Here’s a look at some Upper Valley residents who played varsity college sports this winter. A recap of those competing during the spring season will run in June:
Bowdoin was 15-9 for a second consecutive season, sophomore guard K.J. Matte (Lebanon) appearing in 16 games and averaging 3.7 minutes and 1.1 points per game. … Haverford (Pa.) College was 10-15. Senior guard Khalil Garnes (KUA) started 20 of 25 games in which he appeared and was the team’s second-leading scorer, with a 10.5 per-game average. … Nate Knight (KUA) led William and Mary (Va.) in scoring, averaging 21 points per game for the 14-17 Tribe. The junior center started every game and averaged 8.6 points per game. … Junior swing man Cooper Williams (Meriden/KUA) was part of Carnegie Mellon (Pa.) University’s 11-14 season. He appeared in 23 games, started one of them and averaged 14.7 minutes and 5.1 points. … New Hampshire was 5-24 with junior forward Luke Rosinski (KUA) starting three of the 19 games in which he played. He averaged 9.6 minutes and 1.4 points. … Junior forward Ross Gerber (KUA) appeared in eight games for Catholic University in Washington. The Cardinals were 10-15. … Eli Frater (KUA), a senior guard at Maine’s Bates College (7-17), averaged 3.5 points per game while starting two of the 17 games in which he appeared. … Colby-Sawyer junior guard Austin Whaley (Lebanon) appeared in 15 games for the Chargers (13-13) and averaged 1.3 points. … Sophomore guard Trent Noordsij (New London/KUA) appeared in 27 games for the University of Rochester (N.Y.), averaging 14.4 minutes and 4.0 points per game for the Yellowjackets (21-6). … Duje Radja (KUA), a sophomore forward at Elon (N.C.) University, got into six games for the Phoenix (11-21). …Kenyon (Ohio) College sophomore Ugnius Zilinskas (KUA) played in 17 games, averaging 27.5 minutes and 13.2 points per outing on a 2-23 team. … Guard Andrew Cashe (Canaan/Mascoma) played in 11 of New Hampshire Technical Institute’s first 13 games, averaging 2.5 points, but did not see action the rest of the season because of injury. … Freshman guard Lawson Ouelette (North Thetford/Thetford Academy) started three of the 24 games in which he played for Johnson State (3-21), averaging 14.8 minutes and 3.9 minutes. … Utah State (28-7) featured junior guard Crew Ainge (KUA), who started all 18 games in which he appeared and averaged 12.9 minutes and 2.8 points. … Junior guard Travis Valmon (KUA) got into five games at Maryland (23-11), which reached the second round of the NCAA Division I tournament.
Abigail Kelly (KUA), a junior guard at Maine’s Bowdoin College (31-2), helped the Polar Bears reach the NCAA Division III tournament’s title game for the second consecutive season. She started all 33 games in which she played and averaged 25.4 minutes and 15.4 points. … .St. Lawrence (N.Y.) University was 8-17 with sophomore forward Katie Frederick (Sunapee) leading the Saints with an average of 11.1 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. She started all but one game. … Skidmore (N.Y.) College (9-17) competed with sophomore guard Caroline Merguerian (Hanover/KUA) and senior forward Taylor Ong (KUA). Merguerian started four of the 26 games in which she played and averaged 2.1 points and 1.6 rebounds. Ong started every game and averaged 8.0 points and 7.6 rebounds. … Colby-Sawyer (14-12) enjoyed the services of junior guard Lexie Hamilton (Sunapee) and sophomore forward Joslin Wainwright (Plainfield/Lebanon). Hamilton started each of the 23 games in which she played and averaged 35.9 minutes, 13.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.4 steals. Wainwright started every game and averaged 26.8 minutes, 7.2 points and 5.7 rebounds. … Norwich was 8-16 with senior forward Vanessa Fleury (Lebanon) starting all 18 games in which she played and averaging 9.5 points and 7.2 rebounds. … Junior guard Lindsay LaPerle (Bethel/Whitcomb) and senior forward Mariah Ramos (Lebanon) were part of Johnson State’s 2-22 campaign. LaPerle started every game and averaged 33.1 minutes and 8.3 points. Ramos started 22 of 23 games in which she played and averaged a team-best 11 points and 6.2 rebounds. … Sophomore Laura Vaillancourt (Whitcomb) started one of the two games she played for Vermont Tech (13-16). … Sophomore forward Mary Grzanna (Sunapee) helped New Hampshire Technical Institute go 15-14. She played in every game and started 14 times, averaging 23.2 minutes, 8.3, points including a season-high of 20 against Maine-Augusta. … Plymouth State was 10-14 with senior Kialah Reeder (Enfield/Mascoma) starting one of the seven games in which she appeared, averaging 2.7 minutes per