Northfield Mount Hermon School hockey coach Kevin Czepiel has been named Coach of the Year by Neutral Zone Prep. A Holyoke native and former UMass hockey captain, the third-year coach inherited a team that was 5-20-2 his first season and is now on the cusp of winning the 2018 N.E. Prep Large School Tournament.
“This season he led a team with no committed Division I players to 21 wins and a No. 1 seed in the playoffs,” Neutral Zone Prep reported on its website.
NMH’s Eric Green, who led prep hockey in minutes played, saves and save percentage, was named Goaltender of the Year.
The Hoggers host the Brunswick School of Greenwich, Conn., in today’s semifinal at 1 p.m. On Wednesday, NMH beat Noble and Greenough, 2-1, in a quarterfinal game at the Williston Northampton School.
The winner of today’s game plays the winner of the semifinal between Thayer Academy of Braintree and St. Sebastian’s School of Needham.
The championship game will be played at St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., at 5 p.m. on Sunday.
Greenfield SL ousted
Amber Bergeron scored 12 points on Wednesday but the grades 5 & 6 Greenfield basketball team fell to top-seeded Quaboag, 55-41, in a Suburban League playoff game in Warren.
Quaboag led by 18 points at halftime but Greenfield closed the gap to six points but Quaboag recovered and went on to the 14-point win.
Bergeron and Jerry Ven each rebounded well for Greenfield in the loss. Gabe Mota dropped in 9 points, and Jacob Blanchard added 8. Daniel Pena-Chadee had 5 points, Nico Fasulo added 4 points, and Jackson Campbell chipped in 3. Deven Dube, Hugh Hart, Devonne Brown and Corbin Frost each played well defensively.
Greenfield Minor League
The Greenfield Minor league will hold youth baseball registrations for the 2018 season on the next three Saturdays from noon to 3 p.m. at the Lunt Field House on Kenwood street in Greenfield.
Registration is open to any boy or girl in Franklin County aged 7 to 12. Players must be 7 years old prior to August 1 to be eligible to play. There are 4 divisions: Rookie, AA, AAA and Majors (plus Advanced Baseball 50/70).
The registration fee is $75 per player. Information and registration forms are available on their website: gmlb.org.
Questions can be directed to league president Bobby Campbell 413-834-4222.
The Sports Shack in Greenfield will also be accepting donations for new or used sports equipment at this time.