Berkshire County Postseason Update

 WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS TOURNAMENTS

BASEBALL

DIVISION I

Eighth-seeded Taconic takes on top-seeded Cathedral on Monday in a quarterfinal game at 2 p.m. 

DIVISION II

No. 8 Mount Greylock, the defending Western Mass. champion, travels to No. 1 Monument Mountain for a quarterfinal contest on Tuesday. The game is set to begin at 4 p.m. It was originally scheduled for Monday, but it was pushed back due to poor field conditions.

No. 3 Hoosac Valley hosts No. 6 Southwick in a quarterfinal on Monday at 4 p.m.

DIVISION III

No. 13 Mount Everett is at No. 4 Sabis on Monday at 3 p.m.

SOFTBALL

DIVISION II

After defeating No. 4 Monson 6-0 on Thursday, No. 5 Hoosac Valley cemented its spot in the semifinals. The Hurricanes will take on the winner of No. 1 Wachonah/No. 8 Belchertown, who will play Monday at 4 p.m. in Dalton.

In other quarterfinal action on Monday, No. 6 Drury plays at No. 3 Hampshire at 4 p.m., while No. 10 Monument Mountain is at No. 2 Frontier at 4 p.m.

DIVISION III

No. 6 Mount Everett will find out its semifinal opponent on Monday after No. 2 Franklin City Tech squares off with No. 7 Ware. The Eagles advanced to the semis after defeating Westfield Vocational 7-2 in the quarterfinals and crushing Putnam 15-0 in the first round.

BOYS' TENNIS - DIVISION III

Two Berkshire County teams are in action Tuesday afternoon in semifinal contests. No. 3 Lenox is at No. 2 South Hadley, while No. 4 Monument Mountain is at No. 1 Belchertown. Both games start at 3:30 p.m.

GIRLS' TENNIS - DIVISION III

No. 4 Mount Greylock hosts No. 5 South Hadley on Monday in a quarterfinal. On Tuesday, top-seeded Lenox hosts No. 9 Mohawk. Also on Tuesday, No. 3 Lee will take on the winner of Monday's Cathedral/Palmer match. Times have yet to be announced.

Adams Babe Ruth Pitcher Tosses No-Hitter

Mitch Graves, who plays on the Hoosac Valley Coal & Grain/Adams Co-operative Bank team in the Adams Babe Ruth league, pitched a no-hitter over Elks. He had 10 strikeouts with only one walk in an 11-0 victory.

Also, a big congrats goes out to the Mount Greylock boys' lacrosse team, which won its second consecutive Berkshire County Lacrosse Assocation (BCLA) championship on Wednesday night with a 13-8 victory over Lee. Senior Andy Budz led the Mounties with five goals. Marson Albert notched two goals and two assists, while Kyle Quagliano had two goals and one assist.

Other point-scorers were: Jason Pilot (one goal, four assists), Gus Colonna, (one goal, two assists), Noah Kelly (one goal, one assist) and Connor Field (one goal).

Bond Excited About Start Of SteepleCats Season

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — David Bond is keeping busy, and that's the way he likes it.

Splitting time as a local business owner and a city councilor, Bond accepted a new role this past year by becoming the the second president of the North Adams SteepleCats. He officially took the reins last December, succeeding John B. DeRosa.

The SteepleCats open their season Friday night against the Bristol Collegiate Baseball Club at Joe Wolfe Field. First pitch is slated for 6:30 p.m.

Some of the 'Cats arrived on Monday morning, but to Bond's surprise, only 13 showed up (out of the 26 listed on the 2010 roster). Some were scheduled to arrive later in the week, while several are still competing with their respective college teams in postseason tournaments.

"This is all part of the puzzle," Bond said, not sounding too concerned.

While there have been some nerve-racking moments leading up to the season — especially when it came to finding ways to fund the team — the payoff for Bond came on the first day of practice.

"When I heard the crack of the wood bat, I knew that it's something very special," he said. "The most exciting thing is having this quality of baseball in town. This is our community's team, our region's team. This is a chance to see some great talent before they play at the major-league level. To have this type of product is exciting."

There are several new promotions this season, including a giveaway contest for a 50-inch television. One fan's name will be randomly drawn at each home game, then the contestants will take to the field on July 31 (the last regular season home game). The TV will be placed at home plate, and each fan will be handed a remote control. Only one of the remotes will turn on the TV, and that lucky fan can take it home.

There will be a bounce castle at every home game, as well as a "Know Your Speed" pitching tunnel.

Check back with iBerkshires.com later for coverage of Thursday night's "SteepleCats media night" at Joe Wolfe Field.

Western Mass. Baseball, Softball Brackets Revealed

DIVISION I BASEBALL

Taconic is the lone Berkshire County team in the Division I Western Massachusetts baseball tournament. The Braves are seeded eighth in the nine-team tourney and will open on Thursday, hosting No. 9 Northampton at 2 p.m. in a first-round game.

