AMHERST — After a shutout defeat to Belchertown at the start of the season, players on the Amherst boys soccer team made it known they were coming back for revenge against their local rival.
The Hurricanes got that chance on Tuesday, and they made the most of it.
Amherst turned the tides for a 3-2 victory, making the most of their home-field advantage. It was the first loss of the season for the Orioles.
Belchertown midfielder Dominic Mancuso struck first as he sailed a missile outside of the goal box and past Amherst goalkeeper Gene Doerr for a 1-0 lead.
Soon after however, Amherst’s Carlson Rose responded. Rose was ready for the service as he waited patiently in the box and his chance suddenly opened up. The ball found his foot, and he punched one to the back of the net to equalize.
Amherst striker Aengus Cox gave the hosts the lead for the first time when he played the rebound off Belchertown goalie Jacob Chaisson to perfection. Cox committed to the ball quicker than the defense and he didn’t let up on the opportunity. The ball was rocketed to the goal for a 2-1 breakthrough.
The teams traded penalty kicks the rest of the way. Mancuso tallied his second goal of the game from the spot to tie the game, but Cox netted the game-winning PK with 6 minutes, 22 seconds remaining to secure the 3-2 win.
Amherst coach Andrew Kovacs said he was confident his charges could turn the result around after losing to Belchertown in the opener.
“We expected to win this game,” said Kovacs, who is in his first year as head coach. “The first time we played Belchertown was my first experience coaching this team. So, it took a couple of games to figure some things out. Every one of these boys just absolutely love this game and they want to learn.”
Every practice session has become more thought-provoking and a hope for more improvement has been noticed, according to Kovacs. He said he’s aiming for more games like Tuesday.
Looking ahead, Amherst (2-4-2) is off for a week before hosting East Longmeadow on Oct. 5 while Belchertown (4-1-3) travels to Pope Francis on Friday.
Belchertown held a 14-6 edge in shots on the afternoon.
Frontier 2, South Hadley 0 — It was an offensive charge to start the second half that won the game for the Redhawks.
Tied 0-0 at the break, Tyler Dubreuil put Frontier on the scoreboard in the 42nd minute off an assist from Cairn Bright. 10 minutes later, Fernando Saravia scored off an assist from Dubreuil that put the game away, with the Redhawks earning a 2-0 win on Tuesday.
Easthampton 6, Mahar 1 — The Eagles scored three goals in each half to pull away with a 6-1 win over the visiting Senators on Tuesday.
Carter Hebert recorded a hat trick for Easthampton while Carter Daughdrill, Kaden Garvey and Mateo Navarro also found the back of the net in the win.
Cole Johnson had the lone Mahar tally, scoring in the second half off an assist from Dominic Whitman. Gavin Sullivan made nine saves and Mitch Krasco had five saves in the loss.
Smith Academy 9, Duggan 2 — Avonna Wickles put away two goals, as eight Falcons found the net in the victory. Story Goldman had two assists and a goal.
Madelyn Fagan, Emma Moynihan, Piper Higuera, Caitlin Graves and Haley Springman scored a goal each. Nataly Slysz and Madison Zononi contributed one assist each.
Smith Academy goalie Maddie Bell turned away two point blank shots and stopped three breakaways.
Smith Vocational 4, Putnam 0 — Jayanna Daniels, Caitlin Willard, Ayla Mechachonis and Madison Clark all found the back of the net in the Vikings’ 4-0 win over Putnam on Tuesday.
Megan Courtney and Emileigh Pause notched assists while Clark had a pair of helpers. Maggie Lauder made one save in net for Smith.
Monson 7, Northampton 1 – Sofia Ciaglo scored in the 22nd minute Monday for the Blue Devils.
The Mustangs went up 1-0 in the first 10 minutes, then Ciaglo’s goal tied it. Brianna Heafey assisted the goal.
Carolyn Riordan made seven saves for Northampton.
Granby 0, Monument Mountain 0 – Gabby Walz kept out 13 shots for the Rams in a draw Monday.