contest. … Freshman forward Tess Whitney (Claremont/Stevens) was part of a 4-21 season at Keene State, appearing in nine games. … Sophomore guard Meredith Melendy (Grantham/Lebanon) saw action in 11 games for Bates College, averaging about three minutes and 2.2 points per game. Melendy had a career-high 18 points in a 95-43 defeat of Maine-Farmington on Jan. 17, going 5-for-9 from 3-point territory in a game in which the Bobcats (12-12) netted a program-record 16 3-pointers. … Freshman Taylor Soule (West Lebanon/KUA) started 20 of the 29 contests in which she appeared for Boston College (14-16) this season. She had her best game in a 93-78 loss at North Carolina on Feb. 21, setting personal bests for points (21), minutes (35), rebounds (9) field goals (8) and field-goal attempts (17).
Junior goaltender Eric Bogart (KUA) appeared in 19 games with Fredonia (N.Y.) State, posting a 11-6-1 record with a 2.60 GAA and .920 save percentage. The Blue Devils were 15-8-4. … Junior goaltender Paul Leger (KUA) started 11 games for Southern Maine (5-18-3). He was 3-8 with a 4.03 GAA and an .871 save percentage. … Army was 12-18-7 with junior forward Dominic Franco (KUA) playing in all but one game and producing 14 goals and eight assists. … Brendan Riley (KUA) was a junior forward who played in 34 games and had a goal and three assists for Mercyhurst (Pa.) University, which was 13-20-5. … Jacob Paluch (KUA), a senior defenseman at Nazareth (N.Y.) College, played in 28 games and had two goals and 14 assists as the Golden Flyers went 12-9-7. … Connecticut College (7-16-1) featured senior forward Matt Michaud (KUA), who played in 20 games and had three assists. … Middlebury sophomore forward Alex Heinritz (KUA) skated for an 8-13-4 team, playing in 24 games and producing a goal and four assists. … Nicholas Godin (New London) was a junior forward at Stonehill (Mass.) College, which was 8-17-1. He had six assists in 24 games. … A year after missing the NCAA Division III playoffs, Norwich (23-5-3) reached the national title game before losing in overtime to No. 1 Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Senior defenseman Cam Beecy (KUA) played in nine games and had one assist. Junior forward Jack Griffin (KUA) had two goals and three assists in 26 games. … Boston College senior forward J.D. Dudek (KUA) played in every game and had seven goals and five assists for the Eagles (14-22-3), who made a run to the Hockey East title game.
Maine’s Colby College, guided by former Dartmouth assistant and third-year coach Holley Tyng, was 12-10-3. Senior goaltender Katie Fenton (Norwich/Hanover) played one period, stopping 12 of 14 shots. Freshman defender Sadie Kuhn (Woodstock) played in every game and had a goal and six assists. Freshman forward Colleen Donoghue (Meriden/KUA) played in 19 games and had two goals and two assists. … Vermont was 10-20-6 with sophomore defender Greta Close (Norwich/KUA) playing in 24 games. … Bowdoin (3-19-2) featured sophomore forward Julia Surgenor (Meriden/KUA) and sophomore forward/defender J.J. Taube (Hanover). Surgenor played in every game and had three goals and an assist. Taube appeared in 21 contests and had an assist. … Hanover has numerous former players in the college ranks, including three at Amherst (Mass.) College. The Mastadons (13-11-2) received three goals and two assists from senior forward Sarah Wagner, a goal from junior forward Eliza Laycock and two goals and nine assists from senior defender Miriam Eickhoff. The first two played every game and the latter appeared in 22 contests. … At Williams (Mass.) College, the Ephs (21-5-3) won the NESCAC title and reached the NCAA Division III quarterfinals. Freshman defender Bri Laycock (Hanover) played in every game and produced four goals and five assists. … Sophomore defenseman Amanda Nelson (White River Junction/Hartford) appeared in 25 games for St. Michael’s College (7-17-1). … Northeastern (Mass.) University won its second consecutive Hockey East title and reached the NCAA Division I tournament, losing a quarterfinal game in overtime. Junior forward Matti Hartman (Hanover) has six goals and 12 assists and didn’t miss a contest for the Huskies (27-6-5). … Sophomore forward Megan Hayes (Hartford) played in 31 games for New York’s Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (14-18-5) and had one assist. … Angela Augusta (KUA), a senior forward for Salve Regina (R.I.) University, played in 23 games and had an assist. The Seahawks were 6-18-2. … Hobart-William Smith (N.Y.) College received a goal and seven assists from sophomore defenseman Lexi Nottke (KUA), who skated in every game. The Herons were 18-8-2.
