VIDEO CLIPS: Grafton tops Nipmuc for Fourth Consecutive Sectional Title

Videos by Matt Siegel (@SportVideoMA)

Marlborough, Mass. - The Grafton Indians held on for an 8-6 victory over Mid-Mass rival Nipmuc Thursday night, winning their fourth consecutive Division 3 Central/West title in the process.

Our Matt Siegel was there to capture a few video clips of the big win. Continue below for all the highlights.

PHOTO GALLERY: Shrewsbury vs Grafton Football

Photos by McKay Lewis

The Shrewsbury Colonials edged the Grafton Indians in this weekend's premier Central Mass clash. You can read Connor Evans' full write up of the game here, but continue below for photos from our McKay Lewis. 

Note that you can click any photo to enlarge it, and launch a slideshow.

Postgame Blog: Shrewsbury Outlasts Grafton in CMass Slugfest

 By Connor Evans (@RonnocEvans)

GRAFTON - Friday’s matchup between the neighboring Grafton Indians and Shrewsbury Colonials was a hard-fought, physical game. Shrewsbury dominated the first half and despite a strong Indians resurgence in the fourth quarter, the Colonials hung on to win 21-14. 

Ipswich Boys' Lax Edges Grafton in Thrilling D3 State Final

By Mike Abelson (@ABELS0N)

BOSTON - In the 14 years since the MIAA created Division 3 for boys lacrosse every final has featured either Dover-Sherborn or Cohasset except for the first final in 2003.

That was won by Ipswich by a goal. 

On Saturday evening,  the Tigers once again found a way to win as they battled back from one goal down midway through the fourth to defeat Grafton 8-7 and win the Division 3 crown at Nickerson Field.

Postgame Blog & Video: Grafton Earns Redemption in 3OT Semifinal Win Against Dover-Sherborn

Grafton's Brendan Coates throws home the game-winner in triple-overtime. Photo by Ryan Bowman

By Connor Evans (@RonnocEvans)

CONCORD - I would like to open this article with a disclaimer: I am still relatively new to reporting on high school sports. While I have the utmost respect for both of these teams, it IS worth noting that I did play for Grafton High School for four years. Some players from this game were my teammates.

I just want it to be clear that if I come across as biased tonight, it is in NO way intended to disrespect the achievements of a great Dover-Sherborn team. It is simply that Grafton Lacrosse raised me and I do hold a lot of love for them. That being said, let’s get to it.

In my short 20 years of life I have never witnessed a more enthralling, captivating, riveting, phenomenal sporting event than what I witnessed tonight. The D3 Central/West champion Grafton Indians ventured to Concord-Carlisle to face off against the two-time defending D3 state champions Dover-Sherborn Raiders.

It was a game that neither team would lead by more than one goal, and a game that featured four lead changes and three overtimes. A game where both teams played outstanding lacrosse in all facets. Goalies stood on their heads. Poles forced turnovers. Middies and attackmen found the cage. 60 full minutes of two absolute powerhouses exchanging blow for blow.

At the end of the third overtime, the underdog Indians would finally get the better of the Raiders, who had pummeled them the last two years in the state championship game. On the back of a golden goal from Brendan Coates, Grafton is headed back to BU for a third straight year, but no longer has to worry about the powerhouse Raiders.

Final: 7-6

Grafton Wins Third Straight Boys Lax Sectional Title

By Connor Evans (@RonnocEvans)

DUDLEY, Mass - The Nipmuc Warriors faced off against the Grafton Indians in the Division 3 Central/West final at Shepherd Hill Regional High on a fine evening in June. Nipmuc had a lot to prove and started out hot. At the end of the day however, Grafton was able to overpower the Warriors and hand them a 14-5 defeat.

Savannah Small Leads Grafton Softball to Division 2 Central title

By John McGuirk (@Patsfan1313)

WORCESTER, Mass. - Oakmont Regional came into its Division 2 Central Mass. title game unblemished. If ever there was a year for the Spartans to pick up a district title, this was it. But Oakmont had not seen a pitcher the likes of Savannah Small this season. 

The Grafton junior ace was superb throughout, holding the mighty Spartan batters to just four hits and striking out 11 as the Indians prevailed 7-0.

PHOTO GALLERY: Grafton Lacrosse vs Wachusett

Photos by Ryan Bowman (@_ryanbowman_)

GRAFTON - The Grafton Indians cruised on senior night against the Wachusett Mountaineers, winning 16-9 behind five Brendan Coates goals.

We'll have a full recap up later tonight, but for now enjoy these photos snapped by our Ryan Bowman.

