TA News

Thetford Academy’s Panthers defeated White River Valley 6-0 on Saturday to win the Division III State Championship in baseball for the first time since 1986 – and only the second time in the team’s history. White River Valley’s Wildcats, however, had earned three titles in a row – Division III in 2019 and Division IV in 2020 and 2021. At Centennial, the Panthers were confident and united with a strong season at their back and success in the semifinals – they were there to win.

Freshman Xander Oshoniyi pitched an incredible game, successfully holding off WRV with his battery mate Andrew Spooner. “Oshoniyi baffled the White River Valley lineup for six innings, striking out eight and retiring 13 in a row at one point to help the No. 3 seed Panthers to a 6-0 victory at Centennial Field over the fifth-seeded Wildcats,” reported Benjamin Rosenberg of the Valley News.

The Panthers earned three runs early on (Oshoniyi, Nolan Pepe, and Justin Robinson), setting the stage for the win. By the fourth inning, the Panthers had increased their lead to 4-o. WRV Coach Devin Cilley told the Valley News, “We just really couldn’t get on. [Oshoniyi] threw some strikes early. I felt like we were right on him; he just missed our (barrels) a little bit. That’s the game of baseball.”

After adding two more in the sixth and holding the Wildcats scoreless, the Panthers clinched the win, earning Vermont’s Division III crown. Congratulations to the Thetford Academy Panthers, 2023 Division III State Champions: Andrew Spooner, Dempsey McGovern, Evan Patterson, JD Farrell, Justin Robinson, Liam Brooks, Sam Parkman, Nolan Pepe, Owen Goodrich, Thomas Amber, Xander Oshoniyi, Jacob Gilman.