University of Chicago senior Ben Chaimberg (Hanover) ran the third leg, with a 49.64 split, to help set the program’s indoor record in the 4×400 at 3:20.10 seconds. He also ran a career-best 52.15 to capture the 400 at the Margaret Bradley Invitational. … Colby-Sawyer junior Ben Jones (Enfield/Mascoma) closed the winter by running a season-best 9:27.69 in the 3,000 meters in mid-February and finished 11th out of 17 runners. Also running a personal-best in the 3,000 was Chargers junior Liam Fleming (Orford/Rivendell), who clocked 9:23.94. … University of Vermont junior Chris Gish (Sharon/Sharon Academy) ran a personal-best in the mile (4:13.66) at the IC4A-ECAC meet, 23rd out of 35 competitors in the preliminaries. … Dickinson (Pa.) College sophomore Ben Sobel (Hanover) ran a personal-best 7.43 seconds in the 55 meters at his school’s invitational in mid-February. The team finished fourth out of nine squads at the Centennial Conference championships. … Plymouth State freshman Marcus Roper (Lebanon) was 17th out of 20 competitors in the shot put at 44 feet, 1.5 inches during the New England Division III championships. He threw a personal-best 46 feet, 4.25 inches earlier in the winter. … St. Lawrence senior Will Merchant (Lebanon) posted personal bests in the shot put (42- 6) and the weight throw (43- 11.25) while finishing seventh in each event during the Saints open meet in mid-February. … Plymouth State freshman Dillon Buttner (Sharon Academy) turned in a personal-best in the weight throw, heaving it 42-2.75 in early February. The Wildcats later placed fifth out of 12 teams at the New England Alliance championships. … On the coaching front, Lebanon native John Wallin guided the Southern Connecticut State men to their 14th Northeast-10 Conference title in February. That adds to a resume that includes five New England titles and 12 Eastern coach of the year honors.
Lauren Kaija (Reading/Woodstock) is a Worcester (Mass.) Polytechnical Institute sophomore who competed in two events in the New England Division III indoor championships. She was 11th in the 600 meters (1:41.17) and her 4×800 team was fourth (9:36.03). WPI was eighth out of 26 teams. … Aparma Alavilli (Hanover) is a graduate student at Northeastern who previously ran at Carnegie Mellon. She ran a personal-best 17:33.23 in the 5,000 in February and a personal-best 5:15.08 in the mile two weeks later. The Huskies were fifth out of 18 teams at the IC4A-ECAC meet. … Plymouth State freshman Leanne Burgess (Bradford, Vt./Oxbow) was third out of 11 competitors at the NCAA Division III New England championships in 11:15.01. Teammate and Panthers senior Kayla Gould (Orford/Rivendell) was 10th out of 19 competitors in the pole vault at the same meet, clearing 8 feet, 6 inches. … Franklin Pierce finished sixth out of 12 teams at the Northeast-10 Conference championships with junior Katey Comstock (Hartland/Windsor) throwing the shot 39 feet, 2.5 inches and finishing eighth out of 20 competitors. … St. Lawrence was fifth at the six-team Liberty League championships. Freshman Kathleen Merchant (Lebanon) posted personal bests in the shot put (40-9.5) and the weight throw (42-11) during the event and finished first and ninth, respectively. Freshman Kim Merchant (Lebanon) threw the shot 34-1.5 and finished 11th during the same meet, and senior Jessica Young (West Lebanon/Lebanon) finished fourth out of as many competitors in the 60-meter dash in 9.39 seconds. She was also ninth out of nine runners in the 200 (30.85), part of the Saints’ 4×200 relay team (1:55.22) and on one of its 4×400 quartets (4:50.91). … RPI was third out of six teams at the Liberty League championship. Freshman Ileana Sirois (Hartland/Hartford) set a personal best in the 100 hurdles in 16.82 seconds, finishing seventh out of 14 competitors in the finals. She was also 13th out of 19 entrants in the 60 hurdles in 10.12 seconds and eighth out of 16 competitors in the triple jump at 34-0.75. … UMass Lowell freshman Izzy Giesing (Bradford, Vt./Oxbow) broke the River Hawks’ record in the 800 meters with a time of 2:07.91 in the preliminary round at the ECAC/IC4A Indoor Championships. … Corinne Kennedy (Lebanon) was ninth in the 500 meters at the IC4A/ECAC meet (1:15.21) and was part of a 4×400 relay team that won two events this winter.
