Greenfield Tops Taconic in Western Mass Final

WEST SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Greenfield hockey team took a 2-0 lead in the first five minutes and went on to a 5-2 win over Taconic in Saturday’s title game of the Western Massachusetts Class C tournament.

 

Shawn Beckwith scored a pair of goals for the Green Wave, who scored twice in the second period to take control of the scoreboard with a 4-1 lead.

 

Greenfield had control of the game already, outshooting the Thunder, 26-10, in the first  two periods.

 

But Jackson Moelleur gave Taconic some hope toward the end of the first period when he scored on assists from Brayden Bishop and Rylan Padelford off Padelford’s faceoff win to get the Thunder on the board down, 2-1.

 

But an opportunity to tie the game went by the boards shortly thereafter. Taconic earned the game’s first power play with 2:01 left in the first period and managed just one shot on goal with the man advantage, its third shot on net in the first 15 minutes.

 

Greenfield’s Jack Laurie extended his team’s lead with a power play goal five minutes into the second period, and Jamison Baleno extended the margin to three goals two minutes later.

 

Taconic keeper Antonio Scalise was credited with 30 saves in the loss.

 

Taconic (10-6) earned the 33rd seed in the state Division 4 tournament and  opens play on Monday when it travels to No. 32 Gardner to earn the right to face top-seeded Norwell on Wednesday.