MILTON, Mass. — The Baseball Performance Academy Eagles, with players from Topsham, Bowdoinham, Bowdoin and Harpswell, recently captured the New England AAU 15-and-under Open Division League championship, held at Curry College.

“The big thing is this AAU league we play in is primarily academies, all-star teams, and people pay a lot of money to get on and pick the top guy,” said Eagles coach Mike Moody. “Our guys are just Ararat freshmen. Some of the stuff these guys doesn’t surprise me. I am most proud of the fact that these guys are a team. We win those close games because we are a team, where other teams are just kids playing together. When going gets tough, they suck it up and support each other.”

It was a busy year for the Eagles, which began with off-season training at Coastal Performance in Brunswick. Plus, a new home field, Cox Field, gave the team a solid venue for hosting league games.

With teams throughout New England in the league, the top six teams advanced to the New England Tournament, with the Eagles garnering the No. 1 seed. Pool play opened the tournament, with the top four teams advancing to single elimination play.

The Eagles opened with a 10-3 thumping of Taunton Extreme Academy. Ryan Mello had two hits, including a big bases-loaded double. His two-run double in the sixth inning gave him five RBIs. Nick Merrill also had two hit, with Garrett Moody, Cole Kelly, Kaileb Hawkes, Liam Huston, Ryan Glass and Nate Leslie each adding a hit.

Glass pitched a complete game for the win, allowing three runs on seven hits with three strikeouts. He did not issue a walk.

The second game didn’t go well for the Eagles, who suffered a 12-0 loss to the Baseball Unlimited Tigers Academy. Blair Kopp led the Eagles with two hits, while Moody and Hawkes had a hit each.

Despite the loss, the Eagles advanced to the final four.

A rematch came just 16 hours against the Tigers, and this team the bounces went the Eagles way in a 6-3 victory. Moody was solid on the mound, scattering nine hits and striking out five.

He was helped at the plate by a nine-hit Eagles attack, led by two hits each from Merrill, Sam Alexander and Hawkes, with Huston, Cam Grant and Leslie picking up a hit each.

The championship game featured a battle with the New England Red Storm. This one had it all, with the Storm taking leads in the first, third and fourth innings, only to watch the Eagles counterpunch with runs in the second and two more in the fourth.

The game slipped into extra innings tied 5-5. The Red Storm put up a run in the eighth to claim a 6-5 lead, but there was no denying the Eagles. Leslie led off with a double, followed by Glass single and a stolen base to put the tying and winning runs in scoring position. The next two Eagle hitters were unable to bring in the runners, leaving the team’s last hopes on the shoulders of Mello. But, a wild pitch allowed Leslie to scamper home for the tying run, and Mello launched a hit to right field to bring home the win and the New England title.

Kopp and Glass combined on the mound on 10 hits, one walk and five strikeouts in the win.

“ We went the AAU group because half are U14 and half are U15. Both had success when they were younger,” said coach Moody. “They are all freshmen, but just on either side of that ‘U.’ We got that group together and we were able to see what they could do.”

The Eagles are coached by Jeff Kelly, Mike Moody, Jerry Merrill, John Grant and Chuck Alexander. Players are Topsham’s Cole Kelly, Kopp, Glass, Cam Grant and Garrett Moody, Harpswell’s Hawkes, Mello, Sam Alexander and Kyle Brennan, Bowdoin’s Leslie and Huston, and Nick Merrill of Bowdoinham.