Otter boys to face Woodstock in semis

The Otter Valley boys varsity basketball team advanced to the Vermont Division II playoffs semifinal round with Saturday's quarterfinal win over visiting Vergennes. 

The Otters play next on the big stage of Barre Auditorium, Monday, March 2, at 8:15 p.m. Their opponent will be the undefeated Wasps of Woodstock.

Otters fans can purchase a limited number of tickets for the event. Fourteen balcony seats ($8 each) and 350 general admission seats ($7 adult, $4 students and seniors) are available. Tickets will be on sale at the activity director's office in Otter Valley Union High School in Brandon from noon to 2 p.m. Sunday (just before the final performances of Walking Stick Theatre One-Act Plays) and from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Tickets also will be available during the school day on Monday. Purchasers are asked to bring cash for their tickets.

The battle between Otter Valley and Vergennes began at 2 p.m. on Saturday in Brandon. OV Principal Jim Avery tweeted updates from the game. He noted that the Commodores were up by 19-14 at the half and by 29-28 with just six minutes left in the game. At 3:30 p.m., Principal Avery tweeted the come-from-behind Otter victory: "48-39 We are going to the Aud!!!! Great effort by both teams. So much to be proud of. #OVpride #classygamefrombothteams"

Otter Valley (16-6) last faced Woodstock (21-0) on Feb. 11. That game did not go well for the visiting Otters, who lost by a score 64-36, though it featured senior forward John Winslow's 1,000th career point. 

Otters basketball enters postseason

The fourth-ranked Otter Valley High School boys basketball team (14-6) hosts the No. 13 Harwood Union High School Highlanders (4-16) in a Division II postseason "playdown" tonight. Doors open for the event at 6:20 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and $4 for students and senior citizens. 

John Winslow
(Addison Independent 2014)

The Otters are led by senior forward John Winslow (2014 Addison Independent Player of the Year), who has surpassed the 1,000-point mark in his high school hoops career.

The Otters-Highlanders winner will likely move on to face No. 5 Vergennes (13-7), expected victor of a playdown against 6-14 Hartford.

The division's top regular season team, 20-0 Woodstock, seems likely to advance at least to the semifinals at Barre Auditorium on March 2. The Otters may meet the Woodstock Wasps there, if they can manage two postseason wins.

UPDATE (Feb. 26, 2015): MOVING ON - The Otters defeated Harwood in the play-down game by a score of 45-27 and advance to face Vergennes in a quarterfinal game at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 28. Vergennes came out on top, 68-53, in its play-down against Hartford.

The winner of the Otter Valley-Vergennes matchup will move on to a March 2 semifinal game at Barre Auditorium. The opponent will be the winner of Friday's quarterfinal game between top-ranked Woodstock (20-0) and eighth-ranked Mill River (10-11). Mill River advanced to the quarterfinal round after a 62-55 play-down win against Milton.

Otter Valley and Vergennes did not play each other this season. Otter Valley faced Woodstock on Feb. 11. The game did not go well for the visiting Otters, who lost by a score 64-36, though it featured John Winslow's 1,000th career point.

Football Otters advance to championship game

The football Otters will face Bellows Free Academy in the Division III championship game at Rutland this Saturday, Nov. 8. The game will be played at 2 p.m. at Rutland High School.

QB John Winslow
(Burlington Free Press)

The Division III championship will be sandwiched between two other football championship games. The Division II title will be decided in an 11 a.m. matchup between Rice and Fair Haven. Middlebury and St. Johnsbury will compete for the Division I championship at 5 p.m. Separate admission - $7 for adults, $4 for students and seniors - will be charged for each game. Parking is limited. A shuttlebus will transport attendees from the Home Depot parking lot to the high school.

The top-ranked Otter Valley Union High School Otters defeated the visiting Windsor Yellowjackets, 43-14, in the semifinal playoff round last weekend. The Otters only loss of the 2014 season was a one-point heart-breaker in a non-division matchup against Fair Haven in Week 1. The Bullets of Bellows Free Academy, seeded second in the playoffs, blanked the visiting Mount Abraham Eagles, 14-0, last weekend.

The Otters team bus is scheduled to depart from Otter Valley Union High School at 11:15 a.m. on Saturday. Before heading south to the game site, the bus will travel north on Route 7 and loop around downtown Brandon. Fans in Brandon are encouraged to greet the team as it passes. [Update: This circle around Brandon has been removed from the team bus schedule. The bus will proceed directly to Rutland after leaving the school.]

The game will be available for online viewing through the NFHS Network (www.nfhsnetwork.com). This is a subscription service. A 24-hour pass can be purchased for $9.99.

Congratulations to Otter athletes

The football and field hockey squads of Otter Valley Union High School in Brandon, VT, finished at the top of the regular season standings this fall and moved on into the playoffs.

