Times Argus Sports Guide Fall 2017 | Page 5

The Times Argus Fall Sports Guide Friday, October 6, 2017 5 Montpelier Girls Soccer 1 Allison Chadwick 2 Maralina Moore 3 Melanie Winters 4 Violet Tabacco 5 Maggie Barbero-Menzel 6 Cypress Levitt 8 Lily Gingold 9 Rebecca Vanden Bergh 10 Lillian Winters 11 Cricket Basa 12 Lily Fournier 13 Joelyn Mensah 14 Jenna Krussman 14 Anna Sarquiz 16 Noel Riby-Williams 18 Megan Krussman 19 Isabelle Boutin 20 Chloe Schiff 21 Mae Browning 22 Lucia McCallum 23 Autumn Morse 24 Haleigh Doucette 25 Sydney Dunn 26 Madison Brigham 27 Hope Petraro 28 Sadie Smith 29 Mia Preston Coach John Dellipriscoli Assistant Coaches Christy McShea and Emily Aylward C abot Girls Soccer 3 Alexis Phillips 4 Billie O’Connor 5 Abby Ewen 9 Taylor Abbott 10 Samantha Villeneuve 11 Lauren Bellavance 12 Zoe Hislop 13 Paxton LaFoe 14 Michaela Gokey 15 Victoria Mayo 16 Breanna North 18 Kiley Currier 21 Evlyn Hislop 35 Lilly Bailey 36 Cheyenne Phillips Girls soccer: Rivalries keep growing By JASPER GOODMAN CORRESPONDENT Despite returning 12 players from last year’s team, the Spaulding girls soccer team is facing a big transformation. After years of playing an arduous league schedule against tough Chittenden County opponents, Spaulding has been moved from the Metro to the Lake Division. This year, the Tide will play home-and- away matches against Middlebury, Milton, Missisquoi, Mount Abraham, Rice and Vergennes. Why the change? “Being competitive,” Spaulding coach Peter Sakash said. “The girls need some success, I think. It’s tough to play in the Metro day in and day out. I think that this will allow the girls to continue growing as soccer players and have some success on the field.” The move comes as a welcome one for those involved with the program. Spaulding won a slew of close games and finished a respectable 7-8 last year, but the Tide have won just two playoff games in the last nine seasons. And Spaulding failed to qualify for the postseason in 2015. Many in the Barre area hope that this year’s team will be the one to change that trend. “I’m encouraged by what I’ve seen so far this fall,” Sakash said. The Tide won their lone title in 2001 with a 2-1 victory over a Colchester team that was led by current University of Ver- mont coach Kristi Lefebvre. Spaulding has appeared in the state semifinals three times — in 2001, 2002 and 2007. Spaulding opened its season on Saturday with a 3-2 overtime loss to U-32. The game was one of two nonleague matches that the Crimson Tide will play this year, with the other being against Montpelier on Home- coming weekend for the Solons. The key to success this season for Spaulding will be defense. The Tide are led by senior backs Maddy Pletzer, Megan MacIver and Kelsey Nolan. Junior goalie Lindsay LaPan, who is a three-year starter for Spaulding, will anchor the team in net. LaPan made nine saves in Saturday’s loss. “She’s gained a lot of experience over the last couple of years and should provide us with a pretty solid backstop,” Sakash said of LaPan. Offensively, the Tide will feature return- ers Lauren Allen and Ella McCarthy and newcomers Jenna Hallstrom and Marley Ostrout, who were pulled up from the junior varsity team as strikers. Midfielders Alyssa Wilcox and Maddy Heath will be Spaulding’s main playmakers. Spaulding is made up evenly with six seniors, six juniors and six sophomores. “That’s a real nice blend,” Sakash said of the distribution. “We brought up a couple of juniors and four sophomores from the JV program.”