H.S. playoffs for Wednesday, May 31

DIVISION I St. Johnsbury 49, Burlington-South Burlington 7 Hartford 21, Brattleboro 0 Middlebury 27, Mt. Anthony 19 DIVISION II U-32 13, Mt. Mansfield 6 CROSS-DIVISION BFA-St. Albans 28, Colchester 25 North Country 43, Woodstock 28 Spaulding 31, Oxbow 14

DIVISION I St. Johnsbury 49, Burlington-South Burlington 7 Hartford 21, Brattleboro 0 Middlebury 27, Mt. Anthony 19 DIVISION II U-32 13, Mt. Mansfield 6 CROSS-DIVISION BFA-St. Albans 28, Colchester 25 North Country 43, Woodstock 28 Spaulding 31, Oxbow 14

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - We are closing in on the end of September, which at the college level means its almost time to drop the puck. UVM brought back its in-person hockey media day for the first time since before covid, and there was a lot to get to. We’ll start on the women’s side, where there are once again very high expectations for the Catamounts. UVM was picked to finish second in Hockey East again this Winter, with the US College Hockey Online poll ranking them 12th in the country coming into this season. It’s a great demonstration of the level of respect UVM’s rivals and the general college hockey community have for this Catamount program...but it might take a little while for Vermont to reach their peak. Gone is a large group of senior and 5=fifth year leaders from last year, including Theresa Schafzahl and Sini Karjalainen, just to name a few. Head coach Jim Plumer is on record as saying the preparation for this year has looked a little different with eight freshmen and a couple new faces on the coaching and support staff. But there is still a large chunk of veteran leadership ready to step into even bigger roles and help this program continue marching forward. “I think being a fifth year and a captain, I just wanna make sure that everyone’s having fun,” said Hailey Burns. “If i can be someone that people ask questions to, I’m more than willing to do that. um, but my priority is just to make sure that everyone is bringing the energy, the competitiveness, and fun to practices.” “I am someone that really looks after my teammates,” added fellow alternate captain Alaina Tanski. “My main priority is always my teammates and making sure they feel supported and loved and cared for. So, even though I’m a junior and probably have some like veteran tricks in my sleeve, I guess I’m always gonna give that to my younger players on the team and just everyone in general.” The men’s side also revealed its leadership group on Wednesday, and while it is a very experienced group...not all of that experience has come here in Catamount Country. Senior Will Zapernick will wear the “C” with Joel Maatta wearing an a in his junior season...but the other two alternate captains are both grad student transfers. Zach Dubinsky joins the squad from Michigan State with a previous stop at RPI, while Jeremie Bucheler joins the Cats after four years at Hockey East rival Northeastern. It’s a sign of just how much this team will rely on its 14 newcomers to step up...but both of those new leaders are very much looking forward to their first chance to skate onto the ice at the Gut, wearing the green and gold this time. “Yeah, I’m really excited,” Dubinsky said. “I’ve actually played here against Vermont a couple times in my career, and it’s always a fun environment to come here. The crowd is electric and it’s awesome. It’s an awesome rink to play in.” “Even when I was at Northeastern, we looked forward to this trip,” Bucheler said. “It was our favorite trip. No matter what the day was, if it was a Tuesday or Friday or Saturday, we played here on every single day of the weekend. There’s always a full rink of fans and stuff like that. So I’m looking forward to be playing in front of these people.”

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - It has been about two and a half months since Vermont Green FC wrapped its 2023 campaign, but on Monday, the club got tapped for a special honor. The British Broadcasting Corporation just announced the nominees for its “Green Sport Awards,” a program that seeks to recognize athletes, teams, and sporting organizations from around the world shining a spotlight on environmental issues. VGFC is nominated for the “Grassroots Organization of the Year” award for their work on reducing carbon emissions and focus on sustainable materials. They’re nominated alongside groups from the UK, Africa, and California. “This is a recognition not just of the work that’s being done by our club and our players and our staff,” said club co-founder Pat Infurna. “It’s really a recognition of Vermont and the community that’s that’s attached itself to this club. Because what we are is really just a reflection of work that’s being done at multiple levels all across our state. We hope that this model is prioritizing environmental justice, prioritizing kind of a bigger mission and a bigger drive to get the community behind something that’s more than just a sport. We hope that’s something that can be a model for other clubs around the country, around the world. And hopefully recognitions like this from BBC Sport will serve as some inspiration.”

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Get to know the program's winningest goaltender, and watch as Michael tries to score a goal on her