NORTHFIELD — It’s all about surviving and advancing this time of year. That’s what the Pioneer boys basketball team did on Monday in its opening game of the Western Mass. Class D tournament.
The No. 1 seeded Panthers found themselves trailing No. 8 Baystate Academy 33-31 early in the third quarter, but Pioneer’s 3-point shooting helped it take back the lead and ultimately put the game away.
Josh Wood swished a 3 to give Pioneer a 34-33 lead and the Panthers never trailed again, finishing the night on a 21-6 run to move on to the semifinals with a 52-39 victory at Messer Gymnasium.
The win served as some revenge for Pioneer, as Baystate knocked it out of the MIAA Div. 5 state tournament a year ago.
“Sometimes you don’t come out and play your best and we didn’t play our best as a team for most of the game,” Panthers coach Scott Thayer said. “There were periods of time when we did but being off for seven days wasn’t ideal. I’ve talked all year about the grit and resiliency of this team and they showed it tonight.”
Pioneer opened up an 11-4 lead early with points coming from Brayden Thayer, Kurt Redeker and Wood. Hugh Cyhowski, Redeker and Thayer followed it up with baskets to give the Panthers a 17-6 lead, but Baystate closed out the quarter on a 7-2 run to cut the lead to 19-13 heading into the second quarter.
The Bull defense dug in during the second quarter, holding Pioneer to just 10 points to get back in the game. Redeker knocked down a free throw late that put the Panthers up 29-22 but Baystate once again went on a run to close out the quarter, with Codi Davis scoring twice and Isaiah Rivera adding a basket to cut the Pioneer advantage to 29-28 at the half.
After Wood’s 3 gave the Panthers the lead in the third, Thayer followed it up with a trey of his own. Gavin Gammell then got inside for two before Wood closed out the quarter with another 3 to put Pioneer up 42-35 heading into the final eight minutes.
While the Panthers were making shots on the offensive end, their defense smothered the Bulls attack. Baystate was held to a mere four points in the fourth quarter, two coming from the free throw line, while Gammell knocked down a 3, Wood made three free throws and Redeker scored inside and added a pair from the charity stripe to help Pioneer break the game open and eventually cruise to the victory.
Redeker led the way for the Panthers, scoring 15 points and ripping down 13 big rebounds. Thayer and Wood each tossed in 13 points, Thayer adding six rebounds as well, Cyhowski tallied six points, Gammell scored five points and Alex McClelland dished out six assists in the win.
Next up for Pioneer is the winner of No. 4 Granby and No. 5 Duggan, who played Monday night. No matter the opponent, Scott Thayer is expecting nothing but tough games for the remainder of the season.
“All the games we have left will be against quality teams,” Thayer said. “You’re going to have to figure out how to regroup and take a deep breath when adversity hits. The enormity when you add playoffs to the game, it becomes bigger than the regular season. We treat it differently but it should be the same as game one. We’re happy to be moving on and we’ll see what happens on Wednesday.”
Class B
Taconic 69, Mahar 28 — The No. 1 seed in both the Western Mass. Class B field and likely the MIAA Division 5 tourney showed why on Monday night in Pittsfield.
Taconic built a 24-8 lead after one quarter and outscored the eighth-seeded Senators in all four frames en route to a 69-28 quarterfinal victory.
Hunter Martin scored seven points and Morgan Softic added six points for Mahar, which dropped to 11-8 with the loss.
Taconic will play No. 5 Monument Mountain in the Class B semis.
Class C
Mt. Greylock 42, Athol 40 — On the road in Williamstown, the sixth-seeded Bears nearly earned a Class C quarterfinal win on Monday night. No. 3 Mount Greylock survived for a 42-40 win, advancing to play at No. 2 Greenfield in Wednesday’s semifinal round.
“Came down to the last possession and unfortunately it didn’t go in our direction,” Athol coach Brian Patria said. “Super proud of our game plan and execution. We carried out what we wanted defensively. Offensively, same with shot selection, good shots or quick ones. Guys played hard and spirited and I couldn’t be more proud of them and the direction of our program.”
Athol trailed 20-19 at halftime but led 29-24 after three quarters before the Mounties hit three 3-pointers in the final period and earned the win.
Athol’s Conall Tontodonato led the way for the visitors with 14 points, while Ben Kearney added 11 points and Logan Cormier tossed in seven.
The Bears will play a non-playoff game later this week before the MIAA Division 5 state tournament next week.
Westfield Tech 48, Franklin Tech 44 — The Eagles trailed just 22-21 at halftime, but the host Tigers built a third-quarter lead and secured a 48-44 victory on Monday in Westfield.
Franklin Tech finished its season 6-14 overall.
Ty Sadoski capped his senior season with a team-high 13 points, finishing with 385 points across 18 games played (21.4 points per game average). Robert Belval went for eight points and 14 rebounds, while Robbie Murphy had nine points and nine boards. Noah Ausikaitis tossed in eight points for Franklin Tech.