The Twinfield-Cabot boys team includes (from left) Brayden Cushing, Sam Russell, Dominic Hale, Meles Gouge, Cayden Green, Zepherin Hebert, Sam McLane, Charlie Berry, Thomas Gouge, Sam Churchill, Eli Russell and Tej Stewart, Coach Kris Bador and Assistant Coaches Jeremy Cushing and Ed Berry. Missing from the photo is Jola Otten and Assistant Coaches Jordan Moore and Anthony Golden.
MARSHFIELD – The Twinfield-Cabot boys’ basketball team continued to battle through injuries last week under first year head coach Kris Bador, winning two of their final three games of the regular season to earn a home playoff game in the upcoming Division IV tournament.
Sophomore Sam McLane netted a team-high 16 points to lead the Trojans to a dominant 66-40 home win over Christ Covenant last Monday. The Spartans held a 16-15 edge after eight minutes behind a 20-point night from Simon Mulligan, but the Trojans regrouped to take a 38-24 lead into the break.
photo by Brittany Butler
Dominic Hale takes a jump shot on Senior Night at Twinfield against BFA-Fairfax.
Senior Meles Gouge added 11 points in the win and Eli Russell chipped in with eight. Patrick Mulligan scored 11 for the Spartans as they fell to 2-4 on the season. McLane and Russell have answered the bell for the Trojans since losing their leading scorer Tej Stewart to a season-ending wrist injury. Stewart was a Vermont Dream Dozen selection after a stellar freshman season.
“We’ve definitely had our ups and downs this season, but we look at it as growth for our program in the long run. Eli and Sam have done a great job filling the void left by Tej’s injury,” said Bador.
Dylan Meunier scored 15 points and pulled down a game-high 19 rebounds to help BFA-Fairfax stave off a determined Trojan squad on the road last Thursday 48-39.
Ryan Sheehan added 15 more and a pair of blocks as the Bullets held a 29-24 edge after three quarters and held on the rest of the way to earn the win.
Twinfield-Cabot’s Eli Russell (left) advances the ball up the court past Joseph Banta (right) of Christ Covenant during play at Twinfield, February 12. Twinfield-Cabot outscored their opponents 66-40.
Russell led Twinfield-Cabot with 11 and Brayden Cushing added 10 in the loss.
The Bullets finished up the regular season at 12-8 and will be the seventh ranked team in the Division III state tournament.
Cushing continued to play his best basketball of the season at the right time, scoring 13 points to lead the Trojans to a 65-38 road win over Craftsbury Academy (CA) on Saturday, earning a home playoff game in the process as the eighth seed.
by Brittany Butler
At the opening tipoff BFA senior Sylas Meunier out-jumps Meles Gouge on Senior Night for the Trojans.
Russell complemented with 10 more points, Thomas Gouge scored a career-high 10, and Dominick Hale chipped in with nine in the win. Dylan Washer led the Chargers with 17 in the loss.
“We expect Trojan Nation to be rocking on Wednesday night to open the postseason,” said Bador. “It’s the playoffs and I expect my seniors to step up! It’s our second season, everyone’s record is the same at 0-0, and you must win to advance to the next game. Poultney is a big and athletic team that likes to get up and down the floor. We’ve watched them a couple times this season and we feel like we match up pretty well, but we’ll most definitely have to bring our A game.”
Photo by Brittany Butler
Trojans senior Dominic Hale defends against Bullets senior Shayne Meunier.
Twinfield-Cabot’s final win of the regular season flip-flopped the seedings with Poultney, sending the Blue Devils on the long road trip to Marshfield on Wednesday night. If the Trojans advance, they will most likely face top-seeded Danville in the quarterfinals on Friday night for a third time this season.