DIVISION II BASEBALL

Monument Mountain was awarded the No. 1 seed in the D-II brackets on Tuesday night. The Spartans are one of five D-II clubs in the 11-team sectional tournament.

Monument will host a quarterfinal game on Monday, June 7, at 4 p.m., facing the winner of No. 8 Mount Greylock/No. 9 Wahconah. The Mounties host the Warriors on Friday at 4:15 p.m.

Like Monument, Hoosac Valley will receive a first-round bye. The Hurricanes, seeded third, will host the winner of No. 6 Southwick/No. 11 Belchertown on Monday, June 7, at 4 p.m.

Drury is the No. 10 seed and will play at No. 7 Palmer on Thursday.

DIVISION III BASEBALL

Mount Everett, St. Joe's and Lenox will all play first-round games on the road Thursday. The Eagles, seeded 13th, are at No. 4 Sabis; No. 15 St. Joe's is at No. 2 Ware; and No. 16 Lenox is at top-seeded St. Mary's. All games start at 4 p.m.

DIVISION I SOFTBALL

Pittsfield High School is seeded No. 7 and will host No. 10 Longmeadow on Saturday. The start time has yet to be announced. If the Generals prevail in their first-round game, they'll play at No. 2 West Springfield on Monday, June 7.

DIVISION II SOFTBALL

With a record of 19-1, Wahconah is the top seed and will host the No.8 Belchertown/No.9 Easthampton winner on a day and time yet to be determined.

The Warriors are one of four county squads in the 11-team tournament. No. 5 Hoosac will play at No. 4 Monson in a quarterfinal game on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. No. 6 Drury will host No. 11 South Hadley in a first-round contest on Thursday at 3 p.m., with the winner moving on to battle No. 3 Hampshire.

No. 10 Monument Mountain opens at No. 7 Palmer on Saturday. First pitch hasn't been announced as of Tuesday night.

DIVISION III SOFTBALL

No. 5 Mount Everett will travel to No. 4 Granby for a quarterfinal game (Date and time TBA). No. 9 Lee will play at No. 8 Pathfinder on Thursday at 4 p.m.

 For full brackets, please visit the official site of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association.

Former SteepleCat Making His Pitch On TV Show

So, Berkshire County native Ali Fedotowsky is on the Bachelorette. Haven't you heard?

Believe it or not,  there is a local sports angle to this show, as well. Roberto Martinez, who is one of the guys vying for Fedotowsky's "affection," was a pitcher on the 2002 inaugural North Adams SteepleCats baseball team.

I wonder if Fedotowsky ever went to any of his games at Joe Wolfe?

My other question is: If Martinez gets a shot, when will Slider (the mascot) find his true love? I smell a new show idea.....FOX, are you listening?

Keep an eye out for the SteepleCats logo on the show. If you see it, let us know.

According to the Cats' archived stats, Martinez made eight starts with a 2-5 record. Here's hoping he fares a little better on TV.

If you check out the video below, it's looking pretty good so far.

Speaking of the SteepleCats, the season kicks off a week from Friday at Joe Wolfe Field. Stay tuned to iBerkshires.com in the coming weeks for more 'Cats coverage.

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The Super Bowl will be played in New Jersey in 2014! Great news.

Anyone who is complaining about this move (although I haven't heard too many critics) just isn't a football fan. If games during the regular season and playoffs are played in frigid temperatures and snow storms, why wouldn't the biggest game of the year endure the same elements?

I was always a bit irked come Super Bowl week, having to put up with coverage in sunny Florida, Arizona or California. Or even worse, having the game played in a dome. The Pro Bowl in a warm climate or dome I have no problem with, but it always seemed artificial to have a world championship game in the same five or six sites, based soley on their appeal to the wealthy folks who could afford tickets to the game.

When you think of rich football traditions, you think of places like Pittsburgh, Chicago, Cleveland and New England. But nope, instead the Houston Texans and Arizona Cardinals have had their stadiums on display on the biggest stage in sports.

Super Bowl coming to Jersey. LOVE IT!

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Don't look now, but the Red Sox are starting to look like a contender. Pitching has been lights out lately and they've won seven of their last eight games. As I'm writing this, they're up 4-1 in the third inning over Tampa Bay despite missing three starters (Victor Martinez, Jacoby Ellsbury and J.D. Drew).

So as bleak as it looked after being swept by the Baltimore Orioles, baseball's worst team, a few weeks back, now Boston is on the verge of sweeping the best team in baseball on Tampa's home turf.

Oh, how fun the baseball season can be. One week, we're saying "at least we have the Celtics and Bruins," and the next we're saying "Wait, who are the Bruins?"