Sports Report – July 11, 2019

S.D. Ireland’s Tyler Skaflestat picks one out of the air against Colchester Post 91. Photo by Al Frey.

Concrete and bats make summer baseball
Shortly after they won the Division I state baseball championship, many CVU players put on their S.D. Ireland uniforms and turned immediately to American Legion ball. Ireland plays its home games on the CVU diamond but also travels around Vermont as part of a league and across the lake and throughout New England to tournaments in New York and other neighboring states. They play a full schedule of summer games, nearly 30 of them in the league and about 40 altogether.

While the Redhawks dominated high school play, Legion ball can produce a slightly different outcome depending on who shows up for the game. Family vacations and other activities can leave a dent in the infield or a hole in the outfield, and Ireland’s record so far is not what CVU’s was. They will often play three games on a given weekend, depending on the weather.
Last Monday, Ireland defeated Barre 10-4 after losing a pair of one-run games to Montpelier (9-8 and 2-1) the Saturday before. They then followed Monday’s win with another over Post 91 from Colchester, 7-3.

Several familiar names from the CVU roster appear on Ireland’s as well: Ian Parent and Baker Angstrom on the mound and Tyler Skaflestat at second base, Jacob Boliba in the outfield and behind the plate when needed, Jacob Murphy and John Rushford, outfield and infield respectively, and last but not least, coach Tim Albertson.

Girls’ basketball camps run for five days
Ninety-one girls in grades four through nine participated in summer basketball camps run by CVU head coach and Charlotte resident Ute Otley. The younger group (grades 4 through 6) met in the morning; the old-timers (grades 7 through 9) in the afternoon. They came from around the area – Hinesburg, St. George, Shelburne, Williston, New Haven – as well as Charlotte. CVU rising senior, Mekkena Boyd from Williston, was the head counselor. Charlotte placed all-stars in the morning group, with Apryl Tuiqere, Diedre Higgins and Rowan Howe named to the four-person All-Star roster.

North-South softball ends in a sweep by the Yankees
2019 Redhawk graduate Riley Canty pitched in all three games of the North-South softball all-star series. She and two Missisquoi teammates led the North to an 8-4 win in nine innings in the final game. The same three strung a no-hitter in the opening game (11-1), then followed allowing only three hits and striking out 11 in the second-game of a twinbill the day prior, winning 6-2.

Make-A-Wish for summer hockey
From bats and balls to pucks and sticks, boys were winners, the girls losers to New Hampshire in the Make-A-Wish Hockey Classic at Gutterson Fieldhouse. It was the third straight win for the boys in this annual game. However, New Hampshire still leads the series 17-9-1. Representatives from BFA St. Albans, Stowe, Burlington and Mount Mansfield hit the New Hampshire net for a 7-2 victory (Vermont’s biggest ever). Vermont outshot the Granite Staters by seven, with the two Green Mountain goalies turning away thirteen shots between the two of them.