BRISTOL — For the first time since 2011, the Mount Abraham Union High School basketball program will not appear in the Division II championship game in the Barre Auditorium, and the Eagles will not win their third straight title this season despite another strong season in which they earned the No. 2 seed in Division II and tied South Burlington for the Lake Division crown.
In a Friday quarterfinal that was a rematch of the 2014 final, visiting No. 7 Fair Haven used a dominant performance on the boards to upset the Eagles, 38-31, and advance to Barre.
The Eagles only recorded seven individual rebounds during the game, and they scored just two points in the third quarter after taking a 17-15 halftime lead.
Mount Abe Coach Connie LaRose said rebounding proved to be critical.
“The ball seemed to take some crazy bounces in the second half, but we did not do a good job keeping Fair Haven off the boards,” she said. “They were getting two, three and four looks before we could clear the ball.”
Eagle freshman Emma Carter scored nine of her 13 points in the fourth period, but the Slaters entered the period with a 27-19 lead and were not threatened down the stretch.
Senior Isabel Brennan added eight for Mount Abe, but no one else managed more then three points. Meanwhile the Slaters showed balance: Kylie Eagen, led the way with eight points, followed by Halle Coloutti, seven; Lexi Quenneville, six; and Kelley Daley, five.
Friday’s game marked the last in Eagle basketball colors for Brennan and fellow senior forward Jen Gordon, the co-captains, and classmates Ashley Boise,Angela Dupoise,Keegan Jackman andSteph White.
FIRST-ROUND WEDNESDAY
In first-round games on Wednesday, both the No. 12 Vergennes and No. 15 Middlebury girls came up short on the road against higher seeds.
The Commodores lost at No. 5 Lamoille 54-36. Katelin Collins scored 14 to lead a balanced effort for the 12-7 Lancers. Juniors Nikki Salley (12, 10 rebounds, three steals) and Sarah Poirier-Thayer (11 points, including three treys) led the VUHS offense, while K.C. Ambrose chipped in six points and five steals and Paige Coyle added four points and seven boards.  
Four members of the Commodores will graduate: K.C. Ambrose, April Ambrose, Coyle and Jane Russell.
The Tigers fell to No. 3 Mill River, 58-38, after the 16-5 Minutemen bolted to a 17-2 lead. MRU’s Ella Bankert led all scorers with 20 points, while Keagan Dunbar scored 13 for the 3-18 Tigers.
Seniors Krisandra Provencher andLejla Mahmuljin suited up for MUHS basketball for the final time.