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Fair Haven
Fair Haven coach Jen Clement relishes the underdog role . The Slaters have been cast as underdogs for years , but this time there could be some surprises for those teams that take Fair Haven lightly .
Clement greeted 20 girls at practice this week . Among them are about 15 returnees , so Fair Haven has a solid core and many of them are juniors .
“ I believe that the way to keep them happy and here is to give them playing time and to have fun ; that keeps them interested ,” Clement said .
Ruby Ianni is the lone senior , and although she played primarily defense last fall , she is being positioned for more offense .
Junior Jordan Howard is a tested veteran in goal , while the two junior halfbacks , Theresa Culpo and Anna Breslen , are key to the transition in the midfield . Defensively , juniors Lydia House and Elizabeth Haggerty , along with Jill Stewart and Olivia Lannon , will fortify a strong defensive unit . Sophomores Abby Brown and Zoe Cole will work in the midfield and swing to the line to deliver scoring punch .
One of Clement ’ s problems is there are still girls away on vacation , while some are on college trips and others still working , so they have not been able to commit fully to practice . The other issue is that there are many freshmen , and since there is no middle school program , they are starting from scratch . Clement hopes to involve many in 7-on-7 JV games to develop their skills .
“ They are going to be a solid group once they get themselves together ,” Clement said . “ We will see how it goes ; I want them to stay optimistic and do the best that they can . Still , we always are an underdog .”
Otter Valley
The good news for Otter Valley coach Stacey Edmunds is that there
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are going to be more subs this year , not just the “ iron Otters .”
The lack of depth was an issue in OV ’ s 1-0 loss in the quarterfinal to Mount Abraham that ended their 2017 season .
In her seventh season , Edmunds welcomed 17 players into the Otter fold this fall , seven of whom are freshmen fed in from the strong middle school program .
That means that 10 are veterans , bolstered by three seniors and five juniors .
“ We have a strong core of returning players and some good younger players , and that makes for good balance ,” Edmunds said . “ This year we will have subs and more speed .”
Known as a long-ball team , or for strong drives and flooding the zone to provide offense , Edmunds said that the Otters have worked more on passing , communication and knowing where their teammates are going to be , whether on offense or defense .
A strong defense is an Otter hallmark , and that continues with tall junior Elinor Ross in goal , supported by senior Gabriella LaGrange at center back and Jayden Pope at one of the wing backs , while senior Jordan Laraway will swing from wing back to midfield .
Senior Sophie Markowski sees the field well and operates at center halfback as a play-maker but will move to the forward line to add punch . Junior Livia Bernhardt will swing from defense to midfield to forward line depending on what Edmunds needs , while junior Isabella Falco will work as an outside halfback or shift up to the line .
Edmunds is working freshmen Jamie Bordeau and Emily Hutchins in the goal to create depth behind Ross .
“ Versatility is important ,” Edmunds said . “ We are still getting some positions settled . We have some sharp freshmen coming in ; they are confident and are going to develop more confidence , playing with the other girls on the field .” chuckstarman @ yahoo . com
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member boys team . It comprises three Thurston siblings — Avery , Grant and Peyton — brothers Lucas and Ben Pencak , and Michael Blais .
There are two girls : Julia Lee and Pearl Bellomo . They are not related .
The season got off to a slow start with Athletic Director Dan Elliott struggling to find a coach , and the Mounties will be looking to make up for lost time .
Otter Valley
It was a good season for the Otters , winning the Marble Valley League Small School Championship on the boys side and having the girls place second to Windsor .
But they will have to replace some talented runners . The top returning boy is Parker Todd , and McKenna White figures to be the top returning girl .
The Otters will compete in the Randolph Invitational and Thetford ’ s famed Woods Run in addition to the weekly MVL meets .
“ We wanted some different meets to shake things up ,” coach Brooke Kimball said . “ They get to know exactly who their competition is ( with the MVL meets ) and it becomes pretty predictable for the most part , although there are some surprises .”
Joining Todd on the boys squad are Hayden Gallo , McKeen Hogan , Joseph Cijka , Tamar Foster , Gunnar Tinsman and Liam Murphy .
Rounding out the girls team are Heather Wood , Brittany Corey , Madilyn Morgan , Anoushka Pschorr , Jade Flanders , Kelsie Sunhawk , Morgan Daly and Gracie Coolidge .
Proctor
The maroon and white of Proctor will be represented by exactly one runner at meets throughout the season . Carrying the colors for the Phantoms is Brianna Wink , who goes through her practices with the Rutland team .
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Rutland
The numbers are pretty healthy at Rutland . The Raiders can send 20 boys and 10 girls off the starting line .
The top returning runners on the boys side are Nate Fogg , Dylan Roussell , Phillip Wessing , Erik Woodbury , Ethan Woodbury and Brayden Moore . Rutland coach Steve French said Woodbury was the top finisher at the state meet .
The Raiders also picked up a transfer from MSJ , Rocco MacLachlan , who has shown well in the early practices .
Rosanna Hyde was the No . 1 runner for the Raider girls on a pretty consistent basis and she is back . Caitlin French , consistently among the top three runners , is also back , along with top returners Phoebe Wood , Jade Weinberg and Fiona Pol .
“ Fiona really grew last year as a freshman and she is looking to be more productive this season ,” French said .
The Raiders kick off the beginning of the weekly MVL Tuesday meets by hosting one Sept . 4 on their Giorgetti Park layout .
They will also be competing in the Woods Trail Run and the U-32 Invitational .
“ They run a great meet ,” French said of the U-32 event .
Springfield
Springfield cross country coach Steven Lawrence is in his fifth year and is once again dealing with low numbers . While more may come out after school opens , right now the team has just four runners — sophomore Haley Gibbons and freshmen Andrew Gould , Connor Young and Owen Miller .
“ As for what I have seen from the preseason , we have a small , young team , but I ’ m excited to see how they grow and progress throughout the season ,” said Lawrence .
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