William Cross, a 2020 graduate of Newport High School, recently closed out his college basketball career in style, earning two recognitions from Washington County Community College in Calais, Maine.
The guard closed out his senior collegiate season by picking up both the Coaches Award of Excellence and the Golden Eagle Award.
The former award recognized Cross for “consistent effort, positive influence and significant contributions to the team’s success throughout the year,” according to a news release on the college’s website.
The latter award, deemed “the program’s highest honor,” is given to “the student-athlete who best exemplifies the character, commitment, work ethic and team-first attitude that define the Golden Eagles.”
The honors meant a lot to Cross, who averaged over 16 points and three assists per game and captained Newport High’s basketball team as a senior during the 2019-2020 season after transferring from Keene High.
“Basketball is everything to me and was basically my whole life growing up, up until now really,” he said. “All the hard work I put in and sacrifices I made to get to the college level and then have some success at the college level.”
Out of high school, Cross initially committed to play college hoops at Great Bay Community College in Portsmouth, N.H., before COVID-19 canceled that season.
He never would appear in a contest for Great Bay and eventually found himself at the University of Maine at Presque Isle, where he played sparingly, before carving out a role this past season with at Washington County, which plays in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association.
Cross, who described himself as “more of a role player,” started multiple games for the Golden Eagles this past season, with a couple of standout performances. Notably, in a loss to Southern Maine Community College, Cross played 32 minutes and produced 6 points and 5 rebounds.
“Will just was one of those guys that was always on time, always worked hard, never complained about anything,” Washington County basketball coach and athletic director Seth Martin said.
“In previous years I know Will didn’t get a lot of playing time, but that never deterred him — he always showed up and kept working — always wanted to get better, always did well in the classroom,” he added.
Martin spoke glowingly of his former charge’s positivity and consistency.
“Will is just one of those guys — if you had 12 of those guys around, you’d have a lot less frustration and a lot more fun, I think, as a group if you’ve got more guys like Will,” he said.
As for the future, Cross said he thought he was done playing basketball and would now focus on pursuing a career.
However, he did not rule out a return to the game he loves at some point in a coaching capacity. “I love basketball, and I just can’t get away from it,” he said.
