It took a few minutes for the Hampshire field hockey team to shake off some first-game jitters in its opening contest against Amherst on Thursday.
Both squads were playing their first games of the season, and Amherst came out strong, pushing the pace and hemming Hampshire in its own end early on. The visitors responded well, taking control of the game and eventually scoring twice in a 2-0 County League shutout victory.
“I feel like the team pulled it together there towards the middle of the game…. At the beginning of the game, I think everyone was so excited to play because it was our first game of the season that we were really bunched and not as thoughtful as we could be,” Hampshire head coach Susannah Bastek said. “The team worked together and talked about what they could do differently. Then they were able to make some good passes and the offense was able to score.”
Sophomore Chloe Moynihan got the first goal of the game in the second quarter, capitalizing on a scrum in front of the net. Sophomore Ava Senecal picked up the assist, and the rest of the first half remained scoreless, sending the visitors into the break with a 1-0 lead.
Hampshire doubled its lead in the middle of the third quarter on a strong transition play. The Raiders’ offense moved quickly up the field and got the ball to Moynihan, who fed freshman Reese Hickox for the game’s second and final goal. Goalkeeper Oliva Labrie made several key saves throughout, finishing with four stops to preserve the shutout.
Franklin Tech 3, Holyoke 1 — Siobhan Armstrong’s first-half goal tied the game 1-1, but the visiting Eagles scored another before halftime and tacked on one in the second half to score a 3-1 victory at the Roberts Complex in Holyoke.
Northampton 2, Mohawk Trail 0 – The Blue Devils shut out Mohawk Trail in their first field hockey game of the season, dominating possession for most of the game.
Izzy Epstein scored Northampton’s first goal, assisted by Anna Cuthbert-Laidlaw, in the second quarter. Pearl Davis notched the second goal unassisted in the third frame.
Northampton keeper Katie James made one save in the win.
East Longmeadow 10, Smith Academy 0 – Ashley Beek scored a hat trick for East Longmeadow as Smith Academy dropped their opening contest on Thursday night.
Belchertown 13 ½ , Northampton 10 ½ — A balanced effort throughout the lineup lifted the Orioles to an impressive early-season victory on Thursday at Cold Spring Country Club.
All six Belchertown golfers shot 44 or better. Riley Breen set the pace with a 1-over-par 37 in the No. 1 hole, followed by Henry Poissant (39), Tyler McDonald (41), Michael Murray (41), Brady Perkins (44) and Jared Haynes (44).
Galen Fowles took medalist honors for Northampton, firing a 4-under-par 32 in the No. 1 spot to earn 3.5 points. Reilly Fowles shot 38 and notched two points for the Devils at No. 2.
Hampshire 23, Mohawk Trail 1 — Pryden Messier notched medalist honors with a 42 out of the No. 4 spot for Hampshire in a dominant victory at Edge Hill Golf Course.
Levi Zielinski carded a 44 at No. 1 to win three points for the Raiders. Owen Lech (48) and Nico Johnson (50) both swept points in their matches.
South Hadley 23, Chicopee 1 – The Tigers completed a near-perfect win over Chicopee at Ledges Golf Course in South Hadley.
All six of South Hadley’s golfers won their matches, and five of the six golfers – Nick Hartley, Austin Deren, Bennett Allen, John Viola and Sean Whalen – swept their matches.
Chicopee Comp 18.5, Amherst 5.5 — Piet Hartman won 3.5 points for Amherst at No. 1 on Thursday, but the Hurricanes fell to the Colts.
Ben Scott scored 1.5 points at No. 2 for Amherst.
Frontier 3, Westfield 0 — The Frontier girls volleyball team passed its first two tests of the season with flying colors.
After earning a win over Minnechaug on Wednesday, the Redhawks followed it up with a 25-18, 25-18, 25-16 sweep of Westfield on Thursday at Goodnow Gymnasium, the team that Frontier split the Eastern League championship with a year ago.
Eve Dougan led the way with 10 kills and 10 digs in the victory. Caroline Deane had six kills, Sam Baker had four kills and four aces, Kate DeMaio put down four kills, Gabby Adams smashed two kills and Sydney Scanlon distributed 24 assists for Frontier.
Smith Voc. 3, Granby 0 – Smith Voc needed just three sets to best Granby on Thursday, winning 25-13, 25-15 and 25-17.
Jaylen Kulas pounded home 12 aces and dug up seven balls for the Vikings, tacking on four kills and four assists for good measure. Jaycee Beaulieu tossed up 11 assists and Heidymar Diaz finished with 10 digs, nine aces and eight kills.
Pittsfield 3, South Hadley 1 – The Tigers won a nailbiter first set 26-24, but Pittsfield took the next three (25-13, 25-14, 25-9) to win the match.
Alena Lempke served up a pair of aces and Isabella Schaeffer served up three aces and posted four blocks in the loss.
Northampton 15, Ludlow 50
Northampton 19, Westfield 44 — Norah Reade won the girls race with a time of 20 minutes, 51 seconds to propel the Blue Devils to a tri-meet sweep on Thursday.
Other top 10 overall finishers for Northampton were Anna Zamer (third), Maeve O’Neil (fourth), Tess Geis-Benton (fifth), Lily Zamer (sixth), Eliza McDonough (seventh), Taylor Lynch (eighth) and Charlotte Shimpach (10th).
Northampton 15, Westfield 50
Northampton 23, Ludlow 32 – The Blue Devils bested both Ludlow and Westfield on the boys side, led by Theodore King-Pollet’s first-place finish (17:18).
Northampton’s top five scorers all finished within a minute of each other; King-Pollet was followed closely by Jude Mourad (17:55), Davis Wheat (18:01), Jack Kamins (18:06) and Isaac Roth (18:09).