By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Unable to produce a winning record the past few years, the Medford boys’ hockey program has been looking a fresh start.

Out of five applicants, former Bruin Shawn Bates had a resume and local ties with the community that made him an easy choice as the new head coach.

“It’s nice to hire within the community," said athletic director Bob Maloney. "Shawn’s resume is impeccable, and we’re looking for a fresh start.”

Bates, a 1993 Medford graduate, was part of the first public school team to reach the championship round of the Super 8 tournament, and he is the program’s all-time leading scorer (103 goals, 139 assists).

Bates went on to play for Boston University, and his teams played in the Frozen Four each year, winning the national championship in 1995.

Bates, a center, was a fourth-round pick of the Bruins in 1993 and played four years in Boston beginning in 1997. After signing with the Islanders as a free agent in 2001, he spent five-plus seasons with them, finishing his NHL career with 72 goals and 126 assists.

“He’s played at every level of hockey and has had success," said Maloney. "When you play at BU and the NHL, you’ve reached your peak of your sport."

Regardless of where he has played, Bates never really left Medford. He is responsible for two $1,000 scholarships (hockey and basketball) for Medford High graduates, and he also donated a scoreboard for the high school's LoConte Rink.

“He’s never forgotten where he came from and we’re lucky to have him,” said Maloney.
“We’re looking to build the program and make it more respectable."

The Mustangs went 8-12 last year and 9-11 the year before.

By Zac Vierra, Globe Correspondent

After an outstanding sophomore season which included a Super 8 title, Malden Catholic center Ara Nazarian gave a verbal commitment to play at the University of New Hampshire on Tuesday.

“I went to visit [UNH] last week and I liked the campus,” said Nazarian. “It was a perfect fit with how I play and how they play. It felt like the right choice.”

Nazarian was named a Globe All-Scholastic after he scored 26 regular season goals and added eight more in the Super 8 tournament for the Lancers.

After visiting the UNH campus last week, Nazarian took a few days to make his decision but soon it became clear that UNH was the school for him.

“I couldn’t be more happy,” he said. “They have great support for the hockey team at UNH.”

Nazarian is the fourth player from this year’s Malden Catholic team to commit to a Hockey East school including Mike Iovanna at UMass-Amherst, Tyler Siferlen at UMass-Lowell, and Casey Fitzgerald at Boston College.

Wilmington celebrates its Division 2 state title championship at TD Garden. (Araam Boghosian / For the Boston Globe)

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

After a rough patch in the month of January, Malden Catholic went from the No. 10 seed in the Super 8 to tournament champions for the third straight year. The Lancers easily top the Globe's final boys' hockey Top 20 rankings after an impressive turnaround. The rest of the Top 10 reads as the final standings for the Super 8 tournament along with the three division champions.

Wilmington, the Division 2 champions, edged out the top spot among the remaining division champions at No. 9 for the way the Wildcats ran right through their tournament. At one point, Wilmington was on the Super 8 watchlist in the regular season and won every tournament game by at least three goals. In their final three tournament games, the Wildcats outscored Franklin (No. 12), Danvers (No. 17) and Lincoln-Sudbury by a combined 17-2 score.

Burlington, the Division 1 champions and the No. 10 team, may have won the higher division title, but did not dominate the way the Wildcats did in the process.

Marshfield (No. 11), Franklin, and Swampscott (No. 13) fit nicely in after the champions as runnerups for each division title. Hingham and Archbishop Williams take the Nos. 15 and 16 spots after participating in the Super 8 play-in round.

Neither Braintree (No. 19) or Duxbury (No. 20) won a division title, but both were nominated for the Super 8 tournament and recorded great regular seasons. For those two reasons, the Green Dragons and Wamps were able to hold onto a spot in the rankings.

Duxbury girls hockey players celebrated their Division 2 state championship win over Falmouth, 1-0, on the TD Garden ice March 17. (Aram Boghosian for The Boston Globe)

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Duxbury coach Friend Weiler couldn't be happier with his squad after the Green Dragons took on Falmouth in the Division 2 girls' hockey championship, a 1-0 win. Falmouth was the only team to hand Duxbury a loss in the regular season. The lone goal by Liz Collins meant three straight championships run for Duxbury, a first-ever for Division 2.

The squad's consistency and impenetrable defense that carried on a seven-game shutout streak into the tournament earned them No. 1 spot in the Top 20 rankings.

The biggest postseason surprise came when St. Mary's knocked out Woburn, 4-3, the favorite to win it, in a shootout in the Division 1 state semifinal. St. Mary's went on to continue the program's legacy after Alison Butler's winning shot over defending champion Arlington Catholic, earning the Spartans' fifth state championship. The squad's regular season losses stopped them from reaching the top spot.

The Cougars took on Westford, 3-2 in overtime in the semis and delivered a 4-0 shutout over the Beverly/Danvers co-op. Billerica, who took down Braintree and Lincoln-Sudbury, ultimately fell to Woburn in the quarterfinals.

Tewksbury/Methuen sensation Amanda Conway, with 60-plus points, took her squad all the way to the state semifinals against Duxbury, losing 8-0.

This season featured three players who made their way to the 200-point club: Hannah Murphy of Duxbury, Britanni Lanzilli of Medford and Kayla Smith of Woburn.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

Malden Catholic won its third straight Super 8 title. Highlights and analysis from the game with Globe correspondent Alex Hall.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The rematch played out much like the original with the bleached-blonde boys from Wilmington skating off with their second straight Division 2 state title in a 4-0 victory over Franklin on Sunday at TD Garden.

Last year’s win required a hat trick from Cam Owens in a 3-2 battle. This time around the Wildcats used a second-period goal from Cody McGowan off a feed from Dylan DiNatale (two assists) to take a lead that they would never relinquish.

Solid backchecking by Wilmington kept the Panthers offense at bay for much of the game as Franklin was unable to generate an offense push that was sustainable, and even when they did have their chances, junior goalie Drew Foley (15 saves) was there to shut the door, earning his second shutout of the postseason.

Wilmington’s second goal came in the third period on a power play when Owens found Brendan McDounough with a cross ice pass that was slammed home on the right doorstep.

At 8:57 of the final frame when Jake Rogers slammed one home from the right side with McDonough and Cam Collins picking up helpers on the play.

They capped the scoring with 1:57 to play when Luke Foley, who was rock solid in a defensive-forward position, tapped home a rebound.

With time ticking away the aptly green-clad Wildcats fan section erupted as Wilmington became state champions for the second time in school history.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Duxbury made it three straight MIAA Division 2 state girls hockey championships Sunday at the Garden, holding off Falmouth, 1-0, in the title game.

The Green Dragons (22-1-2) got a second period goal from Liz Collins and goalie Rachel Myette (21 saves) made it stand up. Last year Duxbury beat Falmouth, 3-1, and in 2011 the Green Dragons began their three-peat by defeating Fontbonne, 2-1. In the three years Duxbury has gone 65-4-3 overall.

Falmouth, which handed Duxbury its only loss of the regular season, got 30 saves from sophomore Madison Scavotto and finished the season 19-2-2. The shutout was the only time all season the Clippers were blanked. Falmouth had its chances late. The Clippers went on a power play with 3:26 to play, and after a timeout put two shots on Myette, but couldn’t score the equalizer. And with 44 seconds left Falmouth pulled Scavotto but despite pressure the Clippers were unable to tie the score and force an overtime period.

The title also keeps an impressive streak alive for Duxbury. This is 10th straight school year that a Duxbury team has won a state championship.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

It is only fitting for St. Mary’s that Alison Butler would score the winning goal and earn the Spartans their fifth MIAA state championship Sunday at TD Garden.

The 2-1 victory over Arlington Catholic avenged a 3-1 upset in last year’s Division 1 state final to the Cougars and hands St. Mary’s the record for most state championships with their last one in 2010.

With 2:46 left in the third period and the score tied 1-1, Butler slipped one past Arlington Catholic goalie Megan Messuri to give the Spartans the win. Amanda Donahoe was credited with the assist. The goal, Butler’s 36th this season, ends the St. Anselm commit’s career with 199 points.

The first goal came with 22.8 seconds remaining in the first period after a power play expired when Spartans senior forward Gabby Crugnale (16 goals, 10 assists) snapped a wrist shot to the back of the net to lead 1-0. Eighth grade forward/defenseman Sarah Ryan had the assist.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Two underdogs have the chance to rewrite history Sunday after losing in last year’s state championship by identical 3-1 scores. Division 1 state champion Arlington Catholic and two-time Division 2 state champion Duxbury hope history repeats itself. Here are the biggest storylines heading into the state final:

Division 1: Arlington Catholic (17-4-2) vs. St. Mary’s (18-3-4)

St. Mary’s biggest threat is reigning 2012 Super Teamer Alison Butler. The St. Anselm commit is a few points shy of reaching the 200-point club, doubling her goal count from last year (17) to lead her team with 35 goals and 25 assists. The senior has been a powerhouse for the four-time state champion Spartans, a state record, whose last title was in 2010. Last season, Butler had 44 assists, a single-season total surpassed all-time only by behind St. Mary’s alum Abby Gauthier (48). Butler is one point shy of equaling her scoring total from last winter of 61 points.

Defending state champion Arlington Catholic has Adrieana Rossini, who is known to work best under pressure. The past two years the sophomore has managed clutch overtime game winners in the state semifinals to send the Cougars to the title games. Rossini, a two-time Catholic Central All-Star, has been known to make noise in the tournament, including the game-winner against St. Mary’s for the squad’s second title in five years.

Results from a Globe poll showed fans favor Arlington Catholic to win the Division 1 crown by 52 percent.

Division 2: Duxbury (21-1-2) vs. Falmouth (19-1-2)

This contest features two of the state’s best goalies: Duxbury’s Rachel Myette and Falmouth’s Madison Scavotto.

Myette’s sensational goaltending serves for a decorated resume as a two-time defending state champion, a Globe All-Scholastic and her position as captain this year. Myette heads into the state final on a six-game shutout streak, last being scored upon on Feb. 16 in a 6-3 win over Walpole. The junior posts a career-best 0.79 GAA and .928 save percentage, an improvement from her 1.90 GAA as a sophomore and 1.07 GAA as a freshman. Myette’s 14 saves settled the Green Dragons' fate last season and she’ll be looking for a repeat.

Scavotto made a name for herself as a freshman in last year’s state final, stopping 29 shots to keep the Clippers in the game. She admits nerves got the best of her and this season her grit paid off as her 28-save effort served Duxbury its only loss of the season, one that ended a 34-game unbeaten streak. Duxbury coach Friend Weiler has noted Scavotto as a “high-caliber goalie,” reflecting in her 1.23 GAA and eight shutouts this season. This improved her 1.35 GAA and five shutouts as a freshman.

Results from a Globe poll showed fans favor Duxbury to win the Division 2 crown by 78.36 percent.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

Bob Holmes and I break down the highlights from the second round of the Super 8 tournament after Malden Catholic beat Catholic Memorial, 5-3, and Austin Prep beat St. John's Prep, 2-1.

By Jason Mastrodonato, Globe Correspondent

LOWELL -- Austin Prep senior captain Nolan Vesey scored twice off rebound chances, including the game-winner with 2:11 left in the third period, as the Cougars knocked off St. John’s Prep, 2-1, to advance to the Super 8 final 6 p.m. Sunday at TD Garden.

Austin Prep will play Malden Catholic, the two-time defending champion, for the Division 1A title.

Vesey opened the scoring in the second period when a Eric MacAdams shot bounced off the pads of St. John’s Prep goalie Billy Price and landed right on Vessey’s tape for the put-away. Tyler Bird tied it for the Eagles midway through the third, but Vesey scored his second on a power play opportunity minutes later to seal it for the Cougars.

Austin Prep, in its fifth Super 8 tournament appearance, has never won the title.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

On the shoulders of sophomore Ara Nazarian, Malden Catholic defeated Catholic Memorial, 5-3, Wednesday to advance to the Super 8 final. The Lancers forward had a hat trick, sealing the game with an empty-net goal with 30 seconds left.

Nazarian also netted his fourth shorthanded goal of the tournament.

Mike Iovanna, the captain for Malden Catholic and one of only three seniors in the lineup, puts the Lancers ahead with 2:52 remaining before Catholic Memorial pulled its goalie.

The game marked the third meeting this season between the Catholic Conference rivals, and Malden Catholic's 10th straight victory overall, counting its two wins over Springfield Cathedral in the first round of the Super 8. MC will defend its back-to-back Super 8 titles against Austin Prep or St. John's Prep.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

Once again, Boston.com will be providing live coverage from the Super 8 tournament at Tsongas Center in Lowell for Wednesday's doubleheader.

The tournament is now into the semifinals, with Malden Catholic taking on Catholic Memorial at 6 p.m. followed by St. John's Prep vs. Austin Prep at 7:45 p.m.

Winners of each game will play in the Super 8 championship Sunday at TD Garden.

You can follow Super 8 tournament action in our live blog for updates, commentary, photos, and video.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Tournament recap:

In a pair of Division 1 state semifinal thrillers, St. Mary's stayed in it to force Woburn, this season's favorite to win it all, to a shootout. Ten rounds later, Ashley Wojewodzic put St. Mary's back onto the state championship platform, for the squad's fifth time in the past six years, with a 4-3 win. St. Mary's goals came from Vanessa Vanbuskirk, Gabby Crugnale, and Alison Butler, who evened the score in regulation.

On the other side of the bracket, Adrieana Rossini gave defending Division 1 state champion Arlington Catholic that extra push with an overtime goal that decided the 3-2 victory over Westford Academy, a move she pulled last year. Freshman Mickey McLaughlin scored the first goal.

The Division 2 lineup comes to no surprise with Duxbury and Falmouth battling it out... again.

Falmouth prevented a stalemate after an onset of scoring from Madison Haberl, Maggie MacDonald and Kelly Ferreira late in the game for a 3-1 win over Westwood.

Defending two-time Division 2 state champion Duxbury shut out Tewksbury/Methuen 8-0 with shots from Payton Donato, Jacqui Nolan and Liz Collins, who each scored twice. Hannah Murphy assisted on three shots, paving her way into the 200-point club. The Green Dragons prevented Tewksbury/Methuen standout, Amanda Conway, the state's top goal-scorer (52), who was just five goals short of tying a state record.

And now, we move on to TD Garden.

History certainly repeats itself and it looks like each of this year's contenders, in Division 1 and 2, squared off in last year's tournament where Arlington Catholic and Duxbury took their respective crowns with 3-1 finals.

All four teams have split their regular season matchups, making this year's tournament all the more enticing.

For our girls' hockey championship preview, tune in this weekend for both our print and online editions.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

The schedule has been set for the Super 8 semifinals, which will feature a doubleheader at Tsongas Center in Lowell on Wednesday.

