Cosmos stumble against Mill River

Not a lot went right for the Cosmos on Tuesday night against Mill River. The Minutemen jumped ahead quickly and never let up en route to a 72-16 win.

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2015-12-09 / Sports Cosmos stumble against Mill River By CHRIS DOHERTY cdoherty@eagletimes.com Springfield’s Sumner Jansen (13) maneuvers the ball between Mill River’s Zack Ames (left) and Brian Eaton during Tuesday’s game. — CHRIS DOHERTY Springfield’s Sumner Jansen (13) maneuvers the ball between Mill River’s Zack Ames (left) and Brian Eaton during Tuesday’s game. — CHRIS DOHERTY SPRINGFIELD — Not a lot went right for the Cosmos on Tuesday night against Mill River. The Minutemen jumped ahead quickly and never let up en route to a 72-16 win. “We are a work in progress,” Springfield head coach Michael Ruppel said. Surrendering offensive rebounds and turning the ball over plagued Springfield for most of the night and Mill River capitalized on that, jumping out to a 21-2 lead after the first quarter. “Mill River really attacked the glass. Give them a lot of credit,” said Ruppel. The Cosmos had a hard time matching up with Mill River’s big down low, Dylan Shelvey, who scored eight points in the opening frame. Shelvey took advantage of his size with easy layups, but also kept possessions alive with his prowess on the glass. It was a balanced attack from the Minutemen, with every player contributing throughout the game. “We played consistently throughout the game,” Mill River head coach Jack Rogers said. “A lot of our younger players had some positive things happen for them.” The second half saw Springfield playing with more confidence on the offensive end after a tough first half holding onto the ball. “I feel like there were some positives to build off of in the second half,” said Ruppel. “They played real hard in the second half.” Tyler Rumrill led the Cosmos with eight points, all coming in the second half. It’s not always easy to find the positives in a game that goes awry early, but Ruppel said he loved how his team has responded when the coaches get on them about anything. “It’s a great group of guys,” he said. “We’re going to get in the gym and work hard every day.” Even with a big second-half lead, Mill River ran its half-court offense, trying to use the entire bench to get everyone some experience. The Minutemen did however do it in a way that wasn’t unsportsmanlike. “We didn’t get greedy when it got out of hand,” said Rogers. Ruppel said the message to his team was not to let these early struggles define the season for them. “It’s going to be defined by, are we getting better as the season goes on?” he said. He said if the team stays with that mindset and works hard that he’s confident that that will happen. Springfield (0-2) will look to keep on building towards that goal on Friday night at Bellows Falls (0-1).