When the Penguins of Cushing arrived at VA this afternoon to play the Wildcats, the sun was shining and the downpours of earlier in the afternoon seemed to be gone.

Having played to a 14-13 Cushing win early in April, the teams again traded goals throughout this afternoon's contest.

As the clouds moved back in, VA and Cushing were tied 10-10 with just under nine minutes to play in the second half.  VA captain and MVP Mary Beth Bashaw charged to the goal and scored VA's 11th goal at 8:43 remaining in the game.

Literally seconds later, the thunder and lightning rolled in. Both teams took shelter in VA's Chivers Center for almost an hour, hoping to play out the close game (especially for VA's five Seniors and Cushing's 14 Seniors). But that was not meant to be as the lightning persisted and heavy rain and hail moved in!

With over 80% of the game completed, the 11-10 win went to the Wildcats today.

Rachel Lundsted opened up the scoring early on; she was quickly supported by Mary Beth Bashaw who netted three goals. Amber White had four goals, Shelby Johnson had two, and Magda Blakeson had one.

Bashaw led the team in ground balls and draw controls, which proved to be the key to the game. The defense worked incredibly hard all game; Ashley Potofsky, Kaitlyn Billings, Emma Lamson, Chelsea Fowlow, and Ashli Hoser secured double teams and pressured the ball very well. Molly Brennan stood strong in goal and made 10 saves.

Congrats to Rachel, Mary Beth, Amber, Katlyn, and Emma for a great Senior Season!

'Til the End!

The VA Wildcats lost to Proctor Academy on Wednesday, 10-5. Both teams came out strong, but VA was unable to keep possession and find the net.

Shelby Johnson had another great game, scoring four out of the five VA goals. Rachel Lundsted contributed the other score. Johnson, Lundsted, Nikki Kim and Magda Blakeson were successful in scooping up the majority of the ground balls.

Freshman goalie Molly Brennan did an amazing job, making 21 saves. The defense worked incredibly hard for the entire game.

The Wildcats look forward to two more home games this week (Friday and Saturday).

VA ended the week 3-0 with a 17-4 win over Stoneleigh-Burnham on Saturday. After a slow start, the Wildcats took control of the game and never looked back. The girls played with intensity, discipline and focus.

The scoring was shared by many players. Ashli Hoser, Shelby Johnson, Mary Beth Bashaw, Molly Brennan, Johanna Winter, and Rachel Lundsted each scored twice. Kaitlin Terry, Emma Lamson, Ashley Potofsky, Amber White, and Leyte McNealus each netted one.                                                                                                                             

McNealus, White, Lamson, and Brennan were all over the ground balls. Hoser, Nikki Kim, Chelsea Fowlow, and Johnson did a great job of securing the draw.

Charlotte Murphy played a solid game in net, making seven saves.

Congrats to all the players for a tremendous week!

The Wildcats traveled to Tilton on Friday, May 13th to make up a game from earlier in the season. The 11-8 VA victory extends the Wildcats' winning streak to three (with four wins overall so far).

The Rams tallied the first goal of the game, but then the Wildcats took over, leading by a score of 4-1 with just under three minutes to play in the first half. Tilton scored one more goal to leave the score at 4-2 at halftime on a warm spring afternoon. The second half was more balanced. VA scored seven more goals and Tilton had six.

Keys to VA's success today were feisty defensive play all over the field, balanced attack (with five different players scoring), and great goaltending by Molly Brennan (14 saves).

Shelby Johnson led the Wildcats with three goals, seven ground balls, and several key defensive plays. Amber White led the goal scoring with four; also notching goals today were Ashli Hoser (1), Mary Beth Bashaw (2), and Ashley Potofsy (1). Potofsky, Chelsea Fowlow, and Emma Lamson were key on defense, making several good slides to double teams.

The remainder of VA's games are HOME, so please come out and cheer on the Wildcats. Stoneleigh-Burham comes to VA for a 1pm game on Saturday, May 14th.  The Wildcats will have a re-match with Proctor next Wednesday, May 18th.

