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How Jason Sperry, No. 1 Middlebury football powered way to another D-I title game

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How Jason Sperry, No. 1 Middlebury football powered way to another D-I title game


MIDDLEBURY ― After the Middlebury football team picked up a fresh set of downs on its opening drive, Jason Sperry had his number called.

The junior running back went for 15 yards on his first carry. He then churned out a pair of 20-plus yard scampers to set up the Tigers’ first touchdown.

And on the third play from scrimmage to start the second half, Sperry motored 74 yards for a touchdown, pushing the Tigers to a three-score advantage.

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“Jason Sperry has had a coming out party this year so far,” Middlebury coach Jed Malcolm said. “To me, he’s the top back in the state. I wouldn’t pick anybody else

“And he showed it tonight.”

Sperry refused to go down, Middlebury refused to give in, and the top-seeded team in Division I delivered on a muddy terrain — ideal for Tiger football — in a 27-7 victory over No. 5 Burr and Burton in the Vermont state semifinals at Doc Collins Field on Friday, Nov. 7.

Middlebury (9-1) will play No. 2 St. Johnsbury (9-1) for a state championship at South Burlington High School on Saturday, Nov. 15. The Tigers are chasing the program’s 11th crown in their 23rd finals appearance.

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“The field conditions benefited us. But that’s why we do what we do, because guess what, the weather is in November in Vermont, it’s muddy and cold and wet,” Malcolm said.

Sperry went for 192 yards on 17 carries, Logan McNulty chugged for 58 yards and a pair of scores and Tucker Wright produced a sack and a big interception on defense to thwart a potential BBA scoring drive that kept the contest just out of reach for the visitors.

For BBA (6-4), quarterback Sam Dowd threw for 109 yards on 12-for-23 passing while rushing for 126 yards on 17 carries with a score in the final seconds to avoid the shutout. Owen Cassan had 90 yards from scrimmage and Sam Gilliam caught six balls for 53 yards.

“I think the conditions hurt us a little bit to be honest with you. I’m sure it slowed them down a little bit. It’s just tough conditions to throw the ball around and I think we had to have some success to throwing the ball … to get the (win),” BBA coach Tom McCoy said. “But that’s just how it goes, that’s the deal in November.

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“We didn’t finish off drives.”

Indeed. The Bulldogs, who won in overtime in the quarterfinals at Essex last weekend, failed to produce any points on their first three trips into the red zone. After Brady Lloyd and McNulty scored TDs on Middlebury’s first two possessions — the latter set up by Marshall Eddy’s 32-yard reception on a broken play — Dowd engineered a long drive that started on the BBA 8-yard line with gutsy runs and playmaking to get the Bulldogs to the Middlebury 10-yard line with about 3 minutes to play in the first half.

But on second down, Middlebury sent Ben DeBisschop on a corner blitz from the edge, and Dowd fired over the middle, where linebacker Tucker Wright snagged the interception.

“We were planning on blitzing a little bit more than we did. The blitzing, obviously, was very effective. Where they were beating us was where we were voiding the area,” Malcolm said. “We started recognizing that and disguised some blitzes and sent some guys from different spots.

“We made them work for everything they did tonight.”

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Playing without two-way star, and likely their best blocker, Cooke Riney for the third straight game, the Tigers’ offensive line, led by Kameron Raymond, executed and created holes for Sperry and Co.

Sperry fought through tackles for most of the night when he did bounce it outside, but the path for those big runs began up front.

“They knew where they needed to be and they went out there and blocked,” Sperry said. “Coaches teach us, you gotta get low and stay on your feet. Again, it’s the offensive line, it’s the lead blocks, it’s everything. It’s not just me out there.”

Sperry’s 74-yard TD dash — he reversed field on third-and-5 and found a seam down the home sideline to paydirt — gave the Tigers a 21-0 lead with 10:25 to play in third quarter. The Bulldogs turned it over on downs in the red zone on their next two possessions, the latter with 10:04 to go in regulation.

Middlebury then uncorked a 10-play, 98-yard scoring drive capped by McNulty’s 2-yard plunge for a 27-0 advantage with 3 minutes to play.

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“That’s the name of the game,” Malcolm said of the Tigers’ tried-and-true formula. “We are not going to win a shootout with anybody. We just don’t have that kind of system. We love 5-yard pickups.”

Contact Alex Abrami at aabrami@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter: @aabrami5.





