Things could look very familiar in the Hampshire League this season.
Hopkins Academy rolled to the HL title last season with an undefeated regular season and then cruised through the Western Mass. Division IV Tournament en route to the crown. The team slipped up in the state semifinals, falling to Maynard High School, but there was enough of a holdover to go along with some new blood to keep the Golden Hawks as favorites to repeat in the league this season.
Last year’s HL runner-up, Pioneer Valley Regional School, enters 2016-17 with high expectations once again. Former Greenfield High School coach Scott Thayer replaces Dave Hastings, and while the Panthers lost one of the top offensive leaders from the past two seasons in Brad Hastings, they retained a lot of talent and expect to compete for the title.
After that, there’s still plenty of talent with teams like Mahar Regional School, Mohawk Trail Regional High School and Greenfield in the mix. Turners Falls High School and Frontier Regional School are expected to compete for postseason berths, while Athol High School and Smith Academy are rebuilding, and the Red Raiders are doing so with a new coach this season.
Here’s a closer look at the league:
Athol (1-18)
Dan Bevis takes over as head coach after previously coaching Athol’s girls’ team, and he will look to get the program headed in the right direction.
It has been a tough decade for the boys’ squad, which endured its ninth consecutive losing campaign last winter. During that time, Bevis has enjoyed a stretch of success with the girls, something he hopes he can replicate for the boys.
“You start at the bottom and you start laying the groundwork to build a successful program,” he said. “We are working hard trying to get the kids to buy into it. We have spent a lot of time on fundamentals, which is good because it gets you coaching, gets you teaching.”
Bevis takes over a team that despite struggling last season, lost a number of seniors and appears in a rebuilding mode. Athol does not have anyone on the roster who averaged more than 3.5 points per game last season, and the team is very small, but Bevis said they will not use any of that as an excuse.
“One thing we are trying to instill is that we are not going to make excuses,” he began. “We are going to go out and compete. We are trying to get kids to buy into that. Height is a huge deficiency for us, but that’s not going to stop us from working hard and doing the things that we can control, like playing smart and playing tough defense.”
Senior Avery Clyatt will start at point guard in a three-guard set for the Red Raiders and is the leading returning scorer at 3.6 points per game, and classmate Isaac Raulston and junior Justin Blake will line up as the other two guards. Raulston is the next top returning scorer with 2.5 points per game last season. Junior Evan Saisa and senior Tyler Lutz will start up front.
Junior Colby Mason can play guard and forward and will be one of the first off the bench. Senior Tyler Boyd, sophomore Angel Rivera and freshmen Nick Bousquet and Bryce King will all play guard, senior Jordan Chapalonis is a forward, and sophomore Joey Brozell and freshmen Mark Ferrari and Maysin Tarbell can play both guard and forward.
“The kids are working hard and we are trying to really break things down and teach them,” Bevis concluded. “It’s going to take some time, and I know that, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be competitive.”
Frontier (10-11)
Frontier got back into the playoffs last winter after a two-year hiatus and seventh-year head coach Ben Barshefsky will have his work cut out for himself if the team expects to get back to the postseason.
The Red Hawks return only one starter from last year’s team, which qualified for the tournament but lost a 64-62 decision to Mt. Greylock in the first round.
Senior forward Myles Freeman is the only starter back from that squad after he scored 6.5 points per game last season. Freeman suffered an injury at the end of the football season, and will start the season out of the lineup, so the entire starting five will be new for Barshefsky this winter.
“It leaves us with a lot of room for growth,” Barshefsky joked of having a new starting lineup. “We are not returning a lot of scoring, so obviously that needs to come from somewhere. We don’t necessarily have a standout per se, but we have a bunch of guys of equal ability levels and when they are playing together as a group, they can get good shots up.”
While Barshefsky may not have a standout on the basketball court, he does have a number of athletes who excel in other sports, and while that may not translate seamlessly to the basketball court, having athletes does give Barshefsky some benefits.
“We do have some athletes and we have some good speed, so we are going to look to take advantage of it,” he said. “We are going to push the ball when we can and look to push the offense. And defense is really about hustle and heart, and taking pride in stopping not only the man you are guarding, but the other team. It’s something really anyone can do if they put forth maximum effort. We are going to have to be a great defensive team to be competitive this year.”
Barshefsky also welcomes a number of players to the varsity level who helped the junior varsity team to a 18-2 record last winter.
As for the starting lineup, senior Keaton Warren will start at point guard, while classmate Trevor Gilmore is penciled in at the other guard. Junior Ben Litskoski got a lot of experience last season at forward and leads the front-court, which will will include senior Ben Lowe at the other forward, and sophomore Carsten Carey as the center.
