Bond, Blue Devils Shut Out Easthampton in Western Mass Semis

EASTHAMPTON, Mass. – Early in the second half of Thursday’s Western Massachusetts Class C semi-final, Drury’s Ella Bond found herself in the left wing corner with the ball, some space and a little bit of time.

 

So much time, in fact, that scoring the game-winning goal in an eventual 2-0 Drury win was actually Plan B for the sophomore forward.

 

“I was planning on crossing it or looking for a pass, and then the shot was there, so I just took it, and I was really hoping it went in,” Bond said.

 

It did, going past the Eagles keeper and into the upper 90 on the far side of the goal to break a scoreless tie in the 48th minute.

 

Bond later added an insurance goal to send Drury to its first regional final since at least the advent of the current post-season structure in 2021.

 

Drury came close to going to a Western Mass title game in that year, falling at Mount Greylock in overtime.

 

This time, the win was emphatic against an Easthampton team that came in hoping to secure a spot in next week’s Division 4 State Tournament.

 

Drury, which entered the game comfortably in the Division 5 tournament field as the sixth-ranked team in the state, has one more game to play before the big dance when it takes on Monson, currently ranked fifth in D5 on a date to be determined.

 

Blue Devils coach Jason Howland said his team was not shying away from the opportunity for a program milestone as it prepared to try to extend a four-game unbeaten streak on Thursday.

 

“We were chatting about that on the bus, and I was like, ‘All right, let’s make history,’ “ Howland said. “That was the talk throughout practice yesterday. Today, let’s make some history, let’s get there. And let’s see who we play.”

 

Drury (9-9-1) advanced with its fifth shutout of the season.

 

Addisyn Shepard made all seven saves she needed to make behind a stalwart defense that, for the most part, limited Easthampton to mostly shots from outside the 18, especially in the second half.

 

Stopper Ashlyn Hayden and sweeper sweeper Kennedy Tessier are the last line in a defense that has allowed just one goal in Drury’s last three games.

 

Defensive midfielder Adamaris Sanchez was key to the defensive effort on Thursday.

 

“She got our Player of the Game,” Howland said. “She stepped up, right in the right moments.

 

“I’m proud of the way they played today. We hadn’t played Easthampton, so we didn’t know what to expect.”

 

In the opening stages, some of that uncertainty may have played into a little hesitancy by the Blue Devils, and Easthampton nearly took advantage.

 

In the ninth minute, an Eagles attacker fired a shot from deep on the left wing that Shepard was able to stop. Moments later, another Easthampton forward had a try off a cross from the left wing for a shot on goal. And in the 12th minute, the Eagles took a shot from the left wing that went just wide of the far post.

 

But after that flurry, Drury settled down and played even the rest of the half, earning a slight, 5-3, edge in shots on goal.

 

Still, the game was scoreless going into the break.

 

“We just know we needed more people up in the front area,” Bond said of Drury’s half-time adjustments. “We needed some more drops, so we were just really focusing on drop passes.”

 

Drury got pressure on the Eagles right away to start the second half. Kylie Tower was denied by the Eagles defense in a dangerous spot inside the 18 in the 42nd minute, and Hallie Haskins nearly got to a bounding ball ahead of the Easthampton keeper on the edge of the 6 two minutes later.

 

Drury broke through with just more than 28 minutes to play when Tenley Wood sent Bond into the left-wing corner. With the Eagles trying to contain, Drury’s leading goal scorer took her time and then launched a shot that found the net to give her team a 1-0 lead.

 

It stayed that way until just past the 75-minute mark when Ashlyn Hayden sent Bond in with a through ball that she collected just outside the top of the 18 and dribbled into the box before striking with her left foot for her second goal of the game to put it out of reach.

 

Monson, which has played in all five Western Mass finals since the regional tournament format began in 2021, last played Drury in 2024, a barnburner that saw the Mustangs’ Hannah Murphy, now a Division I college athlete at Sacred Heart, score 10 times in an 11-6 win.

 

“I think they’ve played some of the teams we’ve played, so that’s helpful,” Howland said of Monson. “I’d have to kind of look at film and see where they’re at. I haven’t had a chance because we weren’t looking past this one. But we’re excited.”