At 6 p.m., Malden Catholic will take on Catholic Memorial before St. John's Prep faces Austin Prep at 7:45 p.m.

The winner of each game advances to the Division 1A state championship Sunday at TD Garden.

By Anthony Gulizia, Globe Correspondent

STONEHAM – In a moment of desperation, BC High goaltender Peter Cronin went into split, sealing off the left post in an attempt to deny Catholic Memorial’s Liam Coughlin the easy wraparound goal.

All Coughlin had to do was aim high and he would be heralded a hero, and the senior captain never hesitated to deliver.

Coughlin snapped a wrist shot into the top right corner past an outstretched Cronin, with just 22.5 seconds remaining, to lift Catholic Memorial to a thrilling 3-2 win and series victory over BC High in the deciding Game 3 of the Super 8 first round Sunday at Stoneham Arena.

“‘Exaggerate high,’ is what our coaches tell us and it ended up going in and it was awesome,” Coughlin said.

On the play, the net shook from its moorings but the referees convened and decided the goal crossed the line before the net came loose.

“It definitely came off, but the referee was in good position and his explanation was that in the act of shooting, if the net comes off, it’s a good goal,” BC High coach John Flaherty said. “I have to trust that.”

It was a storybook ending to this year’s chapter of one of the most riveting rivalries in high school hockey. BC High got the best of CM in two Catholic Conference matchups this season, and won the first game of the quarterfinals series, 3-1, last Sunday.

Catholic Memorial evened the series with a 3-2 shootout victory on Wednesday, forcing the third and final game.

“In games like this, big-time players have to step up and get the job done for you,” CM coach Bill Hanson said. “Liam [Coughlin] just showed what kind of hockey player he is and what kind of character he had.”

With the game tied 1-1 entering the third period, sophomore Alec Flynn snapped a shot passed CM freshman goaltender Brendan Collett (29 saves) to give BC High a 2-1 lead at 5:24.

Nearly three minutes later, Catholic Memorial freshman Kevin Hock corralled a loose puck and broke for on a 2-on-1 breakaway and found freshman Aaron Clancy, who kissed his shot off the post and past Cronin to tie the game.

“[Hock] made a really nice pass under the defenseman’s stick, and I knew I had to have a quick release because Cronin is one of the best in the state.”

In the first period, BC High (15-5-3) jumped to a 1-0 lead on Patrick Kramer’s power play goal.

The Knights, who committed four penalties in the first period, settled in throughout the game. In the second period, on a delayed penalty call, Coughlin scored the equalizer on a pass from Clancy.

“We took a couple needless penalties,” Hanson said. “But we’ve killed penalties all year long and we survived it.”

Catholic Memorial (14-7-2) will face Malden Catholic (14-6-3) in a one game semifinal on Wednesday at Tsongas Center in Lowell.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

We'll be doing live coverage from the Super 8 tournament tonight at Stoneham Arena again.

Correspondents Alex Hall and Anthony Gulizia will have you covered throughout tonight's doubleheader, featuring BC High (1-1) vs. Catholic Memorial (1-1) and St. John's Prep vs. Central Catholic (1-1).

Tonight's games will conclude the first round of the tournament.

You can follow along on the Super 8 live blog here for updates, commentary, and photos.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

The final games of the first round of the Super 8 tournament have been scheduled.

BC High (1-1) will play Catholic Memorial (1-1) at 4 p.m. before St. John's Prep (1-1) takes on Central Catholic (1-1) at 6 p.m. Sunday.

Both games will be played at Stoneham Arena.

Winners will advance to the semifinals, which will be played Wednesday March 13 at Tsongas.

The winner of the BC High-Catholic Memorial series will face Malden Catholic and the winner of the St. John's Prep-Central Catholic series will take on Austin Prep.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

Highlights and takeaways from Friday night's Super 8 doubleheader where Malden Catholic eliminating Springfield Cathedral and St. John's Prep forcing a Game 3 against Central Catholic.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

STONEHAM -- Despite arguably the best performance by a goalie in the first round of the Super 8 tournament, Central Catholic fell, 3-1, to St. John's Prep Friday night at Stoneham Arena.

With the win, St. John's Prep forces a decisive third game in the best-of-three series.

Central Catholic goalie Colin Soucy had 37 saves on the night but all it took was three mistakes to send St. John's Prep home with the win. After a short-handed goal by Central Catholic's Lloyd Hayes eight minutes into the second period, St. John's Prep forward Justin Longo caught the Raiders off guard when he beat Soucy on the very next possession to tie the game at a goal apiece.

St. John's Prep senior Nic Gianelli scored the second goal for his team before teammate Jack McCarthy added an empty netter with little more than a minute left in the third period.

St. John's Prep and Central Catholic will return to Stoneham Arena Sunday for Game 3.

By Craig Forde and Zuri Berry, Globe Correspondent and Boston.com Staff

STONEHAM -- Ara Nazarian contributed two goals for the second straight game, helping Malden Catholic beat Springfield Cathedral, 4-0, to advance to the second round of the Super 8 tournament at Stoneham Arena.

Malden Catholic's defense, led by Casey Fitzgerald and John McLean, used a physical play that stymied the Panthers, who only got out four shots in the final frame. MC advances to the Super 8 semifinals for the sixth straight year as they look to defend their back-to-back titles in the Division 1A tournament.

After a scoreless first period, Springfield Cathedral came out strong to start the second period but could not sustain the pace and ultimately the Lancers gained control of the game. Malden Catholic outshot Springfield Cathedral, 12-6, in the period and got one through at the 9:55 mark when an Austin Goldstein shot was banged home on the doorstep by Matt Filipe.

In the third period, Nazarian blasted home a rebound from the slot to put Malden Catholic up, 2-0, just 48 seconds into the final frame. He got his second score not too long later, a short-handed goal from teammates Fitzgerald and Michael Iovanna. It was Nazarian's third short-handed goal in the best-of-three series.

Fitzgerald tipped in a pass from Filipe on a power play to ice the game with 40 seconds left.

Malden Catholic will play the winner of the BC High-Catholic Memorial series, which is tied 1-1, in the semifinals.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

STONEHAM -- We'll be doing live coverage of Friday night's Super 8 doubleheader at Stoneham Arena again.

We'll have updates, including commentary, photos, and video in our live blog here.

Tonight's doubleheader features Malden Catholic (1-0) vs. Springfield Cathedral (0-1) at 5:30 p.m. and Central Catholic (1-0) vs. St. John's Prep (0-1) at 8 p.m. in the first round's best-of-three series.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

The Division 3 South hockey semifinal between Medway and Holliston has been postponed to 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Brockton because of the winter storm, according to the MIAA.

The game was originally scheduled for Friday night at the Gallo Arena.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

The Super 8 hockey tournament games slated for Friday night will be played as scheduled, according to the MIAA.

Friday's doubleheader, featuring Springfield Cathedral vs. Malden Catholic (5:30 p.m.) and Central Catholic vs. St. John's Prep (8 p.m.) at Stoneham Arena, had already been pushed back a day because of the winter storm.

The MIAA will offer another update on the schedule of games at noon.

By Bob Holmes, Globe Staff

Weather has once again caused problems for the MIAA's post-season schedule.

The Super 8 hockey games at Stoneham Arena between Springfield Cathedral and Malden Catholic at 5:30 p.m., and St. John's Prep and Central Catholic at 7:45 have been postponed and will be played Friday in Stoneham. Springfield Cathedral and Malden Catholic will play at 5:30, followed by Prep vs Central at 8.

In the South, all semifinal hockey games scheduled for Gallo Arena have been postponed and will be played Sunday.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

STONEHAM -- Austin Prep defeated Reading, 1-0, thanks to an early goal by Cam Russo to bury the Rockets at Stoneham Arena and advance in the Super 8 tournament.

With the victory, Austin Prep eliminated Reading in the best-of-three series iand will move on to the second round against the winner of the St. John's Prep and Central Catholic series.

Austin Prep capitalized on an earl power-play opportunity, with Russo scoring a goal on a rebound at 14:17 in the first period.

Reading had chance after chance in this game to get on the scoreboard, but AP goalie Elijah Harris refused to leave Stoneham without a victory despite having nine shots flung his way in the third period when the Rockets looked their most dangerous. The sophomore goalie held on and delivered his team a shutout night.

By Jason Mastrodonato, Globe Correspondent

STONEHAM -- Catholic Memorial gave up a lead with 28 seconds left in regulation before hitting three straight shootout attempts to beat BC High, 3-2, and force a third game in the best-of-three series to be held Sunday.

Freshman defenseman Tim Weinstein nailed the final shootout attempt to seal it for the Knights.

For the second straight game, Catholic Memorial (13-7-2) brought the intensity in the first period, taking advantage of its energy with two goals in the opening 15 minutes as BC High (15-3-4) wiped off the dust.

CM senior John Maher opened it up with a rebound goal in the 10th minute. Keeping the pressure on BC High goalie Peter Cronin, who stopped 23 of 24 shots in the first game, the Knights struck again three minutes later.

Picking up the puck in his own zone, Frank Cosolito seamed a pass up-ice that found Jack O'Hear and created a two-on-one. O'Hear set it on a tee for freshman Kevin Hock, who buried his 12th goal of the year.

BC High put it together for a strong second period, attacking goalie Brendan Collett with a barrage of shots, most coming from the outside. Jake Lemanski put BC High on the board with a rebound goal four minutes in, but the Eagles couldn't convert on an array of chances, including several on the power play, later in the second.

With desperation sinking in and less than a minute remaining in the third, BC High pulled goalie Peter Cronin to add an extra attacker. Bodies flying every which way, captain Tom Besinger sensed chaos and sent the puck from the corner across the goal mouth. The opportunistic Ryan Shea was there to slam it in and give the Eagles new life with 28 seconds to go.

Chances were plentiful on both sides in the overtime period, but neither could convert.

The Knights scored three of six in the shootout. The Eagles scored two.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

We'll be doing live coverage of the Super 8 tournament tonight, a doubleheader featuring BC High vs. Catholic Memorial and Austin Prep vs. Reading.

BC High (1-0) and Austin Prep (1-0) can close out their best-of-three series against Catholic Memorial (0-1) and Reading (0-1).

You can follow all of our updates -- including commentary, videos, and photos -- here.

By Zac Vierra, Globe Correspondent

After scoring a hat trick in Danvers’ 4-3 win over Beverly on Friday, AJ Couto stayed hot scoring a pair of goals as the Falcons defeated Concord-Carlisle, 5-3, Monday in Chelmsford to advance to the Division 2 North final.

Danvers jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first minute of play off a goal from Rob Buchanan and the Falcons (12-6-4) didn’t look back from there scoring two more goals in the first period both on the power play. The second goal of the game was scored by Joe Strangi when he set a screen in front of the Concord-Carlisle goalie and puck tipped off him and in. Danvers would take the 3-0 advantage when Couto found the back of the net on a slapshot at 7:15 of the period.

“We had some changes in our lines and we changed it up and were able to get the right combination,” said Danvers coach Kevin Brown.

The Patriots (12-9-2) would strike back with a goal by Nick McCormack on the power play late in the first and in the second, Seamus Vahey scored to cut the deficit to a goal.

But Couto would score again on a wrist shot, his fifth goal in two games, to give Danvers a 4-2 advantage.

“AJ has been playing well and I was happy with his play today,” said Brown.

With eight seconds left in the second period, Adam Merry poked the puck through the net to cap the scoring for the Falcons.

Goalie Alex Taylor had 15 saves for Danvers.

“Alex had a lot of saves under pressure and that is when he steps up,” said Brown.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

Highlights and analysis from the first set of games in the first round of the Super 8 tournament.

Follow all of our coverage of the Super 8 tournament in our live blog.

By Seth Lakso, Globe Correspondent

LOWELL — Austin Prep used an early goal from freshman Jake McKenelley and an empty-netter to defeat Reading, 2-1, in the opening game of their Super 8 tournament series at Tsongas Arena in Lowell.

Reading rallied furiously in the third period, scoring with 22.2 seconds to play, but the Cougars held on.

Austin Prep’s Andrew Cross was called for roughing in the final minutes, but Eric MacAdams’s clear during six-on-four play found the back of the Rockets’ net to put AP up 2-0.

Reading’s Ryan Thomson scored with 22.2 seconds to play, but that’s where things stayed.

AP outshot the Rockets 31-24 on the night.

Reading took a holding penalty early on, and it looked as though it had dodged a bullet when Austin Prep’s Andrew Cross was called for tripping just seconds into the man-advantage. However, the Cougars responded on the next faceoff with MacAdams’s goal anyway.

Austin Prep sophomore forward Bob Carpenter went flying toward the net on the left side and flipped a backhanded shot on Reading goaltender Evan Morelli. The senior captain made the save, but the rebound went straight to freshman McKenelley, who found the back of the net for the 12th time this season to put AP up, 1-0, 4:52 into the first.

The Cougars lead the series 1-0 and the teams will play again 7:45 p.m. Wednesday at Stoneham Arena.

By Anthony Gulizia, Globe Correspondent

LOWELL — The chances mounted for Springfield Cathedral in the third period as they chased a one-goal deficit with the help of three power play opportunities.

But Malden Catholic goaltender Connor Maloney stood tall and turned away nine shots in the final period to help the Lancers secure a 3-2 win against Springfield Cathedral Sunday at Tsongas Arena in the first game of the best-of-three Super 8 quarterfinals.

It appeared as if Springfield Cathedral was going to steal the game after scoring two goals early in the second period. Sophomore forward Peter Crinella scored to tie the game, 1-1, and then two minutes later Artie Potter landed a one-timer from Nick Chaoush to give the Panthers a 2-1 advantage.

However, MC was sparked to life after Casey Fitzgerald’s elbowing penalty put the Panthers on the power play. The Panthers struggled to take advantage and Malden Catholic sophomore Ara Nazarian scored a pair of short-handed goals 26 seconds apart to give his team a 3-2 lead.

The first slipped over Liquori’s shoulder, but Cathedral’s goalie had no chance on the second one as Malden Catholic charged on a 3-on-1 breakaway. Tyler Sifferlen and Mike Iovanna assisted the second score. Iovanna also assisted Nazarian’s first score.

In the first period, Sifferlen gave the Lancers a 1-0 lead when he tipped in a shot from Nazarian. Maloney made 16 saves, while Liquori made 21.

The next game in the series will be 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Stoneham Arena.

By Jason Mastrodonato, Globe Correspondent

LOWELL — Patience, patience, patience – and good goaltending – was the recipe for BC High on Sunday as the Eagles kicked off their Super 8 series against Catholic Memorial with a let’s-take-it-and-get-out-of-here 3-1 win.

Third-ranked BC High (15-3-3) got out to an early lead when Adam Foley put away a shot from the slot, but the puck spent the rest of the first period and majority of the second in the Eagles’ zone.

