WESTMINSTER- Otter Valley blew open a competitive contest in the first four minutes of the third quarter, racing out of the halftime gates with a 12-0 run that the Terriers could not recover from, as the Otters prevailed 69-45 at Holland Gym on Saturday afternoon.

“We went away from what was working,” said head coach Evan Chadwick. ”It’s no surprise that when you play a team as talented as Otter Valley that if you do not match their effort, you’re in for a long day.”

BF would score the first points of the game and would be down 6 after one. OV would slowly extend their lead out to double digit in the second as the Terriers struggled to find their shooting touch.

At the break OV led 30-17.

The Otters would extend the lead to as many as 30 in the third before the Terriers tried to claw back into it. 

With the loss, BF drops to 5-3 on the season and is next in action on Thursday when they travel to Manchester to face off with the Bulldogs of Burr and Burton. Tip time is 7pm.

WHITINGHAM- A long cold bus ride did not deter the Bellows Falls boys basketball squad on Thursday night as they started the game on an 8-2 run and held off a scrappy Wildcat squad to capture a 61-51 road win at Twin Valley High School.

“Proud of the effort, proud of the response,” said head Coach Evan Chadwick. ”We didn’t shoot the ball particularly well, but we rebounded and defended like dogs. That’s who we are.”

Five different Terriers scored in the first quarter, lead by Jaxon Clark’s 8. The Terriers pounded the offensive glass, grabbing 7 in the first frame leading to 10 points that saw them take an 18-8 lead after one.

BF would extend the lead to 12 at the break after a 17 point second quarter. Cole Moore hit two from deep on his way to an eight point quarter and Eli Albee added two baseline drives. Jesse Darrell grabbed 4 offensive boards that led to 4 points while Colby Dearborn added 5 rebounds of his own.

“Dudes like Colby and Jesse struggled to shoot today, but they effected the game with their effort,” said Chadwick. 

Twin Valley would attempt several runs in the second half, cutting the lead to as little as 8 on several occasions including with just over a minute to play after Niko Gerding banked home a deep 3. However, each time it looked like the Wildcats had a run in them, the Terriers had an answer with an inside bucket allowing the Purple and White to claim their 5th win on the season. 

Clark led the Terriers with 23 points. Cole Moore added 14 points and 5 assists and Colby Dearborn contributed 5 points and 12 rebounds.

The 5-2 Terriers face off with a 5-2 Otter Valley squad on Saturday. Tip time is set for 1pm.

SOUTH ROYALTON-Leading by 11 midway through the fourth quarter, the White River Valley Wildcats scored 14 straight to take home a 77-50 win over Bellows Falls on Thursday night.

“We showed glimpses of the team we can be,” said Assistant Coach Josh Hanson. 

The Wildcats would run out to an 6-0 lead before Jesse Darrell hit an elbow three to start the scoring for the purple and white. White River would stretch the lead to 8 after one.

The Terriers mounted several runs in the second, cutting the lead to 2 on multiple occasions. However, the Wildcat press would yield consistent results, turning the Terriers over 12 times in the first half. 

At the break the Wildcats held a 35-30 lead.

WRV’s lead reached 17 midway through the third. BF would find some offensive success and close the quarter on an 8-2 run that pulled them to within 11.

This would be the closest Bellows Falls would get, as White River dominated the offensive glass in the fourth to close out their 4th win on the season.

BF drops to 3-2 and next faces Woodstock this Friday at 7pm.

WESTMINSTER-The Terriers raced out to a 21-4 lead after one quarter and held off a late Green Mountain charge to earn their third win of the season 63-51 in front of a pack house at Holland Gymnasium on Thursday night.

“Had a great start,” said Head Coach Evan Chadwick. ”Not happy with how we finished the game, but overall a solid win for us.”

BF would open the game setting the nets on fire, scoring 14 points in the first 3 minutes of the contest. Cole Moore and Colby Dearborn combined for 3 three-pointers in the frame, combining for 13 of the Terrier 21 points. Jaxon Clark added four and Andrew Dunbar finished an inside hoop off an offensive rebound to put the Terriers in control early.

The BF lead would stretch to as many as 24 in the second frame off of 5 straight points from Terrier center Will Hallock. The Chieftains would find a spark to end the quarter, closing the half on a 6-2 run that kept them within 20.

Green Mountain came out in the second half with some new found energy and outscored BF 16-12 in the third. Matt Murphy scored 8 in the frame while Evan Kirdzik added two treys. 

“We got complacent in the second half,” said Chadwick. ”Green Mountain beat us to loose balls and started creating opportunities for themselves. This is something we need to work on the rest of the week.”

BF was able to keep the lead at 16, in large part to the inside play of Jaxon Clark, who scored 10 of his 17 points in the third on a variety of inside moves.

“Jaxon muscled dudes tonight,” said Chadwick.