Postgame Blog: Grafton Too Much for Up-and-coming Hopedale

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

GRAFTON - Hopedale came into Thursday's clash with Mid-Mass. power Grafton undefeated, but the host Indians proved too much for the young program, running away with a 13-5 victory.

Led by four goals by junior Steve Rotatori, Grafton built an early 7-0 advantage, and never looked back. Grafton (9-2, 5-1 Mid-Mass.), was simply too much, controlling possession, and creating shots at will early on, whether it was through the pinpoint passing of guys like Anthony D'Angelo, or the dodging of players like Jimmy Donadio and Brendan Coates.

Basically, Grafton was playing loose and still riding high off of Tuesday's come-from-behind win over regional favorite St. John's.

RADIO: The Local Sports Lunchbox with Worcester & Grafton Lacrosse

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

On this week's edition of the Local Sports Lunchbox, we welcomed players from two of the best teams in the Mid-Mass. lacrosse league. First, seniors C.J. Gallagher, Richie Burke and Griffin Moore called in from Worcester to let us know what to expect from WooLax. Then, Grafton seniors Tom Nicalek, Jack Fontana and Brendan Coates called in to discuss the Indians' quest for a third consecutive district title.

Plus, we run through the biggest games from last week, and preview some huge upcoming games that hopefully won't be rained out.

Continue below for all that, and more, on this week's episode on WPKZ.

Grafton Blows Out Auburn for Top Seed in D3 Central

By Connor Evans (@RonnocEvans)

GRAFTON, Mass. -Heading into the final weekend of the regular season, undefeated Grafton hosting fellow unbeaten Auburn looked, at least on paper, like a game that would go down to the wire. The paperwork lied though, and Grafton won 34-0 as Auburn came out flat.

Dominant Defense

Headlining this game was Grafton’s defense. Holy cow, they came to play.

SuiteSports Game of the Week: Northbridge at Grafton

Northbridge capture a state title last year, and this year's young Ram squad is coming together nicely.

By Connor Evans (@RonnocEvans)

This week’s SuiteSports Game of the Week features unbeaten Grafton playing host to 3-1 Northbridge.

History

These teams know each other pretty well. It was just 4 years ago that Grafton topped the Rams in the Central Mass Super Bowl, before all the subsequent realignments, and switch to a state-wide playoff system.

Since then, Northbridge has had the Indians' number. Last time these teams met, the Indians would allow 40 points and fail to tally even once on the scoreboard themselves. A lot has changed since last season’s landslide however, and I expect to see a fun one come Friday.

Central Mass High School Football Road Trip: Grafton

Grafton has the talent to raise another trophy in 2016, but the Indians aren't looking that far ahead.

By Connor Evans (@RonnocEvans)

Ed. Note- Today we welcome our newest correspondent, Connor Evans. A current student at Bryant University, Connor was a star on Grafton's lacrosse and soccer teams during his high school days. He begins his SuiteSports career by looking at his alma mater, and how the Grafton football team will look to follow up last season's magical run to the Division 4 Central title. The Indians enter 2016 with a star Division 1 commitment, plenty of new faces, and a wide-open field in the newly-aligned Division 3 Central.

The Grafton High School football team has seen some success over the last few years, largely due to a strong sense of team unity and a “we’re-tougher-than-you” attitude that gives it the mettle to outlast most opponents. This mentality, along with a talented senior class, brought the team to the Division 4 state semifinal last year.

But now that senior class is gone, so I stopped by a Grafton practice last week to see what will be different this year.

The answer? Absolutely nothing.

Grafton's Historic Run Ends Shy of a Title

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

For the second consecutive year, Grafton just couldn't overcome the juggernaut that is Dover-Sherborn, falling to the Raiders in the D3 title game by a final score of 16-5.

It was a game dominated by the Raiders at the face-off X, as D-S junior Joe Paolatto won all but two draws on the day. Grafton junior Brendan Coates scored to make it 2-1 D-S early, but the Raiders went on an 8-0 run, aided by four man-up goals, to push the game out of reach.

I'll have full recaps up on ESPN Boston and BostonLax soon, but here are a few wandering thoughts.

Grafton to Face Dover-Sherborn for a State Title… Again

Grafton junior midfielder Anthony D'Angelo

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Grafton has been talking about getting back to the state championship game all season long, and finally the Indians are back.

For the second consecutive year, Grafton will face state power, and reigning D3 champion Dover-Sherborn. In last year's game, D-S overwhelmed Grafton, winning 14-2 in a game the Indians were happy just to be in.

Expect things to be a little different this year, as a veteran-heavy Grafton squad has its eyes on capturing the program's first ever state championship.