The sixth-ranked Knights (12-7-2), who have been playing inspired hockey after an 0-5-2 stretch from Jan. 12 to Feb. 2, played an aggressive game that fed off a mechanical forecheck and slithery forward in Liam Coughlin.

Coughlin had his chances, many in the opening two periods, as he was often found lurking around the slot. But BC High goalie Peter Cronin, who finished with 23 saves, was tough to crack.

CM got on the board in the second when Jack O’Hear poked in a loose puck on the power play.

The Knights kept the pressure on, out-shooting the Eagles 11-5 in the second frame as BC High seemed content with packing it in around the net and hoping for fast-break chances.

In the third, the Eagles finally appeared energized, controlling much of the possession and taking a lead when Steve DeForge intercepted a pass in CM’s zone and sniped a wrister top-shelf.

Patrick Kramer finished things off with a rebound-goal on the power play late in the third.

By Pat Bradley, Globe Correspondent

LOWELL — Central Catholic junior Kevin Regan scored the go-ahead goal just a minute into the 2nd period Sunday afternoon as the eighth-seeded Raiders downed top seed St. John’s Prep 4-1 at Tsongas Center in Lowell to kick off the Super 8 tournament.

After a dump into the zone by Central Catholic sophomore Billy Stahley, classmate Christian Thompson put a nice pass in front of the net. Regan tapped it in as Price was expecting the puck to come around the other side to give Central a lead they’d never relinquish at 2-1.

The biggest story, however, was the goaltending. Central Catholic junior Colin Soucy made 24 saves, many of which dazzled spectators, highlighted by a diving stop on St. John’s Prep captain Brian Pinho’s breakaway in the second period to preserve the then one-goal lead for Central. In addition to Soucy’s play, all of Central Catholic’s defenders played excellent in front of him, stopping several Grade-A chances before they were fired.

Scoring was opened in the first by Central Catholic’s Lloyd Hayes, who put a rebound 5-hole on Price from Alex Lester and Corey Webber just 5:08 into the game. Prep would tie it a few minutes later at 10:37 on a power-play goal from Jimmy Currier, who backhanded a rebound from Tyler Bird.

Central Catholic senior captain Nick Gorski scored an unassisted goal on a power play at 9:32 in the second period to make it 3-1. Alex Lester capped the scoring 1:49 into the third, with assists from Regan and Hayes.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

The Super 8 tournament is set to start on Sunday with four games to begin each first-round series.

Follow the Super 8 throughout the tournament on Boston.com for all news updates, commentary, photos, and video in our live blog.

Today's games begin at noon, with St. John's Prep taking on Central Catholic, before BC High plays Catholic Memorial at 2:15 p.m., followed by Springfield Cathedral against Malden Catholic at 4:30 p.m., and Austin Prep vs. Reading at 6:45 p.m. All games are Tsongas Arena in Lowell.

The first round is a best-of-three series.

By Chad Graff, Globe Correspondent

Ethan Miller didn’t have much shootout experience. As a sophomore, he hadn’t been in a situation like this.

It was the seventh round of a shootout in a playoff game with a ticket to the Division 3 North semifinals on the line. But he was the next man up. So Buccaneers coach Mark Fontas leaned over from his perch atop the bench and gave Miller specific instructions.

“Come across with your forehand sweeping, dip your shoulder and fake the shot. The goalie will bite on the quick release and you pull it to your backhand for the goal.”

Miller, who scored Bedford’s lone regulation goal, followed the instructions for what his coach called “an absolutely beautiful goal” and ninth-seeded Bedford took down top-seeded Lowell, 2-1, at O’Brien Rink in Woburn Saturday in quarterfinal action.

Twelve minutes of overtime hockey wasn’t enough to separate the two squads – “both goalies stood on their heads,” Fontas said – and it took seven rounds of a shootout for either team to pull away.

Shootouts go at least five rounds and until one team pulls ahead. Heading into the fifth round of the shootout, Lowell carried a 2-1 lead.

Before the shootout began, Fontas asked Anthony Lespaio whether he’d rather shoot first or last. Save him for the end, Lespaio told his coach. He wanted the pressure. So with Bedford needing a goal to stay alive, Fontas called on his senior who lit the lamp.

Goalie Abe Grainger then stopped the next three Lowell shooters and Bedford (11-8-3) skated away with a spot in the semifinals.

By Sarah Moomaw, Globe Correspondent

Duxbury girls’ hockey coach Friend Weiler called Friday’s 1-0 win over Walpole a pitchers’ duel between goalies in a Division 2 matchup.

The top-seeded and two-time defending champion Green Dragons (19-1-2) broke a scoreless tie with 3:45 left in regulation. Up until that moment, both goalies had made huge saves.

“It was a pitchers’ duel, both goalies were on top of their game tonight,” Weiler said.

Both teams had scoring chances in the first and second periods, but each time either Walpole’s Bethany Welch (25 saves) or Duxbury’s Rachel Myette (16 saves) was there for the stops.

The Green Dragons finally found a gap when Marissa Fichter notched the game-winner at 12:15 in the third period. Kaley Rudicus and Hannah Murphy worked together to get Fichter the puck on the breakaway. Fichter beat Welch took a shot from the far left post.

From there, Duxbury stay focused and finished off Walpole for the win.

“We wanted to make sure we kept the pressure on,” Weiler said. “[We] didn’t want to alter the game plan, but keep the aggressive style.”

Weiler said a first-round bye may have contributed to the Dragons’ sluggish start because they hadn’t played in a game in more than a week.

“It was tough to start from the ground up again,” he said.

By Sarah Moomaw, Globe Correspondent

The seventh-seeded Norwood girls’ hockey team is headed back to the Division 2 quarterfinals after blanking 10th-seed Scituate, 6-0, on Thursday at the Metropolis Skating Rink in Canton.

Coach Tim Coskren said he thinks his team is playing its best hockey behind superb defense and goal-producing offense, including a hat trick from Emily Kelly and an opening goal 11 seconds in.

“It’s a good time for things to start going our way,” he said. “I just think our defense has played a much, much stronger game [lately].”

Kelly netted the Mustangs final three goals after missing the previous game and a half with a bruised shoulder.

Before the hat trick, Kelly assisted on the opening goal of the game. Kacie Smith scored off the opening face-off only 11 seconds into regulation and would later stand as the game winner. With five minutes elapsed in the first period, the Mustangs had a 3-0 lead thanks to follow-up goals by Sam Hayes and Katie O’Brien.

The defensive line kept pucks away from junior goalie Samantha Baturin, but she came through in the clutch when needed, making 12 saves.

“When she had to come up with a big save she did,” Coskren said. “It really pumps our team up when she does that … when she plays well, everyone steps up.”

In the quarterfinal the Mustangs will take on No. 2 seed-Falmouth, who topped them in the last game of the regular season, 2-0.

"We’ll just work on the same thing we’ve been working,” Coskren said. “The name of our game [is] passing the puck. We move the puck really well.”

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

The first round of the Super 8 is coming up on Sunday and we're underway here at the Globe getting ready for all the games. Here is our video preview with high school sports editor Bob Holmes and hockey correspondent Alex Hall. The question we ask, who has the hot goalie? Any thoughts on that? Leave 'em in the comments.

Check out all the stats for boys' hockey players here and read all the stories we have on the tournament at the Super 8 Central landing page.

By Zac Vierra, Globe Correspondent

Shannon O’Neil had 36 saves as Austin Prep knocked ninth-ranked Hingham out of MIAA Tournament with a 4-0 win in preliminary round play on Wednesday. The win advances the Cougars (11-7-4) to the first round of the Division 1 girls tournament, the farthest the team has advanced in six years.

Although Austin Prep came into the game as the 21st seed in the tournament, they were a confident bunch having defeated Hingham (13-7-3) 2-0 on Jan. 19.

In the first period the Cougars converted on a five-on-three advantage when the puck was won on a faceoff and defenseman Jaimee Cooke fired a wrist shot that found the back of the net.

The score would remain 1-0 until late in the third period when Austin Prep scored again on the power play. On a two-on-one breakaway, Kiely Annese scored on a top shelf goal that got over the goalie's glove.

O’Neil would fend off 23 shots in the third period to preserve the shutout, her ninth of the year.

“They really turned the pressure on and Shannon was clutch,” said Austin Prep head coach Stephanie Wood. “They did everything they could but Shannon was unstoppable.”

Maddy Ricci would add a pair of empty net goals late to seal the victory.

Austin Prep will face Masconomet in the first round 5 p.m. Saturday at Governor's Academy.

By Anthony Gulizia, Globe Correspondent

With 11 seconds left in the game, junior Derek Butler rattled a shot off the crossbar, nearly sending Natick to the Division 1 South quarterfinals.

This time, Butler made sure not to ding any metal as he rifled the puck into the back of the net four minutes into overtime, lifting the Red Hawks to a 3-2 victory against Framingham at Loring Arena Wednesday night.

"That's what high school hockey is all about," Natick coach Karl Infanger said. "There wasn't a seat in the place – it was rocking and it was just a madhouse. To take that win was special for the kids."

Butler's late-game heroics helped stave off a furious comeback by Framingham. Junior Jack Murphy scored a pair of goals to give Natick a 2-0 lead, but the Flyers scored two in the third period to even the score.

Framingham sophomore Drew McKinnon delivered the game-tying score with 3:30 left in the final stanza.

"They know you can never be too high and never be too low," Infanger said. "And [in overtime], emotionally, they went to work."

On Sunday, Natick (No. 9) will face No. 1-seeded Archbishop Williams (12-5-4) which lost to Malden Catholic in the Super 8 play-in game.

"They're going to play hard," Infanger said. "We're going to have to bring our A-game and keep it going. No matter who you play, you're in for a fight."

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

The MIAA posted the Super 8 matchups and times Tuesday afternoon. The tournament gets underway Sunday with four games at Tsongas Arena in Lowell. St. John's Prep faces Central Catholic at noon, followed by BC High vs. Catholic Memorial at 2:15 p.m., Malden Catholic vs. Sprinfgield Cathedral at 4:30, and Austin Prep vs. Reading at 6:45.

All series are best 2-of-3. Game 2 for BC High/CM and AP/Reading is Wednesday, with Game 2 for Prep/Central and MC/Cathedral on Thursday. Wednesday and Thursday games are at Stoneham Arena.

The MIAA also released the boys' hockey Division 1 North and South sectional brackets with action squaring off Wednesday.

Division 1 North

1. Chelmsford (14-3-4) .762; 2. Winchester (14-5-3) .705; 3. Arlington Catholic (11-6-4) .619; 4. Woburn (10-6-4) .600; 5. Burlington (10-6-5) .595; 6. Waltham (12-8-2) .591; 7. Wakefield (9-6-5) .575; 8. Arlington (9-6-5) .575; 9. Melrose (10-7-4) .571; 10. Andover (10-8-3) .548.

First Round (Wednesday)
Melrose vs. Arlington, 7:30 p.m. at Woburn
Andover vs. Wakefield, 7:30 p.m. at Stoneham

Quarterfinals (Sunday)
Melrose/Arlington winner at Chelmsford, 6:30 p.m.
Burlington vs. Woburn, 4:30 p.m. at Chelmsford
Andover/Wakefield winner vs. Winchester, 5:30 p.m., at Stoneham
Arlington Catholic vs. Waltham, 8 p.m., at Stoneham

Division 1 South

1. Archbishop Williams (12-4-4) .700; 2. Hingham (13-7-2) .636; 3. Braintree (17-4-1) .795; 4. Duxbury (14-3-5) .750; 5. Marshfield (16-6-) .727; 6. Barnstable (12-4-4) .700; 7. Norwood (13-5-2) .700; 8. Framingham (14-7-0) .667; 9. Natick (11-7-2) .600; 10. Walpole (9-6-5) .575; 11. Falmouth (10-7-5) .568; 12. Milton (9-7-6) .545; 13. Xaverian (8-7-5) .525; 14 Weymouth (10-10-0) .500; 15. Brockton (8-12-0) .400.

First Round
(Wednesday)
Milton vs. Marshfield, 6 p.m. at Gallo Ice Arena
Brockton vs. Hingham, 8 p.m. at TBD
(Thursday)
Xaverian vs. Duxbury, 7 p.m. at The Bog
Weymouth vs. Braintree, TBD, at TBD
Falmouth vs. Barnstable at Gallo, 5 p.m.

(Friday)
Walpole vs Norwood at Gallo, 7:30

TBA: Natick vs. Framingham

Quarterfinals (DAY)
Framingham/Natick winner vs. Archbishop Williams, TBD at TBD
Marshfield/Milton winner vs. Duxbury/Xaverian winner, TBD at TBD
Barnstable/Falmouth winner vs. Braintree/Weymouth winner, TBD at TBD
Norwood/Brockton winner vs. Hingham/Brockton winner, TBD at TBD

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

Malden Catholic was the last team to qualify for the Super 8 play-in field but did its best to look like the No. 1 seed in the tournament Monday night. The Lancers defeated Archbishop Williams 9-1 at Stoneham Arena.

The Lancers tallied five goals in just the first period of play.

Unlike their opponent, the Bishops were unable to get anything going offensively. They finished the game with just nine shots on goal compared to 43 by Malden Catholic.

MC scored four more goals over the second and third periods, with Archies' lone goal coming with two minutes left in the contest. Junior Mike Jessman scored for the Bishops but it was far too late for his team.

The Lancers move on as the No. 7 seed in the Super 8 field and will take on Springfield Cathedral at Tsongas Arena in Lowell Sunday. Archbishop Williams drops into the Division 1 tournament to be seeded in the South.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

The Hingham Harbormen jumped on Super 8 play-in opponent Central Catholic early in Monday night's game but were unable to shut the door on the Raiders. Despite a 3-0 lead in the middle of the second period, the Harbormen fell to Central Catholic 4-3 in overtime at the Stoneham Arena.

The Raiders' comeback started with just two minutes left in the second period when senior defenseman Nick Gorski scored on a 4-on-4 opportunity. Central came out in the third period flying around the rink and were able to net two goals and bring the game into overtime.

Adding to the drama, the sudden death overtime period was scoreless until the 13-minute mark, with junior forward Corey Webber scoring the game-winning goal with 2:06 left on the clock.

The Raiders are now the No. 8 seed in the Super 8 and will take on St. John's Prep in a best of three series. Hingham will drop down into the Division 1 tournament where it will be seeded in the South.

By Bob Holmes, Globe Staff

The MIAA announced the seedings for the Super 8 hockey tournament Saturday with St. John's Prep leading the field as the top seed.

Four of the teams are from the Catholic Conference. After Prep, Springfield Cathedral is No. 2, followed by No. 3 BC High, No. 4 Austin Prep, Reading at No. 5 and Catholic Memorial at No. 6. Those six advance to the first round of the tournament Sunday, March 3, at Tsongas Arena in Lowell.

