Championships up for grabs at WMass meet

A trio of top area swimmers will head into Sunday's Western Massachusetts Championship Meet with a variety of hopes and expectations.

Cathedral hockey earns key, historic win over BC High

WEST SPRINGFIELD - The Cathedral hockey team's 4-3 victory over Boston College High Thursday night wasn't just important for this season, but also historic for the premier program in western Massachusetts.

Northampton's Joel Bierwert seeks second diving championship

As Joel Bierwert ascends the diving board, the JFK Middle School natatorium draws silent.

•  Related story: Championships up for grabs at Western Massachusetts Meet

Frontier's Sean Doyle finishes third in final PVIAC race

Sean Doyle of Frontier Regional finished third overall at the final PVIAC alpine skiing race of the regular season Thursday at Berkshire East in Charlemont. Doyle finished with a time of 36.96 and the Red Hawks placed fifth in the North division.

Thursday's basketball games: Northampton beats Longmeadow in double overtime

Jarrod Neumann had a monster game with 23 points and 18 rebounds as the Northampton boys basketball team defeated Longmeadow 86-78 in double overtime Thursday night. The Blue Devils (10-7, 4-2 Suburban) qualified for the postseason with the tough road win.

Greenfield hockey upends Amherst

Eric Cameron had a hat trick and a pair of assists as the Greenfield hockey team defeated Amherst Regional 8-2 Thursday night at Orr Rink. The third goal represented Cameron's 100th career point in only his 57th career game.

South Hadley likely No. 1 in Division 3A hockey field

With just two weeks remaining in the high school hockey season, the Division 3A field appears top-heavy and fairly thin as the tournament approaches.Wright Division leader South Hadley, Hennessy League champion Wahconah Regional and Greenfield of the Fay Division are miles ahead of the rest of the field.

Adrienne Pascucci of Northampton has been a quick study on the track

NORTHAMPTON - Junior Adrienne Pascucci may be one of Northampton's best indoor track athletes, but what she's even better at, could surprise you. "I can find a four-leaf clover, like that," said Pascucci with a snap of her fingers. "I don't know why, but when I used to keep track when I was little, I got over 100. I would just sit out in the yard and find four-leaf clovers." Pascucci doesn't attribute her success to that talent, nor does she think it makes her lucky, but like her performances, it's impressive nonetheless, and it can't hurt her chances.

Wednesday's hockey games: Belchertown earns key win

Sean Kennedy's natural hat trick in the first period propelled the Belchertown hockey team to an important 5-1 victory over St. Joseph at the Pittsfield Boys & Girls Club on Wednesday. Joey Gallo and Alex Bachand added a goal apiece for the Orioles (8-6), who need four points in their last six games to qualify for the postseason.

Inside PVIAC Indoor Track Championship

The team and individual contender list at the PVIAC Indoor Track Championship is a long one.

The meet begins at 6 p.m. at Smith College Friday.

The four-time champion Northampton boys might have gone 6-3 during the season but never count out a champion.

Meghan Sullivan leads Granby girls basketball past Monson

GRANBY - Meghan Sullivan was the leading scorer in the Granby girls basketball team's victory over Monson Tuesday night.

But it was a heads-up defensive play by the standout freshman that keyed the Rams to the 54-43 win.

Tuesday's girls basketball games: Calvo's 3 lifts Frontier Regional

Amanda Calvo knocked down a 3-pointer from the corner with 8 seconds left as Frontier Regional survived a scare from Mohawk Trail 36-35 in Buckland on Tuesday night.

The Red Hawks (9-7, 9-6, Franklin South) moved to within one win of qualifying for the postseason with the victory and officially eliminated the Warriors (3-11, 3-11, Franklin North) from contention.

Holyoke Catholic girls basketball shoots past Gateway Regional

CHICOPEE - In the second quarter of Tuesday night's game against Gateway Regional, Holyoke Catholic guard Kieran Ramsey stepped back behind the 3-point line, received a perfect chest pass from guard Kyra Robins, ignored a hand in her face and made her second consecutive 3-pointer and third straight basket. Such was the case for the entire game, as the Gaels seemed to score on nearly every open chance they had, despite the best efforts of the Gator defenders to stop their offensive flow. That particular shot marked the point where Catholic really began to pull away from the Gators en route to a 48-24 win at Chicopee Academy.

Tyler Verville leads Belchertown boys basketball over Granby

GRANBY - Behind Tyler Verville's fast start the Belchertown boys basketball team raced out of the gate and never relinquished the lead, defeating Granby 68-59 Monday.

Verville finished with a career-high 19 points, all in the first half. Belchertown scored 28 to take a seven-point first-quarter lead.

Monday's high school hockey: Turners Falls defeats Greenfield

The Turners Falls hockey team scored a big victory Monday, beating Greenfield 3-1 at Collins-Moylan Rink in Greenfield.

The Indians (7-9) needed the win to keep their hopes of a postseason berth alive.

Keegan Downey (assist) scored twice, while Trevor Peduzzi had one goal.

Mat Sulda hits 1,000-point career milestone for Smith Academy basketball

HATFIELD - The crowd was roaring, the band was playing and one young man was waiting for his chance at a milestone. In the end, he did not have to wait too long to achieve it. Smith Academy's Mat Sulda, needing only eight points to pass the 1,000-point mark for his career, shook off a few misses before draining three consecutive 3-pointers to surpass the mark in the first quarter of the Falcons' 77-50 victory over Athol Monday. Sulda, who scored a career-high 35 points, hit the milestone with 2 minutes, 10 seconds left in the first quarter.

Division 1 wrestling: Nate Kane of Amherst Regional earns second place

Amherst Regional's Nate Kane earned second place in the 138-pound weight class at the Western Massachusetts Division 1 individual wrestling tournament Saturday in Westfield.

Kane lost to Central's Jonathan Viruet 12-0 in the title bout.

Saturday's high school hockey: South Hadley blanks Greenfield

Another day, another big win for the South Hadley hockey team.

Spencer Nawrocki netted a hat trick along with an assist as the Tigers cruised to a 6-0 win over Greenfield in a game between first place teams in Holyoke on Saturday.

Doug Sattler had two goals and one assist, while Nick Harris scored once for unbeaten South Hadley (12-0-1).

Division 3 wrestling: Ben Galica of Hampshire Regional wins sectional title

NORTHFIELD - Hampshire Regional senior Ben Galica added another win to his already impressive season Saturday, as he earned his first championship at the Western Massachusetts Division 3 Wrestling Tournament at Pioneer Valley.

Friday' basketball games: Easthampton girls cruise past Frontier

The Easthampton girls basketball moved into a virtual tie for first place in the Franklin South with a 47-27 win over Frontier Regional, Friday in South Deerfield. Elizabeth Whitney's 15 points and 15 rebounds paced the Eagles (13-3, 10-3 Franklin South), who are one-game back of Hopkins Academy (11-5, 11-3) in the win column.