Hoosac Valley Beats Mounties, Moves to 5-0
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – For several years, the Hoosac Valley boys lacrosse cooperative was the only option for Mount Greylock student-athletes looking to play the game.
When Mount Greylock rebooted its varsity program this spring, the Hurricanes were still the only option Owen Taylor considered.
“Not really,” the Mount Greylock senior said when asked if it was a tough decision to stay with the Hoosac Valley program this spring.
“I’ve been with these kids the last three years,” he said after a 14-4 Hoosac Valley win on Friday. “This is my fourth year with them. And I’m family with them.”
In all, three members of the Hurricanes’ family opted to take advantage of the opportunity to stay with the co-op this season.
And all three had a hand in Friday’s win.
Taylor had a goal and an assist. Mount Greylock junior and Hoosac Valley attack Brady Auger scored twice. And Corey McConnell, a sophomore at the Williamstown high school, added an assist.
Taylor said there were no mixed emotions wearing the opposing colors on the campus where he spends his days as a student.
“It’s fun to play against the kids I know in school,” he said. “You’ve got that talking back-and-forth in school, but it’s all love.”
Jayden Tatro had a hat trick to lead Hoosac Valley on Friday. Cam Odvar and Adan Wicks each scored a pair of goals, and Max Griffin stopped three shots to earn the win in goal.
Tatro scored all three of his goals in the first quarter as the Hurricanes took a 5-0 lead.
Hoosac Valley was up, 7-0, at half-time and led, 10-0, early in the third quarter after Kamarion Kastner scored with an assist from Tatro.
Despite the dominance on the scoreboard and the Canes’ 5-0 record, Hoosac Valley coach Jacob Anderson-Hall said he still wants to see more from his squad, which won a Western Massachusetts Class C final last spring.
“They’re good right now, but they have a lot to improve on,” he said. “The sky is the limit for them, and they need to work on that every day. You know, discipline in the games, starting fast, coming out of the gate strong. That’s something they need to work on to complete their game and reach the level we want to get to.”
Mount Greylock got on the board midway through the third quarter when Reed Olney scored with an assist from Jack Elder.
After Nate Lapinski found the back of the net for Hoosac Valley, Elder scored in transition with an assist from Luke Irwin, and Olney got his second goal to make it 11-3 heading to the fourth.
Irwin got a goal of his own in the fourth as Mount Greylock matched the Hurricanes goal-for-goal after spotting Hoosac Valley a 10-0 lead.
“We started to see the ball better, move the ball better in the second half,” Mount Greylock coach Dan Collins said. “That’s a quality team, clearly headed for some great stuff later on in the season.”
The Mounties were able to avoid worse damage on the scoreboard thanks to nine saves from keeper Odin Wojtkowski.
“He has very quick hands and great vision, and that goes a long way in a goalie,” Collins said. “And he uses it to the utmost. His outlet passes are usually to the open man, and that’s great.”
Mount Greylock (2-2) has a week to get ready for next Friday’s home game against McCann Tech.
Hoosac Valley (5-0) has a quicker turnaround, hosting Lenox on Tuesday in a rematch from last year’s 14-12 Western Mass final.
“It’s a big one for us,” Anderson-Hall said. “I think they’re ready for it. I think that’s one that they’re looking forward to. That’s the part where we need to play four quarters, we need to play as a cohesive unit and we need to play together. That’s how we’re going to win. If you don’t do that, I think the result won’t be in our favor.”