Mount Greylock Football, Wahconah Soccer Yield Athletes of the Week

This week’s Athletes of the Week have excelled on and off the playing fields this fall as iBerkshires.com recognizes Wahconah’s McKenna McIlquham and Mount Greylock’s Michael Wellspeak.

 

Wahconah senior McIlquham gets the honor as a representative of her team, which has been excelling in a lot of different ways lately.

 

Yes, Wahconah has gone six straight games without a loss to improve to 8-4-1 this fall. And yes, McIlquham was the one who happened the score the goal in Saturday’s tie at Weston.

 

But the biggest victory for the squad came 24 hours before, when it was recognized by the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association with its Educational Achievement Award.

 

Coach Meghan Smith’s team was joined in receiving the honor by the school’s volleyball team, which won for a service project at a town beach. The soccer team showed its spirit of service and sportsmanship when it joined with its opponents from Westfield High to participate in the Buddy Walk of the Berkshires last month.

 

How’s this for karma? Before the Buddy Walk, Wahconah was 2-3. Since then, it is 6-1-1.

 

While much of the Berkshire County high school football community was focused on goings on in Dalton on Friday night, over in Buckland the Mount Greylock Mounties were continuing the county’s only perfect season.

 

Sophomore Wellspeak threw for four touchdowns in a 46-14 win over Mohawk Trail. In six games this fall, the Mounties have scored an average of 43 points per game, and Wellspeak has shown himself to be nearly as dangerous with his feet as he is with his arm.

 

“Michael has been amazing this year,” Mounties senior Devin Pelletier said a couple of weeks ago. “You can’t cover him. He throws so well, and then he can just run it.”

 

Wellspeak continues a succession of Mounties QBs from Hank Barrett to Brodie Altiere. The first two won Western Mass titles back when they came in the form of season-ending “Super Bowls.” Wellspeak has two regular season games left, but his play so far has Mount Greylock fans dreaming of another Western Mass crown, the kind that provides a ticket to the state playoffs.

 

iBerkshires.com's Athlete of the Week is sponsored by Bedard Bros. Auto Sales of Cheshire.