GREENFIELD – It was a competitive game at halftime between the Greenfield and South Hadley boys basketball teams on Wednesday at Nichols Gymnasium. 

The Tigers’ outside shooting allowed them to take control in the third. 

Leading 38-32 at intermission, South Hadley opened the third on a 14-4 run behind a trio of 3-pointers from Jackson Driver and a trey from Tim Loughrey that gave the Tigers a 52-36 edge midway through the third. 

Greenfield made a late run to cut the lead to single digits late in the fourth but it wasn’t enough as South Hadley walked away with a 68-57 independent victory. 

“We had a good burst there from Jackson Driver in the third,” Tiger coach Chris Gerber said. “He had a cool moment there in the third that gave us separation. Greenfield is a good team. [Grayson Thomas] is really good.”

With the playoffs just weeks away and both the Tigers (13-3) and the Green Wave (8-8) competing in the Class B tournament and the MIAA Div. 4 postseason tournament, it was a good test for both teams to see where they are heading into the final stretch. 

“That’s a good South Hadley team,” Greenfield coach Angelo Thomas said. “They play hard and play as a team. Everything you get, you earn. If you don’t do something right offensively or defensively it shows. Those are the type of games you like to play in and coach in. If you’re a competitor you want to play in these games.”

South Hadley pulled ahead early on Wednesday, ending the first quarter on a 9-4 run to take a 22-13 lead after eight minutes. 

The Green Wave went on a 7-0 run to open the second quarter off a pair of baskets from Grayson Thomas and an and-one from Erik Martineau, but a pair of 3-pointers from Noah Hambley followed by seven points late in the quarter from Jack Loughrey gave South Hadley its 38-32 lead at the half. 

After its run to open the third the Tigers were able to take a 57-43 lead into the final eight minutes. A pair of early baskets from Jack Loughrey helped South Hadley stay in control, and after the Wave cut the lead down to 63-54 with 1:21 to play after a Caleb Thomas jumper and back-to-back buckets from Grayson Thomas, the Tigers made their free throws to seal the win. 

With tough opponents on the horizon to close out the regular season, it was the k ind of win Gerber wanted to see. 

“We end now with Greenfield who is a really good team and a playoff team with some seniors,” Gerber said. “Then we go to Granby and they’re playing really well. We finish with Hoosac who’s a tournament team and is always good. It’s a nice stretch for us to get ready for the postseason.” 

Jack Loughrey finished with 24 points, Hambley and Driver each scored 14 points while Tim Loughrey added 11 points in the win. 

Grayson Thomas led Greenfield with 28 points, Jon Breor scored 11 points, Caleb Murray recorded 10 points and Caleb Thomas added five points for the Wave.

Granby 69, Hoosac Valley 64 – Trailing 50-49 entering the fourth quarter, the Rams locked in and took down Hoosac Valley for an impressive victory on Wednesday.

The Hurricanes led 38-36 at halftime.

Gavier Fernandez exploded for a game-high 29 points, including 18 in the second half. He drilled four 3-pointers and was 9-for-11 from the free throw line.

Riley Goodhind chipped in 13 points for Granby, while Cody Breault added nine points and Cody White tossed in eight.

Libertas 87, Easthampton 81 – A high-scoring battle in Easthampton on Wednesday night saw visiting Libertas Academy hold on for an 87-81 victory.

Jasper Alvarez’s 22 points paced the home team, while Brayden English was right behind with a 21-point outing. Patrick Larson (13 points) and Logan Boyle (12) also scored in double figures for Easthampton.

Trevor Canon-Smith scored a basket on Senior Night for the Eagles despite recovering from a torn ACL.

Boys hockey

Amherst 3, Chicopee 2 – Ethan Mooney netted the game-winning goal midway through the third period, lifting the Hurricanes to their fifth win in six games on Wednesday at Fitzpatrick Rink in Holyoke.

Amherst (8-4-1) also received goals from Nate Desbien and Alex Marlin. Assists were credited to Mooney, Connor Welch, Noah Latulippe, Marlin and Eric Chen. Goalie Spencer McDonald made 21 saves in net, the ninth time this season the ’Canes have allowed two or fewer goals.

Next up for Amherst is a key game on Friday against Easthampton. The Hurricanes won a tight 1-0 contest when the two teams met in January.

Girls basketball

Belchertown 61, Quabbin 30 – The Orioles built a 20-point halftime advantage and cruised to a lopsided independent victory at home on Wednesday night.

Aubrey Klingensmith drilled six 3-pointers and finished with a team-high 20 points for Belchertown (10-7), which punched an automatic berth to the MIAA Division 3 tournament by reaching the 10-win mark. Morghan Litz also had a big night with 19 points, while Chloe LaRoche tossed in 17 for the Os.

Mohawk Trail 34, Smith Vocational 33 — The Vikings led 33-27 late but the Warriors stormed back to pull out the win on Wednesday in Buckland. 

Makayla Tatro recorded 21 points — 19 coming in the second half — while Nyia-Marie Forbes tallied four points for Smith Vocational 

Wrestling

Mahar 47, Frontier 33 — Abduli Gilmore, Orion Whitehouse (126), Elias Roberts (138), Josh Mazza (144) and Eujeyn Smith (165) had the wins for the Senators, who knocked off the Redhawks Wednesday. 

Zachary Brown (132), Massimo DiBari (150), Jonathan Olvera (175), Kaden James (215) and Max Hunter (285) won for Frontier.