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This part of the Raptors Nest focuses more on the whole of Division 4. Here you can find weekly power rankings, articles from select games, and various player notes.
Power Rankings: 2/22
Power Rankings: 2/22
The final power rankings of the season bring a massive shake-up, including just the second team to hold the top spot this season. As follows:
Danville (+3)
The Bears entered this week with the most to prove, and did they ever prove it. Defeating the closest team to them in the rankings in Mid Vermont Christian was a win good enough to justify a move up the rankings, but going on the road a day later to notch an epic comeback win over BMU? Top spot material.
Outlook: A road trip to Winooski means little more than bragging rights and playoff momentum at this point of the season, as they cannot move from the third spot in the statewide rankings. Still, there’s a point of pride to be found in knocking off the undefeated Spartans.
Rivendell (+1)
The Raptors took revenge on White River Valley to stretch their winning streak to eight games and secure the 2nd seed. With the new defensive gear the team has hit, they’ll be a tough opponent come playoff time.
Outlook: Bellows Falls is the only game remaining for the Raptors, who could grab a second straight SVL title with a road win. With their playoff spot already in the bag, we could see the team rest starters for the upcoming playoffs.
Long Trail (-2)
While the Mountain Lions kept up their winning ways to keep the top spot in the standings, they fall two spots thanks to more impressive wins from opponents below them. They remain a strong team, just one who’s schedule knocks them out of the top spot.
Outlook: A senior night finale with Arlington is all that’s left for the top-seeded Mountain Lions.
MVCS (-2)
Losing their season finale to Danville was a tough blow to Erva Barnes’s squad, but they’ll have to turn around quickly to make their first ever appearance in the Barre Auditorium in these upcoming playoffs. Losses from Blue Mountain will likely keep them in Quechee for the first two rounds, which should help things considerably.
Outlook: Played all regular-season games.
Blue Mountain (-)
Just 12 days ago, the Bucks were flying high after a win over Mid Vermont Christian pushed them to second place in the division. Since then? The defending champs have dropped 4 of 5, including a brutal home loss to Danville in which they led by as much as 20. If anyone knows how to respond to adversity, it’s the Bucks, but this slide has to stop.
Outlook: The season finale against Twinfield/Cabot has suddenly become a massive game, as the Bucks must win to avoid a second-round rematch with Danville.
Twinfield/Cabot (-)
While it was hardly a banner week for the Trojans, they stay right in the middle of the pack with a better record than anyone else in the division. With the surprising slip-up from BMU, there’s still a chance for them to climb the standings, but it’s not likely.
Outlook: Beating BMU in Marshfield in the season finale would be enough to push the Trojans to the top 5, but it’s a tough task against a team who hung 73 on them the last time out. Losing would put them to the 6th seed and a tough first-round matchup against Williamstown.
Leland & Gray (+1)
The Rebels rebounded from a midseason slump to pull back to the .500 mark and into the top 8. While the seventh seed is all they can climb to, they remain an opponent who could give any of the top teams a tough game in the second round.
Outlook: Arlington come to Townshend for a pivotal matchup in the 7 vs 8 seed matchup before the Rebels head to Bellows Falls on Saturday for the season finale. Winning one of the two games will put the Rebels in the best position possible entering the playoffs.
Poultney (First Week)
Beating Arlington vaults the Blue Devils to their first appearance on the list all season. While there’s not much more to be said, they’ve done well to turn their season around after a poor start and look in position to win a playoff game.
Power Rankings: 2/8
Power Rankings: 2/8
It was an up-and-down week for the teams of Division 4. As the dust settles, some of the top teams move down, while a familiar squad enters the back half of the rankings. As follows:
*All Rankings and games based on available info on February 2nd*
Long Trail (-)
The Mountain Lions cruised past both of their opponents this week to keep the top spot. With their upcoming schedule, it’s hard to see them losing again, but the weakness of that schedule leaves an opening for a tougher-scheduled team to pass them if they get hot.
