Bill Ballou

Worcester

Sports Writer at Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Bill Ballou has covered the Boston Red Sox for the Telegram & Gazette of Worcester since 1987.

Articles

Worcester Railers drop weekend finale to Adirondack Thunder in overtime

1 month ago | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

WORCESTER — The Railers must love the DCU Center to death because they are doing everything they can to make sure that Sunday was not the last hockey game they play here this season. It was a wonderful game that ended on a sour note as the visiting Adirondack Thunder prevailed in overtime, 3-2. The match was close all the way. It featured lots of contact, a drop or two of blood and splendid goaltending on both ends.
Tanner Schachle scores, bags three assists in Railers’ win over Thunder

1 month ago | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

WORCESTER – It can be really hard to project the outcome of a game between a team that has nothing to lose and one that has everything to lose. Such was the case Saturday night in the match here between the Railers and the Adirondack Thunder. Worcester won by a goal, of course, 3-2. Each of the Railers’ last seven victories have been by one goal including a shootout triumph. Adirondack is out of the playoff race and using many new faces.
Railers declaw Lions in show-stopping comeback victory

1 month ago | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

WORCESTER – There is probably no practical way to do this, but if the Railers could start every game in the third period they might go unbeaten. They survived another slow start Saturday night and beat the Trois-Rivieres Lions in overtime, 5-4. They did it by fashioning the second-greatest comeback in the city’s 25-year hockey history.
Worcester Railers falter late, lose to Maine Mariners on the road

1 month ago | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

PORTLAND, ME – It was that avid hockey fan, Abraham Lincoln, who said that you can kill all of the penalties some of the time, and some of the penalties all of the time, but you can’t kill all of the penalties all of the time. The Railers had their six-game string of not allowing a power play goal snapped Friday night in a 5-3 loss here to the Maine Mariners. Two of the Maine goals came on power plays.
Railers sneak past Norfolk on WooSox Night (photos)

2 months ago | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

WORCESTER – The Worcester Railers have not played seven periods of sudden death overtime the last two nights here – it only feels that way. Less than 24 hours after Worcester took a wild 6-5 decision from the Norfolk Admirals, the Railers beat the Southerners, 2-1, in an equally tense affair Saturday night. The victory kept them two points ahead of Reading in the North Division playoff race, although the Royals have two games in hand. Reading also won Saturday night – they beat Trois-Rivieres, 2-1.
Worcester thrills in 6-5 overtime win over Admirals

2 months ago | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

For the Railers, these were two points well taken. Behind for much of Friday night to one of the league’s best teams, they scored two goals early in the third period to jump ahead, then gave up a late one to fall back into a 5-5 tie with the Norfolk Admirals. Then Riley Piercey won it, 6-5, at 2:07 of overtime to give Worcester two enormous points, perhaps two more than it expected to collect after 40 minutes of play. It was a best-case scenario triumph.
Matt DeMelis, Lincoln Hatten lead Railers past Bison

2 months ago | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

WORCESTER – Officially, baseball is the only sport with doubleheaders, but it felt like the Railers-Wrenches played one Saturday night. Worcester tied the first game, 4-4. It won the second one, 2-0. That added up to a 6-4 victory over the Bloomington Bison and two more points in the North Division playoff race. The home team got big offensive performances from Griffin Loughran, Matthew Kopperud (again), Lincoln Hatten and Matt DeMelis. Loughran and Kopperud were 1-1-2. DeMelis scored two goals.
‘Monkey Wrenches’ go bananas in win over Bison

2 months ago | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

WORCESTER – February has been cold, dark, snowy, rainy, icy, windy and generally miserable. Too bad it is over, at least for this city’s ECHL team. The new Monkey Wrenches debuted Friday night with a 3-1 victory over the Bloomington Bison. Add this triumph to the Railers’ record for the month, and Worcester was 8-4-0 for February. The race for the final playoff spot in the North Division has evolved into a two-team battle between Worcester and Reading. Both teams won Friday night.
Railers extend winning streak with OT thriller against Gladiators

Feb 7, 2025 | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

WORCESTER – It was, simply, one of the best hockey games the DCU Center has ever hosted. Behind by 2-0 with the game almost half over Friday night, the Worcester Railers came back and tied the Atlanta Gladiators, sending things into overtime. With one second left in OT, a little less, Anthony Callin delivered an improbable victory and completed an improbable Gordie Howe hat trick, as the Worcester Railers prevailed, 3-2. Callin drilled home a 25-foot wrist shot to win it.
Worcester Railers defeat Atlanta Gladiators at home

Feb 5, 2025 | masslive.com | Bill Ballou

WORCESTER – The last two minutes of a one-goal hockey game can seem like forever, so imagine what 86 days feels like. That is how long it took the Railers to get back to the .500 mark this season. It happened as a result of their 3-2 victory over the Atlanta Gladiators Wednesday night at the DCU center. With the triumph, Worcester evened its record at 19-19-6. That last time it finished a game at .500 was on Nov. 10 when it was 6-6-0.