The football Otters posted an unblemished 5-0 Division III record in the 2014 regular season and suffered just one narrow loss through eight games overall. That lone loss was a season-opening one-point defeat at Division II Fair Haven. The Otters led their division in regular season scoring, despite playing in one less game overall than other top division teams. The last time the football Otters finished at the top of the standings was in 2005.

Entering the postseason with the Division III top seed, the Otters defeated visiting Poultney on Saturday by a score of 41-21. At 1 p.m., Nov. 1, the Otters will host fourth-seed Windsor in the  playoffs' semifinal matchup. Windsor advanced with a 47-20 quarterfinal win over U-32.

(In the other Division III football quarterfinal games, second-ranked Fairfax defeated Woodstock, 34-22, and third-ranked Mill River fell to visiting Mount Abraham, 20-15. Mt. Abraham was seeded sixth in the playoffs.)

The Otters field hockey team finished the regular season with a perfect 7-0 Division II record and an overall record of 11-2. This is the second consecutive year the Otters have finished atop the regular season standings.

The team entered the postseason as Division II's second-seed, behind 13-1 Rice. On Friday the team shut out the seventh-seeded Mount Abraham Eagles, 1-0, to advance to the Division II semifinal game to be held in Castleton State College's Spartan Stadium this afternoon (Oct. 27).

The Otters have won five field hockey championships in their history. The team's last state championship was in 1999.

Otters notch fourth blowout win

BRANDON, VT, Oct. 19, 2013 - The Otter Valley High School varsity football team completed a 5-2 regular season (5-1 division record) with a 48-7 victory over the visiting Oxbow Olympians on Saturday afternoon at Markowski Field in Brandon. It was the fourth consecutive blowout win for the Otters, who outscored opponents 237-63 during that stretch.

Otter Valley led Oxbow 14-0 after the first quarter and added 21 more points before halftime. The score was 48-0 in the final quarter, when the Otters JV went in to finish up, allowing an Oxbow touchdown and PAT.

The Otters concluded their regular season with a 3-1 record at home. (Their only home loss was a 36-20 season-opening defeat against Division II opponent Fair Haven.) Oxbow, 3-5 overall, did not have a win on the road in four tries this season.

Otters varsity football regular season 2013:
1. Loss 36-20 vs Fair Haven-Div II (0-1)
2. Win 42-14 vs Bellows Free (1-1)
3. Loss 33-12 at Mill River (1-2)
4. Win 77-24 vs Mt. St. Joseph (2-2)
5. Win 65-13 at Poultney (3-2)
6. Win 47-19 at Winooski (4-2)
7. Win 48-7 vs Oxbow (5-2).

Otter Valley Boys Soccer Schedule 2013

Otter Valley Football Schedule 2013

OTTERS WIN!

Otter Valley secures its first 
state baseball title since '76

Otter pitcher Patterson retires 17 in a row

The Otter Valley Union High School baseball team has defeated top-ranked Burr & Burton Academy to take the 2013 Division 2 state title. It is Otter Valley's first baseball championship since 1976.

The Otters celebrate with the state championship plaque.

Otter starting pitcher Brett Patterson was dominant, tossing a one-hit complete game shutout. The Burr & Burton Bulldogs, who have appeared in three of the last four state championship games without winning a title, managed just two baserunners against Otter Valley.

The Otters erupted for six runs in the third inning, which proved to be more than sufficient. They added a single run in the fifth inning, as Jim Winslow, who doubled to lead off and was sacrificed to third, scored on a Bulldog wild pitch. Two more runs were added in the sixth. John Winslow led off with a walk, stole second and scored on a Lonergan triple. Lonergan then scored on another Bulldog wild pitch.

Patterson shut the door on the Bulldogs early and retired the last 17 Burr & Burton batters he faced. The game's last batter went to a full count and then took a called strike on the outside corner.

After the game, the Otters receive individual medals.

Burr & Burton was top seeded in the Division 2 postseason. However, Otter Valley, which was ranked second, had a better overall record and had beaten Burr & Burton, 8-1, during the regular season. Heading into the championship game, no Burr & Burton postseason opponent had scored a run.

A large crowd of Otter supporters attended the championship game, played at Burlington's Centennial Field.


In  1  2  3  4  5  6  7 

OV  0  0  6  0  1  2  0
BB  0  0  0  0  0  0  0

    R   H   E

OV  9   9   0
BB  0   1   1

Photos are screen captures from live game coverage provided by NSNsports.net

Otters are one win from baseball title

The Otter Valley Union High School baseball team will face top-ranked Burr & Burton Academy tomorrow night in the Division 2 state championship game. The game begins at 7 p.m. at Burlington's Centennial Field.

