BULLETS STUN BELLOWS FALLS, FIRST BOYS’ #14 TO ADVANCE IN 17 YEARS
By Ben Kaufmann
County Courier
BFA-Fairfax didn’t just eke out a shocking upset over heavily-favored Bellows Falls on Wednesday night, the No. 14 Bullets cruised to a 76-53 win over the No. 3 Terriers in a Division III playdown game.
“We came out in the first quarter and played our best basketball of the season,” said Bullet coach Dave Demar. “We got all the loose balls and made all the effort plays. That set the tone for the whole game.”
Owen Demar led BFA (3-5) with 19 points and a handful of assists. Carl Bruso and Isaac Decker each tallied double-digit rebounds, with Bruso adding 17 points and Decker scoring 14. Riley Greene also chipped in 14 points for Fairfax, which bested its previous high score (56 in a season-opening loss at Danville) by 20 points.
The Bullets will be on the road again for a quarterfinal on Saturday against No. 6 Williamstown.
This is just the 11th time a Vermont high school basketball team of any gender in any division has won a playdown game as a No. 14 or higher – going back to the mid-1970’s when playoff seeds were first recorded for the state tournaments. The Division IV Concord boys were the last No. 14 seed to advance to a boys’ quarterfinal, toppling No. 3 Cabot in overtime in 2004. Brattleboro’s girls’ team reached the Division I semifinals in 2016 as a No. 14.
BFA became the second-highest seed ever to win a Division III playdown game after No. 15 Black River, which advanced to the boys’ Division III title game in 2001. Only two times in the history of the Division III boys’ playoffs has a No. 14 ever won a playdown game – West Rutland in 1975 (when the No. 11, 12, 13, and 14 teams all won their playdown games) and Poultney a year earlier.
Fairfax did earn the record of largest playdown win by a No. 14 or higher. Wednesday’s 23-point triumph topped the 18-point victory by the Burlington girls in 1996 and the 19-point margin West Rutland enjoyed in 1975.
Vermont High School Basketball – Playdown Wins By a No. 14 Seed or Higher
| Seed | Year | School | Division | Playdown Win Margin | End Result |
| 16 | 1985 | BFA-St. Albans Boys | 1 | 7 | Lost in championship game (OT) |
| 15 | 2001 | Black River Boys | 3 | 4 | Lost in championship game |
| 14 | 1974 | Poultney Boys | 3 | 8 | Lost in semifinals |
| 14 | 1975 | West Rutland Boys | 3 | 19 | Lost in quarterfinals |
| 14 | 1975 | U-32 Boys | 2 | 5 | Lost in championship game |
| 14 | 1987 | Essex Boys | 1 | 5 | Lost in quarterfinals |
| 14 | 1996 | Burlington Girls | 1 | 18 | Lost in quarterfinals |
| 14 | 2001 | Poultney Girls | 3 | 8 | Lost in quarterfinals |
| 14 | 2004 | Concord Boys | 4 | 7 (OT) | Lost in quarterfinals |
| 14 | 2016 | Brattleboro Girls | 1 | 2 (OT) | Lost in semifinals |
| 14 | 2021 | BFA-Fairfax Boys | 3 | 23 |
