Feb26b

Page 1

ADDISON COUNTY INDEPENDENT

B Section

THURSDAY, Â FEBRUARY Â 26, Â 2015

KARL LINDHOLM

SPORTS

ALSO IN THIS SECTION:

t 4DIPPM /FXT t -FHBM /PUJDFT

t $MBTTJĂŤFET t 3FBM &TUBUF

Beautiful  day: Let’s  play  two! When  Ernie  Banks  was  induct-­ ed  into  the  Baseball  Hall  of  Fame  in  1977,  he  began  his  acceptance  speech  with  his  customary  invoca-­ tion:  â€œWe’ve  got  the  setting.  Sun-­ shine.  Fresh  air.  We’ve  got  the  team  behind  us.  So  let’s  play  two!â€?  Ernie  Banks  died  on  Jan.  23,  and  WKH Ă€DJ RI HYHU\ &XEV IDQ Ă€HZ DW KDOI PDVW RQ WKDW GD\ +H ZDV RIÂż-­ cially  â€œMr.  Cub,â€?  having  played  only  for  the  Cubs  for  all  his  19  years  in  the  majors.  It  is  safe  to  say  there  has  not  been  a  more  beloved  athlete  by  fans  in  any  sport  than  Ernie  Banks  was  to  Chicagoans. Despite  years  of  disappointment  by  the  Cubs,  Ernie  Banks  exuded  a  joy  in  stark  contrast  to  the  often  cynical  pragmatism  that  so  dominates  sports  today.  He  was  known  for  his  love  of  the  game  and  his  eternally  sunny  dis-­ position. His  career  gives  lie  to  the  con-­ temporary  estimate  of  greatness  in  athletics  which  is  measured  in  cham-­ pionships  won:  Ernie  Banks  played  over  2,500  games  in  the  big  leagues,  not  a  single  one  in  the  post-­season.  At  6  feet-­1  inch,  180  pounds,  he  ZDV D OLWKH DQG JUDFHIXO LQÂżHOGHU With  an  apparently  effortless  swing,  KH FRXOG KLW WKH EDOO D PLOH ÂżQLVKLQJ (See  Lindholm,  Page  6B)

Bowdoin  ousts  Panther  women BRUNSWICK,  Maine  â€”  Host  No.  2  Bowdoin  on  Saturday  ended  the  No.  7  Middlebury  College  wom-­ en’s  basketball  season  in  a  NESCAC  TXDUWHUÂżQDO The  22-­3  Polar  Bears  advanced  to  D VHPLÂżQDO YV $PKHUVW ZKLOH WKH 3DQWKHUV ÂżQLVKHG DW LQ NESCAC  play.  Shannon  Brady  led  the  Polar  Bears  with  25  points  and  eight  rebounds.   Elizabeth  Knox  paced  Middlebury  with  14  points  and  10  boards.  Sarah  Kaufman  pitched  in  11  points,  while  Sabrina  Weeks  added  nine  points. Middlebury  hung  close  for  a  while,  trailing  by  26-­22  when  Kaufman  buried  a  three-­pointer  at  7:22  of  the  ¿UVW KDOI %XW %RZGRLQ FORVHG WKH half  on  an  18-­5  run  to  lead  at  the  break,  44-­27,  and  pulled  away  in  the  second  half,  in  part  because  of  a  50-­29  edge  on  the  boards,  including  27  offensive  rebounds  that  led  to  21  second-­chance  points.  Bowdoin  also  committed  just  six  turnovers  and  shot  43  percent,  while  holding  Middlebury  to  37  percent  IURP WKH Ă€RRU

TIGER  SENIOR  AUSTIN  Robinson  reaches  for  a  rebound  aginst  CVU  Tuesday  night  in  Middlebury. Independent  photo/Trent  Campbell

Redhawks  rule,  down  Tiger  boys ‘Wonderful  season’  ends  for  MUHS By  ANDY  KIRKALDY MIDDLEBURY  â€”  This  winter,  the  Middlebury  Union  High  School  boys’  basketball  team  won  16  times,  went  undefeated  in  the  Lake  Divi-­ sion  to  earn  the  league  title,  and  ¿QLVKHG WKH UHJXODU VHDVRQ RQ D game  winning  streak. %XW LQ 7XHVGD\ÂśV ÂżUVW URXQG 'LYL-­ sion  I  playoff  game,  No.  12  Cham-­ plain  Valley  Union  brought  that  run  to  a  halt  with  a  dominating  perfor-­ mance,  70-­45.  The  Redhawks,  who  entered  with  a  9-­11  record  compiled  against  the Â

state’s  toughest  competition,  the  Metro  Conference,  dominated  the  boards,  blocked  at  least  15  shots,  and  played  suffocating  man-­to-­man  defense  in  their  almost  wire-­to-­wire  victory  â€”  the  Tigers’  only  lead  was  at  2-­0,  and  they  quickly  fell  behind  E\ RQ WKH ZD\ WR D ÂżUVW quarter  hole.  Afterward,  Coach  Chris  Altemose  reminded  his  team  of  what  a  good  winter  it  had  been. “It’s  been  a  wonderful  season,  a  great  group  of  guys.  Even  tonight,  on  a  night  when  we  didn’t  play  our  best Â