The Otters, seeded second in the Division 2 postseason, defeated the Lamoille Lancers, 8-1, in Wednesday's semi-final game. Starting pitcher Justin Owen fanned ten lancers in the victory. At 18-1 for the year, OVUHS is poised to take the division title. The Otters were victorious against the Burr & Burton Bulldogs when the teams squared off in the regular season.

GO OTTERS!

Otters LAX defeats Randolph

The Otter Valley Union High School varsity boys lacrosse team defeated visiting Randolph Union by a score of 15-2 yesterday afternoon. The victory was the first of the season for the varsity Otters.

SLATERS 36, Otters 27

The Otter Valley Union High School varsity football team dropped to 2-7 after a season-ending 36-27 loss to the Fair Haven Slaters last night. The Otters lost six consecutive games after starting the season 2-1. Fair Haven improved to 5-4 with the victory.

The final game of the Vermont Division II regular season will be played this afternoon, when the undefeated Green Knights of Rice Memorial High School visit the 5-3 Lyndon Institute Vikings. Lyndon Institute has lost three games in a row but has a stingy defense comparable to that of Rice. Heading into that final game, the Division II Standings look like this:

Team Name	Wins	Losses
Rice Green Knights	8*	0
Bellows Falls Terriers	8	1
Burr&Burton Bulldogs	6	3
Milton Yellowjackets	6	3
Lyndon Institute Vikings	5*	3
Fair Haven Slaters	5	4
Otter Valley Otters	2	7
Union-32 Raiders	2	7
Springfield Cosmos	1	8
North Country Falcons	0	9

(* Teams have one more game to play.)

TERRIERS 54, Otters 21

The visiting Bellows Falls Union High School Terriers defeated the Otter Valley Union High School varsity football team, 54-21, yesterday afternoon at Brandon's Markowski Field. It was the fifth consecutive loss for the Otters and the third time in the past four games that the opposition has won by a margin of more than four touchdowns.

Otters quarterback John Winslow launched two long touchdown passes to receiver Brett Patterson in the game. But the Otters were overpowered by Bellows Falls' ground attack. Two Terrier ballcarriers each generated more than 200 yards of offense. Three Terriers scored two or more touchdowns on the ground.

Bellows Falls improves to 7-1 with the win and is scheduled to complete the regular season next week against the Springfield High School Cosmos. A Cosmos forfeit and a final Bellows Falls record of 8-1 are assured. The Springfield team began forfeiting games in mid-September after starting the season with two big losses and a number of injuries. (Springfield was outscored 108-6 in losses to Otter Valley and Fair Haven.) Springfield High School announced that the rest of the Division II varsity schedule had been canceled, but ten days ago rearranged the schedule to include a varsity contest against winless Montpelier.

Otter Valley, 2-6, is schedule to conclude its season on the road Friday night against the Fair Haven Slaters. The Slaters are 4-4 on the season after defeating Union-32, 40-32, yesterday.

Otters varsity hosts Bellows Falls

After four straight losses, the 2-5 Otter Valley Union High School varsity football team is taking on the Bellows Falls Union High School Terriers today at Markowski Field in Brandon.

The Terriers are in second place in Vermont Division II, behind undefeated Rice Memorial. Winners of five straight, the Bellows Falls Terriers have scored 246 points this season, while permitting just 128.

After a strong defensive start to the season, the Otters have been abused lately. They have scored just 125 points on the season, while allowing 187.

BULLDOGS 60, Otters 25

The Burr and Burton Academy offense proved too strong for the Otter Valley Union High School varsity football team yesterday afternoon. The Burr and Burton Bulldogs left Brandon with a 60-25 victory over a stunned Otters team. It was the most lopsided game Otter Valley's gridders have played this year and their most points allowed on the season.

Burr and Burton improved to 4-3 overall with the win, while the Otters fell to 2-5. After strong showings in losses against highly regarded teams the previous two weeks, the Otters had been expected to take advantage of the defensively challenged Bulldogs.

The Otters close their home season next Saturday, battling the 6-1 Bellows Falls Union High School Terriers. The final game of the Otters season will be on the road, Oct. 26, against the Fair Haven Union Slaters.

Otters host Bulldogs this afternoon

The 2-4 Otter Valley Union High School varsity football team plays host to the 3-3 Bulldogs of Burr and Burton Academy one o'clock this afternoon at Markowski Field in Brandon.

While Burr and Burton sits a notch above the Otters in the standings, the Bulldogs are not quite the caliber of team the Otters have been playing lately. Two weeks ago, Otter Valley hosted Division I powerhouse Middlebury, and last week the Otter gridders traveled to Division II leader Rice Memorial. The Otters proved a tough opponent for even the highly regarded Rice but slipped to 2-4 on the season with the 14-6 defeat.