The remainder of the field must play their way into the tournament with wins in the play-in games on Monday at Stoneham Arena.

At No. 7 is Archbishop Williams, followed by Central Catholic, Hingham and No. 10 seed and defending champion Malden Catholic. Archbishop Williams will play MC and Central Catholic plays Hingham with the winners advancing to Lowell. The losers will drop into the Division 1 tournament and be seeded No.1.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Here are some interesting tidbits on the high school girls' hockey scene:

1) Defensive player of the week: Annie Messuri of Acton-Boxboro was named the MVC/DCL Division 1 Player of the Year. The defenseman has 13 goals and 14 assists to end the regular season after dropping a game 5-3 to Woburn in the girls' 8 Showcase. The honor comes as no surprise as the "go-to person on the power play," coach Brian Fontas told the Globe earlier this month.

2) Offensive player of the week: Junior Ashley Moran sent Woburn on its way to a 4-1 victory over defending Division 1 state champion Arlington Catholic in the debut of the girls' 8 Showcase, grabbing her 100th career point. Moran paced the Tanners with a pair of goals, including the first of the game. The forward has compiled 23 goals and 25 assists for the unbeaten Tanners at 17-0-3.

3) Team to watch: Tewksbury/Methuen qualified for the postseason in the squad's inaugural season with a 5-1 victory over Concord-Carlisle. Amanda Conway, who set a single-game record for most goals in a game (7), leads the team with 44 goals and six assists. The sophomore ranks eighth in the state for points.

4) Biggest update from this week: Hannah Murphy came through for Duxbury scoring the lone goal in the shootout against St. Mary's in the girls' 8 Showcase. The senior captain leads her team with 23 goals and 16 assists and is sure to bring the heat in the tournament.

5) Looking forward: Brittani Lanzilli leads Medford with 32 goals and 27 assists to tie with Sandwich's Maggie Layo for the state's leading point scorer. The junior posts a career total of over 240 points and was designated the GBL MVP. Keep an eye on her to see the ultimate record she may set for her school's program after tournament play.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

Here's a roundup of what you need to know in boys' hockey this week:

1. Super 8 announcement Saturday – The MIAA will announce the field for the 2013 Super 8 tournament this year at its headquarters in Franklin on Feb. 23. The committee will meet to discuss and debate each of the teams likely to make the tournament and announce the play-in teams as well. It might not have shorthanded goals or zambonis, but it will be just as exciting as a meeting between Springfield Cathedral and St. John’s Prep. The meeting is open to the public.

2. Malden Catholic roaring back into Super 8 conversation – One of the names surely going to be discussed at the Saturday committee announcements is the resurgent Malden Catholic. The Lancers knocked off Mount St. Charles (R.I.) two games after defeating Central Catholic and Franklin respectively. MC also took down Catholic Memorial Jan. 26, 4-3, at Walter Brown Arena. Chances are the Lancers have played their way into the Super 8.

3. Catholic Memorial solidifying Super 8 chances – The Knights have also been on a comeback tour as of late, starting when they defeated Braintree 5-2 on the road Feb. 16. Since then, head coach Bill Hanson’s team has beat Central Catholic and Fairfield College Prep (Conn.) to put together a three-game winning streak. CM has probably saved its bacon from missing the Super 8 this season with this run and knocked the Braintree Wamps out in the process.

4. Austin Prep and Falmouth to face off in Cape Cod Classic final – In a tournament filled with Globe top 20 teams like BC High, Archbishop Williams and Hingham, Austin Prep and Falmouth are the two remaining squads left. Austin Prep is the No. 5 team in the Globe Top 20. Falmouth, although not in the Top 20, deserves to be. The Falmouth Clippers certainly qualified after heading into a high-profile tournament as an underdog and deserve credit for making it to the final. The Clippers will get their shot to knock off Austin Prep.

5. Division 2 Super 8 hopefuls falter down the stretch – It’s always a long shot for Division 2 teams to qualify for the Super 8 and it's likely none will be named in 2013. Beverly suffered its first loss of the season on the road against Peabody on Feb. 18 and Wilmington fell to Reading at home on Feb. 16. Arguably the two best chances for Division 2 to see representation in the Super 8 likely had to finish the season winning out and both failed to do so. But rest assured, you haven't heard the last of these schools.

Alex Hall covers boys' hockey for the the Boston Globe. He can be reached at akhall2@suffolk.edu. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall.

By Bob Holmes, Globe Staff

The first step in having a great tournament is having great teams, and the Super 8 selection committee gets the process started Saturday morning at MIAA headquarters in Franklin. The committee of coaches, athletic directors and school administrators will select the 10 schools that all hope to be skating on the Garden ice in three weeks.

The Committee will pick six teams that automatically make the Super 8, then four more schools that will square off in the two play-in contests with the No. 7 seed playing No. 10, and No. 8 facing No. 9. Those games are Monday at Stoneham Arena at 5:30 and 8 p.m. The two winners then join the Super 8 field as the No. 7 and 8 seeds. The losers join their respective Division 1 tournaments as the top seeds.

The Super 8 then gets underway at Tsongas Arena in Lowell on Sunday, March 3, with the first of four games scheduled for noon. The tournament has changed its format this year and will follow a Hockey East style playoff format with four best two-out-of-three series. Winners advance to the semifinals on Wed., March 13. The state championship is at TD Garden on Sunday, March 17.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

The Lancers have not had the easiest of seasons at 9-6-3.

That hasn’t stopped Malden Catholic from one last push to earn a spot in this year’s Super 8 tournament field. The two-time defending champs haven't lost since their 4-2 defeat to Xaverian Jan. 29. Since then they've knocked off the likes of No. 7 Central Catholic, Franklin and Mount St. Charles Academy (R.I.).

Thanks to Catholic Conference rival CM defeating Braintree and Wilmington’s loss to Reading this past Saturday, the Lancers should just sneak their way into the field. Both Braintree and Wilmington needed to win this weekend and likely saw their Super 8 dreams come to an end Saturday night. The last four spots in the field are muddy at best, so there's still hope. But the weekend losses didn't help.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Woburn cements itself at the top of the final Top 20 before the tournament as we wind up the regular season.

The Tanners (15-0-3) outlasted No. 7 Reading Wednesday night with Ashley Moran producing the game winner with 45 seconds left to clinch the Middlesex League title. The Tanners then delivered a 5-0 shutout over Belmont, Courtney Davis’s (1.12 goals against average) seventh this season. The squad’s ties this season were to St. Mary’s, Lexington and Winchester.

Second-ranked Duxbury only had one game last week, against Walpole, and came out on top, 6-3.

Fourth-ranked Falmouth had a clutch 3-2 victory over Hingham, sending the Harbormen to No. 9. The Clippers also tied Notre Dame of Hingham, 2-2.

Arlington Catholic beat Lexington, 5-1, sending the Minutemen to No. 11.

Alison Butler’s two goals and assist fueled No. 5 St. Mary’s past No.20 Fontbonne, 3-1 and Lauren Skinnion took care of Austin Prep, 2-0, with 21 saves to capture the Catholic Central League title.

No. 6 Wellesley had a solid week with wins against Framingham, 4-1, and Needham, 4-0, remaining one of the few unbeaten teams this season. No. 8 Canton shut out Medfield 3-0.

No. 10 Westford and No. 12 Acton-Boxboro spit a 2-2 matchup.

Nicole Woods saved No. 13 Beverly/Danvers from a close call with the equalizer at 1:50 to tie 1-1 with Marblehead/Swampscott.

Cara Lembo’s two goals and an assist and Caroline Goguen’s goal lifted No. 17 Wayland/Weston over No. 18 Lincoln-Sudbury, 3-2.

The bottom of the rankings took a big hit this week with all final four teams losing at least one game, edging Archbishop Williams and Winchester out of the mix. Sandwich and Wayland/Weston are in, each having scored against top powerhouses.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Here are some interesting tidbits on the high school girls' hockey scene:

1) Defensive player of the week: Despite a 6-1 loss to Arlington Monday, goalie Karina Alfisher stopped a whopping 56 shots for Newton South. As the Lions' (3-13-3) season winds up, the senior posts a 2.80 goals against average and a 0.912 save percentage. Alfisher, who has two shutouts this season, squares off against Wayland/Weston Saturday and Waltham on Monday.

2) Offensive player of the week: With 1:50 remaining, Beverly/Danvers forward Nicole Woods scored the equalizer against the Masconomet/Hamilton-Wenham/North Andover co-op Wednesday, 1-1 to clinch the Northeastern Conference title. The junior leads the squad (14-0-2) with 20 goals and 18 assists and is sure to make an impact in the MIAA tournament.

3) Team to watch: Norwell earned a share of the SEMGHL East title after a 4-0 shutout of Martha's Vineyard Wednesday, in the squad's second varsity season. Tori Dinger, who was recently nominated as an SEMGHL All-Star, scored two goals and an assist for Norwell. The Clippers (9-3-4) move on to the Cougar Classic next week.

4) Biggest update from this week: It looks like Reading will have to wait until the MIAA tournament to get a second chance at unbeaten Woburn (14-0-3). The Rockets (13-4-1) fueled a late comeback in the third period with Ali O'Leary, Stephanie Cohen and the squad pulled its goalie, allowing Caroline Seibold to tie 3-3. With 45 seconds left, Woburn's Ashley Moran scored the winning goal to take the Middlesex League title.

5) Looking forward: Keep an eye on defending Division 1 state champion Arlington Catholic as the squad takes on a tough end-of-season lineup -- Lexington (Sat.), Falmouth (Sun.), Woburn (Tue.) and Duxbury (Thurs.). I couldn't come up with a better test for the Cougar's squad at (12-2-2). These are first-time matchups this season and the results are going to be a good indicator of how the tournament should go.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

1. Medfield Clinches Tri-Valley League Title -- The Warriors kept their hopes of becoming TVL champions alive last week on Feb. 6 when they defeated rival Medway. Seven days later, Medfield defeated Dover-Sherborn, 5-0, at its home rink to dash Medway’s chances at the Tri-Valley League title and took it for itself. The Warriors have lost just one game on the season, winning the other 17 they’ve played with 102 goals scored compared to just 18 goals against. It’s safe to say Medfield is one of the best boys hockey teams in Division 3.

2. Reading and Archbishop Williams Clinch League Titles -- Medfield wasn’t the only team to wrap up its league Wednesday night, with the Bishops and Rockets winning the Catholic Central Conference and Middlesex League respectively. It’s that time of year where championships are being won and both these teams are deserving of theirs. Archies is 11-2-4 record heading into the Cape Cod Classic tournament while the Rockets are 14-1-5 with two games left on their schedule. Both these teams are locks for the Super 8 tournament.

3. Tewksbury Serious Contender for Division 2 Title -- The Redmen are 13-2-1 on the season and are not far removed from their last Division 2 title. There’s little reason to believe Tewksbury couldn’t take home the title again this year when you consider the team has lost just one game since falling to Chelmsford 7-1 in the season-opener. A great game that will test the Redmen will be the last game of the season when they go on the road to play Wilmington. That’s going to be a tightly contested final game between two of the top Division 2 teams in Massachusetts.

4. Huge Middlesex Tilt This Saturday -- Wilmington was named to the Super 8 watchlist even as a Division 2 team and can vastly help its chances of making the tournament this Saturday against Reading. The Wildcats have yet to play the Globe’s No. 4 team and will need to be on their game at Ristuccia Memorial Arena. The Rockets just won the league title and are only one game removed from hanging 10 goals on Belmont on Feb. 6.

5. Cape Cod Classic Tournament one to Watch -- The Cape Cod Classic tournament has a field featuring quite a few Super 8 probables and hopefuls. The tournament starts Saturday, with the likes of Archbishop Williams, Duxbury and BC High all playing that day. The Cape tournament has serious Super 8 implications and is a must-see event for any boys hockey fans in the area this weekend.

Alex Hall covers boys' hockey. He can be reached at alexander.hall@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall.

By Tim Healey, Globe Correspondent

QUINCY — In its final tuneup before the Cape Cod Classic starts this weekend, the 13th-ranked Duxbury boys’ hockey team topped North Quincy, 4-0, thanks to four goal-scorers at Quincy Youth Arena.

Senior goaltender Chris Johnson posted his third shutout in a row, dipping his goals-against average to under one.

The teams remained scoreless despite numerous Dragon chances throughout the first period, but Duxbury (14-1-4) finally broke through four minutes into the second. Senior forward Bobby O’Brien capitalized on a Red Raider (8-6-4) turnover in the slot by one-timing it by North Quincy goalie Nolan Greene.

Duxbury had three more goals in the final frame. First junior forward Matt Murphy tapped one in on the doorstep off an assist from linemate Matt Saia, then Murphy returned the favor a minute and a half later by helping on Saia’s tally to make it 3-0.

Junior forward Shayne O’Brien also assisted on both goals.

“We think that the white line with Murphy, Saia and Shayne O’Brien is as good a line as any on our team,” said Duxbury coach John Blake. “Some people call it the third unit, but we just keep putting them out there. We think we’re pretty deep and we can wear teams down like we did tonight.”

Sophomore forward Luke Stevens capped the scoring with an unassisted goal with less than five minutes left.

The Red Raiders had several scoring chances late in the third, but Johnson continued to shut the door.

When two Dragon penalties with about seven minutes to go meant 43 seconds of a North Quincy 5-on-3, senior defenseman Zack Snelling came up with a pair big blocks in the slot to save Johnson from seeing another shot.

“We talk about it — you can’t play on the PK unless you’re willing to block shots,” Blake said. “No matter what the score is, they’re going to be sacrificing their bodies for [Johnson] to get the shutout.”

Duxbury will play Boston College High at 1 p.m. Saturday in Falmouth in the opening round of the Cape Cod Classic.

Tim Healey can be reached at timothy.healey@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @timbhealey.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

With Central Catholic and Hingham knocking off Chelmsford and Winchester respectively, the Lions and Sachems' Super 8 chances each got a little dimmer. Both were the underdog in their Monday matchups, but losing to fellow Super 8 hopefuls this late in the season is the opposite of helpful.

The loss for Chelmsford (11-3-4, 9-2-2) keeps them behind Central Catholic (11-2-3, 9-0-1) in the Merrimack Valley Conference. Chelmsford hadn’t lost a game since its last meeting with CC back on Jan. 12, but hadn’t played a team the caliber of the Raiders since then either. The only real threat the Lions played over their recent winning streak was Xaverian, whom they tied 3-3. Chelmsford’s road to the TD Garden just got bumpier with just three games left in its regular season.

