WILLIAMSTOWN — On a cold, windy day at the MIAA D2 West Sectional Golf Tournament at Taconic Golf Club, South Hadley’s Ryan MacGregor found himself going toe-to-toe with the defending champ. 

MacGregor was in a group with Wahconah’s Tim Kaley — the 2023 sectional winner — which helped MacGregor size up where he was relative to the rest of the competition, knowing Kaley likely would be near the top of the leaderboard at the conclusion of 18 holes. 

After the eighth hole, both MacGregor and Kaley were 2-under, but MacGregor was unable to keep pace from there. Kaley won his second straight sectional championship by shooting an even 71 while MacGregor settled for sixth with an 8-over 79. 

It’s not all bad for MacGregor, however. By finishing in the top eight, he earned an individual spot in the MIAA Div. 2 State Tournament, scheduled for Oct. 21 at The Haven Country Club in Boylston. 

“I was playing amazing,” MacGregor said. “Tim Kaley who I was playing with won last year and we were neck-and-neck. We were both 2-under going into the ninth tee. Just a couple bad shots on nine from me and he took the lead. I kind of fell apart. I’m happy for him though. He put some shots together. I just couldn’t put them together on the back nine. It was a great group to play with.”

South Hadley went on to place fourth as a team with a team score of 344. Caiden Drohan (85), Jameson Webber (88) and Michael Blaser (92) completed the scoring for the Tigers while Liam Yates (92) and Ryley McMahon (109) also competed. 

Pope Francis (309) was the winning team followed by Wahconah (320) and Tantasqua (330), with all three moving on to states with the top three finish. 

Hampshire placed fifth on Tuesday as a team with a score of 348. Robert Herman (85), Brayden Fennessy (86), Ashton Lashway (88) and Cole Boissonneault (89) scored for the Raiders while Camden Jarosz (90) and Riley Florek (91) also competed. 

Like MacGregor, Fennessy said he got off to a hot start before a triple bogey on six derailed the day. 

“It started really well,” Fennessy said. “I was under par through five then there was a turn of events with a triple bogey.”

As many of the competitors noted, the combination of challenging greens as well as strong winds made for a tough day on the greens. 

“It was tough,” Fennessy said. “The putting was hard. The greens have a lot of false fronts and slopes which make it hard to hit lag putts.”

Ryan Cetto and Cam Skiffington each shot an 87 to help Frontier place sixth as a team with a score of 356, though Cetto said he left a lot of shots out there. 

“It definitely wasn’t one of my better rounds,” Cetto said. “I probably saved my worst round of the year for Western Mass. but it was still fun.”

Jacob Cornelison (90) and Porter Hall (92) also scored for the Redhawks while Brady Wood (93) and Christian Powell (100) competed. 

Mohawk Trail placed 10th as a team with a score of 386. Phineas Tuttman led the way with a 95, saying he hit the ball well but struggled on the greens, which gave most players issues Tuesday. 

“It was pretty rough,” Tuttman said. “Everything was going OK but these were fast greens. The putting was rough.” 

Logan Moore carded a 96, Conner Bergeron tallied a 97 while Doug Wilcox shot a 98 to round out the scoring for the Warriors. Deegan Kelleher (111) and Tyler Zdanowicz (121) also competed. 

Tuttman said despite how challenging the course was, he enjoyed playing on it and getting to take in the views it features. 

“The course was beautiful,” Tuttman said. “It was very tough but one of the most beautiful courses I’ve ever played on.”

Smith Vocational placed 12th as a team with a score of 408. Patrick Gougeon (95), James Lavallee (103), Domonic Crouchier (105) and Patrick Dabrowski (105) scored for the Vikings while Patrick Milin (112) and Conor Braunschweig (114) also competed. 

While Easthampton did not qualify as a team, Eagle Amelia Gruber qualified as an individual. She placed 67th overall with a score of 104.