By Tom Haley
RUTLAND HERALD
It’s the new and the old at Springfield Dressel Gym this season.
Pete Peck returns as the coach of Springfield girls basketball team and so do most of his players from last season.
There is a new sheriff in town on the boys side. Mike Byrne takes the reins from Mike Hatt.
Byrne grew up in the high school basketball hotbed of Indiana.
He loves the game. He lives in Brandon and makes the commute each day to coach in Dressel Gym.
The girls
Peck will carry 10 players on the varsity including three seniors: Megan Stagner, Gabby Anders and Kayla Quelch.
The best player on the team could wind up being the lone freshman Macie Stagner.
“She puts a lot of time into it. She has traveled across the country playing AAU basketball,” Peck said.
The junior class is represented by Malia Findlay, Lexi Tewksbury, Jillian Muther, Maddie Clark and Persephone Steele.
Lexi Coutermarsh is a sophomore.
Peck likes the experience that all the returning players provide.
“We hit the ground running. I am pleased with where we are at,” he said.
“We should be competitive in most nights.”
The opener is on Dec. 10 at Long Trail School in Dorset.
The Cosmos intend to mix up the defenses, playing both man and zone.
They have some good size with Steele a 6-footer and several players between 5-foot-8 and 5-foot-10.
Steele saw some varsity minutes last season but Peck said she will be stepping into a bigger role.
“The numbers are OK. We have 18 players out which isn’t great but it is manageable,” Peck said. “We will have a couple of players who swing between JV and varsity.”
The Cosmos will prepare for the opener with a scrimmage against Rutland in Springfield on Saturday and another scrimmage at Leland & Gray the following Tuesday.
The boys
Byrne likes a lot of what he has seen during his first week of practice.
“I think we are very quick and very athletic,” Byrne said.
“We don’t have bad size for Vermont. Our tallest guy is probably 6-foot-2 but we have a lot of guys around 6-foot.
“They are very good athletes, some of them are first or second team All-State in football.”
One of those football players is quarterback Sam Presch. He will likely play the equivalent of quarterback on the basketball floor as Byrne is eyeing him as the starting point guard.
Chris Jeffers is another football standout on the roster.
Logan Webster did not play basketball last season so his appearance has been a bonus.
“He is a nice little addition. He might be at center. He can jump out of the gym,” Byrne said.
Garet Twombly and Tristan Parker round out the five seniors.
Juniors include Brady Perham, Tanner Gintof and Owen Babcock.
Rounding out the roster are sophomores Luke Stocker and Mason Leonard.
“We also have some really nice freshmen talent,” Byrne said.
He plans to have a JV team and move some of the freshmen up to the varsity throughout the year.
Byrne has been pushing the Cosmos hard.
“I have been working their butts off. I don’t know if they have ever been put through a workout like this but the kids have been great,” he said.
Byrne will be able to evaluate his players on Saturday against the Stevens High Cardinals and on Tuesday the Cosmos will travel to Leland & Gray for another scrimmage.
The season tips off with the real thing on Dec. 11 at 2:30 p.m. at home against Arlington.
There are 19 teams in Division II and the Cosmos have been one of the few teams not making the 16-team tournament field the last couple of years.
“We are aiming to change that. Our goal is to make the tournament,” Byrne said.
Notes
Byrne succeeds Mike Hatt. Hatt’s son Cody Hatt is an assistant coach for the Marquette University men’s basketball team. … Byrne has a son in the Otter Valley basketball program. … The Cosmos last won a state crown in boys basketball in 2009 when they swamped Vergennes 59-31 in the Division II state title game. … The Springfield girls program has never won a state championship but the Cosmos did make it to the Barre Auditorium in 2019 where they endured a 39-35 loss to Fair Haven in the semifinal game.
tom.haley @rutlandherald.com
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