GM would close the gap to as few as 12 in the fourth after Tanner Swisher hit his second 3 of the quarter. The Terriers were able to hit 8 of 11 free throws to ice away the home win and go 3-1 on the season.

Three Terriers reached double figures in points, with Dearborn’s 21, Clark’s 17 and Moore’s 11. Will Hallock chipped in 7 points and 7 boards.

The Purple and White will take a short Christmas break before they travel to South Royalton to face off with White River Valley on December 27th. JV tips at 5:30 and Varsity follows at 7.

CHESTER-The BF Terriers lodged an impressive win against MSJ to start the Green Mountain Tournament and then dropped a nail biter to Twin Valley in the Championship match on Thursday to take a 2-1 record into the weekend.

“Great tournament as always,” said Head Coach Evan Chadwick. ”We learned a lot from these two games and will take those lessons into next week after we take a couple days off to heal up.”

MSJ Win

10 players scored at least one basket for the Terriers on Tuesday as the Terriers took care of business against the Mounties of MSJ 70-38.

BF would stretch their halftime lead of 18 to as many as 35 during a third quarter eruption to seize control of the contest. Colby Dearborn hit back to back 3s and Jaxon Clark scored all of his 8 points in the decisive run.

The fourth saw some firsts for the younger Terriers. Freshmen, Aiden Weir scored his first basket of his young career and Camden Perry added a mid-range jumper to close out the scoring and earn the Terriers a trip to the championship game.

Twin Valley Thriller

BF and Twin Valley engaged in a back and forth affair on Thursday night in front of a packed Green Mountain Gymnasium. In the end, Twin Valley was able to squeak out a 54-51 win.

“What a fun game to be a part of,” said Coach Chadwick. ”Our effort was there, TV just made one more play then we did. That’s basketball.”

The Wildcats opened a 7 point lead in the first, that quickly evaporated as the Terriers ran off 8 straight points midway through the second and took a 1 point lead into halftime 18-17.

The Purple and White lead would stretch to as many as 11 in the third quarter but foul trouble would begin to catch up to the Terriers as Twin Valley was in the bonus with over four minutes remaining in the frame and shot 13 free throws in the quarter.

“Tough stretch there defensively,” said Chadwick. ”We need to clean up those cheap fouls. Putting them on the line early in the third kept them in the contest.”

In the end, the charity stripe proved to be the Terrier downfall, as the Wildcats hit 3 free throws in the final minute to take a 3 point lead and BF was unable to get a clean look off to tie, dropping the Terriers to 2-1 on the early season.

Bellows Falls will take a couple days off before resuming practice on Monday as they prepare for a home matchup with Green Mountain. JV tips at 5:30 with Varsity following at 7.

Please view the Work Hours page for the accurate practice schedule.  Game schedule should be accurate on the BFUHS website.

WESTMINSTER- A raucous crowd filled Holland Gym on Friday night and were instantly treated to a grit match between the Rebels of Leland and Gray and the Terriers. In the end, the home team prevailed, running off 10 straight points in the fourth quarter to earn a 61-45 victory.

“Got the job done.”, said Assistant Coach Josh Hanson, who particularly praised the efforts off the bench. “Doug Sterling gave us a huge defensive boost tonight,” said Hanson.

The game was mired in fouls, as the Terriers struggled to find the defensive line. The Rebels shot a total of 30 free throws throughout the contest, hitting 18.

After the Rebels jumped out to a five point lead midway through the first, the Terriers started to find an offensive rythum. Colby Dearborn scored 8 straight, Cole Moore hit a 3 and Andrew Dunbar scored on a drive from the high post to take an 16-11 lead after one.

Leland and Gray hung tough throughout the Terrier run and, entering the break, BF was nursing a 31-26 lead.

The Purple and White jumped out to as much as an 11 point 3rd quarter lead, capped by a Cole Moore baseline drive. The Townshend crew fought back, going on a 5-0 run in response and hanging in at 44-37 entering the final frame.

BF took care of business in the fourth, outscoring Leland and Gray 17-8 to close out the W. Jackson Clark hit a straight away 3, then stepped in for an elbow J. Tristain Boylan deep 2 was pure that capped off the Terriers’ scoring allowing BF to jump to 1-0 on the early season.

Colby Dearborn led all scorers with 27. Cole Moore added 8 points and 7 blocks and Clark added a 12 spot.

BF travels to Green Mountain on Tuesday for a 4:30 tip against defending GM Holiday Tournament Champion MSJ.

Please be sure to be there ready to go at 3. We will be wearing practice jerseys for today’s scrimmage.

A player/parent meeting for all interested athletes will take place this Thursday at 6pm in the film room (ie classroom near AD’s office). All freshmen through seniors and their parents are encouraged to attend.

We will be going over this season’s expectations and to introduce our new JV coach Ben Brink.

Look forward to seeing you all there!