It won't be easy though, and the Indians know it.

Grafton to Face Hanover in Division 3 State Semifinals

Recently named an All-American, Grafton senior Chase Kapuscienski is brimming with confidence.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

For the second consecutive year, Grafton will play in a state semifinal, and for the second consecutive year, the Indians have a chance to prove themselves against some of the best competition that Massachusetts has to offer.

Last season, Grafton defeated Ipswich on a Josh Birdsall game-winner in double overtime, and this year the Indians will need to get past Hanover to reach a second straight Division 3 state championship game.

The Hanover Indians (17-4) are coming off a 20-2 dismantling of Nantucket in the D3 South final, and have proven to be one of the best teams in the state all year long. Led by a powerful attack, Hanover's offense is scoring 17 goals per game this postseason, and star goalie Noah Clapp has anchored a defense surrendering just 5.5 goals per game in the playoffs.

Postgame Blog: Cohasset Thwarts Grafton's Upset Bid in OT

Grafton junior poles Danny Bartosiewicz (17) and Tom Nicalek (3) helped the Indians hold Cohasset off the board for 23 minutes of game time Thursday.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

On a warm afternoon at Weston High School, Cohasset scored a dramatic 10-9 overtime win over Grafton, thanks to a top-shelf power shot from sophomore Ryan Donovan.

The game was also the kickoff to the first ever Weston Spring Classic Boys Lacrosse Tournament, and each of these teams will be back in Weston Saturday to play the championship and consolation games.

My full story with quotes from both teams should be up on BostonLaxNet soon, but until then, here are a few of my wandering thought from the game.

Finding Their Footing

Grafton quickly found itself in a 4-0 hole, but found its footing a bit toward the end of the first quarter. After that point, the Indians outplayed Cohasset in pretty much every facet, winning the battle at the face-off X, locking things down defensively and slowly finding their offensive groove, thanks to big days from Anthony D'Angelo and Hunter Fraser.

But that slow start did ultimately doom Grafton, and it's not hard to see why it happened. No offense to anybody on the Indians' schedule so far, but Grafton hasn't faced a team like Cohasset yet this year. The Skippers are a legitimate state title contender with numerous players that will take their games to the next level, and this core has played together for years.

However, once the Indians adjusted to the level of play, you had to be impressed with this team. Cohasset coach James Beaudoin told me Grafton's athleticism caused his team fits, and I don't think that's something anybody in the state thought they'd hear from the Skipper boss before this one was played.

Grafton proved to be at least Cohasset's equal for the last 37 minutes of regulation, but those first 11 minutes are the reason this one went to an extra period.

Grafton's Secret Weapon

Postgame Blog: Grafton Sends a Message Against Tantasqua

Grafton senior attackmen Hunter Fraser (4) and Chase Kapuscienski (25).

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

After splitting its season series with Tantasqua, and sharing a league title last year, Grafton left no doubt that it was the team to beat in Mid-Mass, running past Tantasqua 17-1 Thursday.

"Last year Tantasqua bought hats that said, 'Mid-Mass Champions,' and we shared the title, so that kind of ticked us off," Grafton captain Chase Kapuscienski said. "So we came in here, and we wanted to pound them into the ground, and that's what we did."

I could give you a complete game story, but all you need to know is that Grafton (4-0, 3-0 Mid-Mass) was firing on all cylinders, and played like a team on a mission. The Indians were loose during pregame and at halftime, but once the whistle blew, Grafton played with extreme focus, dominating Tantasqua (0-2, 0-2 Mid-Mass) in all phases, en route to a blowout home win.

Here are a few quick stats, and then we'll delve a little deeper.

CMass Lax Preview: The 2016 Grafton Indians

Grafton senior attackman Cole Fontana

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Expectations couldn't be much higher for Grafton this year, as the Indians return plenty of talent from the program's first ever state title game appearance. With senior leadership at every level, and several young players that came of age during their memorable run last season, Grafton is poised to be one of the best teams in Central Mass, regardless of division.

A brutal schedule again awaits Grafton, but this group seems more than up for the challenge.

Here's a closer look.

Grafton's Run Ends in D3 State Final

Junior attackman Cole Fontana scored a pair of goals in Grafton's D3 state title game appearance against Dover-Sherborn.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Grafton's historic season came to an end Friday in the Division 3 state final against a powerful Dover-Sherborn squad.

The Indians came out fighting, winning the game's first two faceoffs, but couldn't create any legitimate scoring opportunities on either possession. It was a rough start to Grafton's first ever state championship game, and the experienced Raiders, making their fifth consecutive title game appearance, took advantage.