Senior Ryan Olmstead and juniors Aaron Landry and Jared Muzyka will play the other forwards, senior Luke Parsons and freshman Jacob Meier are reserve centers, and senior Kyle Spencer, juniors Noah Graves and Brandyn Robinson, and sophomore Kalen Evans are reserve guards.
“More so than in past years, we are looking for younger guys to step up this year,” Barshefsky said. “A number of these guys had success at the junior varsity level last year and we will see if that translates to the varsity team this year.”
Greenfield (9-11)
This should be the year Greenfield has been building toward.
When Tim Caplice took over as head coach of the Green Wave following the departure of Scott Thayer, he inherited a very young team, but one with some promise. At that time, Thayer had two sophomores — guard Connor Joy and forward Kevin Mendez — who were the future of the program.
That first season was a rebuilding year as the Wave went 3-17, and last year the Wave was in contention for a postseason berth but came up one win short.
Now the two lynchpins of the program are seniors and Caplice said he has noticed a hunger in his team that he didn’t see in his first two seasons.
“I can tell that there is a hunger and a competitiveness that hadn’t been there the last two years,” he said. “I can see this group doesn’t want to talk, they want to go play. That’s refreshing as a coach. They’ve been sort of working their way toward this year for a while and they’re excited to be leaders of this team.”
Mendez has been an offensive force for the Green Wave and he led the team in scoring last winter with 16.2 points per game. The 6-foot-4 player presents a matchup problem for defenses because he has the height and strength to be potent in the post, but he is also a deadly shooter from the perimeter.
“Kevin is someone that as a coach you love to have him and thankfully he is on my team because he is so dynamic,” Caplice said. “He’s sort of a swiss army knife. You can’t take one thing away from him and not expect him to produce. And defensively, he’s always willing to guard the other team’s best player.”
Joy has been with the varsity program since he was a freshman and Caplice believes the guard is primed for a breakout year. Joy has shown flashes of his offensive potential in the past, but Caplice said he has dedicated himself more this offseason and gives the Green Wave an additional weapon.
“He really dedicated himself to the game,” Caplice said. “He played on an AAU team in Boston with guys who are a little better than him. He came into camp in incredible shape, he’s a lot stronger than he was last year. He is always the first one to practice and the last one to leave. He wants to show the results of the work he has put in.”
Caplice said he believes the supporting cast is also more secure in their roles. Joining Joy and Mendez in the starting rotation are seniors Tyler Boissonneault (guard), Arlo Larange (guard) and Zack Avery (center). Juniors Colin Cloutier (guard) and Jake Suhl (forward), and sophomore Hunter Campbell (forward), join senior Adam Phelps (forward) and sophomore Asier Areta (guard) off the bench.
Hopkins (23-1)
If Hopkins doesn’t win the WMass Division IV crown, it will likely be a disappointing season in Hadley.
The Golden Hawks went 20-0 in the regular season under coach Angelo Thomas last season and enter this year with three starters back, including perhaps the HL’s best all-around player in senior guard Sam’i Roe.
Hopkins won WMass with relative ease last year, but the good times ended there as they were edged in overtime, 52-51, by Maynard High School. Even after all of last season’s success, there is still a hunger left over as the team comes into this season.
“It left a bad taste,” Thomas said of the state semifinal loss. “This year, our offseason was a 9 out of 10. Guys were more committed. Guys were in the weight room, guys were getting shot up and they were hanging out together.”
One player who is especially hungry is Roe, who’s father is former UMass star player and current assistant coach Lou Roe. Thomas said that this is Roe’s final chance to win a state title and he wants to make good on that.
“I had a conversation with Roe about what his legacy will be when he leaves Hopkins,” Thomas said. “Thirty years from now, what are people going to say about Sam’i Roe. I hope it’s that he went out a state champion and left it all out on the court this season and grew tremendously as a player.”
Roe averaged 20.3 points per game last season and has averaged 30 in his first two games this years. He’s also averaging 12.5 rebounds per game from the point guard position.
Hopkins also has two other huge pieces back in junior forward Jon Morrison and junior guard John Earle. Morrison averaged 11 points per game and the University of Rhode Island baseball commit has also worked on his basketball game more this year. Earle is one of the best outside shooters in the league and averaged 12 points per game last year.
Another significant addition is senior guard Irvin Compass, who moved to the area to live with his uncle after formerly living in New Orleans. Compass ran into some legal issues at his former school, St. Stanislaus College in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. He has to serve a five-game suspension but is scheduled to return Dec. 29 against Turners Falls.