VA worked hard to secure a win over Miss Hall’s on Wednesday, 16-12.  On a beautiful, sunny day, the Wildcats came out ready to play. Senior co-captain Mary Beth Bashaw opened up the scoring in the first fifteen seconds; she netted two more over the course of the game. Junior Shelby Johnson came up big again today, scoring five goals. Senior co-captain Rachel Lundsted played through illness and scored four goals. Other VA goals came from Amber White and Ashli Hoser.

Draw control was the key to the game; the Wildcats secured 21 draws. Every player on the field contributed to ground balls. Ashley Potofsky was instrumental in tough, patient defense and draw controls.

Molly Brennan was solid in goal, making 16 saves.

Congrats to the Wildcats on a great win!

The Wildcats traveled to the Dublin School today and came away with a decisive 12-5 victory. The coaches were proud of the girls' passing, ground balls and draw controls. Also of note was the fact that six different VA players scored.

Amber White and Shelby Johnson led the scoring today with three goals each. Captain Mary Beth Bashaw and freshman Molly Brennan each had two goals. Rounding out the scoring were Ashley Potofsky and Johanna Winter with one goal each. Equally strong on defense, Potofsky led in ground balls (7). Also capitalizing on the ground balls were Chelsea Fowlow, Leyte McNealus, and Shelby Johnson. In goal, Charlotte Murphy had 6 saves.

VA looks forward to playing at home again this coming Wednesday, May 11 vs. Miss Hall's.

Vermont Academy fell to KUA today, 9-4. On a beautiful, sunny day at VA, our opponent proved too tough to handle. Mary Beth Bashaw scored both VA first half goals, and Rachel Lundsted and Amber White each netted a goal in the second half. Bashaw made two interceptions, and she and Lundsted were integral in getting the draws and ground balls.

Leyte McNealus played hard on attack and secured eight ground balls, White had five, and Shelby Johnson also scooped up five ground balls. Emma Lamson, Ashley Potofsky, and Chelsea Fowlow were solid and tough on defense. Molly Brennan stepped up in goal and made an amazing 17 saves.

The Wildcats notched their first win of the season in an incredible game against Brewster Academy on Wednesday. On a rainy, grey day, VA was victorious 16-14. Shelby Johnson opened the game with four straight goals. She was quickly supported by her teammates at both ends of the field. The game was fast paced and closely contested for 50 minutes.

Johnson netted two more over the course of the game. Amber White had two goals, Mary Beth Bashaw scored five, and Rachel Lundsted had three. The Wildcats worked hard all over the field to secure the draw and play tough, tight defense. Congrats to goalie Molly Brennan for making twelve saves. Emma Lamson, Chelsea Fowlow, Ashley Potofsky all played their hearts out at low defense.

Congrats on a great win! VA looks forward to another home game on Friday against KUA at 4:30.

The Wildcats were unable to slow down the Huskies on a beautiful Saturday in New Hampton. The final score was 16-2. After a few early shots, VA was held scoreless until Johanna Winter netted her first goal of the season. Amber White scored the lone VA goal in the second half.

The Wildcats were unable to control the draw or seal the double teams, but they continued to fight and play tough defense all game. Molly Brennan stepped up in goal, making 13 saves. Mary Beth Bashaw was a leader on the field with four ground balls and three interceptions.  White had seven ground balls.

The Wildcats look forward to hosting Brewster and KUA this coming week.

After first playing BUHS in early April on a cold and rainy night at Keene State, the Wildcats were excited to host the Colonels on a warm, sunny afternoon.  While the first half was not beautiful lacrosse for either team, VA and Brattleboro fought fairly evenly in the first half. In the second half, VA had fewer fouls, but the Wildcats still struggled with taking care of the ball and came up short with a 10-9 loss.

Molly Brennan played in the goal for the first half, making five saves; Charlotte Murphy resumed her role in the second half and made three saves. Mary Beth Bashaw led the Wildcats in every statistic--draw controls, ground ball possessions, shots on goal, and goals.

