On Thursday, March 15, the #1-seeded Windsor boys basketball team will be taking on Thetford Academy in the semi-finals at the “Aud” in Barre. If all goes according to plan, the boys will play for the championship in Division 3 on Saturday, in hopes of following in the Windsor girls’ footsteps. On Saturday, March 10th, the girls wrapped up their championship run with a 51-34 victory over Thetford Academy. Much of the boys’ team was in attendance, cheering on the girls as they watched them defeat Thetford, ending in a celebratory pig-pile at center-court. Now, it’s the boy’s time to go dancing.
I reached out to Adam Stapleton, Seth Balch, and Dakota Page, all seniors for the Yellowjackets, regarding their upcoming trip to Barre.
On the upcoming semifinal game, Page said, “It’s always very exciting to go to Barre and play there because of the energy the gym always has.” Stapleton added, “…Especially when it’s with a group of guys you’ve been with for years.” Balch chimed in, saying, “It feels great to move on to Barre again this year, especially since the last two years we failed to execute. So with this team, there’s a chip on our shoulder and we’re going to carry that with us until we’re done.”
The Yellowjackets’ opponent, #5-seeded Thetford Academy, is 15-7 on the season and coming off an upset over Hazen Union HS. The Windsor boys know that Thetford is going to put up a fight. Balch said, “We know Thetford is a very well coached team with some talented players. They play hard the whole game and they don’t give you anything easy.” Page added, “We know Thetford plays with a lot of energy and can hit outside shots if we leave them open, so we just have to match the energy that they come with and make sure we play defense the way we want to.” Stapleton, also aware of Thetford’s ability on the floor, said, “… you can’t take any team lightly and they made it here for a reason so hopefully we can take care of things and move on to Saturday.”
This group of seniors has been together for four years now, and they have lost in the semis the last two years at Barre. Last year, they lost to the eventual champs, Williamstown HS, who is currently in the semis on the other side of the bracket.
On his teams’ experience, Stapleton said, “We have come up short in the past but with that came experience that other teams like Thetford might not have.”
This group is on its last hoorah, and Page knows this, saying, “…this being the seniors’ last ride together makes it even more special for me.”
These boys hope to build on what the girls’ team accomplished on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Barre Auditorium on Thursday.
By Kameron Towle, sports editor
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