HINESBURG – The Champlain Valley Union (CVU) girls basketball team defended their home court with ferocity last week in a rare Division I vs. Division III match-up with the Lady Cats of Hazen Union.
Zoey McNabb showed why she is one of the best senior point guards in the state, scoring a team-high 12 points to lead the Lady Redhawks to a 48-35 home win over Hazen last Tuesday. The multiple VBCA Outstanding Underclassmen selection repeatedly broke down Hazen’s pressure defense to extend a four-point lead after one quarter, to 33-15 at the break. McNabb scored the majority of her points in the final eight minutes of the first half, including a pair of threes that led to a 17-3 run for CVU to close out the half. Fellow two-time Outstanding Underclassmen selection Kelsie Rivard, did all she could to keep the Lady Cats in the game with 16 points, but struggled to get the ball in her spot against a stingy CVU defense. Deirdre Higgins (12 points) took over for the Lady Redhawks in the second half as they took a 41-23 lead with eight minutes to play.
A Rivard finish with three minutes to play cut the lead to fourteen and an Autumn Dailey (six points) finish at the rim cut the lead to ten late. The Lady Redhawk half-court defense harassed Hazen point guard Mya Lumsden all night long, holding her to just four points before fouling out in the fourth. McNabb and company also thwarted any chances of a late comeback bid by the Lady Cats, holding them scoreless from long range.
It truly was a match-up of dominant teams in their respective divisions. CVU has reached the Division I Final Four the last four seasons, cutting down the nets twice at the Patrick Gymnasium. They have posted a 72-14 combined record over the last three years. Head coach Randy Lumsden has led the Lady Cats to three straight Division III Final Fours, including the program’s first state championship in over three decades in 2024. In Vermont high school girls basketball, you rarely see dominant programs from different divisions go at it during the regular season, so credit to Lumsden for testing his talented squad so early in the season against the very best. His strategy should bear fruit in March, when his team tackles a top heavy division III in the state tournament.
Hazen hosted Thetford Academy on Monday and will stay at home for a match-up against Randolph on Saturday. They travel to Enosburg on December 30 before clashing with arch-rival Peoples Academy on January 3 in the Winter Solstice at the Barre Auditorium. All home games can be streamed live on Hardwick Community Televesion (hctv.us).
