Cosmos surge past Terriers

SPRINGFIELD, Vt. — Hannah Crosby and Gabby Wardwell led a second-half surge as Springfield pulled away from Bellows Falls to win 58-52 at Dressel Gym on Thursday.

Locked in a back-and-forth battle that had Bellows Falls ahead 20-19 at the break, the Cosmos cut back on the turnovers, got the transition game going and rolled to their ninth win in 13 games.

Leading the rally were Crosby and Wardwell, who had 15 and 14 second-half points, respectively.

Wardwell, now a junior, never started playing basketball until the eighth grade. She was also a huge force underneath.

“You know, at 6-foot-1 you would not think she has soft hands, but when she gets her hands on the ball it’s there to stay,” said her coach Joe Costello. “Her development in the middle has been fun to watch.”

Bellows Falls coach Todd Wells was also impressed.

“She got their transition game going,” he said of Wardwell. “As a team Springfield controlled the tempo. They played well.”

It has been a good season for Bellows Falls as well, as the Terriers are 10-2. Both teams play in Division II, so while their records are solid, it is hard to get points with the schedule they have as BF entered the night in 10th place in statewide points and Springfield eighth.

There is still some magic in the rivalry, as there was a large crowd on hand on a very chilly night.

“You know this was a lot of fun,” said Crosby, “ and it is always good to beat Bellows Falls.

The foul line also helped the Cosmos, who were 16-of-28 while Springfield was 6-of-9.

If there was a turning point in the game it came with 90 seconds to go in the third quarter with Springfield clinging to a 32-31 lead. It was at this point that Crosby hit a short jumper, a 3 and two free throws as the lead was extended to 39-33 after the third quarter.

Hailey Perham also had a double-figure game for the Cosmos with 11 points. Solid for BF were Taylor Goodell with 19, Halle Dickerson with 15 and Maddie Streeter with 11.