CARIBOU, Maine — The Aroostook League held its annual Senior Scholar Athlete Banquet in the Caribou High School cafeteria on Thursday, March 16.
Those attending were welcomed by Evan Graves, Caribou High School athletic administrator, followed by a catered meal.
Graves introduced the guest speaker, Tracy Guerrette of St. Agatha.
Guerrett is a graduate of Wisdom High School where she excelled in soccer, softball, and basketball. She continued her education at the University of Maine where she began as a “recruited walk-on” to the women’s basketball team. She played and started for four years. Following her outstanding career at Orono, Guerrette has had a distinguished career in distance running and has continued to be involved with basketball as a player and coach. She currently serves as an assistant coach for the Wisdom Pioneers girls’ team. The hard work, perseverance, respect, dedication, and adherence to the values taught her while growing up, show in day-to-day life that she is a great representation of what it means to be from Aroostook County.
Central Aroostook High School Senior Scholar Athlete honorees Lane McCrum and Kira Fitzherbert. McCrum was one of five boys scholarship recipients. (Contributed photo)
Graves then introduced the scholar athletes from the 17 Aroostook League High Schools and each received an Aroostook League Senior Scholar/Athlete certificate. The representatives have demonstrated an outstanding blend of academic, athletic, and personal accomplishments and leadership throughout their high school years. They are:
Ashland: Darby Clark, Benjamin Howes; Caribou: Kaylee Bell, George Ferland; Central Aroostook: Kira Fitzherbert, Lane McCrum; East Grand: Emma Davis, Jathaniel Lindsey; Easton: Kenzie Legassie, Rylee Chasee; Fort Fairfield: Kassidy Gorneault, Zakary Gerhauser; Fort Kent: Annabelle Reardon, Nathan Voisine; Hodgdon: Madison Smith, Andrew Duttweiler; Houlton: Kenzie Hodgkins, Cody Johnston; Katahdin: Maggie O’Hara, Grady Ritchie; Madawaska: Taylor Pelletier, Ian Beaulieu; MSSM: Shelby Carson, Owen Dulac; Presque Isle: Lindsey Himes Malachi Cummings; Southern Aroostook: Madison Russell, Camden Porter; Van Buren: Elyssa Violette, Noah Martin; Washburn: Lucy Tate, Christopher Tardie; Wisdom: Abbie Lerman, Dominick Gendreau.
Aroostook League Senior Scholar Athlete honorees for Washburn District High School are Lucy Tate and Christopher Tardie. (Courtesy of Ron Ericson)
The Aroostook League presents 10 $400 awards to five boys and five girls to be presented to the students upon successful completion of the first semester of their freshman year in college.
Dwight Hunter, former Caribou High School athletic director, presented the scholarships. Graves and Guerrette assisted with the drawing and presentations for the 10 scholarship winners. The athletic administrator or school representative gave a summary of the activities and accomplishments of the award recipients.
The following five girls had their names drawn to receive the award: East Grand High School: Emma Davis; Fort Kent Community High School: Annabelle Reardon; Madawaska High School: Taylor Pelletier; Presque Isle High School: Lindsey Himes; Southern Aroostook Community School: Madison Russell.
The following five boys had their names drawn to receive the awards: Central Aroostook High School: Lane McCrum; Easton High School: RyleeChasse; Katahdin High School: Grady Ritchie; Houlton High School: CodyJohnston; MSSM: Owen Dulac.
Graves closed the evening by wishing all the student-athletes the best of luck in college next fall and in their future careers. The Senior Scholar Athletes award winners truly represent outstanding examples of individuals combining excellence in sports and the classroom. Included is a brief snippet of each one of the Aroostook League winners:
Grady Ritchie: He is president of Katahdin High School’s National Honor Society and played five years of varsity soccer. Ritchie was a 1,000-point scorer on the basketball team.
Lane McCrum: He is the current State of Maine Future Farmer’s vice president. He has been a Central Aroostook High School ski team member for years and a member of the 2019 Class D state champion soccer team.
Rylee Chasse: He is very active at Easton High High School and the Presque Isle Tech Center. He is vice president of the senior class at Easton High School and a member of the varsity basketball team for four years.
Cody Johnston: He is a member of the National Honor Society at Houlton High School. He is very active in varsity baseball, varsity basketball, and varsity soccer — earning All-Aroostook recognition.
Owen Dulac: He has a 3.9 GPA at the Maine School of Science and Math. He has been active in varsity track and field. He will be attending Columbia University, majoring in Pre-Law.
Emma Davis: She is the senior class president at East Grand High School. She has been very active in varsity soccer, basketball, and softball, earning All-Aroostook recognition. She will be attending Florida Southern University, majoring in nursing.
Annabelle Reardon: She is active in Nordic skiing and cross country at Fort Kent Community High School. She is a member of the three-time state Nordic ski championship team. She is a member of the National Honor Society and is very active in her school and community.
Taylor Pelletier: She is involved in many activities at Madawaska High School. She is a member of the varsity basketball and softball teams. She has played varsity soccer and has earned All-Aroostook, Regional, and All-State Awards.
Lindsey Himes: She has played four years of varsity soccer, four years of varsity cheering, and four years of varsity track at Presque Isle High School. She is a member of the Society of Women’s Engineers. She will be attending Brigham Young University in the fall, majoring in kinesiology.
Madison Russell: She has played five years of varsity basketball and varsity softball. Russell has earned All-Aroostook basketball, all-tournament, and regional recognition. She was chosen as a MacDonald’s All-Star. She is a member of the National Honor Society at SAHS. Russell will be attending St. Joseph’s University, majoring in nursing.
