H.S. Roundup: Gemanaia Cruz powers Franklin Tech on Senior Night

Three players scored in double figures, and host Franklin Tech managed to keep Athol at arm’s length to pick up a 44-30 girls basketball victory on Senior Night in Turners Falls.

Gemanaia Cruz led all scorers with 13 points in the win for the Eagles, and she was joined in double digits by Kaitlin Trudeau (12 points) and Kendra Campbell (10 points). Cruz also grabbed seven rebounds.

Franklin Tech led 12-6 after one quarter and 25-16 at halftime. The Eagles honored seniors Cruz and Desiree Doane before the game, along with Athol seniors Rozlyn Nelson and Lily King.

Emma Bacigalupo’s 12 points led the way for Athol. Reily Polana joined her in double figures with 11 points.

Mohawk Trail 22, Pioneer 16 – After a scoreless first quarter, the Mohawk Trail girls basketball team managed to find its footing in time to score a 22-16 victory over Pioneer on Senior Night at Messer Gymnasium in Northfield, Wednesday.

“It was a hard-fought defensive game,” Pioneer coach Mike Churchill said. “Both teams played excellent defense.” 

While neither team managed to get onto the scoreboard in the first quarter, the Warriors held an 8-3 edge at halftime and extended it to 17-10 after three.

Senior Grace Ward led all scorers with 11 points in the win for Mohawk Trail. Stella Clark followed with six points and Hannah Gilbert added four.

Pioneer’s Sofia Walker paced the hosts with seven points. Hailey Ring chipped in four points. Churchill lauded the defensive work of his two seniors, Emily Tibbetts and Charlotte Kahler.

“Their work on the boards and defensively kept us in the game,” Churchill said.

Pioneer 63, Mohawk Trail 33 – Host Mohawk Trail jumped out to an early 10-4 lead, but the vaunted Pioneer defense rose to the occasion in the second quarter. The Panthers closed the first half on a 24-4 run and ultimately pulled away for a 63-33 victory on Wednesday in Buckland.

“They play hard and their defense is always very strong,” Mohawk Trail coach Darren Schmidt said of Pioneer.

The Panthers led 28-14 at halftime after falling behind early. Troy Emond had 14 points to pace the visitors, followed by Liam Bradley-Curtis with 12 points. Ryan Potter made it three players in double figures with 11 points, while Quinn Grover and Josh Wood each added six points.

Mohawk Trail’s Austin Sumner dropped 10 points to go with five rebounds. Tyler Dubreuil scored nine points and added five boards and four steals, while Matt Pollen chipped in eight points. The Warriors graduate six players from this year’s roster.

“It’s a good group we’re losing but luckily they were able to get one final season in,” said Schmidt.

Mt. Institute Ski League

The Northfield Mount Hermon girls and Deerfield Academy boys teams topped Wednesday’s weekly Mt. Institute Ski League leaderboard, as schools competed at Berkshire East in Charlemont.

On the girls side, Deerfield’s Claire Patton was the overall winner with a two-run total of 93.16 seconds, followed by a trio of NMH skiers in Izzy Campbell (second, 93.22), Olivia Weinstein (third, 96.70) and Arden Bacon (fourth, 98.52).

DA’s Chip Coffin took top honors on the boys side with a two-run total of 86.15 seconds. He led a pack of Big Green skiers that swept the top four spots overall. Achille Sarachek was the runner-up in 86.62 seconds, followed by Nick Baker in third place (90.17) and Joe Brown in fourth (91.65).