That the Otters found ways to score against the stingy defenses of Middlebury and Rice makes them the favorite to defeat the defensively challenged Bulldogs today. In Vermont's Division II, only one team has allowed more points (through six games) this season than the 190 permitted by Burr and Burton's defense. The North Country Union Falcons gave up 263 points while going 0-6. (The Falcons dismal season continued in their seventh game last night with a 53-0 loss against Woodstock.)

Yet the Bulldog offense remains a concern. Burr and Burton has been generating a lot of points, 201 so far this year, and managed to edge a strong Lyndon Institute team, 32-38, last week. The Bulldogs other wins this season have come against the winless Springfield Cosmos and the Division I cellar-dwelling Mount Anthony Patriots.

Otters JV battles Minutemen to a 20-20 tie

The Otter Valley Union High School junior varsity football team battled the visiting Mill River Union Minutemen to a 20-20 tie in Brandon this afternoon. After bouncing back from an early deficit, the Otters dominated much of the action and held an eight point lead late in the game. A turnover, a pair of injuries and a costly penalty helped the Minutemen to a touchdown in the final minutes. A successful Mill River two-point conversion knotted the score for good.

The JV Otters are now 3-2-1 on the season. They will host the Poultney High School Blue Devils in the final home game of the season next Monday afternoon. The JV's final game of the year will be Oct. 22 at Woodstock Union.

The Otters QB Collin Eugair prepares to pass against the Minuteman defense.

Otters JV hosts Mill River Union

The Otter Valley Union High School junior varsity football team hosts the Mill River Union Minutemen this afternoon at 4 o'clock. The JV Otters are 3-2 on the season. Mill River Union is a Division III school.

GREEN KNIGHTS 14, Otters 6

The league standings don't reflect moral victories, but the Otter Valley Union High School varsity football team notched one yesterday afternoon.

The Otters fell to the undefeated Rice Memorial Green Knights by a score of 14-6. Until that game, Rice Memorial had been outscoring its opponents by an average of better than 29 to 3. The Green Knights had given up just two TDs through the first five games of the season.

The Otters slip to 2-4 on the season, while the Green Knights improve to 6-0.

Otter Valley will earn its third win of the season next Saturday afternoon, when the green and gold Burr & Burton Bulldogs come to Markowski Field in Brandon.

TIGERS 35, Otters 6

We noted in our preview that the Middlebury Union High School Tigers were highly motivated to play a strong non-conference game against the Otter Valley Union High School Otters. The Tigers certainly did play a strong game against the Otters varsity football team at Brandon's Markowski Field yesterday, winning 35-6.

Aside from attendance, there were few bright spots in the game for the smaller Otter hosts. However, it must be noted that Division II Otter Valley fared just a bit better than one of Middlebury's Division I opponents this season (Middlebury defeated Mount Anthony, 41-6, two weeks ago).

The game result drops Otter Valley to an overall record of 2-3 and improves Middlebury to 3-2.

The contest against Middlebury should be good preparation for next week, when the Otters visit South Burlington to take on the undefeated, division-leading Green Knights of Rice Memorial High School. Rice, now 5-0, defeated Division I Burlington, 16-8, on Friday and has surrendered a total of only 14 points this season while scoring 147. In a similar matchup earlier this season, the Otters were shut out, 16-0, by Lyndon Institute (also 5-0 this year, with 131 points scored and 16 points allowed).

Middlebury gridders to visit OVUHS

Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m., the Otter Valley High School varsity football team hosts the Tigers of Middlebury, the only Division I opponent on the Otters' 2012 schedule. The game will be played at Markowski Field in Brandon.

The Middlebury Union High School Tigers are a perennial Division I powerhouse (7-3 in '09, 10-1 in '10 and 9-2 in '11), who have struggled at times this year. The Tigers trounced defensive pushovers Mt. Mansfield, 28-6, and Mount Anthony, 41-6, in Weeks 1 and 3 of the season. However, they lost very close contests to Essex and Rutland in Weeks 2 and 4.

(Division I is led by the Hartford High School Hurricanes and the Essex High School Hornets, both 4-0. Essex narrowly defeated Middlebury, 21-20, in Week 2 of the season. Hartford and Middlebury are not scheduled to face each other in the 2012 regular season.)

Defense has been Middlebury's strength. The 2-2 Tigers have allowed only 48 total points through the frst four games. Coming off a painful 15-13 loss to Rutland last Friday night, the Tigers will be highly motivated to capitalize on Saturday's matchup with the Division II Otters.

Otter Valley, also 2-2, had been turning in good defensive performances of its own until last week's game against Milton, in which the Otters surrendered a season-high 38 points. Before that contest, the Otters had been allowing just 13 points per game. That figure shot up to 19.5 after the Milton contest.

The Otters have not ranked among the top scoring teams in their division. Through four games, they are averaging 22 points. However, their scoring numbers are held back a bit by a Week 2 shutout by Lyndon Institute. Ignoring that game brings their per-game total up by more than a touchdown.