7,*(5 6(1,25 %2%%< 5LWWHU FKDUJHV XS WKH FRXUW GXULQJ 7XHVGD\œV ¿UVW URXQG 'LYLVLRQ , SOD\RII JDPH DJDLQVW &98 0LGGOHEXU\ ORVW WKH JDPH Independent  photo/Trent  Campbell

game,  they  played  really  hard  and  SOD\HG WR WKH ÂżQLVK ´ $OWHPRVH VDLG “I’m  proud  of  them  for  that.  They  had  a  tough  matchup  with  CVU.  We  knew  it  was  going  to  be  tough.  I  just  said  to  them,  as  hard  as  it  is  in  the  PRPHQW QRW WR OHW RQH JDPH GHÂżQH our  season.  It  was  a  great  season.â€? For  most  of  the  season,  the  Ti-­ gers  have  relied  on  rebounding  and  transition  to  spark  their  offense.  But  CVU  outrebounded  them,  42-­32  RYHUDOO DQG LQ WKH ÂżUVW TXDUWHU

stuff  early  on.â€? Altemose  also  said  when  the  Ti-­ gers  started  missing,  the  basket  be-­ came  â€œsmaller  and  smallerâ€?  as  the  game  wore  on.  Senior  forward  Bryce  Burrell,  who  tied  CVU  sophomore  swingman  Walker  Story  for  game  honors  with  18  points,  was  the  only  7LJHU WR PDNH D VKRW IURP WKH Ă€RRU LQ WKH ÂżUVW KDOI “We  tried  to  go  out  of  our  way  to  keep  them  extra  loose,  because  (See  Tigers,  Page  3B)

MUHS  dancers  take  fourth  place  in  Hip  Hop

ScoreBOARD

By  ANDY  KIRKALDY VERGENNES  â€”  The  Middlebury  Union  High  School  dance  team  took  IRXUWK LQ +LS +RS DQG ÂżIWK LQ -D]] at  Saturday’s  state  championships,  which  were  hosted  by  Vergennes  Union  High  School. By  virtue  of  the  Tigers’  top-­four  ¿QLVK LQ +LS +RS WKH\ TXDOLÂżHG WR compete  at  the  New  England  cham-­ pionships,  which  will  be  held  in  Braintree,  Mass.,  on  March  7. Saturday’s  big  winners  were  the  South  Burlington  dancers,  who  prevailed  in  both  disciplines  they  entered,  Pom  and  Jazz  (teams  were  restricted  to  two,  and  no  overall  champion  was  named).  The  judges  awarded  Lamoille  the  Hip  Hop  crown  in  a  close  contest  with  Mount  0DQVÂżHOG LQ WKH SDFNHG 98+6 gym.

HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS Girls’ Hockey ' , 4XDUWHUĂ€QDO 2/25  #7  Rutland  at  #2  MUHS  .................Late Boys’ Hockey ' ,, 4XDUWHUĂ€QDO 2/25  #5  U-­32  at  #4  MUHS  .....................Late Boys’ Basketball Playoffs 'LYLVLRQ , 2/24  #12  CVU  vs.  #5  MUHS  ................70-­45 'LYLVLRQ ,, 2/24  #4  OV  vs.  #13  Harwood  ..............45-­27 2/24  #5  VUHS  vs.  #12  Hartford  ...........68-­53

Schedule

HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS Girls’ Hockey D-­I Playoffs 2/27  or  28  ......................................6HPLÂżQDO 3/3  Final  at  UVM  .................................8  p.m. Boys’ Hockey ' ,, 4XDUWHUĂ€QDO 2/27  or  28  ......................................6HPLÂżQDO 3/9  Final  at  UVM  .................................6  p.m. 'LYLVLRQ ,, 2/28  #5  VUHS  at  #4  OV  .....................2  p.m. 6HPLÂżQDO DW %DUUH  ....................8:15  p.m. 3/7  Final  at  Barre  ...........................3:45  p.m. :UHVWOLQJ 2/27&28  .......................State  Meet  at  MUHS Nordic 2/26........Freestyle  State  Meet  at  Craftsbury 3/3  ................... Classic  State  Meet  at  Rikert COLLEGE SPORTS :RPHQ¡V +RFNH\ 1(6&$& 4XDUWHUĂ€QDO 2/28  #8  Hamilton  at  #1  Midd.  ..............3  p.m. 0HQ¡V +RFNH\ 1(6&$& 4XDUWHUĂ€QDO 2/28  #7  Midd.  at  #2  Amherst  ...............1  p.m. Spectators  are  advised  to  consult  school  websites  for  the  latest  schedule  updates. Â

as  the  Redhawks  took  control.  The  Redhawks  also  got  back  quickly  to  deny  the  Tigers  on  the  break,  either  forcing  them  to  rely  on  half-­court  sets,  where  MUHS  struggled  to  get  good  looks,  or  swatting  shots  when  they  attacked  in  transition. “That’s  a  good  team  that  works  very  hard,  and  we  could  never  get  our  train  on  the  tracks,â€?  Altemose  said.  â€œThey  had  some  long  kids,  and  they  were  athletic,  for  sure,  and  they  made  us  think.  And  I  think  we  rushed Â