Winchester (11-4-2, 9-3-2) suffered yet another loss to a big-name school in the team's past five contests, previously falling 5-0 to Reading on Jan. 30 and 1-0 to Wilmington on Jan. 26. The Sachems even had a difficult time against Woburn -- just one game prior to losing to Hingham -- winning that game by a score of 3-2. At this point, the Middlesex League is Reading’s for the taking at 14-1-4 (11-0-3). Winchester doesn’t have a great chance of rallying to secure the league title and has to play Barnstable on Feb. 20 to start the Cape Cod Hockey Showdown tournament. It’s hard to see the Sachems getting their name called come Super 8 selection day.

Key games ahead on Saturday

Springfield Cathedral vs. St. John’s Prep
The top two teams in the Globe top 20 are facing off down in Springfield in a game that has Super 8 seeding implications. The Panthers will be facing one of the top three Globe teams in consecutive weeks. Cathedral (14-0-2) tied BC High, 2-2 ,in the second meeting of the season between the two teams. St. John’s Prep (13-2) hasn’t lost since Jan. 9 when it fell 2-0 against the Eagles and the Panthers are undefeated on the season. If this game ends in anything but a tie, the result will certainly have affect where each team gets seeded.

BC High vs. Duxbury (Cape Cod Classic Tournament)
With the exception of a few notable games against the likes of Marshfield and Barnstable among others, the Green Dragons have played a pretty empty schedule this season. Duxbury might be 12-1-4 on the season but the Eagles are easily its toughest test of the year. If the Green Dragons can beat or even tie BC High (9-2-3), chances are they’ll move up the top 20 rankings and impress more than a few Super 8 decision makers. Knocking off Duxbury wouldn’t do much for the Eagles, but it would help further solidify their claim to being one of the top three teams in the state.

Braintree vs. Catholic Memorial
Catholic Memorial head coach Bill Hanson openly admitted after his team's 4-3 loss to BC High on Feb. 2 that his young players have suffered from a mental breakdown. The Knights have lost or tied in their last seven contests, with their last victory coming against Malden Catholic back on Jan. 8. The Wamps are no strangers to tough competition this season, playing in the Bay State Conference against the likes of Framingham and Norwood. Catholic Memorial (8-5-2) needs this victory to get back on the right track but a loss makes a big case for the Wamps (13-3-1) in the Super 8 discussion.

Wilmington vs. Reading
Wilmington, in all likelihood, needs to win the rest of its games to have a chance at making the Super 8 tournament as a Division 2 team. That’s going to be tough considering Wilmington plays Reading this Saturday and then Tewksbury on Feb. 20. The Rockets have been cruising through this hockey season and dashing Wilmington’s hopes at a Super 8 berth would another feather in an already crowded hat for them. Reading is 14-1-4 so far this season, defeating the likes of Winchester, Xaverian and sweeping its two meetings with Lexington this year.

Alex Hall covers boys' hockey. He can be reached at alexander.hall@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall.

With less than two weeks before the pairings are announced, there are plenty of great games on the schedule this week. Here are a few:

No. 18 Fontbonne at No. 5. St. Mary's, Wed., 4:30 p.m. -- Junior forward Shannon McIsaac leads the Ducks (9-6-2) with 10 goals and 10 assists and freshman Samantha Moussalli posts a 1.13 goals against average in net. St. Mary's (12-3-2) is loaded with stellar senior forwards like Alison Butler (23 goals, 20 assists) and Kaleigh Finigan (16 goals, 23 assists).

No. 1 Woburn at No. 6 Reading, Wed., 6 p.m. -- Senior forward Kayla Smith (23 goals, 21 assists) has helped keep the Tanners unbeaten this winter and Courtney Davis has had a solid performance between the pipes with a 1.00 goals against average. Jan. 12 the Tanners delivered a 3-1 victory over Reading. Will this be different?

No. 3 Falmouth at No. 8 Hingham, Wed., 6 p.m. -- These two square off for the first time this season and goalie Madison Scavotto is sure to give Hingham fits with a 0.950 save percentage and six shutouts this season. The Harbormen haven't been perfect but came out on top when it counted against Arlington Catholic, 3-1.

No. 11 Westford at No. 12 Acton-Boxboro, Thurs., 7 p.m. -- The Colonials (11-4-1) delivered a 4-2 victory over Westford on Jan. 16, the squad's first loss of the season. Trio Megan Barrett, Lauren Roche and Leah Cardarelli combine for nearly half of the Colonials' production on offense.

No. 10 Lexington at No. 4 Arlington Catholic, Sat., 6 p.m. -- Both squads can use this matchup as preparation for The 8 Showcase Tournament . The Cougars (12-2-2) are playing well, with a momentous 3-2 win over St. Mary's. Cougars Megan Messuri is easily one of the best goalies in the state with a 0.93 goals against average.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

Thanks to the snowstorm, there are few changes in this week’s top 20.

The biggest game of the week was the BC High vs. Springfield Cathedral tilt that ended in a 2-2 tie. With the draw, there was no reason to mess with either team’s previous ranking. The only team that really had an argument to take a decent fall in the standings was Norwood. The Mustangs lost both of their games this week but are still in first place in the Herget Division of the Bay State Conference. For that reason, Norwood only dropped one spot this week.

With many games cancelled or postponed due to the Antarctic-like weather the past few days along with few upsets in the week, the top 20 didn’t see much of a shake up.

Alex Hall covers boys' hockey for the the Boston Globe. He can be reached at akhall2@suffolk.edu. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

Here are some tidbits you should know in boys' hockey this week:

1. Nemo affecting hockey scheduling -- With the impending storm about to affect the greater Boston area, many hockey games scheduled for this Saturday have been moved to today or being rescheduled for a later date. For example, St. John’s Prep’s game against St. John’s (S) has already been postponed. If you’re planning to go to a game this Saturday, check to make sure that it hasn’t been moved or cancelled. Also, make sure it’s going to be a safe drive to get to the rink if the game you want to see is still on for Saturday.

2. BC High vs. Springfield Cathedral Showdown Today -- It’s two of the Globe’s top three teams; it’s two of the top contenders to win the Super 8 tournament. It’s BC High vs. Springfield Cathedral and it’s tonight at UMass Boston at 7 p.m.. The Eagles will be looking for revenge after falling to the Panthers 3-2 on the road back on Jan. 12. The Panthers are looking to further solidify their ranking as the Globe’s No. 1 team and the best team in the commonwealth. If the Panthers want to silence any of their remaining naysayers and further impress the Super 8 committee, they have to win this game tonight.

3. Central Catholic vs. Chelmsford a big tilt Saturday -- Pending that the game actually takes place, No. 19 Chelmsford will take on No. 5 Central Catholic this Saturday. The Lions haven’t lost since playing CC back on Jan. 12 where they lost 8-4. The Raiders are coming off an embarrassing 4-0 loss to the struggling Malden Catholic, who just go back over .500 with the win. If Chelmsford wants to make up for its earlier loss to the Raiders, it appears now is a good time to meet this team.

4. Medfield contains Medway’s Jack Kilty -- Not only did the Warriors come up with a huge win yesterday against Tri-Valley League rival Medway, they held the Mustangs’ biggest offensive threat to just one goal in the 5-2 victory. Kilty did score a shorthanded goal early in the first period, but was unable to best the Warriors’ defense for the rest of the contest. Kilty was the TVL’s No. 2 points leader on the season heading into Wednesday’s game so it was impressive to see the Medfield defense keep Kilty from becoming a major problem.

5. Barnstable Continues to Strengthen Super 8 Chances -- The Red Raiders maybe a member of the three-team Old Colony League, but they are a name that can’t be ignored by those in charge of choosing who makes the Super 8. They’ve tied the likes of Duxbury, Catholic Memorial and came within a shootout of knocking off the Cathedral Panthers in the Cape Cod Freeze Out tournament. Barnstable is currently on a five-game winning streak after defeating Bridgewater-Raynham 6-3 yesterday. If the Red Raiders can run the table or at least win their games against Marshfield and Winchester later this month, they might find their name called for the first time in Super 8 history.

Alex Hall covers boys' hockey for the the Boston Globe. He can be reached at akhall2@suffolk.edu. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall.

Wilmington's boys' hockey team, which won the Division 2 state title last season, has a good chance at making the Super 8 tournament. (Winslow Townson / File for the Boston Globe)

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

The Super 8 committee has some difficult decisions to make come Feb. 23 when the tournament-bound teams are announced, but consider this your personal cheat sheet to what the decision-makers will be discussing.

There’s still more than two weeks of hockey left to play, but there are already several teams that are shoo-ins, with the rest still fighting to punch their ticket. Here’s an in-depth look into the definite, probable and long shot bids for the 2013 Super 8 tournament.

Definite
Springfield Cathedral Panthers
Pros: The Panthers have taken down the likes of BC High back on Jan. 12, Archbishop Williams on Dec. 22 and destroyed most of their other opponents. Cathedral is undefeated, has just two ties and has scored 79 goals through 15 games. That comes out to an average of more than five goals per game. It’s hard to beat a team when you have to score more than six goals on average to take it down.

Cons: Cathedral could use a few more big wins to solidify the No. 1 seed in the tournament, with one of its best chances to do so coming on the road against in its second meeting with BC High on Feb. 7. A season sweep of the Eagles would be huge for the Panthers and barring a loss against St. John’s Prep Feb. 16, all but ensure the tournament’s No. 1 seed.

Games remaining: Feb. 7 at BC High, Feb. 9 vs. Mt. St. Charles Academy (RI), Feb. 14 at St. John’s (S), Feb. 16 vs. St. John’s Prep, Feb. 20 vs. Needham, Feb. 21 vs. St. Mary’s or Malden Catholic (tournament game)

St. John’s Prep
Pros: St. John’s Prep is close to clinching the Catholic Conference title with a 7-1 conference record and 13-2 record overall. The Eagles have been on a roll as of late, defeating Malden Catholic, BC High, Catholic Memorial, and Xaverian twice in their past six games. Upcoming games against Arlington Catholic Feb. 16 and the Cathedral game 10 days later are the biggest hurdles in the Prep’s way for the rest of the season. Regardless though, the team will in all likelihood finish either No. 1 or No. 2 in the Catholic Conference and thus make the tournament.

Cons: The Prep’s only real problem right now is the two losses, one of which came against BC High on Jan. 9. St. John’s did avenge that loss and defeat BC High in the second meeting on Jan. 26. What could derail one of the top two seeds for the Prep in the Super 8 would be a loss to either AC or Cathedral to end the year. As long as it finishes in the top two in the Catholic Conference though, the Prep will be skating in the tournament this season.

Games remaining: Feb. 6 at Arlington Catholic, Feb. 9 at St. John’s (S), Feb. 13 at Bishop Fenwick, Feb. 16 at Springfield Cathedral, Feb. 20 vs. Wakefield

BC High
Pros: The Eagles have one of the Commonwealth’s best goalies in Peter Cronin and top playmakers in Tom Besigner. It’s not often you see Besigner end a game without an assist or goal and Cronin has only surrendered more than two goals three times this season. BC High is going to be in the Super 8 and will be one of the hardest teams to score against in the field.

Cons: The Eagles were the Globe’s top ranked team for some time earlier this season but they’ve had some tough times since losing to Cathedral on Jan. 12. Coach John Flaherty’s team lost to the Prep and face off with the Panthers Feb. 7. BC High still has an outside chance at the Catholic Conference title and a top three seed in the Super 8 but it needs to get back on track starting against Cathedral at UMass-Boston this week.

Games Remaining: Feb. 7 vs. BC High, Feb. 13 at St. Mary’s Lynn, Feb. 16 vs. Duxbury (Cape Cod Classic) Feb. 22 at St. John’s (S)

Reading
Pros: First in the Middlesex League, recently crushed second place Winchester, 5-0, and has lost just one game this whole season. The Rockets have been doing their best to show the Massachusetts hockey scene they’re for real and it’s kind of hard to say they’re not right now.

Cons: Lost to BC High Dec. 29 which was one of Reading’s most notable opponents all season. They score plenty of goals with 61 this season but some of the Rockets’ opponents this season aren’t as strong. Reading can and should finish the season undefeated in the league though, which will be a big help seeding wise in the Super 8.

Games remaining: Feb. 4 vs. Burlington, Feb. 6 vs. Belmont, Feb. 9 at Arlington, Feb. 13 vs. Woburn, Feb. 16 at Wilmington.

Central Catholic
Pros: Rallied to tie Cathedral on Jan. 21, 8-0-1 and first in the Merrimack Valley Conference with 63 goals on the year. As long as CC wraps up the MVC, expect to see them as one of the first names announced for the Super 8.

Cons: A win against Cathedral would have been much more impressive than a tie, but the rally in the third period helps make up for that. With several tough contests left on the schedule, it’ll be interesting to see how the Raiders wind out the season, which will end up determining when and who they play in the tournament.

Games remaining: Feb. 6 at Malden Catholic, Feb. 9 at Chelmsford, Feb. 13 vs. Waltham, Feb. 16 at Andover, Feb. 18 at Catholic Memorial.

Austin Prep
Pros: The Cougars are fresh off a Feb. 2 win over Arlington Catholic, defeated Central Catholic Jan. 9 and tied CC in the second meeting. Whoever wins the Catholic Central League will be in the tournament. Austin Prep is tied with Archbishop Williams so the selection of AP as a "definite" here could just as easily have been the Archies.

Cons: Prep doesn't have much in the ways of cons but the season may very well come down to the Feb. 13 game between the Bishops and Cougars. Unless either the aforementioned teams lose before then, that's where the Catholic Central League will be decided.

Games Remaining: Feb. 6 vs. Matignon, Feb. 9 at Andover, Feb. 13 vs. Archbishop Williams, Feb. 18 vs. Hingham (Cape Cod Classic)

Probable
Catholic Memorial
Pros: The Knights started the season annihilating teams, outscoring their first three opponents 15-5 to start the year. Captains Liam Coughlin and Jack O’Hear are two of the best forwards you can ask for on offense. CM beat Malden Catholic, 7-4, on Jan. 8 and defeated three days prior to that contest.

Cons: CM has lost its mental edge of late, losing to MC, St. John’s Prep, BC High and Barnstable over its past five contests. The Barnstable loss doesn’t count against the Knights’ overall record but it doesn’t help win over any committee members either.

Games remaining: Feb. 9 vs. Xaverian, Feb. 16 at Braintree, Feb. 18 vs. Central Catholic, Feb. 20 at Fairfield College Prep (CT)

Braintree
Pros: Leading the Carey Division in the Bay State Conference with a 10-2 league record and wins over Weymouth and Framingham. The 2011 Super 8 tournament saw two BSC teams taken which helps the Wamps’ chances of being invited to the dance.

Cons: Braintree lost to Framingham in the two teams' first meeting of the season on Jan. 5 along and picked up two losses to Division 2 Newburyport and Barnstable during the Cape Cod Freezeout tournament.