Senior Brock King and juniors Justin Ciaglo and Nate Kelley return to guard, and junior Justin Butterfield returns to forward. Sophomores Caleb Graves and Liam Higgins join freshmen Sam Mackin and Aiden Mihalick as newcomers to the team and each plays up front.
Mahar (11-10)
After missing the postseason for the first time in Chad Softic’s tenure at Mahar two years ago, the Senators got back into the tournament in 2015-16.
Softic celebrates his 10th year with a program he led to a state title in 2011-12 and he comes into the year with a team looking to not only make some noise in the regular season, but one with potential to mix it up come postseason. Softic said the biggest thing helping his group this winter is that with a number of players back, they know the system. He also said that last year, he felt that guys were afraid to shoot the ball at times, but they are no longer deferring.
“We have four of our key rotation guys back, so continuity-wise we are in really good shape,” the coach explained. “I think we can score the basketball this year. We had guys who were really afraid to look at the hoop, especially early in the season last year. Early on, guys are shooting the ball well.”
While Softic’s teams have broken 60 points in both games they’ve played this season, the team has always hung its hat on its ability to defend, and that’s something Softic said he will preach again this year. While scoring 65 points is great, holding a team to less than 50 is going to win you most games, especially in the tournament.
“It’s a normal Mahar team, play good in the half-court offense, and play tough defensively,” Softic said. “I’m not going to sit here and say we are the most athletic team, but we are kind of a throwback team. We could win a lot of games in the YMCA Men’s League for years to come. The guys play a real steady game, have a great basketball IQ, and don’t mind playing in the halfcourt.”
Senior Bryce Cleveland returns to play center this year after leading the Senators in scoring last winter with 13.1 points per game. While Cleveland’s size makes him a tough matchup down low, he also has the ability to make teams pay away from the hoop, which helps his game. He is joined up front by classmates Issak Reinikainen and Gabe O’Lari. O’Lari was third in scoring on the team last winter at 8.1 points per game, while Reinikainen averaged 4 points per game in a smaller role with the team.
Juniors Sam Paul and Brennan Mailloux will start in the backcourt as a tandem that can bring the ball up the court and run the offense. Paul is another player who will contribute on offense after finishing with 6.6 points per game last season.
“I think Sam’s whole game could take a big step, he shoots well and defends well, and I’m expecting him to do big things this year,” Softic said.
Junior Quinn Gervais will be one of the first forwards off the bench, and he will be joined by seniors Nick Stafford and Jake Lacasse off the bench up front. Junior Jack Temple comes off the bench at center, and senior Connor Arsenault, junior Ryan Donaldson, and sophomore Jordan Desrosiers come off the bench at guard.
Mohawk (15-7)
After putting a long postseason drought to bed last season, Mohawk now looks to build off that success.
The Warriors qualified for the postseason for the first time since the 2008-09 season and beat Mahar, 62-57, in the first round before getting ousted by top-seeded Sabis International Charter School in the quarterfinals.
Mohawk is looking to build off that success and while the team lost two of its top three scorers from a season ago, it does return one of the HL’s top players in senior forward Torsten Sloan-Anderson.
He is going to be relied on heavily to lead an offense that will be without Levin DuPree and Jake Cross, who averaged 16 and 15 points per game last season. The team also lost two other starters in Justin Ward and Gabe Seaver, and that has left some big holes to fill in the lineup, and early in the season head coach Fred Redeker said guys are still learning their roles.
“We are learning to play together still, but we have a lot of speed and a lot of size, and the ones with experience are helping the others out,” Redeker said.
Sloan-Anderson should see his offensive numbers increase after he averaged 14.7 points per game last season. He will be joined up front by classmate Ian Eckler, who averaged 3 points per game last winter. Seniors Danny Szafran and Matt Finck will start at the guards.
“They should carry the leadership and the brunt of our offense,” Redeker said. “We have a lot of guys who can play different ways. We are pretty versatile, but pretty raw at this point.”
Senior Jonny Herbert is another point guard on the team, while Zeke Rodriguez and Chris Graves, and juniors Cam Hoff, John Schuetze and Luke Viens are all guards on the bench. Juniors Andrew Hicks and Kaleb Fitzgerald join senior Adam Hallenbeck at forward off the bench, and senior Bruin Pratt is a reserve center.
Pioneer (16-5)
Scott Thayer takes over a Panther program that remains one of the best bets to finish near the top of the HL.