Bowdoin freshman Nordic skier Perrin Milliken (Norwich/Hanover) produced her first points-scoring performance while at the UNH Carnival on Feb. 18-19. She was 46th out of 85 skiers, finishing in 3:26.23. The Polar Bears were fourth in the team standings. … Colby senior Nordic skier Zane Fields (Woodstock) won his seventh race in the last two years when he posted a 43:32.5 time on the 15k course at the Dartmouth Carnival in Lyme. The Mules tied for second place. At the same event, sophomore Kristen Miller (Norwich/Hanover) finished 29th in 33:12.3 for Colby’s women’s team. … The Castleton men’s Alpine team finished third at the USCSA national championships, a year after claiming second. Among the Spartans were juniors Andrew Borden (Woodstock) and Michael Hirschbuhl (Woodstock). … Courtney Couture (Lyme/Hanover), a junior at Colby-Sawyer, competed in five Alpine skiing festivals and was 44th in the slalom and at the Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association championships. … UVM was second at the EISAs with sophomore Spencer Smith (Woodstock) finishing 12th in the giant slalom in 2:37.98.
Amherst sophomore squash competitor Margaret Werner (Etna/Hanover) was 9-8 for the Mammoths (8-11), playing in the sixth, seventh and eighth slots. … Junior Georgia Houde (Meriden/Lebanon) was on the Middlebury College swimming team, which finished eighth out of 11 schools at the NESCAC championships. Houde was part of an 800-yard freestyle relay team that finished 20th out of 22 teams in 6:26.58. She was also 32nd out of 53 swimmers in the 500-yard freestyle in 5:13.89 and 23rd out of 35 competitors in the 1,000 freestyle in 10:49.39. … Brittany Kainen (White River Junction/KUA) is a Hamilton (N.Y.) College sophomore swimmer who was part of the Continentals’ 11th-place finish at the 11-team NESCAC championships. She was 43rd in the 50-yard butterfly in 32.64, 41st in the 50-freestyle in 29.62 and 43rd in the 100 fly in 1:15.44. … Arizona junior Hannah Cox (Hartland/KUA) swam the 1,650 in 15:57.68 in early December, the fourth-best mark in program history. The Wildcats finished fifth at the Pac-12 Conference championships, and Cox was part of an honorable-mention All-American 800 free relay team that finished in 6:59.47. She earned the same honor in the 500 free with a time of 4:36.04. … Paul Smith’s (N.Y.) College junior bowler Connor Bean (West Windsor/Oxbow), a transfer from Union College and Franklin Pierce, was his new team’s high scorer during a tournament at William Patterson. He finished the event with a nine-game total of 1,692, good for an average of 188. Bean would also roll the high team game of the day with a 258 and had a pair of 222 games. He reeled off 14 straight strikes between games 5 and 6 and finished 17th out of 130 bowlers.
Tris Wykes can be reached at twykes@vnews.com.
Update
This column has been updated to include two athletes who were omitted from the initial story.