BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Friday is Rare Disease Day, which raises awareness for rare diseases and aims to improve access to treatment and medical representation for individuals with rare diseases and their families.

Much of the federally-funded research for these diseases may be on hold given the Trump administration’s recent executive orders.

Claire Jones spoke with Ann Graham, the founder of Vermont-based Make it Better for Childhood Cancer, better known as MIB Agents, about what’s at stake.

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• The Catamounts shot over 50% from the field.
• Vermont had four players score in double figures, demonstrating a balanced attack.

Vermont women’s basketball (17-12, 12-3) picked up where they left off at UMass Lowell on Feb. 22.

In the second half against the Riverhawks, the Catamounts shot over 50% from the field. That continued on Thursday as Vermont registered a blistering 66.7% from the field in the first quarter against NJIT (11-17, 8-7) in front of the 740 fans at Patrick Gym.

Vermont was even better from beyond the arc matching its total of 3-pointers they made at UMass Lowell with four in the first quarter alone.

Vermont’s offense was clicking for all 40 minutes in its second to last game of the regular season. The Catamounts blew out NJIT 75-43 to earn the series sweep.

“We don’t want to lose ever so we just come out the same like it’s every other game and we know we want to go into the playoffs with momentum,” senior Bella Vito said.

While the Catamounts 3-point shooting cooled off, that didn’t stop the short-range game. Vermont put together its fourth best field goal percentage game of the season shooting 55%.

Anna Olson, Vito, Catherine Gilwee and Keira Hanson each recorded multiple assists as part of the teams 18 total.

“Every guard can take up the ball,” Vito said. “So when every guard is doing that we’re pretty dangerous.”

Vito (14), Olson (13), Sarah Ericson (11) and Hanson (10) all reached double figures for the Catamounts. Nikola Priede finished with 8 points including a buzzer beating mid-range jumper to close out the second quarter.

“Our goal is four which we had tonight which was great,” coach Alisa Kresge said. “We got to have a lot of weapons on the floor. This is a very good league they can take away one or two.”

Ericson also finished the game with a double-double, her first at the Division I level. Vermont’s bench contributed 27 points with many of the younger Catamounts getting valuable minutes in the rout.

The Catamounts close out the regular season Saturday at home against UMBC where Vermont will celebrate its seniors. Saturday won’t be Olson, Vito or Ericson’s last games at Patrick Gym as Vermont has already clinched a top-two seed in the America East tournament which means hosting at least two playoff games.

“The special thing about where we’re at right now is it’s not their last game in Patrick so I hope we can use that to calm us,” Kresge said.

Vermont basketball avoids upset with second half comeback

The Vermont men’s basketball team did not have as easy of time dispatching NJIT as the women. The Catamounts entered halftime trailing 30-29 after shooting just 5-of-9 from the free throw line while the Highlanders made 6-of-7 attempts.

Vermont (18-11, 11-3) was dominant driving towards the paint scoring 18 second half paint points to earn a 71-61 victory over NJIT (5-24, 2-12). The Catamounts also got to the free throw line 18 times over the final 20 minutes, converting 13 of those.

Vermont extends its winning streak to seven games. Shamir Bogues led all scorers with 22 points while Ileri Ayo-Faleye contributed 14 points and led the team in rebounds (9) and blocks (6). Nick Fiorillo was the other Catamount to reach double figures scoring 12 points.

Tariq Francis led the Highlanders in scoring with 20 points and Ari Fulton had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.

Contact Judith Altneu at jaltneu@gannett.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter: @Judith_Altneu.

March is almost here, meaning warmer weather and St. Patrick’s Day are just around the corner, and Vermont is getting ready to celebrate.

The state’s large Irish population leads to celebrations all month long, from parades to festivals to skiing challenges. With festive Celtic music, traditional Irish dancing, decorated floats and of course, lots and lots of green, Vermont is sure to have a St. Patrick’s Day event for everyone.

Here’s a roundup of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in the greater Burlington area that will keep you celebrating the Irish holiday all March long.

Burlington Irish Heritage Festival

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day throughout March with the Burlington Irish Heritage Festival, a cultural month-long festival that gathers local musicians, dancers and artists for events that celebrate Irish-American culture in Burlington.

This year’s 30th annual festival kicks off on Sunday, March 2 with ceili dancing from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Richmond Free Library Community Room. Music concerts, language learning sessions, poetry readings, dance performances and more will take place up until the headline event, a concert from The Murphy Beds at Contois Auditorium on Sunday, March 16.

A full schedule of events for the festival can be found on the Burlington Irish Heritage website.

PaddyFest

Rí Rá, an authentic Irish pub, offers another multi-day celebration in Burlington.

From March 10-17, the pub will be jam-packed with events for PaddyFest, including live music, Irish dance performances, Guinness glass engraving and rugby game watches, all while a special St. Patrick’s menu is available to snack on.

Rí Rá is located on 123 Church St. A full schedule of events for St. Patrick’s week can be found here.

The Lucky Leprechaun Challenge

Want to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on the slopes? Head to Smugglers’ Notch Resort in Jeffersonville on Sunday, March 16 for the Lucky Leprechaun Challenge.

From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., skiers who head down Morse Mountain can collect raffle tickets from a leprechaun, with extra tickets offered for wearing green. All tickets should be submitted at FunZone 2.0 by 3:30 p.m., with prize drawings beginning at 3:45 p.m.

Food and drink specials will also be available from ReFuel Café for all participants. Smugglers’ Notch Resort can be found at 4323 Vermont Rte. 108 in Jeffersonville.

Saint Albans St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Festival

Back for its 11th year, the Saint Albans St. Patrick’s Day Parade will take place on St. Patrick’s Day itself, Monday, March 17. The parade will start at the top of Taylor Park and make its way to City Hall.

There, a parade afterparty will keep the festivities going all day long, with music, dance, shamrock tattoos, Irish food and even green punch.

S.D. Ireland Truck Parade

Burlington’s Church Street Marketplace will also host a parade on St. Patrick’s Day, where the S.D. Ireland construction company parades over 15 cement trucks down the Marketplace in an annual celebration that raises money for cancer research.

The marketplace’s parade will start at 3 p.m. on Monday, March 17.