Chieftains answer defensive call, yet fall just short to Rivendell Raptors 33-32

By Evan Chadwick
©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC

The Green Mountain girls team answered Coach Buffum’s defensive challenge from Tuesday night’s heart-breaking loss to Arlington, holding Rivendell to a squeaker 33-32 win on Friday night   in Orford, N.H. Now, all that is left in order for the Chieftains to find sustained success is to connect their defensive and offensive performances.

“Our D [defense] was great, as was Rivendell’s,” said Coach Jeffrey Buffum. “Our biggest issue was our inability to make smart decisions with the ball. We just didn’t take care of it when it mattered the most.”

Green Mountain led 14-13 at the half, but allowed the Raptors to score 15 points in the third quarter, which gave Rivendell a 5-point advantage entering the fourth.

Although Green Mountain was able to hold the Raptors to just 5 fourth-quarter points, their offense, absent dynamic guard Karen Vargas — who sat out with an ankle injury — just missed the mark.

“Not having Vargas had a huge impact,” said Buffum. “She is good at settling us down when we start to press things.”

Kim Cummings kept her offensive hot streak going, scoring 15 points. Grace Tyrrell added 12 for the 3-9 Chieftains.

The Chieftains are next in action at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 1 when they host the Rebels of Leland & Gray from Townshend.