Wrestling: Franklin Tech earns win over South Hadley in tightly-contested dual (PHOTOS)

By THOMAS JOHNSTON

TURNERS FALLS — It’s not often these days that a dual high school wrestling meet is competitive from start-to-finish. That was the case on Friday though, when South Hadley traveled to Franklin Tech. Of the 14 weight total classes, 11 were filled and...

Mahar School Committee OKs naming snack shack after longtime Booster, coach

By DOMENIC POLI

ORANGE — The Mahar School Committee voted this month to name the football field concession stand after longtime varsity girls basketball coach and Booster Club member Larry Fisher.Booster Club President Charles “Joey” Verheyen approached the committee...

Keeping Score: Tabulating the totals

Good morning!Nobody researches local high school sports like Turners Falls’ Mike Cadran, aka The Tabulator. Cadran’s latest effort reveals the top five winningest schoolboy basketball coaches. The all-time wins leader according to Cadran is South...

Ohio State hires Bill O’Brien, ex-Texans coach and Alabama assistant, as offensive coordinator

By RALPH D. RUSSO

Ohio State has hired former Houston Texans and Penn State head coach Bill O’Brien as its offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, the program confirmed in a statement Friday.“He is an excellent and experienced offensive coach who has run NFL and...

High schools: Hot-shooting Frontier pulls away from Greenfield 48-33 (PHOTOS)

By THOMAS JOHNSTON

SOUTH DEERFIELD – It wasn’t going to come easy for the Frontier girls basketball team on Thursday against Greenfield. The Redhawks led 32-20 going into the fourth quarter but the Green Wave stormed back, with Amber Bergeron and Tayler Bergeron each...

Alpine ski: Mohawk Trail’s Addie Loomis, Weston den Ouden capture victories at PVIAC Meet No. 3

By THOMAS JOHNSTON

CHARLEMONT — Following back-to-back state championships, it would be easy for the Mohawk Trail girls alpine ski team to take its foot off the gas during the regular season.That has been far from the case this winter.The Warriors have looked every bit...

Indoor track: Athol, Frontier, Mohawk Trail, Pioneer compete in late session on Wednesday

The fourth PVIAC indoor track meet of the season took place on Wednesday at Smith College, with Athol, Frontier, Mohawk Trail and Pioneer competing in the late session. Here’s how each team fared: AtholThe Bears boys fell to Frontier (85-8) and Pope...

The Real Score: Busy Times for Hockey Fans, New Fans and PWHL Boston

Hockey fans — are you ready for a busy few months? The Bruins sit in first place in the Eastern Conference. UMass continues its quest for a top seed in Hockey East – plus a spot in Springfield’s NCAA DI Men’s Ice Hockey Regional. And PWHL Boston...

High schools: Greenfield indoor track has three top 5 finishers at PVIAC Meet No. 4 (PHOTOS)

The Greenfield indoor track team competed in the early portion of the PVIAC’s fourth meet of the season on Wednesday at Smith College, with a trio of Green Wave athletes earning top five finishes. On the boys’ side, Jackson Caron earned a third place...

UMass basketball: Philip Alston’s last-second three-point play lifts Loyola Chicago past Minutemen 79-78

By GARRETT COTE

Josh Cohen stepped to the line with his UMass men’s basketball team tied against Loyola Chicago on Wednesday night. The Minutemen were trying to avoid consecutive losses for the first time this season, and despite free throws being the weakest link in...

Girls basketball: Williston holds off Deerfield Academy late for 43-36 NEPSAC win (PHOTOS)

By THOMAS JOHNSTON

DEERFIELD — The Williston Northampton School girls basketball team controlled the majority of Wednesday’s NEPSAC contest against Deerfield Academy, but the Big Green didn’t go down without a fight late.The Wildcat defense held the Big Green to just...

Earl Lorden, 1942 Turners Falls baseball team to be inducted into Western Mass. Baseball Hall of Fame

By THOMAS JOHNSTON

The 1942 Turners Falls High School baseball team, and its head coach, continue to be recognized for their accomplishments. The Western Massachusetts Baseball Hall of Fame announced its 11th Hall of Fame class this week and the 1942 team was selected...

Youth basketball: JJ Bones, Turners Falls Suburban League grades 5 and 6 improve to 7-1 on season

It was a perfect weekend for the Turners Falls grades 5 and 6 boys basketball team, as the club defeated Frontier (55-47) on Sunday and Belchertown (43-34) on Saturday to improve to 7-1 overall.On Sunday against Frontier, JJ Bones led all scorers with...

UMass basketball: Loyola Chicago ahead for both Minutemen, Minutewomen 

By GARRETT COTE

The UMass men’s basketball team hits the road for its second consecutive Atlantic 10 Conference road contest on Wednesday night against Loyola Chicago. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. and the game will air on CBS-Sports Network.Entering Wednesday’s game,...

UMass hockey: Competitive Hockey East slate has Northeastern on tap for Minutemen

By GARRETT COTE

AMHERST — After tying against UConn, which led to a shootout loss, UMass hockey head coach Greg Carvel said in his postgame presser that his team needs to “learn how to win.”With about one-third of its schedule remaining – all against Hockey East...

Local roundup: Shelburne Falls’ Rich Larsen among Western Mass Runners’ Hall of Fame Class of 2024

Another talented class of runners will be inducted into the Western Mass Runners’ Hall of Fame in March.The WMRHOF’s Board of Directors announced the inductees for the third class to enter the hall this week, with induction set for March 8 at the...

Record number of teams compete in Mahar Girls Wrestling Tournament (PHOTOS)

By THOMAS JOHNSTON

ORANGE — The seventh annual Mahar Girls Wrestling Tournament was a smashing success on Monday. After having over 150 athletes compete last year, the tournament — which takes place each year on Martin Luther King Day — saw 54 teams from all over New...

Indoor track: Third PVIAC meet took place on Sunday

The third PVIAC indoor track meet of the season took place on Sunday at Smith College. Here are the top performers from each local school: AtholThe Bear girls fell to Mohawk Trail (59-9), Pioneer (62-7) and Commerce (25-12). The Athol boys beat...

UMass basketball: Rhode Island torches Minutemen from 3-point land in 89-77 victory

A red-hot shooting performance sank the UMass men’s basketball team on Saturday.The Minutemen allowed a season-high 89 points to host Rhode Island, as the Rams shot 51.9 percent from the field and 60.9 percent from 3-point land to roll to an 89-77...

UMass hockey: Merrimack shuts down Minutemen, salvages weekend split via 4-1 win

A three-goal second period from host Merrimack enabled the Warriors to earn a weekend split with the UMass hockey team.Merrimack scored three times in the middle period and goalie Hugo Ollas stopped 24 of the 25 shots he faced to lift the club to a...