Outlook: Hosting Poultney and visiting West Rutland should offer little challenge for the likely top seed. At this stage of the season, avoiding injuries is the primary concern.
Mid Vermont Christian (+2)
Three games produced three easy wins for the Eagles, who move up after teams in front of them slipped up. With only 4 games remaining on the schedule, the Eagles will have to close strongly to avoid being passed.
Outlook: A massive home matchup with Blue Mountain on Friday will define the Eagles place in both the state and power rankings for the rest of the season. Hosting Grace Christian 3 days later will make little to no impact on the team’s ranking.
Rivendell (-1)
The Raptors suffered a tough road loss at White River Valley to knock them from the second spot. While they hardly looked impressive in wins over Twin Valley or Leland & Gray following the loss, they only fall to the third spot thanks to scheduling issues for the other top teams.
Outlook: Two matchups with D3 Green Mountain split by a home matchup with Twin Valley offer the Raptors a solid path to climbing the state and power rankings. But with the form the team is in currently, there’s no guarantee that will happen.
Danville (+2)
The Bears breach the top half of the rankings for the first time after two wins over D3 competition, including an impressive win over a BFA-Fairfax squad that defeated them earlier in the season. It’s a solid accomplishment for the team, but it comes from the caveat of a top team’s misfortune rather than anything spectacular from them.
Outlook: A trip to Craftsbury offers little threat, but a Saturday showdown with local rival could be a key turning point for the season. After a rough start, the Bears need to stay hot to grab a top 4 seed, and that journey starts Saturday.
Blue Mountain (-2)
Thanks to postponements, the Bucks played just a single game this week. Unfortunately, that game would end as a 25-point loss to D3 Thetford, knocking the Bucks down the rankings despite a stumble from second-ranked Rivendell. With two massive ranking-raiser games on the horizon, it’s hard to rule them out but this one has to sting.
Outlook: A massive D4 showdown with MVC is the largest matchup for the Bucks this week, but a Monday night matchup with Woodsville is right up there. The New Hampshire-based Engineers are 13-2 and beat the Bucks by 14 on December 29. A sweep of the matchups presents a compelling case for the Bucks moving to the top spot.
Twinfield (-)
The Trojans defeated a pair of unthreatening opponents to hold on to their ranking spot, but their prior schedule hardly offers them an opportunity to move any higher. Two matchups that week could change that.
Outlook: Those two matchups are a Saturday game with local rival Danville and an even bigger trip to undefeated Winooski. While the Trojans are hardly favored in either game, just one win in the two could push them up the rankings.
Grace Christian (+1)
Stunningly, the Lions keep climbing after subpar weeks from several of their fellow contenders. It’s hard to see them as any real threat, but credit where credit is due to them for winning their games.
Leland & Gray (First Week)
The Rebels return to the rankings despite owning a losing record thanks to their strength of schedule. Competitive losses to several top teams in both divisions is enough to grab them the final spot, but they need to turn some of those losses to wins to get any higher.
Power Rankings: 2/2
Power Rankings: 2/2
The top two spots remain unchanged this week, but down the line we see some major changes, including our first new team in the rankings. Here they are.
*All Rankings and games based on available info on February 2nd*
Long Trail (-)
After comfortably dispatching West Rutland, the Mountain Lions gutted out a close road win over White River Valley to hold the top spot of the rankings. With their upcoming schedule, it’s unlikely they’ll lose again, but the weakness of the schedule may cost them their top spot due to the stronger schedules of teams behind them.
Outlook: Road trips to Arlington and Sharon pose little threat to the team’s impressive win streak, but neither matchup moves the needle all that much. Any wobble could open the door for another team to pass them.
Rivendell (-)
The Raptors notched arguably the most impressive win of any D4 team this weekend in a physical, high-scoring affair against Bellows Falls. With their schedule hardly getting easier, they could grab the top spot with consistent great performances or slip down the rankings. All is on the table for the busiest team in D4.
