Taconic High Station to Broadcast Colonials Games

By Larry KratkaBerkshire News Network
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Taconic senior Billy Madewell, WBTR's program director, will be a color commentator for the Colonials this summer.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Pittsfield Colonials will be on the air as they return for a second season at historic Wahconah Park with the help of some Taconic High broadcasters.

The Pittsfield School Committee on Wednesday approved an educational partnership between the Pittsfield School System and the Canadian-American League team that will enable the team's home games to be broadcast on Taconic High School's FM radio station, 89.7 WTBR. 

Buddy Lewis, co-owner of the Pittsfield Colonials, told the School Committee that WTBR will broadcast 51 of the 54 home games from Wahconah Park and possibly some away games as well. Lewis also said two WTBR students would be hired by the Colonials as student interns — one to do the PA announcing and another to work with Colonials play-by-play announcer, Chad Cooper, as color commentator. 

WTBR student adviser Larry Kratka, morning news host for Vox Communications stations in the Berkshires, said he was most happy about the two students landing summer jobs. 


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"Billy Madewell is the current student program director and he hopes to pursue sports communications at MCLA in the fall," said Kratka, adding Madewell considers this a dream job.

The student-run radio station offers more than 80 hours of programming a week and has some three dozen students and more than a dozen adults working to keep the signal going. The 89.7 WTBR-FM 400-watt signal is quite powerful and can be heard all the way to Cheshire to the north, New Lebanon, N.Y., to the west and Lee to the south. WTBR also streams live on the Internet. 

Lewis said a press conference will be held next week to release more details of the partnership.
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Bridgewater Tops Pittsfield Little League in State Tourney Opener

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires.com Sports
ANDOVER, Mass. – Bridgewater’s Brandon Moyer scattered five hits and pitched his way out of a fifth-inning jam on Thursday to lead his team to a 4-1 win over Pittsfield in the opening game of the 12-year-old Little League State Tournament.
 
Section 1 Champion Pittsfield drops into the losers bracket of the double-elimination tournament and will face Melrose on Friday evening to stay alive.
 
Bridgewater Friday night will take on Acton-Boxboro, an 8-4 winner over Melrose on Friday, for a berth in Sunday’s state final.
 
Bridgewater’s Moyer struck out eight and walked one in pitching his team to the tournament semi-finals.
 
Pittsfield coach Ty Perrault was not sure why his team struggled to get solid contact most of the day in Friday’s opener.
 
“It might have been the travel,” he said. “It’s a two and a half hour ride. We’ve traveled before, but it was the first time in a while.”
 
Pittsfield played all three of its Section 1 Tournament games at Deming Park, which also was the site of the District 1 Tournament.
 
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