Also instrumental to the Wildcats, all over the field, were Rachel Lundsted (two goal, five ground balls) and Amber White (five ground balls, two interceptions). Personal best games were had by Ashli Hoser (one goal), Leyte McNealus (two ground balls), and Chelsea Fowlow (two ground balls).

VA hits the road for a Lakes Region game at New Hampton - 12noon on Saturday, April 30th.

The Wildcats' scheduled rematch vs. Cushing was postponed today due to conditions which made the fields unplayable. A possible make-up date is Friday, May 20th.  Check back for confirmation of that date.

The Vermont Academy girls lost to Holderness today, 18-5. It was a tough game on a cold day, but the Wildcats fought hard. VA did a great job with ground balls and draw controls throughout the game, and Charlotte Murphy made nine saves in net. Mary Beth Bashaw and Shelby Johnson each scored two goals and Rachel Lundsted had one. Amber White had one assist on the day. We commend Holderness on a game well played and are looking forward to our first home game on Saturday.

On another cold, blustery day, the VA Wildcats traveled to Bennington, VT to take on the Patriots of Mt. Anthony Regional High School. Not a league game, the Wildcats were able to take advantage of the opportunity to try out players in different positions. Mt. Anthony's different style of play also allowed us to work on positioning and game strategy. We struggled to find our groove in the first half, but sticking to specific team goals for the second half, the Wildcats rallied to a respectable 16-10 defeat against a talented Patriots squad.

VA is looking forward to returning to Lakes Region league play at Holderness on Wednesday, April 20th.

The good news is that the Wildcats of VA were able to play their first game on grass this past Saturday; the bad news is that the arctic conditions were crippling!  Despite an early lead and commanding defense which put Proctor on its heals, VA came up short in the end. Until about mid-way through the second half, the game was back and forth. A lack of depth, and the tough conditions, put VA down by 3 late in the second half. Despite great offensive (and defensive) efforts from Mary Beth, Rachel and Amber, the game ended in favor of Proctor, 10-6.  The Wildcats look forward to a re-match with Proctor in a few weeks!

On Saturday, April 9 the Vermont Academy Girls’ Lacrosse Team traveled to Cushing Academy. The VA team worked hard and brought intensity throughout the game. The first score was for Cushing in the first three minutes, but VA responded with three goals. The scores went back and forth. The first half ended with VA 6 – Cushing 7. After a short half time, VA was back on the field and ready to play. The team played a little too ferociously which resulted in many fouls on VA’s part. With a minute to go, VA was able tie the score. Unfortunately, with 37 seconds to go Cushing scored the final goal. The final score was VA 13 - Cushing 14.

Marybeth Bashaw and Shelby Johnson led the team in scores with four goals each. Amber White scored three goals and Rachel Lundsted and Ashli Hoser each scored one goal. Rachel Lundsted and Amber White achieved the most ground ball and draw controls. Overall, VA had 32 ground ball controls and 13 draw controls.

The Wildcats travelled to the Williston Northampton School play day on Saturday.

In the first game, VA fell to Wilbraham & Munson. Our opponent did a great job of controlling the game and applied constant defensive pressure.

The Wildcats competed with Miss Porters in the second game and unfortunately lost 9-7. VA did an amazing job of coming back from a five goal deficit in the first half. The second half was back and forth with both teams finding offensive success. Draw controls were the key to the game, and these were also closely contested.

Goals came from MaryBeth Bashaw (’11), Rachel Lundsted (’11), Amber White (’11), Shelby Johnson (’12), and Ashli Hoser (’11). Charlotte Murphy was solid in net in both games.

The VA Wildcats opened their season with a rainy scrimmage under the lights at Keene State College against Brattleboro High School. VA did a great job adjusting to the game and fought hard to a 10-6 loss. The veteran players did a great job leading the team, and the new players were tenacious and adventurous.

The Wildcats look forward to seeing Brattleboro again later in the season.