Twinfield-Cabot junior Meles Gouge bears down at the plate for Danville.
by Ken Brown
MARSHFIELD – Peoples Academy (PA) and Blue Mountain (BM) led the way for top honors in baseball Mountain League selections over the weekend, with Twinfield-Cabot’s Meles Gouge earning a Second Team selection for Danville.
The Wolves captured their third straight state championship in baseball on Saturday and first ever in Division II, as they were rewarded with a trio of First Team selections in the rugged Mountain League. Senior fireballer Ben Alekson highlighted the list for PA, capturing his second straight Player of the Year honor. Alekson hit over .600 for the season, belting four home runs, and striking out more than 100 opposing batters in 50 innings. He was also named the Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Vermont and will play for the Vermont Lake Monsters this summer. Teammates Jackson Lund and Camden Strong joined him as First Team selections.
Blue Mountain’s Evan Dennis, Ricky Fennimore, and Kason Blood also nabbed top honors after leading the Bucks to an 18-1 record, culminating in their first Division IV state title in eight years over the weekend. Dennis pitched a one-hit masterpiece in the title game, striking out 18, and will attend Colby-Sawyer in the fall. First Team selections were rounded out by BFA Fairfax’s Gabe Nyland-Funke and Reagan Baumeister, Northfield’s Jameson Preston and Aujua Cheeney, Richford’s Will Steinhour and Carter Blaney, and Jameyson Locarno of Williamstown.
Gouge led Second Team selections for Danville in his second season on the Bears roster. The Twinfield-Cabot three-sport star played shortstop and pitched for Danville this past spring, hitting over .400, including seven doubles, four triples, and swiping 17 bases. The junior also shines for the Trojans on the pitch as their leading goal scorer and has been a Vermont All-State selection the past two seasons. He is also the starting point guard for the Trojan basketball team.
“Meles is a consummate teammate and has been a quiet and steady presence on our team that many of his teammates look up to. He was our offensive catalyst all year long as well as being a stolen base machine. He brought positive energy to the field every day and has an infectious attitude that gave us a spark each and every game. I’m very much looking forward to Meles being one of our senior leaders next spring and taking the next step to help lead our team back to Centennial Field,” said Danville head coach Nick DeCaro.
Joining Gouge as Second Team selections were PA’s Chandler Follensbee, Derek Baxter, and Dylan Sautter, Blue Mountain’s Cam Roy and Kris Fennimore, Northfield’s Travis Robillard and Carter Allen, BFA-Fairfax’s Ryan Sheehan and Dylan Sicard, and Marcel Gendron of Richford. John Morgan and Cooper Calkins of Danville were Honorable Mentions.
