MCLA Men's Soccer Rallies, Women Fall, Harriers Compete in Vt.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- Trailing 2-1 midway through the second half, the MCLA Trailblazers were in need of a spark on Sunday against the Castleton State Spartans.

Trailblazer Edward Boateng ignited a rally in the 74^th minute, converting to tie the game, and just two minutes later Dylan Pereira netted the game winner, lifting MCLA past Castleton, 3-2, in a well played contest at Shewcraft Field in the CIAO Classic.

The Spartans are still searching for their first win and fall to 0-3 while MCLA improves to 3-1 on the season.

After being tied at halftime, Castleton used a Spencer Dandurand marker in the 55^th minute to take a 2-1 lead.  MCLA couldn’t mount much of an attack in the second half until the flurry in the 74^th minute. After a Spartan turnover, Pereira found himself alone with Castleton keeper Dan Palkner. Palkner denied Pereira, however the loose ball was corralled by Boateng. After gathering himself, he lofted a beautiful shot into the upper left corner tying the game at 2.

Just 2 minutes, 26 seconds later, Pereira pushed the ball into the box on the left wing. The sophomore fire da shot into the upper right corner, giving MCLA its first lead at 3-2. MCLA kept the pressure on the Spartans for the remainder of the half but couldn’t extend the lead.

Castleton attempted to push forward late, but the Trailblazer defense held.

Castleton struck first as they applied constant pressure on the MCLA defense through much of the opening half. In the 14^thminute, Bryce Kaler converted a perfect thru pass from Ndayisenga Van Dame for an early 1-0.  The Spartans controlled much of the action until MCLA finally countered.

In the 40^th minute,  Jesse Moore  sent a ball forward from deep in the Trailblazer half of the field. The pass allowed Kwadwo Kusi to outrun the Spartan defense and he was one on one with Palkner. Palkner attempted to come off the line, but Kusi easily chipped it past him to knot the score at 1-1 heading into halftime.

Castleton outshot MCLA, 14-8, in the half while holding a 3-1 edge in corners.

For the match, Palkner finished with three saves, while Matt Robinson earned the win stopping six shots. Castleton outshot MCLA, 22-19, in the match, however the Trailblazers held an 11-8 advantage in the decisive second half.

MCLA is back in action on Wednesday when it travels to Sage College.​

Women's Soccer

Community Hero: Noelle Howland

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
05:39PM / Saturday, November 23, 2024

Noelle Howland is committed to keeping alive the late Pittsfield ACO Eleanor Sonsini's mission of helping animals ... albeit farther north in North Adams.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — No Paws Left Behind Executive Director Noelle Howland has been selected as the November Community Hero of the Month. 

 

The Community Hero of the Month series honors individuals and organizations that have made a significant impact in their community. The series sponsor, Haddad Auto, has extended this initiative for one more month.

 

Howland breathed new life into the mission of the former Eleanor Sonsini Animal Shelter, which closed in August 2023. 

 

The shelter in Pittsfield operated under the mission established by Eleanor Sonsini, a local animal rights activist and longtime animal control officer in Pittsfield, to be a no-kill shelter committed to finding surrendered and abandoned pets new forever homes. 

 

Howland's love for animals, dedication to their well-being, and expertise in animal behavior and training and shelter management brought this mission to new heights at No Paws Left Behind, a new shelter for dogs located at 69 Hodges Cross Road. 

 

"I want people to understand that I know it's hard to surrender. So, my biggest thing is [making sure] people know that, of course, we're not judging you. We're here to help you," Howland said. 

 

When Sonsini announced its closing, Howland, who was the shelter's manager, worked to save it, launching fundraising initiatives. However, the previous board decided to close the shelter down and agreed to let Howland open her own shelter using their mission.