The  scores  were:  HIP  HOP: 1.  Lamoille,  247. 0W 0DQV¿HOG 3.  Mt.  Anthony,  211.50. 4.  Middlebury,  206. 5.  Burr  &  Burton,  203. 6.  Missisquoi,  196.  6SULQJ¿HOG JAZZ: 1.  South  Burlington,  245.  2.  Lamoille,  224.50. 0W 0DQV¿HOG 4.  Colchester,  207.50. 5.  Middlebury,  190. POM 1.  South  Burlington,  260.50. 2.  Colchester,  222.  3.  Burr  &  Burton,  219.  4.  Mt.  Anthony,  206.  5.  Missisquoi,  189.50. 6SULQJ¿HOG

OV  boys  top  Harwood;͞  VUHS  next 7+( 9(5*(11(6 81,21 +LJK 6FKRRO FKHHUOHDGLQJ WHDP ¿QLVKHG IRXUWK LQ 'LYLVLRQ , DW 6DWXUGD\œV state  championships  hosted  by  the  Commodores. Courtesy  photo

VUHS  cheerleaders  fourth  in  Division  I By  ANDY  KIRKALDY VERGENNES  â€”  The  Ver-­ gennes  Union  High  School  cheer-­ OHDGLQJ WHDP RQ 6DWXUGD\ ÂżQLVKHG fourth  in  Division  I  out  of  nine  teams  and  tied  for  sixth  overall  out  of  16  D-­I  and  D-­III  squads  at  the  state  championships,  which  were  held  in  the  VUHS  gymnasium.  The  Commodores,  who  had  ear-­

lier  won  the  Lake  Division  cham-­ pionship  in  a  separate  competition,  scored  144  points,  trailing  only  Rutland  (196),  Essex  (181)  and  Poultney  (163)  in  D-­I.  The  Vermont  Principals’  Asso-­ ciation  assigns  squads  to  divisions  based  on  the  number  of  participants,  not  on  the  size  of  their  schools.  In  D-­II,  the  judges  awarded Â

Mount  St.  Joseph  the  title  over  BFA-­St.  Albans  by  the  slimmest  possible  margin,  145-­144,  with  Mill  River  (136)  taking  third.  Mount  Abraham  was  seventh  in  D-­II  with  89  points.  Otter  Valley  scored  83  points  in  D-­I,  but  was  GLVTXDOL¿HG )DLU +DYHQ VFRUHG 100  points  in  D-­II,  but  the  judges  DOVR GLVTXDOL¿HG WKH 6ODWHUV

By  ANDY  KIRKALDY BRANDON  â€”  The  No.  4  Otter  Valley  Union  High  School  boys’  basketball  team  shut  down  visiting  No.  13  Harwood  on  Tuesday,  45-­27,  LQ D 'LYLVLRQ ,, ÂżUVW URXQG SOD\RII game.  The  15-­6  Otters  will  host  No.  5  Vergennes  on  Saturday  at  2  p.m.,  with  the  winner  earning  a  date  in  D 0RQGD\ QLJKW VHPLÂżQDO LQ %DUUH probably  against  undefeated  No.  1  Woodstock,  which  will  host  No.  8  0LOO 5LYHU LQ D )ULGD\ TXDUWHUÂżQDO OV  and  VUHS  did  not  meet  this  winter,  but  have  two  common  oppo-­ nents.  Both  handily  defeated  Mount  Abraham  twice,  while  both  lost  to Â

Middlebury.  OV  lost  at  MUHS  by  19,  while  VUHS  lost  at  MUHS  by  20  and  at  home  to  the  Tigers  by  sev-­ en  in  what  was  a  one-­point  game  in  WKH ÂżQDO WZR PLQXWHV The  Otters  and  Commodores  ¿QLVKHG WLHG LQ WKH ' ,, VWDQGLQJV but  OV  earned  the  higher  seed  and  6DWXUGD\ÂśV KRPH TXDUWHUÂżQDO E\ YLU-­ tue  of  its  better  record  (2-­1  vs.  2-­2)  against  MUHS  and  Mount  Abe. On  Tuesday  vs.  the  4-­17  High-­ landers,  defense  and  scoring  bal-­ ance  carried  the  Otters.  Collin  Eugair  topped  OV  with  10  points,  and  John  Winslow,  Kai  Nor-­ wood,  Derek  Aines  and  Tyler  Aines  each  scored  eight  points. Â

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