Outlook: A Thursday trip to White River Valley will be a tough matchup for Andrew Perkins’s squad. Following that, a long journey to Twin Valley on the 4th offers little threat, but a ranked Leland and Gray could pose some issues in a Tuesday matchup in Orford.
Blue Mountain (+1)
Two wins against Oxbow and a close road win over Richford pushes the Bucks to the second spot in the official rankings, and only the loss they suffered to Rivendell keeps them out of that slot here. It’ll be a couple weeks before they can truly solidify their spot in a matchup with Mid Vermont Christian, but until then they slot easily into the third-place spot.
Outlook: The Bucks host a volatile, revenge-hungry Danville team on Friday before D3’s second-ranked team in Thetford visits Monday night. It’s not out of the question that the Bucks could be swept, but with the quality of opponents, it’s unlikely they’d fall all that much.
Mid Vermont Christian (-1)
The Eagles did their job and blew out both opponents they faced this week, but they unfortunately slip down on account of Blue Mountain’s tougher schedule. With a matchup with the Bucks as the only competitive matchup left on their schedule, the Quechee outfit just needs to stay the course and hope other teams slip up to move up.
Outlook: There’s not much to be said of the team’s matchups with Arlington and Proctor this week other than to just win them and stay healthy.
Danville (+1)
It’s rare to see a team move up after a loss, but another competitive effort against higher-division competition in RIchford leaves the Bears with a stronger week than many others in D4.
Outlook: A big meeting with Blue Mountain in Waits River looms as the marquee game this week, while a matchup with Craftsbury offers a breather before a brutal week following this one.
Twinfield (+1)
The Trojans blew out both teams on offer but had their matchup with Danville canceled due to poor weather. Without the big game against their local rivals, it’s hard to move Twinfield any higher due to a weak schedule, but they still move up on account of poor performances from other teams.
Outlook: A trip to undefeated Winooski on Thursday marks a major climbing opportunity. Two later matchups against Mountain League bottom-feeders Craftsbury and Stowe provide some solid record-padding, but offer little in the way of upward momentum.
Arlington (-1)
It was a strange week for the Eagles. After a 1-point loss to Proctor that threatened to remove them from the list entirely, the team responded with a close win over Grace Christian to barely hold on to their spot. With more tough teams on the schedule, it will take a big effort for the Eagles to stay above .500 and keep their spot.
Outlook: A trip to Poultney should cause little problem, but huge home matchups with Mid Vermont Christian and Long Trail give the Eagles the biggest growing potential of any team this week. Three losses will send them off the list, however.
Grace Christian (First Week)
The Lions make their first appearance after defeating their closest competition in Proctor. While it’s hard to say they are much of a threat come playoff time, a cratering Leland and Gray gives them the final spot on these rankings.
Power Rankings: 1/25
Power Rankings: 1/25
After a week obstructed by harsh weather, the Power Rankings keep the same eight teams, although the order has been shaken in places. Here they are:
Long Trail (Last Week: 1)
The Mountain Lions had just one game on the schedule and did their job, cruising past Proctor in a game that reached an abrupt ending after a scary injury to a Proctor player. With the rest of the top teams either not playing enough or not winning enough, it’s a second straight week atop the rankings for the team.
Outlook: After a relatively easy visit from West Rutland tonight, a tough pair of road games await. First is a trip to Leland & Gray to match up with a hungry Rebel squad looking to avenge a defeat earlier in the season, but the real test is a Monday night game against White River Valley in Royalton. The young Wildcats have proven they can hang with most anyone, and will likely enter the game having won 6 straight. With other top teams in full action this week, the margin for error is very low.
Rivendell (Last Week: 3)
Weather cancellations left the Raptors with a silent week, but this inaction actually helped them as second-ranked Mid Vermont Christian faltered and slipped in the standings. They will have to make their own luck from here on, as a difficult stretch of the schedule awaits.
