Bad Weather Shortens Defenders' Season

By Michael RadomskiPittsfield American Defenders
01:09PM / Friday, July 31, 2009Print Story | Email Story

Photos by Michael Radomski

Pittsfield assistant coach Bob Warn points to some visitors on surf boards. Read all about the Wahconah flood here.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — On the last day of the regular season, most teams finish with their last game of the year and look forward to the potential for playoff games.

The Pittsfield American Defenders will not have a chance for either one.

Late last night, NECBL Commissioner Mario Tiani sent league officials and general managers an e-mail and plan for the upcoming postseason. Danbury and Holyoke will meet in a one-game playoff on Saturday while Vermont has secured a playoff spot as well. The North Adams SteepleCats were to play a makeup game against Holyoke Blue Sox this morning but that, too, was canceled.

The American Defenders are currently 13-25 and still have another four games left on the schedule that won't be completed.

Pittsfield is currently five games out of the playoffs and has been eliminated from contention as well.

General manager Jon Tosches called a team meeting at 10 o'clock this morning and announced the news to all coaches and remaining players.

"For all of you who haven't heard by now, our season has ended," said Jon Tosches in front of a packed room. "The league decided to end the regular season today and we unfortunately will not have another game this season."

Pittsfield's Wahconah Park has been under water since Wednesday night following a torrential storm that brought 4 inches of rain to the area.

The Defenders have had a very wet 42-game season this year. The team has been rained out 11 different times, have been suspended by rain another four nights, and have even had to shorten games twice because of the rain.

Pittsfield's last game was a rain-suspended game at the Vermont Mountaineers on Wednesday. The team continued a suspended game in the second inning with Pittsfield ahead 1-0. The teams played 3 1/2 innings, with no scoring, when the game was again suspended.

The American Defenders were also scheduled to play a doubleheader today against the Danbury Westerners at Clapp Park at 1 p.m. because Wahconah Park was submerged.

With the season over, the players and coaches will return home to their hometowns and get set for college starting up again.

With the completion of one summer season, another one is just 11 months away.

The Pittsfield American Defenders would like to thank everyone who helped this season including the many sponsors and fans.

"The American Defenders appreciate all of your hard word and dedication to our team and organization," said Tosches. "We couldn't have done it without you and your support."

Radomski is in his second season with the Pittsfield franchise as the director of broadcasting and media relations and its play-by-play radio announcer. He is entering his senior year studying broadcast journalism at Quinnipiac University.

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Pittsfield Wants People to Know Where Free Public Wifi Is

By Brittany PolitoiBerkhshires Staff
04:46AM / Friday, September 18, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The city wants it to be clear where people can connect to free public wifi— which expands beyond downtown.

On Tuesday, the Parks Commission approved "Free Wifi" signage at The Common, Riverway Park, and Durant Park. Community members can access the internet without charge in these locations, as well as in downtown areas.

Two years ago, Pittsfield received a $99,972 Digital Equity Implementation Grant from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. This allowed the city to take a comprehensive look at digital equity and determine where to focus attention.

"That was a lengthy process that we worked on, and there was a lot of public input. We did some surveying. We met with a lot of focus groups; [Berkshire Regional Planning Commission] was the group that spearheaded that for us, and one of the things that came up was the lack of accessible wifi," Director of Community Development Justine Dodds reported. "Particularly in the westside."

Throughout this process, residents also wanted to see connectivity at the nearby Westside Riverway Park.

In 2023, Pittsfield was selected to participate in the Municipal Digital Equity Planning Program launched by the state and MBI, focused on ensuring residents can use the internet to conduct day-to-day activities. A digital equity plan also qualifies Pittsfield for additional grant funding.

Around 16,000 city households qualified for the Federal Communications Commission's affordable internet program that ended in 2024.

Dodds said adding Wi-FI and signage to Durant and Riverway Parks is a small piece of the larger digital equity project. Signage is already downtown, and the city plans to hire the same designer for the expanded wayfinding so it is cohesive.

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