Williston Observer

Redhawk defense stymies Mount Mansfield

Sept. 30, 2010

Tucker Kolasch hits one of three extra points in Champlain Valley Union High’s win over Mount Mansfield Union on Saturday. (Courtesy photo by Joe Kropf)

A little more than a year ago, a new-to-Division 2 Champlain Valley Union High football team rolled into Rice Memorial High for its first intra-divisional contest of the season and left with a surprisingly one-sided victory, helped by a large turnout of red-shirted supporters.

This year, with a 3-0 Division 2 record in hand, the Redhawks return to Rice, which is also a title challenger in the division and coming off a Friday night bashing of Division 1 Burlington High.

“They run and pass very well,” CVU head coach Jim Provost said of the Green Knights.

He called this fifth week of the season “a huge pivotal week” for teams with Division 2 playoff aspirations, of which there are many.

Under the current rating formula, CVU ranks second behind Middlebury Union High. U-32, Milton High, Rice and North Country Union are third through sixth in that order with defending champion Colchester High seventh.

The lone common foe for CVU and Rice is Burr and Burton. The Redhawks whacked the Bulldogs 56-26 in their season opener at Hinesburg while Rice lashed the Dogs 37-27 in Manchester on Sept. 10.

CVU goes into Saturday’s contest coming off a spiffy and defensively solid 21-3 blunting of Mount Mansfield Union High Saturday at the Hawks’ hangout.

The Red Darter, J.P. Benoit, led the offense with three touchdowns and daylong romps. The CVU defensive line — paced by the pachyderm pack of muscular Crawford Morris, Cameron Fitzgerald and Dale Conger, with contributions from ends Ian Solomon and Taylor Gingras — kept the Cougars offense under tight wraps.

MMU gained just 64 yards of offense and five first downs, only one first down in the second half. The Cougars misfired on all eight of their pass attempts.

“We controlled the line,” the 260-pound Conger said.

“We used our speed to shoot the gaps and get into their backfield, which really messed them up,” added the 255-pound Fitzgerald, who praised the schemes of assistant coach and defensive guru Kevin McCarthy.

Benoit, grieving for his grandmother Marilyn Palmer of Hinesburg, who passed away two days before the game, had a spectacular afternoon. He scored all three CVU touchdowns on a 31-yard return of an MMU punt, a 1-yard untouched run and a 9-yard pass from quarterback Konnor Fleming.

In all, the Darter ran through and around MMU defenses for 116 yards in 17 carries, 22 yards pass receiving and 37 yards in kick returns.

“It felt like I had 12 guys blocking for me,” Benoit said after the game. “It was an amazing day.”

Provost said if there was a game-changing series it came just before halftime. MMU, deep in CVU territory for the only occasion all day, got stopped for a 2-yard loss on a second and goal from the seven by linebacker Drew Nick. A third down pass was then broken up by defensive back Nick Meunier.

The Cougars’ Paolo Rossi then kicked a fourth down, 26-yard field goal to bring MMU within 14-3 at the break.

Fleming had another efficient day at the controls of the CVU offense, completing eight of 12 passes for 83 yards while running for another 43 yards in 10 lugs. Gingras had four catches for 36 yards and Matt Bauer grabbed a 33-yarder.

Ground pounders for the Cougars were Nate Tomlinson with 42 yards in 15 carries and Mike Williams with 23 yards in 15 sorties.

CVU kicker Tucker Kohlasch went three-for-three on point-after tries.

CVU-MMU, Stats

MMU 0            3            0            0   –   3

CVU 7            7            0            7   –   21

MMU            CVU

First downs                        5                        11

Rushing yards                  73                        185

Passing yards                     0                        83

Return yards                     57                        59

Comp-Att-Int                0-8-0                        8-12-0

Sacked-Yards Lost          1-9                        0-0

Punts-Avg                      8-37                        5-34

Fumbles-lost                   1-1                        1-0

Penalties-yards              3-25                        4-20

Sept. 30, 2010

Its season-opening, four-game victory string interrupted last Wednesday with a 1-0 overtime loss to a strong Mount Mansfield Union High combine, the Champlain Valley Union High girls soccer team has regained its winning form.

Tuesday’s 3-0 triumph at South Burlington High was its second in a row and hiked the season record to 6-1.

Next up: Saturday morning’s home session with 4-3 Essex High at 10 a.m. and a contest under the lights at defending Division 1 champion Burlington High at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.

At South Burlington, junior attacker Sophia Steinhoff, who missed early season games due to an injury, showed she is in high form with two goals. Amanda Kinneston, who also missed early games, tallied the other.

The Redhawks unleashed 18 shots on the South Burlington net. CVU keeper Emily Sackett had seven saves.

Last Saturday morning at home, the Redhawks dispatched Colchester High 4-1 with Molly Howard, Kendall Berry, Taylor Goldsborough and Shelby Hanlon knocking in the scores.

Howard’s first half goal came on a 40-yard bomb that caught Colchester net minder Haley Forkey (12 saves) outside the net.

Colchester’s tally came on a first half penalty kick, the result of a controversial call.

The score was only the second goal the Redhawks have given up this season, a point addressed after the game by veteran defender Lindsey Hawley.

“We work hard to keep the ball moving upfield,” she said. “Talon (Tomasi) and I always try to bring it up and set up the attack.”