Outlook: A massive Saturday tilt with Bellows Falls is the only game on the docket, meaning the Raptors will not be reaching the top spot due to lack of games. The second spot can be held with a win, however.
MVCS (Last Week: 2)
The Eagles had a shot at the top spot with a win over Richford, but let a fourth quarter lead slip in painful fashion. A rebound win at Trinity Christian kept them from sliding down any further, but they fall out of the second slot for at least this week.
Outlook: After a tough week, the team faces two relatively easy games in matchups with Sharon and Proctor. While these matchups may not do them any favors, the tough matchups faced by teams above them could leave a door open for them to climb back into their spot- or further.
Blue Mountain (Last Week: 4)
The Bucks won every game available to them this week, defeating Twinfield behind 36 points from Evan Dennis before seeing their much-anticipated matchup with Woodsville canceled due to inclement weather. With the Mountain Division looking loaded as ever, they’ll need more great performances from their stars to keep their spot in both the state and power rankings.
Outlook: Home and Away matchups with Oxbow are all that’s available for the team this week. While it can be assumed they’ll win both, it may not be enough to stop another team below them from grabbing their spot.
Danville (Last Week: 5)
The Bears notched maybe the most impressive losing effort of any team this season, coming back to nearly defeat undefeated Winooski. Alas, their attempt falling short leaves the Bears right where they were last week, stuck in the middle of the rankings.
Outlook: A pair of road trips to tough Mountain League opponents in Twinfield and RIchford mark a major climbing opportunity for the Bears as several teams above them face lighter schedules.
Arlington (Last Week: 8)
The Eagles are this week’s largest climber mostly due to avoidance of losses, as while they only notched one win in a trip to Sharon, teams above them faltered. With plenty of chances to go up or down in the next two weeks, it will be tough sledding for the team.
Outlook: A home matchup with a reeling Leland & Gray on Wednesday night will be crucial for keeping their spot. Should they lose, a trip to Proctor the next night could be fatal to their ranking as the other SVL teams close in.
Twinfield: (Last Week: 6)
The Trojans needed to do just one thing to advance in the rankings- beat Blue Mountain. Instead, a blowout loss sends them down a spot despite a solid rebound win over Stowe. With more opportunities to climb, it’s hard to rule them out, but more competitiveness needs to be shown in future efforts.
Outlook: Local rival Danville is the main attraction on this week’s schedule. A Wednesday night win could score some bragging rights and a likely rise in the rankings, but a loss may rule them out of Mountain League contention entirely.
Leland & Gray: (Last Week: 7)
A blowout loss at Bellows Falls halted any idea of a Rebel climb, and the fall would only be continue with a close defeat at White River Valley. With no team emerging to grab the final spot from them, the Rebels will keep their place for at least one more week, but the losing streak has to end quickly.
Outlook: A brutal schedule awaits, as after a trip to a revenge-minded Arlington, the Rebels play host to top-ranked Long Trail and visit Green Mountain. Getting swept would certainly send the Townshend team off the list, and two blowout losses may just do the same.
Power Rankings: 1/18
Power Rankings: 1/18
We are about halfway through the season, and Division 4 is still yet to find clarity. With confusing standings, records and bizarre final scores, it can be hard for the average fan to sort out what’s really going on up and down the division. So here at The Raptor’s Nest, our experts will put together a weekly ranking of the top 8 teams in Division 4 each Wednesday from now until the end of the regular season.
Long Trail (8-1)
The Mountain Lions had their undefeated start broken in a stunning loss to Springfield on the 17th. Even with the black mark on a shining season, the Dorset outfit still claims the top spot thanks to a division-best record and a big win over second-ranked Mid Vermont Christian. A favorable back end of their schedule should keep them near the top, but any future slip-ups would open the door to teams behind them.
