Millbrook squeaks out win against Salisbury School

Millbrook School and Salisbury School duked it out Oct. 18 in a high-octane soccer match under the lights.
Nathan Miller

Millbrook School and Salisbury School duked it out Oct. 18 in a high-octane soccer match under the lights.
MILLBROOK, N.Y. — Millbrook School beat Salisbury School 4-3 in a heated soccer match Friday night, Oct. 18.
A scoreless first half gave way to an action-packed second half that came down to the final minute.
Tensions ran high during the first half. Both teams played aggressively, resulting in a number of time stoppages for fallen players. No one was injured during the intense game, but Salisbury’s coach did face a slight reprimand from the referee for yelling out and asking for a foul call.
Play heated up significantly just after half-time. Millbrook took back the field and, in their first possession of the second half, sneaked a goal past Salisbury’s keeper in the first thirty seconds.
Salisbury responded to the falter in their defense by increasing their offensive intensity.
That intensity helped the team at first, and about 15 minutes into the second half Salisbury scored to bring the game to 1-1. That tie was short-lived as a foul awarded a penalty kick to Millbrook that sailed into the back of the goal, bringing the score to 2-1.
Salisbury maintained the intensity, but every time the Knights tied the game up the Mustangs found another opportunity to take back the lead. With just 90 seconds left in the game and a tied score of 3-3, Millbrook was granted a free kick that squeaked by Salisbury’s keeper, eliminating any hopes of the Knights taking the win back home to Connecticut that chilly Friday night.
The Fall Family Weekend game at Millbrook’s campus ended with a Mustang win 4-3.

The HVRHS boys rejoice around Jackson McAvoy after he scored the game-winning goal against Shepaug with just two minutes left to play.
WASHINGTON — Housatonic Valley Regional High School’s boys varsity soccer team advanced to the Berkshire League tournament final after a 1-0 win over Shepaug Valley High School in the semifinal game on Friday, Oct. 24.
Jackson McAvoy scored the game-winning goal with just two minutes remaining.
The victory marked HVRHS boys soccer’s first victory over Shepaug since 2020.
“Finally,” said HVRHS Coach Adolfo Portillo after the game.
HVRHS will play top-ranked Nonnewaug High School in the BL final. Nonnewaug advanced to the title game by beating Northwestern Regional High School in penalty kicks (4-3) after a 2-2 draw in regulation time.
The championship game will be played at Nonnewaug beginning at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 28.

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Students dressed in neon lined the soccer field for senior night under the lights on Thursday, Oct. 16. The game against Lakeview was the last in a series of competitions Thursday night in celebration of Homecoming 2025.
As homecoming week reaches its end and fall sports finish out the season, an air of school spirit and student participation seems to be on the rise across Housatonic Valley Regional High School.
But what can be attributed to this sudden peak of student interest? That’s largely due to SGA. Also known as the Student Government Association, SGA has dedicated itself to creating events to bring the entire student body together. This year, they decided to change some traditions.
Spirit week from Oct. 14-17 was unlike those of the previous years. From wearing Housatonic merch to Boomer vs Baby day, this year’s spirit week held a little friendly competition to see which grade could participate the most.
“I think that students are bored of the same old activities and events, so it’s good to switch things up even slightly to incentivize interest within students,” said SGA president and senior Mollie Ford. “Plus the point system is super beneficial because it gives students a reason to participate.”
The school spirit sentiment can be seen outside of just the school. Senior Simon Markow is known for his photography throughout the community, and has dedicated time to help Housy sports teams’ social media posts.
“Since I’ve started photography, I think school attendance [at sports games] has gone up,” Markow said. “I feel this year, students will be more aware of games and are more likely to be at the games.”
Whether it’s a pink-out volleyball game or an under the lights soccer match, it’s likely you’ll see some familiar faces.
Social media has played a large role in this over the years. Almost every student organization at Housatonic has an Instagram account, and it’s helped reach students more efficiently than a poster or email would.
“The increase of social media use, with the help from me but as well as the teams themselves has definitely increased student interest,” Markow said. “With Housy teams posting more about their upcoming games, and my help showing the cool goals, spikes, or touchdowns, it’s enlightened students to watch the games themselves.”
In a small school, promoting pride has proven to be a challenge. But this year’s senior class has made some adjustments in the hopes to change that.
“The SGA community has spent the last few years really focusing on student participation, because we think it’s the students who contribute to a better climate,” Ford said. While Housatonic’s student body may be small in size, it seems they certainly aren’t small in spirit.