Sports

Class B girls lacrosse: Talia Sadiq’s OT goal lifts Amherst past Belchertown for 1st-ever WMass title

By GARRETT COTE

WEST SPRINGFIELD — With how each team’s offense operated during regulation, there was no question that whatever squad gained control of the ball to start overtime would be the one to hoist the Western Mass. Class B girls lacrosse championship...

Class C boys volleyball: Top-seeded Granby sweeps Ware, captures first-ever WMass title (PHOTOS)

By GARRETT COTE

CHICOPEE — All the momentum was against the No. 1 Granby boys volleyball team in the third set of Saturday’s Western Mass. Class C championship match with No. 2 Ware.The Rams had breezed through the first two sets, but they faced a 24-21 deficit in...

Amherst’s Moriah Luetjen, Logan Alfandari each win 2 titles, Northampton girls dominate en route to team title at Western Mass. Division 1 Track & Field Championships (PHOTOS)

By CONNOR PIGNATELLO

AGAWAM — Moriah Luetjen’s best race is the 400 meters. Two years ago as a freshman, she won it at the MIAA Division 4 Outdoor Track & Field Championships and followed it up with a first-place finish in the Freshman 400 at New Balance Outdoor...

UMass basketball: Matt Cross announces he’s transferring to SMU for final year of eligibility

By GARRETT COTE

AMHERST — The decision every UMass men’s basketball fan has been waiting for was finally made on May 6.Minutemen star and First Team All-Atlantic 10 forward Matt Cross — the backbone of UMass’ team for the past two seasons — has committed to SMU, he...

The Real Score: Curveballs and casinos rarely save cities

By BRETT ALBERT

About 10 years ago, the two major urban centers of central and western Massachusetts decided to engage in new regional industrial policy to spur on their local economies. Worcester and Springfield had been effectively hollowed out by decades of...

Defying the odds: Hadley’s Owen Earle back competing less than two years removed from horrific accident

By GARRETT COTE

Lying flat on his back in the middle of a field at Four Rex Farm in Hadley, Owen Earle stared straight into an endless stretch of overcast sky, raindrops gently splashing him.Although he didn’t feel much pain, he knew there was no getting up.“I had...

Breaking down the financial implications for UMass athletics after move to the Mid-American Conference

CONNOR PIGNATELLO

When UMass joins the Mid-American Conference for the 2025-26 academic year, athletic director Ryan Bamford expects the school will bring in more revenue than it did when competing in the Atlantic 10.“This will allow us to grow our revenues to the...

Guest columnist Karen List: A legend made in Iowa

By KAREN LIST

The thousands of women who played high school basketball in Iowa over the years look at the adulation surrounding University of Iowa star Caitlin Clark and think: “That’s about right.”Clark, as you probably know, is the NCAA Division 1 all-time...

UMass basketball: Minutewomen’s two leading scorers Alexsia Rose, Kristin Williams headed to transfer portal

By GARRETT COTE

AMHERST — As of Monday afternoon, two UMass women’s basketball guards have entered the transfer portal, looking to take their talents elsewhere.Senior Alexsia Rose and junior Kristin Williams have hit the portal following a disappointing 5-27...

UMass basketball: Josh Cohen, Robert Davis Jr. first Minutemen to enter transfer portal

By GARRETT COTE

AMHERST — One of the first dominoes to fall is a massive one for the UMass men’s basketball team.Minutemen forward Josh Cohen has entered the transfer portal, ESPN’s Jeff Borzello reported late Monday morning. The 6-foot-10 senior has one year of...

Men’s basketball coach Frank Martin supporting UMass’ decision to join MAC: “They believed in me, and they haven’t lied to me since I’ve been here”

By GARRETT COTE

AMHERST — From a basketball perspective, Mid-American Conference commissioner Jon Steinbrecher said it was a no-brainer to add UMass to his conference.The men’s basketball program was perhaps the most appealing of the school’s athletic teams given its...

A moving MAC moment: UMass formally introduced as 13th member of the Mid-American Conference

By GARRETT COTE

AMHERST — After more than a week since the news first broke, University of Massachusetts athletic department officials held a press conference on March 7 to celebrate their joining the Mid-American Conference.UMass Chancellor Javier Reyes, director of...

UMass confirms sports programs moving to the Mid-American Conference as it becomes 13th member

By GARRETT COTE

AMHERST — As of Feb. 29, it was officially official.The UMass athletics department press release at 3:30 p.m. that day confirmed its move to the Mid-American Conference (MAC) as a full member, as the baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and...

Amherst girls capture runner-up finish at MIAA Nordic Ski Championships (PHOTOS)

By GARRETT COTE

WOODFORD, Vt. — The Amherst girls Nordic ski team didn’t just feel like underdogs all season long — they were underdogs.Often overlooked given the geographical location, the Hurricanes were ready to display their talents on the biggest stage, at the...

Amherst College women’s basketball coach Gromacki fastest in NCAA history to reach 600 wins

By GARRETT COTE

Dynasty isn’t a term that gets thrown around loosely – that word holds a ton of weight in the sports world. It takes a lot of success over an extended period of time to call something a dynasty.But that’s exactly what South Deerfield native G.P....

“Nice call, ref”: High school referee ranks shrink amid abuse by fans, low pay

By GARRETT COTE

A couple weeks ago, I sat inside Smith Academy’s Sherry Webb Gymnasium in Hatfield to cover a girls basketball game between the Falcons and Duggan Academy of Springfield. As the game progressed, the displeasure from supporters only grew louder — and...

UMass basketball: Matt Cross leads balanced Minutemen past Saint Louis for first A-10 road wi

Matt Cross led four players in double figures, scoring 19 points to propel the UMass men’s basketball team to an 84-73 Atlantic 10 Conference victory over Saint Louis on Saturday night at Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis, Mo.The Minutemen won on the road...

H.S. Football Preview: Offensive firepower has Amherst optimistic about 2023 season

By GARRETT COTE

During the second-to-last regular season football game a year ago, Amherst matched up with Holyoke on a Friday night in Amherst. Both teams lit up the scoreboard. The Hurricanes had no answer for Purple Knights quarterback Gavier “NeNe” Fernandez, as...

UMass legend Julius Erving makes Western Mass. appearance at Basketball Hall of Fame

By GARRETT COTE

SPRINGFIELD — The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame hadn’t been as packed all summer. Hundreds of basketball aficionados across several generations poured onto center court and filled the bleachers to listen intently to a legend of the...