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Women’s Lacrosse Bested in Burlington by Vermont – University at Albany Great Danes

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Women’s Lacrosse Bested in Burlington by Vermont – University at Albany Great Danes


Score: UAlbany 4, Vermont 14

Location: Virtue Field | Burlington, Vt.

Records: UAlbany (10-5, 5-1 America East) | Vermont (8-6, 4-1 America East)

Short Story: UAlbany women’s lacrosse fell to the Vermont Catamounts on Saturday afternoon.

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Key Stats

  • Grace Cincebox recorded a total of 14 saves with 13 goals allowed for a .565 save percentage.
  • Ravan Marsell led the Great Danes with two points on one goal and one assist.
  • Four different UAlbany players scored in the contest.
  • Reggie Williams was the team’s leader with three ground balls.
  • Delilah Mile caused a team high three turnovers.

 
How It Happened

  • The Catamounts came out of the gates hard and heavy, scoring all three goals between both sides in the first quarter.
  • Vermont would take an 8-0 lead in the second quarter before Amanda Williamson found the back of the net on a women-down goal to put the Great Danes on the board and make it 8-1.
  • The Great Danes would allow one more goal in the first half to trail 9-1 after 30-minutes of play.
  • Grace Cincebox would enter the half with 10 saves.
  • Riley Forthofer started the Great Danes off in the second half to make it a 9-2 game, before Vermont put up three more goals to take a 12-2 lead entering the final quarter of play.
  • Mya Carroll and Ravan Marsell both scored on back-to-back free-position goals to make it a 12-4 game.
  • The Catamounts finished the game with two more goals to take the win 14-4.

 
Up Next
The Great Danes will next have a bye week and wait to see the outcome of next week’s Vermont vs UMass Lowell game to see who will host the America East Tournament.

Social Central: Stay up to date with UAlbany women’s lacrosse by following the team on Instagram (@UAlbanyWLax), Facebook (UAlbany Women’s Lacrosse),  and X (@UAlbanyWLax) for all of the latest news and highlights throughout the year.





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Vermont lands two cities in America’s top 15 happiest list

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Vermont lands two cities in America’s top 15 happiest list


Is creativity the missing key to better health?

Research suggests creative activities like art, music and crafts may benefit mental health as much as other key health habits.

Here’s another reason Vermont is the best New England state: It’s home to one of the top 5 happiest cities in the United States.

Plus, it has another within the top 15.

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Massachusetts, on the other hand, doesn’t even break the top 50. Nor, does Connecticut or Rhode Island.

The personal finance website analyzed 182 of the largest cities in the country, and ranked Boston 63rd overall. Although the city is home to some of the nation’s top universities, high-ranking hospitals, and well-regarded companies, it didn’t break the top 50.

To get the rankings, WalletHub compared the cities using 29 metrics, including life-satisfaction index, depression rate, poverty rate, job security, and acres of parkland per 1,000 residents. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, and cities were assigned an overall happiness score.

Here’s a look at how the cities ranked.

South Burlington is No. 4 happiest city, Burlington is No. 11

South Burlington came on top for Vermont in WalletHub’s list of the happiest cities in the United States, ranking at No. 4. In scored very high for emotional and physical well-being coming in at the No. 4 spot, which made up for coming in No. 48 for community and environment. It was No. 9 for income and employment ranking. That gave it a total happiness of score of 70.15

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Burlington wasn’t far behind at all, taking the No. 11 spot on the list and a happiness score of 67.54. It’s highest score was for income and employment ranking where it came second. It ranked No. 13 for community and environment and No. 21 for emotional and physical well-being.

Happiest cities in the US, per WalletHub

Here are the 25 happiest cities in the U.S., and their happiness scores, according to WalletHub’s 2026 list:

  1. Fremont, California – 74.09
  2. Bismarck, North Dakota – 73.11
  3. Scottsdale, Arizona – 71.36
  4. South Burlington, Vermont – 70.15
  5. Fargo, North Dakota – 69.36
  6. Overland Park, Kansas – 68.45
  7. Charleston, South Carolina – 68.44
  8. Irvine, California – 67.99
  9. Gilbert, Arizona – 67.96
  10. San Jose, California – 67.79
  11. Burlington, Vermont – 67.54
  12. Madison, Wisconsin – 66.35
  13. Columbia, Maryland – 66.28
  14. Chandler, Arizona – 65.69
  15. Seattle, Washington – 65.62
  16. Plano, Texas – 65.34
  17. San Francisco, California – 64.99
  18. Lincoln, Nebraska – 64.90
  19. Portland, Maine – 64.59
  20. Tempe, Arizona – 64.30
  21. San Diego, California – 64.30
  22. Raleigh, North Carolina – 63.47
  23. Peoria, Arizona – 63.38
  24. Durham, North Carolina – 62.84
  25. Huntington Beach, California – 62.80

