, the CVU defense played a big role in keeping the Tigers off the board, despite some serious snarling around the Redhawks’ cage.

Middlebury’s best chance may have been with just 30 seconds gone in the game, when the Black and Orange clads rolled down the field and cut loose a point blank shot at CVU net minder Elizabeth Goddette, who made a sharp and difficult save.

“I was able to reach out and stop it with my hand,” the goalie said later.

The Tigers had four more shots at Goddette plus several close-in opportunities that were repelled by the deep defenders led by Aubrey “The Terminator” Deavitt, who herself turned aside a labeled Middlebury shot late in the second half.

But CVU also kept Middlebury net minder Kayla Whittemore occupied. She came up with 14 stops, including nifty saves off Kelsey Jensen, Molly Burke, Loyer and Kelcey Lamphere while KK Logan consistently moved the ball into close attacking range.

It was CVU’s third victory over Middlebury, one in overtime, as the Tigers closed out their season at 6-7-3.

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Oct. 29, 2009

Theft

• Laurie Slingerland, 40, and Melissa Slingerland, 22, both of Winooski were cited on charges of retail theft on Oct. 19 after allegedly stealing merchandise from Wal-Mart, according to police reports. The elder Slingerland was also cited on a charge of driving with a suspended license, the report notes. No information regarding the value of the merchandise was released.

• Michael A. Cobb, 44, of Essex was cited on a charge of retail theft from Marshalls on Oct. 20 after allegedly stealing more than $350 worth of merchandise, according to police reports. Cobb “fled the scene” and was later located and cited at his home, according to the report.

Driving under the influence

• Following a motor vehicle stop for defective equipment on Oct. 23, Matthew W. Chase, 27, of Hinesburg, was cited on a charge of driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license, according to police reports. His blood alcohol test registered .088, the report notes. The legal limit for driving in Vermont is .08. He was cited to appear in court.

• Following a motor vehicle stop on Oct. 23, Bruce Schrack, 59, of Shelburne was cited on a charge of driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license, according to police reports. His blood alcohol test registered .082, the report notes. He was cited to appear in court.

Wanted person

Joseph K. Turcotte, 24, of Monkton was “arrested on an outstanding warrant” after a motor vehicle stop on Oct. 25, according to police reports. He was lodged at Chittenden County Correctional Center, the report notes. No other information was released.

Driving with suspended license

• Following a motor vehicle stop on Oct. 19, Kendra L. Wolfe, 36, of Colchester was cited on a charge of driving with a “criminally suspended license,” according to police reports. Wolfe was cited to appear in court on Dec. 7.

• Following a motor vehicle stop on Oct. 24, Alfred H. Como III, 42, of Waterbury was cited on a charge of driving with a suspended license, according to police reports. He was cited to appear in court.

Unlawful trespass

Thomas D. Berard, 50, of Williston was cited on a charge of unlawful trespass at Shaw’s on Oct. 20, according to police reports. No other information was released.

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Halloween recipes

Oct. 29, 2009

By Ginger Isham

I miss the 30-plus trick or treaters we used to get when our children were small. I had fun setting up the step ladder with a sheet over it that had black eyes for a ghost-like look and a circulating fan under the stepladder to make the sheet move.

One time I cooked spaghetti and strung it on baling twine that I had threaded through two sides of an upside down cardboard box. The little goblins had to put their hands in an opening in the box to get a bag of candy. The cold spaghetti felt like worms.

Another time, our son sat in a rocking chair with a large pumpkin basket on his head, wearing old coveralls, a flannel shirt, big gloves and boots. He did not look real. We tied a string onto the rocking chair and around the corner into the dining room. Someone hid there and pulled on the string to make the chair rock. The pumpkin man even changed his position or moved an arm or leg.

If you can find a head form of styrofoam used to display wigs you can make the eyes, nose and mouth shapes black with magic marker. Place a black hood or scarf around the head and add a black shirt with collar tight around neck. Display this on your stairs with shirt arms spread out to look as though it has half a body. It’s one of my old time favorites!

Here are some other ideas:

> Carve a jack-o-lantern and then slice off one side. Put treats or veggies in the side you cut off, which serves as a dish. It looks like the pumpkin was hit on the side of the head. You can serve dip with the veggies.

> Cut boiled eggs in half. Place a thin slice of tomato between each egg and hold it together with toothpick. Put slices of green olives on for eyes.

> Spray small pumpkins with silver or gold paint. When dry, print names on the pumpkin with a black marker or make a face. These make good decorations for place settings for dinner.

> Make a batch of popcorn. Take clear plastic gloves and place a candy corn in the bottom of each finger to look like a fingernail. Fill the rest of fingers with popcorn and tie with a twist.

> Make your own face make-up. Mix 2 teaspoons Crisco, 3 to 4 drops glycerin (buy at a drugstore) and food coloring until you have a smooth paste. Add 5 tablespoons cornstarch and 1 teaspoon flour. Mix well.

To remove the make-up, use cold cream or baby oil.

> Make a batch of meatballs and slice each one in half. Place the cut side down on top of a tablespoon of ketchup. Arrange cooked spaghetti around the meatball to look like hair.

> For a Witches Brew, place a scoop of orange sherbet in a clear glass and slowly fill the glass with ginger ale. Add a straw, to which you have attached a large black or orange gumdrop to one end for a broom.

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

Ginger Isham lives with her husband on a fifth generation family farm on Oak Hill Road.

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