Games remaining: Feb. 6 at Needham, Feb. 9 vs. Weymouth, Feb. 13 vs. Walpole, Feb. 16 vs. Catholic Memorial, Feb. 19 vs. St. Peter Marian, Feb. 21 at Brockton

Hingham
Pros: A history of Super 8 appearances and success in the tournament helps the Harbormen. The 11-5-1 record is good, not great, but the 2010 Super 8 champions have some notable games coming up to boost their record and public opinion.

Cons: Hingham took losses to almost every big name opponent this year, including St. John’s Prep, Malden Catholic, Catholic Memorial, Cathedral and tied with Reading.

Games remaining: Feb. 9 at Marshfield, Feb. 11 vs. Winchester, Feb. 16 vs. Austin Prep (Cape Cod Classic)

Archbishop Williams
Pros: The Archies are tied with Austin Prep atop the Catholic Central Conference and are currently undefeated in league play, so feel free to consider them on the same level as AP. The Bishops crushed Arlington Catholic, 7-2, back on Jan. 26 after tying 1-1 earlier in the season. They also tied Austin Prep and beat Chelmsford in the Cape Cod Cup.

Cons: The Archies only chance to add another big win comes against Austin Prep on Feb. 13, though that could change if things go the Bishops’ way in the Cape Cod Classic.

Games remaining: Feb. 6 vs. Bishop Fenwick, Feb. 13 at Austin Prep, Feb. 16 vs. Waltham (Cape Cod Classic)

Long Shots
Barnstable
Pros: It might be a tad unfair to call the Red Raiders a long shot considering some of their big tournament wins. Barnstable beat Braintree in the Cape Cod Freezeout consolation game after losing to Cathedral in a shootout the round prior. They also defeated Catholic Memorial in the Nate Nickerson Invitational via shootout before defeating Falmouth (ME) to win the tournament.

Cons: Other than those wins and a tie against Duxbury to start the season, there’s not a whole lot of tough competition on Barnstable’s record. Figuring in the Red Raiders have never been in the Super 8 is also something to consider.

Games remaining: Feb. 6 at Bridgewater-Raynham, Feb. 13 vs. Falmouth, Feb. 18 at Marshfield, Feb. 20 vs. Winchester (Cape Cod Hockey Showdown), Feb. 21 vs. Mansfield or Westfield (Cape Cod Hockey Showdown)

Wilmington
Pros: Division 2 Wilmington is the No. 1 team in the Middlesex League’s Freedom division, with just one loss to a division foe all year. The defending Division 2 state champion Wildcats also pulled out a big win against Winchester Jan. 26 and lost to Malden Catholic by just one goal on Jan. 14. If a Division 2 team is to make the Super 8, it could be Wilmington. The schedule proves they can play with the big boys.

Cons: Being a Division 2 team is a concern in the committee’s eyes and maybe, just maybe, Wilmington would say "thanks, but no thanks" to a Super 8 invite. But wins over Burlington and Reading to end the season might change their minds.

Games remaining: Feb. 6 vs. Melrose, Feb. 9 vs. Wakefield, Feb. 13 at Burlington, Feb. 16 vs. Reading, Feb. 18 at Acton-Boxboro, Feb. 20 vs. Tewksbury

Beverly
Pros: The Panthers have absolutely owned practically every team they’ve played this season, with a 13-0-1 record and 70 goals scored so far. The only tie came against Newburyport on the road in a 0-0 stalemate.

Cons: If D2 is bad for Wilmington, then it’s worse for the Panthers. At least in the Wildcats’ case, they’ve beat some big name teams like Winchester and they play in a Division 1 league. Beverly hasn’t played any top teams this year which gives them little leverage when trying to compare its resume to Wilmington’s. A good Division 2 team, it’s hard to see Beverly getting, or wanting, a bid.

Games remaining: Feb. 9 at Winthrop, Feb. 13 vs. Danvers, Feb. 16 vs. Gloucester, Feb. 18 at Peabody, Feb. 20 at Lynnfield, Feb. 22 vs. Marblehead

Alex Hall covers boys' hockey for the the Boston Globe. He can be reached at akhall2@suffolk.edu. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

There are some big changes in the No. 7 through 11 spots this week thanks to losses by Malden Catholic, Winchester and Arlington Catholic. That led to the big jump for the likes of Archbishop Williams and Braintree, who kept to business as usual, each finishing the week 2-0. The Wamps haven’t lost since Jan. 5 and Archies hasn’t lost since Dec. 28. That’s what we call momentum, folks.

MC took one of the biggest hits this week and maybe it’s a few weeks too late in doing so. The Lancers dropped below .500 this week with a 4-2 loss against Xaverian and now sit last in the Catholic Conference. Winchester also had to take a hit after losing to Division 2 Wilmington Jan. 26 and then falling 5-0 to the Reading Rockets the next time out. Those losses ensured a drop out of the top-10 and opened the door for the likes of Braintree, Archies and Wilmington to take some leaps up the board.

Unfortunately for Beverly and Barnstable, this lead to a drop in both team's rankings. The Wildcats have emerged as one of the best Division 2 teams around and it’s hard to keep the fellow Division 2 Panthers and Red Raiders in the top-15 with the Super 8 selections creeping near.

Alex Hall covers boys' hockey for the the Boston Globe. He can be reached at akhall2@suffolk.edu. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Poll update: Our girls' hockey fans voted for which team they wanted to see in this week's Top 20 rankings and winning by six votes is Arlington. The Spy Ponders (8-6) fall at No. 19 after shutting out Belmont, 4-0, and scoring two goals against Woburn in their 5-2 loss.

See voting results for Westwood, Sandwich and Norwood here.

In other news...

Duxbury delivered one of the biggest upsets this week as the Green Dragons avenged an earlier season loss against previously second-ranked Falmouth with a 4-1 victory. Hannah Murphy's two goals propelled the win and moved the Green Dragons (14-1-1) to No. 2. Falmouth dropped to the third spot with its first loss this season.

No. 10 Lexington surprised Woburn as Carolyn Avery made a clutch shot to tie, 3-3, for the Tanners (13-0-2) second tie this season.

No. 6 Wellesley's Molly Connolly and Cecily Docktor delivered two goals apiece to stun Herget rival No. 15 Norwood 5-2 on Saturday.

No. 11 Westford dropped two spots after a loss to non-ranked Andover. Fontbonne was bumped out of the rankings after a loss to No. 17 Braintree and a tie with Westwood.

No. 18 Beverly/Danvers ruined its perfect run with a stalemate Saturday with Winthrop/Lynn, 0-0. The squad is now 12-0-1.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

by Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

Catholic Memorial and BC High will meet in boys’ hockey in the Edward M. Wright Memorial game Saturday. The contest will celebrate 50 years of the two schools' rivalry and the life of former CM hockey player and 1965 gradate Dr. Edward M. Wright, who played in the first meeting between these two teams.

The game took place Dec. 31, 1962 at the McHough Forum when Wright was in his sophomore year at CM. He would go on to become the hockey team captain for Yale in 1970 and graduate from Tufts Medical School six years later. The former hockey player would eventually take his medical skills to New York where he became a well-respected cardiologist.

Wright wasn’t the only notable that took the ice in that inaugural bout between these Catholic Conference rivals. Boston University head coach Jack Parker and Boston College head coach Jerry York were also involved in the 1962 that started this longtime rivalry.

Parker played for the Knights, facing off against York of the Eagles much like they have for many years as coaches in the annual Beanpot Tournament. York scored two of BC High’s three goals from his starting left wing position while Parker also had two goals for CM in his team’s 7-3 victory. Before the 61st edition of this historic tournament takes place, both York and Parker will be in attendance for the Edward M. Wright Memorial game between their former high school teams.

The coaches will present the Edward M. Wright Most Valuable Player Award, which will mark the 13th year in which the award has been given out. Just two days after Parker and York honor the MVP of this high school contest, they will both be involved in a rivalry between their two schools in the Beanpot tournament. Both the Eagles and Terriers will be attempting to take home the Beanpot Championship. Depending on how things shape out in the tournament, it’s possible that BU and BC could meet on Feb. 11 at the TD Garden.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Today, fans get to choose which girls' hockey team they would like to see enter this week's Top 20. The team with the most votes will get added to the rankings based on this week's performance.

Here are your contenders:

Arlington

The Spy Ponders squad is a team with grit, facing top programs in Division 1 -- Woburn, Lexington, Reading and Arlington Catholic. It has been a big challenge as the girls faced a four-game skid to start off January, BUT, the squad has scored a total seven goals in these matchups. To better understand, the Spy Ponders (8-5) have skated past Megan Messuri, who currently ranks second in the state with a 0.93 goals against average and Courtney Davis, who also falls in the state's top 10 goalies. The team is 2-1 this week, shutting out Wilmington, 2-0, and Belmont, 4-0. Despite falling to Arlington Catholic, 4-2, the Spy Ponders were the first team to tie the defending Division 1 state champ, 1-1, on Jan. 12. Saturday, the Spy Ponders travel to Woburn for a 6 p.m. start.

Sandwich

The Blue Knights ended January on a good note, going 6-2-1. The squad has two girls ranking in the top five forwards in the state -- Maggie Layo (nine goals, 31 assists) and Claire Gauthier (17 goals, 21 assists). The team is on a four-game win streak and one of those games included a decisive 4-1 win over Cape rival Barnstable, avenging a 5-3 loss earlier this season. The girls played one game this week and came out on top over Dennis-Yarmouth 5-1. The Blue Knights (9-4-1) have a lot to prove this weekend at their home rink with a tough lineup -- vs. Hingham Saturday at 6:40 p.m. and vs. Falmouth Sunday at 2 p.m.

Westwood

Wolverines junior Ela Hazar had a clutch shot in Thursday's 1-1 tie with No. 14 Fontbonne to lead the team with 13 goals. The squad also came out victorious over King Philip, 6-3, this week. The Wolverines are 8-4-2 overall and 8-1-1 in the SEMGHL West. Junior goalie Siobhan Burke posts a 0.901 save percentage and has delivered three shutouts this season. The Wolverines have a chance to avenge a 4-0 loss to Canton with a matchup scheduled Saturday, 8 p.m. at the Metropolis Rink.

Norwood

The Mustangs (9-2-2) fall in second place in the Bay State Herget and have a highly anticipated league matchup Saturday against seventh-ranked Wellesley at 6:45 p.m. at the Babson Skating Rink. Wellesley, who owns a one-point lead in the race for the Herget title, outscored the Mustangs 8-2 on Jan. 5. After the loss, the Mustangs went unbeaten for the rest of January going 6-0-2. The Mustangs tied Dedham this week 8-8, qualifying the squad for the postseason.

The poll closes Sunday at noon.

Know a team deserving of a spot on the rankings? Email Liz Torres at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Attention girls' hockey fans, with such a great turnout in our poll last week, I'd like to hear more about what you think. This is why we will be allowing fans to choose one team to be added to the upcoming Top 20. Keep an eye out for tomorrow's poll and make sure to vote. The poll will close Sunday at noon.

Check out our current Top 20 rankings.

Here are some interesting tidbits on the high school girls' hockey scene:

1) Defensive player of the week -- It's a rare sight to see Woburn as the underdog and if it wasn't for Courtney Davis, the Tanners (12-0-2) could have seen their first loss this season. The junior netminder posted 29 saves against Lexington Wednesday in a 3-3 tie keeping the Minutemen scoreless until the two-minute mark in the second period. The tie snapped a four-game shutout streak for Davis, who posts a 0.92 goals against average. Lexington trio Sara Lehman, Danielle Marten and Carolyn Avery were able to break past Davis late in the game.

2) Offensive player of the week -- Second-ranked Falmouth's run was blemished Saturday after Whitman-Hanson/Pembroke junior Jane Morrisette scored the game-tying goal, 2-2, with 6:00 remaining. Morrisette (20 goals, nine assists) also clinched her 100th career point on an assist and leads the squad with 21 goals and nine assists. The Clippers were previously on a perfect 11-game win streak and with the tie Whitman-Hanson/Pembroke is currently 6-8-1.

3) Team to watch -- Sandwich has a strong lineup ahead as the squad hosts Hingham, Falmouth and Duxbury at the Gallo Ice Arena in the next three matchups. The Blue Knights (9-4-1) are on a strong stretch with a five-game win streak since the team's 8-2 loss to Duxbury Jan. 12. Junior Maggie Layo currently leads the team with nine goals and 31 assists, enough to lead the state with 40 points. Right behind her is fellow junior Claire Gauthier with 17 goals and 21 assists. With a 6-0 loss to Falmouth Jan. 9, the Blue Knights will have revenge on their mind.

4) Biggest update from this week -- The Duxbury girls demonstrated exactly why they're a threat in Division 2 after their 4-1 victory over second-ranked and previously unbeaten Falmouth Wednesday. The Green Dragons (13-1-1) had a lot to prove as they skated on Falmouth's ice -- they had to defend their Division 2 state title and they had to avenge a 1-0 shutout by Falmouth Jan. 5, stopping their 34-game unbeaten streak. Green Dragons captain Hannah Murphy (two goals), Marissa Fichter and Zoe Griffin broke past Falmouth goalie Madison Scavotto, who stopped 30 shots. Falmouth's Olivia Hough scored the squad's lone goal, her first of the season while Madison Haberl and Maggie MacDonald have been out with injuries.

5) Looking forward -- Winchester has a knockout lineup for the end of the season with a schedule consisting of Woburn, Lexington and St. Mary's ... definitely a great test before the tournament. Although the squad is at 9-6, they've posted big numbers, scoring 37 goals in their last seven games. Captains Marisa Gehrig and Katherine Zavez lead the team's scoring with 16 points apiece.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

A new No. 1 team has been crowned this week, as the Springfield Cathedral Panthers overtake BC High due to the latter’s recent loss.

St. John’s Prep controlled the puck for much of the game against BC High Saturday and earned a 3-2 win. The victory removed the only team in the way of Cathedral earning its first ever No. 1 ranking in the Globe Top 20.

The Panthers tied Central Catholic, 3-3, to start this past week on Jan. 21 before taking down Acton-Boxboro and Minnechaug to round things out. St. John's Prep also moved up a spot to No. 2 due to the BC High victory.

One team that forced the Top 20 another makeover was Wilmington. The Wildcats took down Winchester and former No. 18 Arlington this past week. The Spy Ponders were bounced from the Top 20 in part due to the loss to Wilmington as well as an embarrassing 7-0 loss to Melrose this past Saturday.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

After consecutive losses this week, Austin Prep, Walpole and Winthrop/Lynn have been dropped from the Globe Top 20.