Least happy cities in the US, per WalletHub

Here are the 25 least happy cities in the U.S., and their happiness scores, according to WalletHub’s 2026 list:

  1. Detroit, Michigan (#182 overall) – 29.55
  2. Memphis, Tennessee (#181 overall) – 34.39
  3. Shreveport, Louisiana (#180 overall) – 34.93
  4. Cleveland, Ohio (#179 overall) – 36.50
  5. Huntington, West Virginia (#178 overall) – 37.20
  6. Toledo, Ohio (#177 overall) – 37.21
  7. Augusta, Georgia (#176 overall) – 38.24
  8. Fort Smith, Arkansas (#175 overall) – 38.66
  9. Dover, Delaware (#174 overall) – 39.08
  10. Akron, Ohio (#173 overall) – 40.11
  11. Baltimore, Maryland (#172 overall) – 40.28
  12. Birmingham, Alabama (#171 overall) – 40.37
  13. Baton Rouge, Louisiana (#170 overall) – 40.47
  14. Columbus, Georgia (#169 overall) – 40.61
  15. Montgomery, Alabama (#168 overall) – 41.35
  16. Gulfport, Mississippi (#167 overall) – 41.65
  17. Charleston, West Virginia (#166 overall) – 42.18
  18. Jackson, Mississippi (#165 overall) – 42.60
  19. St. Louis, Missouri (#164 overall) – 43.53
  20. Knoxville, Tennessee (#163 overall) – 44.04
  21. Wilmington, Delaware (#162 overall) – 44.34
  22. Little Rock, Arkansas (#161 overall) – 44.48
  23. Mobile, Alabama (#160 overall) – 44.85
  24. New Orleans, Louisiana (#159 overall) – 45.19
  25. Tulsa, Oklahoma (#158 overall) – 45.33

Where New England cities ranked

Here are the 12 happiest cities in New England, and their happiness scores, according to WalletHub’s 2026 list:

  1. South Burlington, Vermont (#6 overall) – 70.15
  2. Burlington, Vermont (#11 overall) – 67.54
  3. Portland, Maine (#19 overall) – 64.59
  4. Nashua, New Hampshire (#27 overall) – 62.49
  5. Manchester, New Hampshire (#51 overall) – 59.10
  6. Boston, Massachusetts (#63 overall) – 56.88
  7. Warwick, Rhode Island (#66 overall) – 56.59
  8. New Haven, Connecticut (#95 overall) – 54.14
  9. Bridgeport, Connecticut (#96 overall) – 54.01
  10. Providence, Rhode Island (#98 overall) – 53.52
  11. Worcester, Massachusetts (#116 overall) – 50.12
  12. Lewiston, Maine (#145 overall) – 47.28



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Tornado with winds up to 90mph touches down in Vermont amid storms

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Tornado with winds up to 90mph touches down in Vermont amid storms


A tornado touched down in Vermont Thursday, when a strong storm system moved through the area, the National Weather Service said.

Winds are believed to have hit 90 mph when the tornado churned through Williamstown at about 9:15 p.m., the agency said Friday. That makes it an EF1 tornado on the Fujita Scale, which goes from 0 at the weakest to 5 at the strongest.

Lasting three minutes, the twister traveled for more than four-tenths of a mile, with a maximum width of 100 yards, according to the National Weather Service’s preliminary assessment. It damaged a pair of buildings and numerous trees, shearing tree tops. Golf ball-sized hail was also reported in the area.

Severe thunderstorms popped up across the North Country Thursday night, including in central Vermont — Williamstown is south of Montpelier.

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The town thanked its road crew, firefighters and locals who spent hours in the wake of the storm cleaning up.

“We appreciate all that you do to keep the town functioning though an emergency situation,” the town said.

People in the area told NBC affiliate WPTZ that the storm was shockingly powerful, and National Weather Service staffer Marlon Verasamy said that while tornadoes in Vermont are rare, they’re even rarer in this part of the state.

“Generally, when we do see tornadoes around the area that they’ve been in Addison County and not here, so it make it really, really unique to get a tornado in this kind of terrain in this part of the state,” Verasamy said.

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