And there was plenty of help Saturday from others including Berry and Emily Leffler.

— Mal Boright, Observer correspondent

Sept. 30, 2010

A band of Eagles from Mount Abraham Union High will swoop into Hinesburg Heights at 4 p.m. Thursday when the home nesting Champlain Valley Union High field hockey Redhawks hope to get back into the victory column. The ’Hawks played to a deadlock and defeat in their last two outings.

The Eagles entered this week with a 1-4 record.

CVU is 4-2-1 following Saturday’s 3-3 tie at Middlebury Union and Tuesday’s 5-0 whitewash by undefeated South Burlington High, which hiked its season mark to 6-0.

The Rebels were quick, strong and smart at midfield and defense and up to their reputation as a Division 1 title favorite.

Swift forward Ashley McDonald and teammate Molly Higgins each scored twice. Morgan Bresnahan also found the range for the Rebs.

One of CVU’s best chances came just before halftime when co-captain Louise Gibbs’ long shot just missed catching the left corner of the South Burlington cage.

“If that had gone in we would have trailed by 2-1 at halftime and that might have made a difference,” said CVU coach Kate McDonald, adding that South Burlington has a great team.

The Redhawks best sustained threat against South Burlington, which has allowed only a single goal this season, came late in the second half. Trailing 4-0, CVU, with Gibbs, Kelsey Barrett and Mallory Hillman operating up front, got off three straight shots, but South Burlington keeper Becca Bowser stopped all three among her total of six saves.

Sami Kassel had 10 saves for the Red and White.

Despite the score, CVU defenders — led by The Red Rascal, co-captain Aubrey Deavitt — had some solid plays in front of Kassel. Deavitt was quite rascally in breaking up Rebel offensive surges while mates Lauren King and Jenna Cloutier also had moments.

“They were fast and a very good team,” Deavitt said of South Burlington.

The two foes meet again Oct. 20 on the Rebels’ turf.

In the tie at Middlebury, Sarah Reed scored twice and Gibbs notched a tally as the Redhawks came back twice from deficits with Reed forcing the deadlock with just 1:53 remaining in regulation.

McDonald said Deavitt prevented a tiebreaker with a non-goalie save on a Middlebury penalty-corner after regulation time had expired.

Middlebury came away with a 3-2-1 season mark.

Sept. 30, 2010

With last weekend’s visit to the flat lands of Manchester, N.H. in their rear-view mirror, the Champlain Valley Union High cross country runners return to their native Green Mountains (literally) on Saturday — the harriers have an invitational meet in the Thetford hills overlooking the Connecticut River.

The course for Saturday’s 20th annual Woods Trail Run will also be the site of the state meet in late October.

The trip to the Granite State was rewarding, as CVU’s well-balanced girls team captured first place in the elite division in the annual Manchester Invitational. Rival Essex High took sixth.

The triumph was CVU’s first in the nationally significant Manchester event since 2005. Little wonder head coach Scott Bliss told media outlets that it ranks as one of the program’s biggest victories.

The Redhawks once again ran in a pack, with Adrienne Devita taking 13th place in 20 minutes and 16 seconds. Summer Spillane was right on her heels in 14th place at 20:18 and Julienne Devita 15th at 20:20.

The girls ran so tightly together that a blanket could nearly cover them, but the blanket may need to be larger: Tayor Spillane, up from the junior varsity, finished 19th in 20:39. And right behind her was veteran Aleksey Jordick in 22nd place.

The lone Vermonter with a better time was Essex High’s Markie Palermo in 19:15, good for sixth.

CVU’s boys ran in the large school division and placed sixth, second among Vermont teams behind third place St. Johnsbury Academy.

The Redhawks’ Dan Hebert ran the course in 17:26 to finish 16th overall and fourth among the five Vermonters in the top 20.

— Mal Boright, Observer correspondent

First Essex test at home Friday

Sept. 30, 2010

Tanner Tomasi (9) of Champlain Valley Union High controls the ball against Burlington High’s Ali Abdullahi. The two teams tied 0-0 in Saturday’s match in Burlington. (Observer photo by Greg Duggan)

The undefeated — though once tied — Champlain Valley Union High boys soccer team took on 2-2-1 South Burlington High on Wednesday in the first of two important home contests this week at Hinesburg Heights.

The match against South Burlington was scheduled for after press deadline.

The second contest, at 4 p.m. on Friday, brings the always tough Essex High Hornets to the Redhawks’ nest for the first of two home-and-home contests. The second will be a week from Saturday at the Hornets’ Junction field at 1 p.m.

After opening the season with five straight victories, the Redhawks ran into a downdraft Saturday when a solid Burlington High team limited CVU to a 0-0 deadlock at the Seahorses’ turf.

Burlington, which took Essex into overtime before bowing 2-1 the previous week, got 13 shots on an unusually busy CVU goalie, Jeffrey Wettstein. The Hawks got turned back on 16 shots at BHS keeper Amir Pasic.

The draw followed a 3-0 home victory over 2-3 Mount Mansfield Union High last Thursday. In that game, Zach Blanchard, Nick Spencer and Tino Tomasi knocked in goals while Blanchard and Tanner Tomasi added assists.

Wettstein and Golden Golann shared time in the CVU cage and combined for five stops. MMU’s Dan Ebenstein kicked out 12 shots at the Cougars’ end.

— Mal Boright, Observer correspondent