VG host Thetford tonight, 1st round State Tourney

The Varsity Girls will host Thetford this evening at 7:00pm in the first round of the Vermont Girls Division III State Basketball Tournament. The Vermont Principals Association (VPA) has established the following ticket prices:

Adults $4.00 and Students $3.00

Season and Player passes cannot be honored for this game.

Good Luck Ladies, this is the first step to Barre.

Girls thump So.Ro.

The second time around was a little more convincing. After coming away with a closely contested 3 point win in the South Royalton band box earlier in the season, the Varsity Girls soundly defeated the Royals 51-40 last evening. The final score does not reveal how dominating the Raptors were in every phase of the game. Deva Stekette lead the scoring with 20 points followed by Kathleen McCarty with 19. However, the name of the game was hustle and defense as the Girls aggressively contested every loose ball. Jess Stekette and Jasmine Harrington set the defensive tone by shutting down the outside and inside game of the Royals . The win runs the Girls record to 14-3 and remain undefeated in the CVL. Next game is Saturday at Blue Moiuntain.

Varsity Boys close out regular season in fine fashion

The Varsity Boys closed out their regular season with an exciting 63-58 overtime victory at Concord last evening. Dylan Pelletier's long 3 pointer with 2 seconds remaining forced the game into overtime and Aaron Hibbard's 7 points in the extra frame helped seal the deal. Although outshot from the field, the Boys held a commanding 13-3 advantage at the foul line. Pelletier lead the Raptors scoring with 20 points. Hibby and Will Tifft contributed 10 apiece. Danny Gray and Cody Thurston each scored 8 points in the winning effort. The Boys finished the season at 5-15 and now must wait until next Monday to hear where they are seeded in the State Tournement.

VG and VB sweep Arlington

The Varsity Girls and Boys swept the Arlington Generals on Saturday. The Girls started the action with a 50-36 win. Earlier in the season they had squeaked a 1 point win at the buzzer, but had a bit of an easier time on Saturday. Deva Steketee scored 17 points, mostly from her low block spot, Amber Brooks added 11, and Jess contributed 9 to the offensive effort.

The Boys, who had lost by 7 on the road in an earlier season game, posted a convincing 59-35 win. Playing their best basketball of the season, the Boys beat their opponent in every facet of the game. Terrific defense and fast breaks on the transition was too much for Arlington to handle. Cody Thurston (14), Dylan Pelletier (9), Billy Ross (7), and Tyler Farnham (7) lead the lead the offensive effort. Cody had a very good effort with terrific results on Senior day.

The Girls host Craftsbury on Monday and the Boys travel to Green Mountain. The Boys conclude their regular season on Tuesday on the road at Concord.

JV and Varsity Girls sweep Thetford

After trailing by 17 points early in the fourth quarter, the JV Girls staged a remarkable comeback that brought the house down in a stunning 38-32overtime victory. Applying fullcourt pressure and benefiting from timely shooting that often came from second or third put back opportunities, the girls stuck it out and worked hard to the end and snatched a victory away from a certain defeat. Their game was the table setter for an exciting evening of basketball.

Following the Jv's, the two Varsity teams waged battle in what was a classic defensive struggle from start to finish. The first quarter ended with the teams knotted at 5 points apiece and the Raptors headed into the locker room at the break with a less than comfortable 13-9 lead. Held to just 5 points in the third, their lead shrunk to just 2 points (18-16) heading into the fourth quarter. The girls found a chink in the tough zone D that Thetford was applying and was able to isolate Deva (15 points) for a number of timely hoops as time dwindled down. The final score 0f 32-22 was the result of tenacious team play. Coach Wilcox praised the team in general, but particularly the efforts of Kye, Jess, and Jazz , for outstanding defense throughout the game. It was the fifth time this season that the Raptors held their opponents to 25 points or less. It was a great night for basketball before a nearly sold out crowd.

Boys thump So.Ro.

After experiencing a disappointing loss earlier in the season,The Varsity Boys returned the favor last evening by soundly beating the visiting Royals 55-34. Playing with a lot more emotion and energy the team jumped out to a 15-6 first quarter lead and never looked back the remainder of the game. Coach Colby credited Aaron Hibbard and Keith Schwarz with strong defensive efforts as Cody Thurston (15 points) and Billy Ross (13) lead the way on the offensive end of the floor. Dylan Pelletier, Will Tifft, and Zach Klunder all contributed 8 points each toward the winning effort. The Boys next game is at home on Saturday vs. Arlington at 2:30pm. The Varsity Girls begin the action at 1:00pm.

Boys drop a close one to Chelsea

The Varsity boys travelled to Chelsea on Tuesday and fell victim, to what Coach Colby described as an exciting back and forth game, to the Red Raiders 46-41. The Raptors, on the strength of a 20 point second quarter effort, held a 1 point edge at the half. Each team scored 12 points in the third stanza, however, the Boys were outscored 11-5 in the fourth quarter and for the game were outshot 12-3 at the charity line. Cody Thurston paced the Raptors with 11 points. Danny Gray was second in scoring with 7 points and Tyler Farnham chipped in with 5. The Boys host South Royalton this evening.

"Steketee Stalls Stowe's Celebration"

Jess Steketee received headline recognition for her defensive effort that limited Stowe's Julia Scrubb to 4 points in Monday's nights 38-20 win. Scrubb had scored 27 points vs. the Raptors in a losing effort earlier in the season and was only 17 points shy of achieving the 1000 point standard for her career. Coach Wilcox remarked that "it was the best individual defensive effort I've seen, Jess just denied her the ball. . ." as Scrubb was limited to just one field goal and two free throws for the game. Kathleen McCarty's four three pointers accounted for most of her 14 points and Deva Stekettee contributed 12 points as well. The Girls host Thetford on Thursday. The JVs begin the action at 5:30.