Austin Prep lost to No. 18 Archbishop Williams and Shrewsbury, both by 2-1 margins. The Cougars (6-5-3) face defending Division 1 state champion Arlington Catholic this week, a team the squad tied on Jan. 12. If the Cougars can prove they can compete, they'll be bumped back into the standings.

Despite a win on Saturday over Framingham, Walpole also had two losses to Canton, 4-3, and Weymouth 2-1. The Rebels (8-4-1) are likely to end up back in the Top 20 as the squad is on the brink of qualifying for the postseason. Their biggest matchup this week is against No. 7 Wellesley. We'll see if they can make an impact.

The Winthrop/Lynn co-op hasn't had much luck this week, starting with a 0-0 stalemate against Watertown/Melrose. The squad tied Cambridge/Somerville, 2-2, and fell to No. 3 St. Mary's in a 6-0 shutout Saturday.

These three empty seats gave way to new additions Billerica, Braintree and Winchester.

Billerica has qualified for the tournament and has scored against prominent powerhouses like Arlington Catholic and No. 1 Woburn. The Indians (9-3-1) took No. 13 Acton-Boxboro out of its system in a 2-1 win. The Indians also took out No. 17 Lincoln-Sudbury 2-0 the week prior.

Braintree tied No. 7 Wellesley this past week, 1-1 and has a challenging week ahead with matchups against No. 14 Fontbonne and No. 5 Hingham.

Winchester is the last squad to enter the rankings. The Sachems (9-5) had a big 12-3 win over Central Catholic, and shut out Wilmington, 2-0, qualifying the squad for postseason action. The girls have a tough road ahead against the likes of Reading, Woburn, Lexington and St. Mary's.

Top 20 matchups favored second-ranked Falmouth, who beat No. 10 Canton, 5-3. Third-ranked St. Mary's swept three squads -- Westford, Fonbonne and Winthrop/Lynn. No. 13 Acton-Boxboro took down No. 6 Reading 3-1 and No. 8 Arlington Catholic dropped to No. 5 Hingham 3-1 and later tied 1-1.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Here are some interesting tidbits on the high school girls' hockey scene:

Poll update: As promised, our girls’ hockey poll did close Wednesday at midnight and the results are in with a whopping 8,518 votes. According to our fan base, the Globe All-Scholastic you want to see most at TD Garden is Woburn’s Kayla Smith with 4,605 votes.

The senior has 22 goals and 16 assists and recently entered the 200-point club, the second Tanner to do so in the program’s history.

Following Smith was Duxbury’s Rachel Myette with 2,406 votes and in third, Austin Prep’s Shannon O’Neil with 1,349 votes.

With such a positive turnout, I’d like to here more feedback from you. I will be integrating weekly polls to get your take on the girls’ hockey scene.

In next week's poll, you will be able to vote for a team to be added in the Top 20 rankings in girls' hockey. Stay tuned for more info.

Back to girls’ hockey news.

1) Defensive player of the week -- Monday, Acton-Boxboro freshman Cali Loblundo stopped No. 5 Reading with 26 saves. The goalie posts a 1.50 goals against average, a 0.926 save percentage and two shutouts this season for the No. 13 Colonials. The Colonials (8-4) are four points shy of qualifying for the tournament.

2) Offensive player of the week -- Lincoln-Sudbury's winger Marylou Cummings had a five point night against Shrewsbury with a hat trick and two assists for the Warriors' 6-1 win. The sophomore led the Warriors (10-3) with 11 goals and eight assists in clinching the squad's postseason spot.

3) Team to watch -- Teams to watch this week that are one point shy of clinching a spot for the postseason are Norwood, Fontbonne and Billerica.

Teams that have qualified for the postseason are Wellesley, Archbishop Williams, Beverly, Danvers, Lincoln-Sudbury, Woburn, Falmouth, Duxbury, Latin Academy, Westford, Reading, Medway/Ashland St. Mary's, Arlington Catholic and Canton.

4) Biggest update from this week -- In a weekend update, Medway/Ashland won the 12th annual Nan Rheault Invitational, Sunday, in a 3-2 shootout win over Scituate. The winning goal came from freshman Kerryann Goode. Jillian Murphy and Katrina Anderson scored both regulation goals and netminder Kathryn Hamer collected 20 saves. In other girls’ hockey action Saturday, a number of girls scored a hat trick or even four goals in a single matchup, including:

3 goals:
Brooke Matherson, Walpole in 6-1 over Natick
Tori Dinger, Norwell in 8-1 over North Quincy/Quincy
Kayla Smith, Woburn in 8-0 over Stoneham
Hayley Payne, Braintree in 3-1 over Newton North

4 goals:
Emily Kelly, Norwood in 7-2 over Milton
Molly Connolly, Wellesley in 8-2 over Dedham
Holly Brouillette, Burlington in 6-3 over Winchester
Amanda Conway, Tewksbury in 7-4 loss to Andover

5) Looking forward -- Hingham gets home advantage this Saturday after delivering a 3-1 victory over defending Division 1 state champion Arlington Catholic Wednesday at Ed Burns Arena. The matchup is crucial for the Cougars (9-2-1), who are one victory shy of qualifying for the postseason.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Anthony Gulizia, Globe Correspondent

On Monday, he witnessed a performance like no other.

Junior goaltender Jake Paul made 71 saves for a hard-earned shutout, leading Brookline (4-8) to a 2-0 win against Wellesley.

"I don't know what to say," Trundle said, struggling to put words to Paul's remarkable effort. "It was obviously outstanding and I've never seen anything like this."

Paul's 71 saves ties Matt Weder (Flint Carman-Ainsworth, Mich.) for second place in the national record book for a single-game performance, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. Jamey Ramsey (Flint Northern, Mich.) made 84 saves in 1987 for the record.

"I'm really tired," Paul said after the win. "And I can't quite believe this has happened. I'm glad I could give my team a win. You just go period-by-period. You don't go into the first period with or without any expectations, you just play 15 minutes of hockey at a time."

Junior Dan McLaughlin and freshman Jesse Leung scored the Brookline goals in the Bay State Conference (Carey) win.

BC High retains the No. 1 ranking after taking down two Catholic Conference rivals in Catholic Memorial and Malden Catholic this past week.

Due to CM’s recent struggles against the Eagles, St. John’s Prep and Barnstable, the Knights dropped to No. 5. The Springfield Cathedral Falcons continued their winning ways this past week against St. Peter-Marian. With only one game played this week however, the Falcons couldn’t make the jump to No. 1.

The team that suffered the biggest drop was Malden Catholic, which was blown out by Marshfield and then lost to BC High Saturday. The Lancers are in desperate need of righting their ship if they don’t want to continue their skid down the Top 20.

Thanks to that aforementioned MC victory by Marshfield, the Rams made their way into the Top 20 this week. The team also knocked off Sandwich last week seven days after they blew out Dennis-Yarmouth, 7-2.

The notables who just missed out on the Top 20 this week are Xaverian, Newburyport and Braintree. The Hawks were bumped out from last week due to Marshfield’s win while the Clippers and Wamps just missed the cut this week.

By Bob Holmes, Globe Staff

Duxbury and Marshfield high school and youth hockey teams will join forces Monday in the Fourth annual Green Cup, all to raise money for Coaches vs. Cancer and the American Cancer Society.

Seven games will be held at The Bog in Kingston starting at 10:40 a.m. with the Mite C game. That will be followed by the Marshfield Mite A2 vs. Duxbury Mite B at 11:50, Mite A game at 1:10 p.m., Squirt A at 2:20, middle school at 3:30, and junior varsity at 4:40. The last contest at 5:50 p.m. is between the high school varsity teams.

In addition to the action on the ice, fans can show their support for breast cancer awareness by purchasing a Green Cup Goes Pink t-shirt for $10. Players and fans are asked to make a $10 donation. With the donation, fans will be given a card to write a message that will be posted on a display board in the main lobby of The Bog and get a raffle ticket with a chance to win Boston Bruins tickets.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Poll update: In just 24 hours, we received over 1,000 votes on the girls' hockey poll. What a turnout. So thank you for voting and I must say, what a race to follow. In the running for the girls' hockey player fans would most like to see compete at TD Garden, Kayla Smith was up by a longshot and was later deadlocked with Hannah Murphy. Later in the evening, Shannon O'Neil and Rachel Myette emerged as contenders, but the top three girls in the running on Sunday, according to our fanbase, are the following:

1. Rachel Myette, Duxbury - 397 votes
2.Kayla Smith, Woburn (who notched her 200th point last night) - 367 votes
3. Shannon O'Neil, Austin Prep - 189 votes

Want to see your favorite at the No. 1 spot? Vote here. Polls will close Wednesday at midnight.

In other news in girls' hockey, Duxbury, Hingham and Westford came up short this week, each slipping down the Top 20 rankings. Despite beating Barnstable 7-2, the No. 4 Green Dragons tied with No. 12 Fontbonne, 1-1, a squad that has been fighting to stay in the rankings. The No. 6 Harborwomen was shut out by No. 11 Austin Prep with goals from eighth grader Michaela Boyle. The No. 8 Grey Ghosts fell to No. 13 Acton-Boxboro 4-2.

The meat of the Top 20 saw a successful week, not needing much change there. With Beverly/Danvers remaining undefeated and Archbishop Williams suffering two back-to-back losses this week against Arlington Catholic and St. Mary's, Beverly/Danvers bumps up to No. 17 and the Bishops grab the final spot.

Keep an eye on our top two, Woburn and Falmouth. Both are powerhouses led by sensational players like the Tanners Kayla Smith and the Clippers Madison Scavotto. Both programs delivered back-to-back shutouts this week to remain unbeaten.

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook for more updates on local athletes.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Nick Ironside, Globe Correspondent

First-year Austin Prep Cougars coach Stephanie Wood knew that pulling off a win at the No. 4-ranked Hingham Harbormen’s home rink wouldn’t be easy. But Wood’s young team upset an experienced Harbormen squad Saturday night.

“We know that Hingham is a tough team,” Wood said. “They’re a lot more experienced. We’re playing bigger, stronger, more experienced girls, but our younger players aren’t afraid to challenge them.”

The No. 14 Cougars came ready for a battle, and eighth-grader Michaela Boyle got the Cougars (6-3-3) off to a flying start in the first period with an early goal.

“She’s a tough competitor, she’s strong physically and has tremendous offensive ability,” said Wood. “Having her [for four more years] is a huge positive for us.”

Wood’s young team, which includes 15 underclassmen and just five upperclassmen, put together a strong defensive display, too. Then Boyle scored another goal on a power play late in the third period to ice the win.

The youth of the team excites Wood, who is in her first season as the Cougars’ coach.

“It’s a good thing for the direction of the program,” she said. “Some of our younger players have flourished as the season goes on, and they aren’t afraid to challenge other juniors and seniors.”

Thankfully for the Cougars, the team has been learning from the leadership of goaltender Shannon O’Neil.

“Shannon has been the absolute backbone of the team,” Wood said. “The team knows when she’s on her game, she’s really hard to beat.”

Wood’s favorite part of her senior goalie’s game is the way O’Neil plays when the game’s on the line.

“She seems to thrive under pressure,” said Wood. “She made some big-time saves down the stretch.” O’Neil recorded 37 saves in her sixth shutout of the season and will attend Franklin Pierce University this fall to play hockey.

At the beginning of the season, Wood knew changes had to be made in her first year at Austin Prep. The first goal she set at the beginning of the season with her team was clear.

“We wanted to end the two-year playoff drought,” she said. “We need three more wins to qualify for the playoffs, but we’re trying to get the highest seed possible.”

And to Wood, the most exciting part of the season is still to come for her team that benefits and learns from each game.

“We still have nine games left,” she said.

By Ben Kochman, Globe correspondent

Woburn senior Kayla Smith hit a career milestone Saturday night by reaching a career total of 200 points as the Tanners' girls' hockey team routed Stoneham, 8-0,on the road.

Smith entered last night's game with 195 career points. A hat trick and two assists later, she's now the second Tanner to earn 200 points in her career, joining Colleen Sanborn, who graduated in 2005 with 284 points off 206 goals and 78 assists.

Smith's 200th point came on her 103d career goal. With 4 1/2 minutes remaining in the third period and her team up 7-0, the senior captain took a pass across the crease from linemate Ashley Moran and fired top-shelf, past the Stoneham netminder and straight into the record books.

Woburn coach Bob MacCurtain was thrilled to see his star player reach the plateau.

"It's a great accomplishment,both at an individual level and as an indication of being a part of a lot of really good teams with great players." he said.

Smith's five points propelled undefeated No. 1 Woburn to its 10th win of the season.

By Sarah Moomaw, Globe Correspondent

In a gritty game between rivals, the No. 10 Canton girls’ hockey team knocked off the host Franklin, girls’ hockey team, 7-4, to clinch a spot in the state tournament.

“It’s always a goal, but certainly [to clinch] this early is great,” Bulldogs (10-1-0) first-year coach Dennis Aldrich said. “It was a good game for us.”

In a rematch of an 8-1 Canton victory on Dec. 15, Aldrich said playing at Franklin ice is never easy and the previous blowout had the Panthers turned up the pressure and physicality in response to an 8-1 Canton win on Dec. 15.

“It’s also a rival game for us, I think that’s why it was so physical.” he said. “We grinded and beared it, and wound up putting the puck in the net.”

The two squads traded goals through the first period. Franklin notched the first tally of the game, but Bulldog senior captain Meaghan McKenna answered 11 seconds later taking an open face-off down the ice to knot the game.

“She’s done that a lot this year,” Aldrich said.

The Panthers struck back to take a 2-1 lead, but junior right wing Katie Kelleher tied it again. McKenna struck again in the second period to give the Bulldogs the 3-2 lead.

“It was a good battle,” Aldrich said. “But we took control after that and wound up icing the game.”

After Franklin made it a one-goal game at 5-4, McKenna’s used her 19th goal of the season — to complete a hat trick (third on the year) her third hat trick of the season — extended the Canton lead.

The Bulldogs would add a seventh goal by junior defender Casey Considine before the final buzzer, but stellar play by the defense insured the win.

Aldrich said “workhorse” junior defender Jill Eckler had a great game in keeping pucks away from junior goalie Emily Buckley (14 saves), who picked up her fifth win in five starts.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

The boy’s hockey season continues to skate on and here are five interesting notes you should be aware of:

1. BC High continues to soar -- The call to keep the Eagles No. 1 in the Globe Top 20 this week was not met without a bit of uproar from some Springfield Cathedral faithful. That was understandable, but BC High put any debate over which team was better when it beat Catholic Memorial 5-1 Wednesday night. With that victory, the Eagles have beaten the likes of No. 2 CM, No. 3 St. John’s Prep and No. 5 Reading. If that kind of performance doesn’t deserve the top ranking, I don’t know what does.

