Green Mountain boys come from behind to beat Vergennes in soccer semis Division III championship to be decided on Saturday in Hartford

By Christian Avard
©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC

The Green Mountain boys varsity soccer team is headed to its third straight state championship final.

The Chieftains defeated the fourth-seed Vergennes Commodores on Tuesday in the Division III semifinals by a score of 3-1. Green Mountain won the game in front of their home crowd for the final time this season to the delight of students, parents, fans, and alumni.

They will face Enosburg this Saturday at the Maxfield Sports Complex in Hartford, the same location as last year’s Division III championship, at a time still to be determined. The third seed Hornets defeated second seed Winooski at Winooski on Tuesday by a score of 3-2.

This year’s championship game has some sentimental value. GMUHS boys’ varsity Head Coach Jacob Walker played for the varsity team in 2012 and they lost to Enosburg in the semifinals by a score of 4-1.
According to Walker, that was the last time the two teams played and  he has been looking forward to a rematch ever since.

“This will be retribution,” Walker said with a laugh. “It will be fun.”

Vergennes got off the bus and came ready to play. They caught the Chieftains off guard when they scored the first goal of the game.
At the 22-minute mark, Jade Edwards took a shot from 25 yards out that went into the upper corner, well out of reach of Chieftains’ goalie Evan Hayes. Vergennes had a 1-0 lead at halftime and Green Mountain came back with more intensity in the second half.

The Chieftains got a break when they were awarded a free kick at the 22-minute mark. Midfielder Elias Stowell-Aleman kicked a beauty at the Commodores’ goal where his teammate Everett Mosher waited.
Mosher got his head on the ball, which rolled in, and the score was tied, 1-1.

But Mosher, the 100-goal scoring machine, wasn’t through.

With six minutes left in the game a Vergennes player tripped Mosher in the 18-yard box. That set him up for a penalty kick. Mosher put it away past the goalie and the Chieftains took the lead.

Then the same thing happened again with just two minutes left in regulation. Mosher was tripped inside the 18-yard box and he scored on another penalty kick without breaking a sweat. Mosher got his hat trick and the horn sounded. A celebration ensued.

Vergennes’ goalie Abram Francis made six saves for the Commodores. Hayes made three saves for Green Mountain.
Walker also credited the Chieftains’ defense, Eben Mosher, Kagan Hance, James Birmingham and Jayden Hinkle after the game.

“I think very seldom this year, except for Brattleboro, have we ever had to come from behind,” Walker said. “We lost that game, 3-2, but this our first game where we came from behind and won. Our defense came out and wanted to keep going. They did a fantastic job.”

When asked about playing Enosburg, Walker acknowledged it will be a hard fought battle and that they all hope to come out on the other side as Division III champions.

“(Enosburg) has good players and they match up well against us,” Walker said. “It will be a dogfight to the end. They are good and they are well coached.”