Another season in the books with plenty of exciting moments to look back at. The 2024-25 winter sports season saw records broken, surprising outcomes and championship droughts finally end. Teams from Chittenden County may have taken home most of the trophies this winter, but a few teams made the trek north to capture titles, including one who continued their record run dating back to 1989. Individual performers looked for one last chance at glory before graduating while some fresh faces made their mark this year. With that in mind, here are my picks for the top 8 moments in the winter sports season.
Before I begin, I'd also like to give a shoutout to all the state champions that are not on this list and other major performances I might have missed over the course of the season. Let me know which moment not on this list stood out for you in 2024-25. That out of the way, let's begin.
8---Hartford girls hockey go back-to-back as Barwood sets record
On December 20th, Madison Barwood made history when she broke the program's points record. However, the Hurricanes girls hockey team ran into some tough competition from both D1 and D2 opponents and finished the regular season at 8-9-3. But after tying U-32 in the season finale, Hartford shut out the Raiders in the Quarterfinals, then went to Manchester and came back from a 2-0 deficit (led by Barwood and senior teammate Emma Bazin) to make a return trip to Gutterson Fieldhouse for the title game. In the final, Barwood and Bazin scored to propel Hartford to consecutive D2 state championships. A fitting end for an extraordinary hockey player.
7---Sharif guides Burlington to boys' basketball title against rival (and former team)
In 2024, Abdi Sharif scored 23 points to bring Rice their 4th state title in 5 years. In 2025, Sharif transferred to their rivals and ended a nearly decade-long title drought. The Seahorses were a dominant force in Vermont this season, losing only once to another rival in South Burlington. But that didn't stop the Seahorses as they scored at least 60 points in all but 2 of their remaining regular season games, including an 87-71 win at Rice to end the year.
The playoffs saw a defensive scare from CVU and revenge vs. the Wolves to make the title game for the second year in a row. In the title game vs. Rice, Sharif scored 29 points against the Green Knights to bring Burlington its first state title in 9 years and 22nd overall (Coach B.J. Robertson brought one of those titles home as a player in 2001).
6---Essex wins 10th girls hockey title with new head coach
As the 2024-25 season began at Essex, one thing stood out more than anything else: A lot of teams made coaching changes. One of the most noteworthy was the girls hockey team with John Maddalena departing and Jerry Gernander stepping in. The return of Taylor Senecal to the Hornets roster and several new faces led them to a 11-8 regular season record. But like Hartford in D2, Essex were #4 in the playoffs, meaning a trip to Leddy in the semis to face defending champs Burlington/Colchester. Also like the Hurricanes, the Hornets rallied from an early deficit behind Senecal (2 goals) and goalie Morgan Hughart to deny the SeaLakers a repeat.
In the championship game, Senecal became the first player in 10 years to record 4 points in a title game while sophomore Calleigh Bruyns netted the first finals hat trick in the same time span (both done by Hornet Kathleen Young) to propel Essex over BFA-St. Albans and capture the 10th state championship in program history (1 behind the Comets). Even with Senecal departing after this year, the future looks bright for Gernander and the Hornets as they look to make more history in 2026.
5---Rice boys hockey outlasts rival SB in thrilling title game
The Rice Green Knights boy's hockey team didn't lose a single game in 2024-25 and nearly dominated every team they faced. Coming into the title game, Rice had only trailed in one game and won by one goal twice. But South Burlington came out swinging and a Lucas Van Mullen goal made it 1-0 Wolves, a lead that lasted 31 seconds before Tyler Russo tied it up. After Oliver Quong scored in the second, Van Mullen would tie things up early into the third. But just like last year, it was Quong who scored the game-winner, this time with 1:22 remaining in the third, and the Green Knights repeated as D1 boys' hockey champions. The Wolves played their hearts out, but Rice did enough in the end to cap off a perfect season.
4---Burlington Girls end 49-year title drought, stop #1 SJA
The Burlington Seahorses girls' basketball program has never lost a D1 title game they were a part of. The problem is they haven't been in the title game since 1976, so it was time to get the monkey off their back.
After an unfortunate end in the 2024 playoffs, the Seahorses came out strong to start the 2024-25 season, losing once in their first 10 games. Their 3 losses in state were to St. Johnsbury (twice) and Mount Mansfield, but Burlington would get revenge on both teams in the playoffs, dominating the Cougars in the semis before leaning on their two senior scorers Bree McDonald and Nylah Mitchell to knock off the Hilltoppers in the title game, ending a 49-year championship drought. Coach Bev Robertson and his Seahorses finally swam to the top of the mountain in 2025 and caught that trophy that's been alluding them for a half-century.
3---Randolph's Brownell wins individual bowling title
The 2024 Vermont high school bowling state champions Randolph continued to hit all the marks in 2024-25, finishing atop the standings and bringing several bowlers to the individual tournament in Rutland. The one Ghosts bowler who made his mark in that tournament was Evan Brownell, who was able to outlast the competition and capture the title in a thrilling contest with Fair Haven's George Stamp. In the stepladder, Brownell defeated Conor Simonds of St. Johnsbury 172-166 to reach the final against Stamp; then knocked off the #1 bowler in the state 204-201 for Randolph's first individual winner since 2019. It was a special moment for Brownell and the Ghosts, but then...
2---Fair Haven bowling's eventful tournament run
...Stamp and the Slaters got their moment to shine in the 2025 Vermont high school bowling state championship at SpareTime. I won't go too far as I do have a Recap on the event in here, but for those that haven't checked it out yet, Fair Haven swept their way to the semifinals over #7 South Burlington, then after watching Essex come back from 3-0 down against Burlington in another QF, mustered their own 3-1 comeback against the Hornets to make the title match against Randolph. After an even first 4 games in the final, the Slaters took control in games 5 and 6 and won their second state championship in 4 years.
1.5---VPA PSA from student-athletes
Wanted to add this in before I reveal #1 because it is a Must-Watch for all involved in Vermont high school athletics (students, coaches, parents, etc).
But my pick for the #1 moment in Vermont High School winter sports---West Rutland girls and Peyton Guay
While the 2024-25 winter sports season had many incredible team moments and single-game performances, no one individual player had a better season than West Rutland's Peyton Guay. Every night, we'd hear about another dominant performance by her and the Golden Horde girls basketball team. But on February 8th at home vs. Hazen, Guay officially took her place in Vermont high school basketball history, becoming the state's all-time leading scorer in girls basketball, surpassing former Oxbow star and current SJA head coach Jade Huntington for the mark.
After breaking the scoring record, all eyes in West Rutland were on a 4th straight division 4 state title and the Golden Horde would deliver. WR would shine vs. Twinfield/Cabot, Arlington and Long Trail to finish Guay's run at the school at 2,279 points, but most importantly, 4 state championships. It's been a blast watching Peyton shine through the years and officially leave a lasting impact on the sport here in Vermont. Nothing but the best on the journey after basketball!
So those are my picks but let me know what your favorite moments were during the season in the comments or online. Thanks to all of you for reading this and, as always, to all those who have covered Vermont high school athletics. I'll catch all of you once the spring sports season begins.
