Bulletin Board: Perfect weather greets Great River Challenge athletes

The 11th year of the Great River Challenge commenced on Oct. 3 in Northfield, with Mother Nature granting the participating athletes with a picturesque fall day for the event.

More than 100 registered athletes ranged from all over New England and as far away as Colorado. The paddling leg of the competition offered a 5.5-mile trek as part of the long course and a 4-mile route for the short course. The running section for the long course is 4 miles while the short course is 2.5 miles. The long course for biking comes in at 7 miles while the short course is 3.75 miles.

In the top three for the male category of the Solo Long Course was Trent Koopman (2:10:31), William Breymann (2:26:28) and Ernie Lozeau (2:35:00). The top three for the female athletes were Frances Hiscox (2:49:14), Melissa Nestel (2:53:18) and Phoebe Fisher (2:58:45).

In the Solo Short course, Mark Hofmeister, Wade Williams and Christopher Detwiller rounded out the top three in the male category. In the female category, Larissa Snorek placed first overall. Emily Dunbar and Karen Powers were second and third, respectively.

The GRC committee paid tribute to former boat launch team member John MacDougall, who passed away last spring, by presenting the shirt from this year’s race, which included a special remembrance of John, to his partner, June Moran of Northfield.

All of the money raised from the Great River Challenge registration fees went toward supporting the Northfield Recreation Commission and its activities for the summer of 2027. 

Youth football

Frontier 15, Easthampton 6 — The Redhawks got past the Eagles on Oct. 3. Troy Kostiuk led the Frontier offense with two touchdowns. Aidan Pitchko added a 2-point conversion, while Russell Harris also contributed an important extra point to round out Frontier’s scoring. The Frontier defense also came up big. The defensive line made a crucial play by blocking an Easthampton extra-point attempt, helping Frontier maintain its lead.

Frontier (Juniors) 38, Easthampton 0 — In a rematch of the 2025 Super Bowl, the Redhawks put together a commanding performance in the win over the Eagles. Carson Clark, Bodhi Dark, Colson Hebert, Kyrie Petrizzi-Richmond, Silas Shulda and Johnny Stanisewski all contributed to the scoring. Up front, Braden Maloney and Brady Bernat helped set the tone for the offense.

Logan Elias, Sammy Rappe, Jayce Roberts and Ryan Washburn helped lead the defense.

Frontier (Pee-wees) 26, Easthampton 6 — The Redhawks continued their dominance through the first portion of the schedule with their fourth straight victory. Every player contributed to the win over the Eagles. The offense was strong and the defense was relentless for Frontier.

Youth field hockey

Greenfield 8, East Longmeadow 0 — Dani Zraunig, Penelope Gioules and Savannah Thomas each scored two goals for the Green Wave in a win over the Spartans on Oct. 3. Aaliyah Dowdy and Grayson Baker also scored for Greenfield. Maddie Coughlin and Ellie McIntyre played solid defense, with Ava Diefendorf making two saves in net.

Greenfield 8, Longmeadow 1 — The Green Wave finished their sweep of the weekend with a win over the Lancers on Oct. 4. Gioules had four goals and two assists. Zraunig had two goals and two assists. Thomas added to the scoring output with two goals and an assist. Claira Pompilli added an assist. Maddie Coughlin and Tayanna N’dissi led the defense while Aaliyah Dowdy made three saves in goal.

Schools

Boys soccer

Four Rivers 6, BART 2 — Silas Kopera scored twice in a win for the Otters on Oct. 7. Aksel Kotright-Clark, Marley McConkey, Desi Peters, Aiden McGuinness also scored for Four Rivers.

Four Rivers 8, St. Michael’s 0 — The Otters picked up a win on Oct. 6. McConkey led the offense with two goals. Kopera, Aidan Heilig-Rury, Wes Acton, Jasper Greninger, Kotright-Clark, and Peters also scored for Four Rivers. McConkey scored both goals on headers from corner kicks.