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Tigers are 2 & 0 as Season Begins

Tuesday September 12, 2006

By Mike Cameron

    Sophomore Sean Harrison’s 78-yard kickoff return was more than just an opening night crowd pleaser.  Harrison’s nifty jaunt would ultimately help provide the margin of victory for Middlebury Union High School in a knock-down, drag-out, turf war with the Sea Horses of Burlington High on 9-1-06.  “I saw the lane open up and made a move to the outside off a nice block. Then I saw open field and was able to shake one more guy at about the 20 to go in,” Harrison remembered after the game won by the Tigers 27 to 22.

B.H.S. Senior tailback Andrew Plumley lived up to his advanced billing  with several eye-poping runs and solid defense from his spot in the secondary especially in the second half.  The two-way standout also proved to be a potential game-breaker by scoring two second half touchdowns and gained 116-yards on 22 carries.  

Quarterback Josh Carey engineered the B.H.S. attack and threw some bombs for completions from deep in his own end when the horses stalled against an aggressive Tiger defensive unit led by Senior Co-captain Robbie Harrison.  “Boy these kids are really hitting out there,” remarked veteran line-judge Stan Palutto at one point.  That aggression would also prove to be a double edge sword.  With the Tigers operating like a well-oiled machine and Junior quarterback J.J. Mickey handling the ball like a seasoned veteran, Middlebury had fashioned a 14-0 lead behind two big punt returns including one for 65-yards by the Tigers Ben Olmquist.

Mackey’s nice touch pass to Nate Lawson in the left corner of the end zone to the open the scoring in the first quarter was as good as they get.  Lawson ran a corner pattern and had beaten the taller BHS defender by a step.  Mickey timed the pass and Lawson timed his leaping catch to perfection for the touchdown. J.J.’s point-after was good.   

The Tigers were clearly in command but the momentum changed on one play featuring an infraction and an ejection.

Almquist who had been a thorn in Burlington’s side on several key third down plays was flagged  for punching a BHS player in the pile after a tackle.  He was ejected by the umpire.  Many who were close to the play along the Tiger sideline saw two players involved in the very brief encounter and suggested that perhaps offsetting penalties and a warning  might have been a better remedy.  The officiating crew did not see it that way and put the hammer down hard on the Tiger player who will also serve a one game suspension.  

The Tigers went flat after the incident and BHS seemed to get its second wind especially on offense.   But the  2-Way Tigers refused to  fold, they have improvised and adapted before and they would again.

In the second half BHS got things going quickly with Plumley leading the way.  BHS converted several third down plays and grabbed two touchdowns.  The Tigers hung tough and answered both, refusing to fold.

With BHS trimming the lead  to 20 to 16 late in the game, the Tigers marched the ball 64-yards with Raymond going in from the 2-yard line and Mickey kicking the point for a 27 to 16 lead.

The Sea Horses then answered with a drive of their own and Plumley burst over from the 7-yard line.  The point-after failed and the tigers were hanging on 27 to 22 with less than 6-minutes left in the game.

The Tigers tried to put it away but failed to make the first down and had to punt.  A BHS touchdown would have won the game for the kids from the Queen City but J.J. Mackey had other ideas.  On a 4th and long from the Tiger 40-yardline, BHS quarterback Josh Carey fired a deep pass to tight end Adam Chicoine.  Mackey stepped up just at the last second to intercept the pass and stop the BHS threat.  “He burned me once before for long yardage earlier in the game.  This time I had good positioning and was able to step up and make the play,” Mackey said after the game.

Tigers were able to knee-out the time remaining for a 27-22 victory.  “Wow, it got close there for a while.  It’s always great to get that first one and get the season off on the right tract,” an obviously pleased coach Peter Brakeley explained after the game.

Mount Anthony at Middlebury  

    Friday night 9-8-06 another big crowd at Doc Collins Field was ready for a repeat performance.  The Patriots from Bennington had other ideas and provided the Tigers with all they could handle in a close physical contest that featured hard hitting and a flurry of flags from the officials.

The Tigers drove to the Patriot 8-yard-line with less than 2:00 left in the first quarter but stalled.  J.J. Mackey the Tigers tripple-threat then nailed an 18-yard field goal to put the Tigers up 3-zip.  The score would stay that way for most of the contest.

140-yards in penalties were wistled down in this one.  M.A.U. ended up with 80-yards.  The Tigers had 60.  At one point in the second quarter, the Pats had almost as many penalty yards as rushing yards.

The Tigers Ethan Raymond was focused and ran the ball with determination.  His 4th quarter touchdown ended further Mt. Anthony threats and there were many.  Each time the visitors moved into Tiger territory, Middlebury made a big defensive stand.  Senior Co-Captain Robbie Harrison talked about the games intensity along the line of scrimmage after the Tigers had secored the 10-0 win.  “Burlington was a good win for us but we knew that we had to step it up to get a win against a tough Division 1 opponent.  This was a better team and we were ready for them.  It was a dog fight,” he said.  As for the Tigers next opponent Mount Saint Joseph Academy at Saint Peters Field in Rutland this Saturday afternoon 9-16-06, Harrison was very direct in his feelings about the big D-1 match-up.  “We will look at the films and prepare for them just like Mt. Anthony, one game at a time,” he explained.

The Mounties had all they could handle at Essesx where the Hornets fashioned an early lead but were unable to hold off an M.S.J. come-back.  M.S.J. won with a field goal.

The Tigers were challenged by Mt. Anthony a team that has had its share of adversity this year.  M.A.U. had their game against Fair Haven on Friday night 9-1-06 suspended because the lights went out at Spinelli Field with Fair Haven leading late in the second half and the loss to Middlebury was another bitter pill to swallow in a game they could have won.  The Middlebury defense was the key in this one, including timely interceptions and fumble recoveries.  Offensively things were not so pretty at times including a penalty that nullified a touchdown pass by Mackey that was right on the money.....not good.

Raymond and Peterson were also bright spots along with sophomore fullback Sean Harrison.  When the offensive line becomes a bit more experience....watch out!  M.S.J. will be a big test.

Mount Anthony will not be going away any time soon.  The Patriots under head coach Jim Fischer have had a taste of two bitter early season dissapointments.  They could continue to be a thorn in the sides of D-1 opponents. Quarterback J.C. LeBarron leads a club with only 6 seniors. The Patriots roster also carries 13 sophomores and 7 freshmen and a core of 9 juniors... sound familiar?

The Tigers have reasons to celebrate and continue to work hard. Their next 3 games are Lyndon Institute Sat Sept 16th MSJ Sat. Sept 23rd and Rutland Fri.Sept 29th.

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