MARSHFIELD – Twinfield Cabot point guard Eli Russell was named the Mountain League’s Player of Year last week, capping off a dreamlike senior season for the multi-sport star.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
Russell led the Trojan boys basketball team in scoring for a second straight season, averaging nearly 20 points per game over that span. He reached 1,000 career points in Twinfield-Cabot’s regular-season home finale, joining senior teammate Tej Stewart in reaching the career milestone on the same night. The dynamic duo led the Trojans to a 22-2 record, the top seed in the Division IV state tournament, and a state runner-up finish against Williamstown at the Barre Auditorium. Russell also took home Mountain League Player of the Year honors for the Caledonia United (Twinfield-Cabot-Danville) soccer team last fall. He led the team in scoring for a second straight season with a program record 30 goals, leading Cal United to a 16-1 record and a state-runner-up finish to Twin Valley in the Finals.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
Stewart joined Russell as a Mountain League First Team selection for a third consecutive year. The versatile big man has battled through injuries the last couple of years but remained one of the league’s best players. He’ll graduate in the spring as a 1,000-point scorer for the Trojans and was a Vermont Basketball Coaches Association (VBCA) Outstanding Underclassmen selection three times. Rounding out First Team selections were Williamstown’s Nick Mascitti, Danville’s Sebastian Eldred and Kai Von Sitas of BFA-Fairfax.
Danville’s Kohl Guinard wrapped up an outstanding high school career with the Bears, earning a Second Team selection. Sophomore sensation Omar Miksic-Knibb earned an Honorable Mention selection for the Trojans in a Mountain League that was loaded with talent this past season. Alijah Andrews and Landen Fournier also earned Honorable Mentions honors for Danville, along with Northfield’s Damian Morrison, who had a breakout season for the Marauders after transferring from Hazen Union before the season.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
Twinfield-Cabot head coach Kris Bador was named the Mountain League Coach of the Year for a second consecutive year, sharing the award with Richford’s Aidan Kelly. The Trojans were regular-season Mountain League Champions with a dominating 15-1 record. Bador led the Trojan program to a 22-2 record this past season and back to the Division IV state title game for the first time in nearly a decade. The Trojans are 51-18 since Bador took over the program three years ago. Bador and his coaching staff helped develop a special group of seniors that will graduate in the spring, including Russell, Stewart, Sam McLane, Zepherin Hebert, Thomas Gouge, Sam Churchill, Ben Monaco and Wyatt Bickford.
