WEST SPRINGFIELD – The Easthampton hockey team’s push for the postseason came to a close in its 4-1 loss to Agawam during the PVIAC Class B semifinals on Thursday at the Olympia Ice Center.

The Eagles fell behind 1-0 less than three minutes into the contest and were forced to chase the rest of way as the Brownies (11-8) tacked on three more to advance to the Class B final and end Easthampton’s (8-11-1) season.

“They certainly dictated the pace of play,” Eagles head coach Tim Pfau said of Agawam. “They battled harder than us for loose pucks. It seemed like they were the team that wanted it a little bit more tonight than our guys.”

Agawam’s Aiden Pisano scored 2 minutes, 39 seconds into the game with a wicked wrist shot that beat Eagles goalie Tommy Bixby high blocker-side. Pisano put the Brownies ahead 1-0 on a strike off the rush, but their lead was short-lived.

Parker Christy knotted up the game 1-1 on a goal off an offensive zone faceoff less than two minutes after Agawam’s opener. Christy’s long-range goal came at 4:08 of the period and the 1-1 score held until the first intermission.

Similar to the first period, the Brownies found twine early in the second frame, this time on a goal from Evan Connery 31 seconds in. Bixby couldn’t cover the puck on a net-front scramble before Connery found the loose puck and pushed it in to give Agawam the 2-1 advantage.

Easthampton had a pair of power play opportunities throughout the first 30 minutes of action, but couldn’t convert. The Eagles finished the contest 0-for-3 on the man-advantage.

“I think they were doing the right things, they’re looking for the right guys, it’s just a bouncing puck and we couldn’t handle it clean lately,” Pfau said.

The Brownies increased their lead to 3-1 on a pretty tip-in goal from Cole Buffum, seconds into play during the third period. Buffum’s back-breaker counted 27 seconds into the stanza and wound up being an insurance marker when it was all said and done.

“Going into the third down 2-1, we felt OK,” Pfau said. “We just knew we had to get the next one. When they get that tip-in for the third, it was a little deflating, you could feel it on the bench. Just tried to keep the positivity high. Again, they worked harder on those loose pucks against us and they certainly got behind us for that fourth one, easy tap-in, and then it’s tough to come back from three with four minutes left.”

On a 2-on-1, Vinny Montagna took a pass from Landon Ashford and fired the puck into the yawning cage for Agawam’s fourth and final goal with 4:33 to go in regulation.

The Eagles wouldn’t have qualified for the MIAA state tournament regardless of Thursday’s outcome as their 5-2 loss to Monty Tech on Monday effectively ended their playoff chances. 

The fact that Easthampton had a fighter’s chance to make the state tournament to begin with was impressive after it started the season 0-6-1. The Eagles fought all the way back to win eight of their next 11, but ran out of gas in its final two defeats. 

Nevertheless, Pfau was still proud of his team’s ability to turn their season around.

“We got punched in the face, we got our eye black, we got a bloody nose, we got some teeth missing, but we never got knocked out,” Pfau said. “When we started 0-6, nobody thought we would be here. So [Thursday] you have to play like it’s your last game ever, you have to work hard every shift, and know that nobody thought you’d be here and you have a chance, you can make some noise [in this tournament].

“Going into this game we were 3-and-3 in goal differential with these guys, 1-1 in the season,” Pfau said. “We knew we had a chance. The energy was high to start, we just kind of tapered off and we couldn’t seem to find a groove.”

The Eagles graduate nine seniors and Pfau offered his thoughts on those athletes who suited up for the Maroon and White for the final time on Thursday.

“Hockey’s got a lot of metaphors in life,” Pfau said. “These kids will be set for the rest of their lives. They’re all good kids, I can’t stress that enough. They get knocked down and they’ll get back up in life, just like they did this season.”

Agawam will play No. 4 Taconic in the Class B final on Saturday.