While Hopkins is the overwhelming favorite to repeat as HL champ, the most popular pick to finish second is the Panthers, who welcome the former Greenfield coach this season after Dave Hastings resigned over the summer.
Thayer takes over a team that lost leading scorer Brad Hastings and his 25.7 points per game, but returns two guards capable of picking up the slack. Thayer said that he is not worried about the offensive end of the floor early this season, but has been focusing a lot of his practices early in the season on working on defense.
“Offense is the part we haven’t really done a lot of because that’s the thing they do pretty well,” he said. “The other end of the court is the thing we’ve been concentrating on. Defense is a teachable skill, I think, just like shooting, passing and dribbling, but it’s something we need to do repetitiously. I want them to be more aggressive. Make the other team have to make plays to score on you.”
Thayer said that the defense is not going to come overnight.
“This is a five, six, seven-week process,” Thayer said. “Hopefully, but the end of February, it’s second nature. But when you have to think about being aggressive on defense, you’re not aggressive.”
While the defense comes together, Thayer and the Panthers will have to rely on one of the top offenses in the league. Seniors Tucker Llewelyn and Tyler Martin are largely responsible for that. Llewelyn averaged 18 points per game last season, while Martin averaged 13. Joining them in the backcourt is junior Mike Menard, who will likely see his chances to shoot the ball increase after averaging 7 points per game last winter. Menard may be the best 3-point shooter on the team.
Another X-factor is junior center Brendan Emond, who is 6-foot-4 and can play both inside and outside. He will play up front alongside seniors Jake Willis, Nic Williams and Jacob Hill, and junior Justin Hubbard, who all return this season. Thayer said he also wants his perimeter players to look inside more this season, because he anticipates defenses to key on trying to stop the outside shooters.
Senior Hunter Cote and juniors Bryce Dobosz, Karl Wheeler and Jordan Loughman are all bench guards.
Smith Academy (4-16)
It could be another tough season in Hatfield.
Smith Academy enters the season with some offensive deficiencies and unless they can find some scoring or play top-flight defense, wins could be hard to come by.
The Falcons return sophomore Jack Zygmont to guard and he is the top leading scorer back after averaging 8.4 points per game. From there, the scoring drops off as the other two returning starters — senior center Peter Leuschner and senior forward Jack Hession — combined to average 6 points between them. Leuschner (6-8) is one of the tallest players in the league.
Juniors Matt Mouley and Nick Leary are two guards who return this season and round out anyone with varsity experience. Juniors Hunter Zygmont (guard) and Zane Wendolowski (forward) are both newcomers, as are sophomores Max Bartlett (center), Brett Gratz (guard), Carter Woodward (guard), Owen Baranoski (forward) and Luca Lyons-Sosa (forward). Freshman Colin Ferrara (guard) rounds out the team.
Turners Falls (9-13)
The Indians may not have a superstar this season, but they’ll still battle for a postseason spot.
Turners proved its durability last season — despite being ravaged by graduation, they still qualified for WMass (albeit by the 70 percent rule), and go on to win a WMass Division IV first-round game.
The Indians lose leading scorer Jalen Sanders and his 17.1 points per game, but returns most of its team from a year ago. Coach Gary Mullins said that what makes his team tough is that there is not much difference talent-wise between his players.
“We don’t have a superstar,” Mullins said. “What we have is five guards and seven forwards and not a huge space between them.”
Junior Josh Obuchowski will be one of the leading scorers on the team after averaging 9.7 points per game last season. The forward will have to pick up some of the slack left by Sanders’ departure for the team to have success.
The leader on the court is senior point guard Tionne Brown, who averaged 8.9 points per game last winter and is a good ball-handler and defender.
“Tionne is going to be a great leader for us,” Mullins said. “He is going to work hard defensively and make sure we are in the right defense.”
Senior Nick Croteau has had such a good preseason that he played his way into the other starting guard spot and he scored 19 points in the Indians’ season-opener on Tuesday. Classmate Kyle Bergmann is another starter up front, and Mullins praised Bergmann for doing a lot of the things that don’t necessarily get noticed.
“He doesn’t do a whole lot of ‘newspaper stuff,’” Mullins said, “but he works hard on defense and played a nice solid game.”
Another X-factor on the team could be junior forward Javoni Williams, who does a lot of things well and could also pick up some of the scoring slack. Sophomore Tyler Lavin is a guard who will be first off the bench, and freshman center Anthony Peterson, senior guard Ricky Craver and junior forward Jimmy Vaughn are next off the bench.
Seniors Jeremy Wolfram (forward) and Ian Moriarty (center) and freshman Marcus Sanders (guard) round out the team.