Sports

Montpelier wins 2nd straight D-II title

By Adam Aucoin
RUTLAND HERALD
BARRE, Vt. — The Montpelier boys basketball team can change the complexion of a game in the matter of minutes. One minute, a team is hanging around with the Solons, and the next, they’re wondering what just hit them.

Second-seeded Montpelier put that on display in both of its games in the Division II Final Four. In Sunday’s D-II state championship game, the Solons created some distance in the third quarter and didn’t look back, besting No. 5 Mount St. Joseph 66-39 at Barre Auditorium.

It was Montpelier’s second straight D-II title in its third trip in a row to the state championship game. The Solons were the definition of dominance this winter, going 23-1. Their lone loss was to three-time defending Division I champion Rice.

“It’s so incredible,” said Solons coach Nick Foster. “It’s not just the kids on the floor, but also the kids in the stands that set the stage for what we’re able to do as a group. This has been four or five years that our kids and our program have really committed to basketball and it’s so much fun.”

The Montpelier fans were raucous all game long and cherished the final minutes, where it was clear the Solons were set to repeat.

“Last year, we won but there weren’t fans (at Barre Auditorium). It felt great, but it didn’t feel as good as this,” said Montpelier’s Rashid Nikiema. “Everyone was cheering us on. It felt great to get all the fan support and bring a title back to Montpelier.”

The Mounties hung around with Montpelier for much of the first half. MSJ went on a 6-0 run in the first quarter that pushed it ahead 6-2 and led for solid stretch of the frame.

It wasn’t until the latter stages of the first that Montpelier grabbed its first lead since its opening bucket. Ronnie Riby-Williams scored in the paint off a nifty feed from Jonah Cattaneo. Nikiema scored the ensuing two baskets to put Montpelier up seven.

The Mounties didn’t grab the lead back, but responded to keep the game close as the half progressed. MSJ was within one late in the second quarter, but a 7-0 run — capped by a putback at the buzzer by Riby-Williams — sent the Solons into the locker room up seven.

“Thank god for Ronnie. We felt like we didn’t play great in the first half,” Nikiema said. “We felt like we played great defense, but we didn’t do anything great offensively.”

That mini run to end the second quarter was a sign of things to come after the break.

A Will Bruzzese corner 3 pushed Montpelier’s lead to double figures midway through the third and an 8-0 run capped by Bruzzese and Cattaneo 3s pushed the Solons advantage after three.

After MSJ scored the first three points of the fourth, Montpelier went on a 12-0 run. From there, the outcome was not in doubt.

“They just made shots. Did they miss in the second half?” said Mounties coach Chris Charbonneau. “My guys worked hard and played hard all the way to the end.”

Montpelier was in sync throughout the second half. It started with a stout defensive effort and translated to the offensive end.

“We talk about wanting to get a stop, a score and a stop,” Foster said. “When we do that, it starts a run.”

Elite teams have a way of getting others to pick up the slack when one teammate is contained.

Cattaneo, Montpelier’s leading scorer, was held to just five points in the first half, and his teammate Nikiema led the charge instead. Cattaneo eventually found his way and scored seven of his 15 points in the fourth, but the consistent effort of Nikiema was a through-line for the Solon victory.

Nikiema was aggressive offensively, racking up 26 points and was dominant on the boards with 13 rebounds. He added multiple steals and blocks for good measure.

Just being on the court wasn’t a guarantee for the senior. Early in the first, Nikiema rolled his ankle and was out for a few minutes, before returning.

“That’s the best I’ve seen him play,” Charbonneau said. “Hats off to him. He got every rebound and he made shots.”

“Rashid has done that all year for us,” Foster said. “He’ll make big shots. He’ll finish at the rim. He’s really improved his interior presence as a shot blocker and a defender. That’s a big task to ask him to defend (MSJ center) Jake Williams and carry the load offensively.”

Williams led MSJ with 10 points, followed by nine from Andre Prunty, who reached 1,000 career points in the state semifinals against North Country. Owen Traynor and Peter Carlson added seven points apiece.

Prunty, Williams and Carlson are set to turn their tassels in the spring.

Behind Nikiema and Cattaneo, scoring was balanced for Montpelier. Will Bruzzese and freshman Carson Cody both knocked down two 3s for six points apiece, while Riby-Williams also had six. Carter Bruzzese had five points.

The most dominant team in the regular season doesn’t always win the state title. Take Division IV Rivendell for example. It was the team that knocked off the Raptors in the semifinals, Blue Mountain, that went home as D-IV champs on Sunday.

Montpelier was arguably the most dominant club Division II had to offer this winter and Sunday afternoon stamped the Solons’ place in history with the eighth title for the program.

The last and only other time Montpelier won back-to-back state championships before Sunday was in 1925 and 1926 in Division I. In 1925, the Solons beat Rutland 22-19, and in 1926, they cruised past rival Spaulding 41-17.

Nearly a century later, Montpelier made the short trip home from the venerable Barre Auditorium with a similar feeling.

“We’re cemented forever,” Nikiema said. “We’re never going to forget this. This is something we worked so hard for.”

adam.aucoin @rutlandherald.com

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