Young Mount Greylock Gets Another Test from Longmeadow

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- With no losses and just one goal in its first four games, the Mount Greylock boys soccer team is not looking much like the Mount Greylock boys soccer team -- at least on the stat sheet.

 

But look beyond the numbers, and you see a different story.

 

And after Saturday’s 1-0 loss to 2017 Western Massachusetts Division 1 champion Longmeadow, Mount Greylock coach Blair Dils saw a Mounties team that is benefiting from a brutal early schedule.

 

“They’re a young team, and I told them: Whether we play these guys late September or October or whenever, we’re going in as the underdogs,” Dils said. “The fact that all these games piled up at the beginning of the season, actually, for a young team, it’s a real way to get your feet wet and get you up to the speed of the play that needs to happen to compete with Pittsfield and Monument and Lenox and Wahconah in the North.

 

“It just happens that the schedule, being on the road a lot and playing these top teams just got piled up at the beginning of the season. We’re going to be better. In the end, we’re going to be better because of it.”

 

With Saturday’s loss on MCLA’s Shewcraft Field, Mount Greylock has played the top three seeds from the 2017 Western Mass D1 tournament -- Amherst, Ludlow and Longmeadow -- all of whom went to the sectional semi-finals.

 

The other loss so far for the Mounties? A 2-1 decision to Berkshire County North rival Monument Mountain, which reached the quarters of last year’s D3 sectional.

 

Mount Greylock’s baptism by fire continued Saturday against 2017 D1 state finalist Longmeadow, which took advantage of an early lapse for a set piece goal and then managed to keep the Mounties in their defensive end most of the night.

 

Mike Willis converted a Jack Peluso corner kick from the right wing in the fourth minute of the game for all the offense the Lancers needed.

 

“It didn’t really change what we’re trying to do,” Dils said of the deficit. “We’re still trying to play really good defense. We’re still trying to counter-attack.

 

“Obviously, in a game like this, the longer you can make it 0-0, the better, so it was disappointing. And we’ve been pretty good on set pieces this year, we’ve defended them well.”

 

And on Saturday, the Mounties defended Longmeadow’s next nine corner kick tries after the early goal.

 

The Lancers ended up outshooting Mount Greylock, 8-1. Mounties keeper David Falk stopped seven shots in the loss.

 

Mount Greylock will look for its first win on Thursday when it visits Drury.