Outlook: A lone game at Proctor is the full schedule for the squad this week. This inaction may prove useful due to the tough schedules faced by other teams in the rankings this week, but it could break the other way.
Mid Vermont Christian (9-2)
The Eagles are off to one of their best starts in program history on the back of a three-headed attack. The trio of Joel Roberts, Abel Goodwin and Roman Goeppner power a potent offense, while a stout 2-3 zone holds opponents in check on the other end of the floor. A close loss to top-ranked Long Trail is the only thing keeping them from the top spot in these first rankings.
Outlook: A brutal week lies ahead for Erva Barnes’s squad, as they travel to D3 powerhouse Richford before a long trip to Concord for a rematch with Trinity Christian. Winning the pair would almost certainly vault the team to the top of the rankings, but it won’t be easy.
Rivendell (6-3)
After a slow start, the Raptors ride a three-game winning streak since the return of Harry Molesworth from injury. The senior center has been instrumental on both ends of the floor as the team has blown out their opponents by an average margin of 32 points. A lack of games is the only thing keeping the Orford outfit from jumping higher, as they boast one of the toughest schedules of any team in the division.
Outlook: A trip to lowly Twin Valley on the 20th should pose little problem, but the home matchup against a young Green Mountain team on the 23rd could be a tricky outing for the team. Even with two wins in these two games, the Raptors will likely need outside help to climb the rankings.
Blue Mountain (5-2)
The defending champs responded admirably to a two-game swoon at the new year, notching a statement win over a ranked Danville squad . While all the pieces for another championship run may not be in place yet, Chris Cook’s crew are still a tough out who know how to win big games.
Outlook: It’s a tough week for the Bucks, as they host a ranked Twinfield team before a big rematch with interstate rival Woodsville. With several Mountain League teams nipping at their heels, it’s imperative for them to at least split to hold on to their spot.
Danville (5-3)
The high-tempo Bears have a solid record dotted with a few big wins over higher-division competition, but are pushed back by their blowout loss to Blue Mountain on January 10. A team as chaotic as them is always an upset pick, and they will have plenty of cracks at the big boys of both divisions in a tough back half of their schedule.
Outlook: Hosting bottom-feeder Craftsbury is just a tune-up for a massive matchup against undefeated Winooski on the 23rd. Being the first team to even cut the nigh-invincible Spartans would be a major accomplishment, and an upset win would send the Bears flying up the rankings.
Twinfield/Cabot (4-2)
The Trojans are off to a solid start to their season, but are yet to notch a win over a team with a winning record. Facing a loaded Mountain League, the team will need to step their game up to challenge the established powers at the top of the division.
Outlook: The Trojans head to Wells River for a true “ladder game” against Blue Mountain on Friday. Knocking off the Bucks would be a statement win, but it will be a tough fight. A Monday matchup with bottom-feeder Stowe offers a near-guarantee the team will enter next week above .500, but is unlikely to move the needle in their ranking.
Leland&Gray (4-3)
The Rebels have posted solid efforts in eventual losses to two of the top teams in the division, but an ugly road loss to unranked Proctor keeps them from climbing any higher on the rankings. Continuing the strong start could very much help the Townshend crew climb, but they need to solve their defensive issues to make a real dent on the upper levels of the rankings.
Outlook: The Rebels are the busiest team in the rankings this week, as they face a pair of solid Division 3 opponents on the road before hosting Twin Valley. Two wins out of three could just be enough to push them up a spot on the rankings, and a sweep could give them real momentum.
Arlington (3-4)
The Eagles suffered a heartbreaking loss at Green Mountain in a game that could have pushed them above .500 for the first time all season. Despite this, they grab the final spot of these first rankings thanks to a win over their closest competition in Proctor.
Outlook: Two fairly easy matchups against Sharon and West Rutland should be enough to finally push the team into the win column, but not much further. A loss in either game would almost certainly be enough to knock them out of the rankings, however.
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