2. Keep your eyes on Braintree -- The Wamps have been on the outside of the Globe Top 20 the past few weeks but that may have to change. Braintree has been on a demolition tour as of late, winning five of its last six contests in impressive fashion. Over the team’s last two games, the Wamps have scored a combined 12 goals while shutting out both Dedham and Weymouth. None of the teams Braintree has beaten are among the top 20. However, that doesn’t discount Dave Fasano’s team from heavy top 20 considerations this week.

3. Barnstable skidding at wrong time -- The team making waves down by the Cape earlier this season have suddenly hit a rough patch. The Red Raiders have lost their last two games to Archbishop Williams and Bridgewater-Raynham respectively. While that’s not the end of the world for Barnstable, the team is going to have a tough go ending the skid against Malden Catholic. Barnstable will take on the Lancers in its first game in the Nate Nickerson Invitational this Saturday. While MC has not been its dominant self as of late, that’s still going to be a hard team for this Old Colony team to knock off.

4. Newburyport refusing to lose -- The Clippers may not have the most impressive win column with just five on the year, but that’s not due to losing games. Newburyport has recorded just one loss all season along with four ties. This is a team that knows how to leave a game with at least some points earned. It’s not as if the ties are coming against lesser opponents either. Some of the more notable draws have come against rival Franklin on two occasions, Braintree and No. 13 Beverly. Newburyport is a team that finds ways to scrap out wins and ties and that’s a difficult thing to do.

5. Catholic Memorial looks to rebound in weekend tournament -- After two tough losses to Catholic Conference rivals St. John’s Prep and BC High, the Knights will get a weekend away, so to speak. Bill Hanson’s squad is set to take part in the Nate Nickerson Invitational Tournament this weekend, starting things off against Barnstable. No hockey game is a walk in the park but CM has to be happy to face some non-conference teams. After two straight losses that saw Hanson’s team shut down after the first period, the coach has got to be thinking this is the perfect time to get some confidence back. The Knights better do just that this weekend, because their last two January games are against No. 7 MC and No. 3 St. John’s Prep.

Alex Hall covers boys' hockey. He can be reached at alexander.hall@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Here are some interesting tidbits on the high school girls' hockey scene:

1) Defensive player of the week: Credit is due to St. Mary’s junior goaltender Lauren Skinnion after stonewalling Westwood 2-1 despite her team being outshot 31-17. Skinnion allowed one goal, as Kaleigh Finigan and Alison Butler scored the game winners for the defending Division 1 state finalist Spartans (6-2-1). Skinnion also made 32 clutch saves in a 4-1 upset over defending Division 1 state champion Arlington Catholic earlier this season. Skinnion currently posts a 0.924 save percentage.

2) Offensive player of the week: Sophomore right winger Haley Payne propelled Braintree (5-1-1) into first place in the Bay State Conference after posting all six goals in a single game against Weymouth, a 6-4 win. It was the first time a player at Braintree had scored six goals in a game. The previous record was four by the Wamps’ all-time leading scorer, Amanda Abromson, three years ago, according to head coach Kevin Burchill. Prior to the game, Payne had yet to score this season.

3) Team to watch: Second-ranked Falmouth continues to steamroll past the competition after Alexa Scribner scored a pair of goals in the Clippers 5-0 shutout over No. 13 Walpole Monday. Against Dennis-Yarmouth Wednesday, Clippers Maddie Scavotto netted her fifth shutout of the season winning 4-0. Scavotto is now the top goalie in the state with a .58 goals against average. The undefeated Clippers also stopped defending Division 2 state champion Duxbury's unbeaten streak at 34 with a 1-0 win on Jan. 5. Can the Clippers smell a D2 crown in the near future?

4) Biggest update from this week: No. 16 Acton-Boxboro outdid previously unbeaten and sixth-ranked Westford 4-2 Wednesday in a Merrimack Valley/Dual County League matchup. Lauren Roche's late hat trick, including the eventual game winner in the third period, sealed the victory. Colonials goalie Cali Loblundo stopped 26 shots.

5) Looking forward: This Saturday the Pilgrim Arena will get another visit from Austin Prep’s senior goalie Shannon O’Neil, who stopped 53 shots in the Cougars 3-1 victory over Hingham last season. O’Neil currently posts a 1.07 goals against average and a 0.968 save percentage with five shutouts this season. The Harbormen (6-2) enter the matchup after a 3-1 loss to Fontbonne Jan. 12. Meanwhile, the Cougars (5-3-3) recently tied the defending Division 1 state champion Arlington Catholic, 1-1.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Tim Healey, Globe Correspondent

CANTON — About six minutes into the third period, with the Blue Hills boys’ hockey team holding a comfortable four-goal lead over visiting Nantucket, junior forward Nick Edwards dished a pass from the red line in his offensive zone.

Nick’s brother, senior forward Josh Edwards, received the pass in the left circle and put it in the back of the net for his third goal of the game and 200th point of his career.

“It hasn’t kicked in yet,” said a smiling Josh, the team’s captain after the Warriors' 6-1 victory over the Whalers. “I never really dreamed about [Nick getting the assist], but now that it happened, it’s awesome. I just never actually thought it would happen.”

Josh’s hat trick and 200th point highlighted the Mayflower League win for the Warriors (7-0-2).

The elder Edwards brother entered the game four points shy of 200 and didn’t take long to put a dent into it against Nantucket (1-5-1). He scored just 17 seconds into the first period when he picked up the puck in the Warriors’ defensive zone and skated end-to-end before slipping it into the net.

Josh picked up his second point minutes later when he assisted Nick’s goal, but then didn't score again until the end of the second period.

The Whalers took six penalties in the middle frame and the Edwards duo couldn’t capitalize on any of them.

“They had a lot of people crowding the front of the net,” Josh said. “I was getting frustrated.”

That ended, though, with 10.1 seconds left in the period, again thanks to an assist from Nick. Josh, racing toward the net, somehow got a shot off before falling and sliding into the boards behind the goal.

That set the stage for Josh’s third-period tally and the ensuing ceremony, which briefly paused the game.

“[Josh] and Nick were playing a little bit different tonight,” said Blue Hills coach Steve Woods. “Nick was trying to set him up, maybe more than he should have, but that’s the thing — he wanted to get [the assist].”

Junior forward Sean Connaughton collected three assists, and Nick, an assistant captain, finished with a goal and two helpers, inching him closer to the 150-point mark — with plenty of time to also reach 200.

“I don’t know if you ever get used to it,” Woods said of having players collect 200 points. “You hope it happens every year but obviously it doesn’t. Barring any major injuries and any problems next year, I imagine Nick will be at that 200-point mark as well.

“After that, I don’t know what we’ll find,” Woods added, laughing.

Tim Healey can be reached at timothy.healey@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @timbhealey.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

It was difficult to decide which of the top two teams’ loss was more hurtful to the record but ultimately the 4-1 loss is what hurt CM the most. If it had been a 2-1 game or 3-2 loss against St. John’s, the Knights could have made it to the top spot. Since that was not the case, however, and the BC High Eagles lost by just one to Springfield Cathedral, the rankings had to stay the same as last week as far as the No. 1 and 2 teams.

The teams that knocked off the top two in Springfield Cathedral and St. John’s Prep, both moved up due to the big wins. Arlington saw a four ranking drop this week from last. That’s due in large part to losing two of its last three games. When so many other schools around the Spy Ponders saw their records improve over the last three games, Arlington had to drop down.

Archbishop Williams moved into the top 20 this week, coming in at No. 18 after defeating a tough Barnstable team, 5-4, and then tying Arlington Catholic in its most recent game. Considering teams like Norwood and Xaverian did little to move up the ranks this week, the Bishops took advantage and sneaked into the top 20.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Despite a three-game streak for Duxbury, we can't ignore Falmouth's lone goal by Maggie MacDonald on Jan. 5, serving the third-ranked Green Dragons (8-1) their first loss of the season. Therefore, the Clippers (8-0), who remain undefeated, move to No. 2 in the Globe Top 20 after conquering Sandwich and Barnstable this week.

Hingham saw an unexpected upset Saturday night against Fontbonne, dropping the Harborwomen (6-2) to No. 4.

Charging to No. 1 is Woburn and my defense stands as follows:

1. Tanners beat Reading Saturday, 3-1.
2. Kayla Smith steers offense with 15 goals and 12 assists, approaching the 200-point club.
3. Courtney Davis' strong goaltending.
4. Ubeaten thus far.

The Tanners stand at 8-0-1, with their only tie to No. 5 St. Mary's, and are a shoe-in for the state tournament and hot competition for the Division 1 state trophy. The Spartans (6-2-1) had a solid week with three wins over No. 11 Lexington, Notre Dame of Hingham, and Westwood.

Westford jumped up to No. 6 at 7-0 with three wins over Central Catholic, Waltham and No. 18 Lincoln-Sudbury. No. 7 Reading remains as a strong contender despite a 3-1 loss to Woburn Saturday. Defending Division 1 state champion Arlington Catholic sits at No. 8 after tying with No. 14 Austin Prep Saturday 1-1.

Walpole dropped to No. 13 after losing to No. 12 Norwood. Arlington was bumped out of the rankings after posting four consecutive losses meaning Beverly/Danvers is the newest addition to the mix at 8-0.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Alex Hall, Globe Correspondent

The boy’s hockey season continues to skate on and here are five interesting notes you should be aware of:

1. BC High Eagles continue to soar -- The Eagles kept their undefeated streak alive Wednesday night when they dominated the ice against St. John’s Prep. While the undefeated streak is not all victories at 6-0-2, beating a team that just knocked off Malden Catholic last Saturday is another impressive notch in the Eagles’ belt. This is a team that doesn’t have a tendency to dominate on the scoreboard but understands how to come away with victories and ties. There’s a reason why BC High tops the Globe Top 20 boy’s hockey rankings and the team is showing no signs of letting that ranking go.

2. Beverly lighting up scoreboards -- One team that knows how to keep a scorekeeper busy is Beverly. The Panthers have scored 38 goals in eight games this season while surrendering just six. The closest games head coach Bob Gilligan’s team has seen so far were three-goal victories over Triton and Marblehead. Beverly has been dominating every opponent the team has played so far but I’m wondering if that will be the case Jan. 15 on the road against Newburyport. The Clippers were impressive last Saturday in their 1-1 draw with Franklin and defeated North Reading 4-0 their next time out. If you can handle the bone-chilling temperatures of the Henry Graf Skating Rink in Newburyport, I highly suggest checking out this upcoming contest.

3. Keep your eye on Newburyport -- Speaking of the Clippers, there was a lot to like about that aforementioned 1-1 draw. The team controlled the puck for two periods against two-time South champion Franklin and really should have one that contest. The team responded the way any quality one should after missing out on a victory by shutting out North Reading on Jan. 7. Head coach Paul Yameen noted that the team is hoping to move to Division I next season. If that is the goal for Newburyport, then Division I teams might want to keep notice of this solid Cape Ann League team.

4. Tough scheduling this week for St. John’s Prep -- The St. John’s Prep Eagles became the first Massachusetts team to defeat Malden Catholic in almost two years in their 3-2 victory Jan. 5. Just four days later, they had to take on Globe No. 1 BC High and, to paraphrase coach Kristian Hanson, didn’t even look like they came off the bus. The Eagles now find themselves preparing to take on a downright dangerous Catholic Memorial team this Saturday. By the end of this week, the Eagles will have played the Globe’s Nos. 1, 2 and 6 ranked teams. I guess that’s just the fun of playing in the Catholic Conference.

5. Catholic Memorial’s return to dominance -- Speaking of the Knights, the longtime Super 8 powerhouse has been on a comeback tour this season. After a disappointing stretch, this 2012-13 squad has been just blowing away its competition. Head coach Bill Hanson’s team currently sits at 8-1 on the year. In two games during the Silverback Hockey Classic, the Knights have recorded a combined 17 goals. That same number is the total amount the team’s nine opponents have been able to record this season. If you haven’t purchased a ticket to see this comeback tour, I strongly advise you do so as soon as possible.

Alex Hall covers boys hockey. He can be reached at alexander.hall@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Here are some interesting tidbits on the high school girls' hockey scene:

1) Defense: For action between the pipes, take a look at Lincoln-Sudbury junior Sarah Provost, who leads the state with a 0.33 goals-against average, saving 189 of 191 shots. She also is tied for the state lead with four shutouts. The Warriors (5-1) have a juicy Merrimack Valley/Dual County matchup against undefeated and 13th-ranked Westford on Thursday at 7 p.m. L-S went 4-13-2 last year but is off to a strong start under first-year coach Paul Hardy.

2) Offense: A threat to watch all season will be Hingham forward Jane Freda. The Middlebury commit leads Division 1 with 20 points (12 goals, 8 assists). The senior has come a long way since playing a role in the Harborwomen’s Division 1 state championship in 2011 as a sophomore. Her junior year, Freda delivered 32 goals and 32 assists, and was designated a Globe All-Scholastic. Tack on this season's numbers and Freda has 121 points for her career.

3) Team: Year in and year out, Woburn has clashed with the likes of St. Mary’s, hungry for a Division 1 state title. With the Spartans (4-2-1) stumbling this season (and skating to a 2-2 tie with Woburn), this could be the Tanners’ year. The Tanners are undefeated and have the perfect weapon – Kayla Smith. The senior forward has 188 career points. Woburn has qualified for the postseason 12 straight years.

4) Update: The biggest news this week centered around Duxbury and Hingham. The Green Dragons edged then-undefeated Hingham, 4-2, for its fourth win over a Division 1 program. This was a great sign for Friend Weiler’s squad, which is aiming for a Division 2 three-peat at the Garden after its 34-game win streak was broken by Falmouth, 1-0. Duxbury beat Falmouth, 3-1, last winter to win its second consecutive state title.

5) Looking forward: Reading has had the biggest turnaround, from last year’s 3-16-1 record to second place in the Middlesex League Liberty Division at 6-0-1. Saturday, the Rockets face Woburn, an undefeated threat in the league, at 6 p.m. at the O’Brien Arena in Woburn. Expect Rockets freshman Ali O’Leary to make an impact; she's had two hat tricks this season. The Rockets have scored 39 goals this season.

Liz Torres can be reached at etorres@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @etorres446.

By Nick Ironside, Globe Correspondent

With three minutes left in a Thursday night Top 20 showdown, No. 17 Lincoln-Sudbury’s girls’ hockey team was tied, 1-1 with host Westford Academy.

Then the No. 13 Grey Ghosts' senior left winger Lindsay MacDonald took matters into her own hands.

MacDonald scored the winning goal, then another, all in the final three minutes for the 3-1 victory over the Warriors. MacDonald also assisted the Grey Ghosts’ first goal earlier in the game.

Westford Academy's fifth-year coach Bob Ware could have predicted a battle to the end between these teams.

“Lincoln-Sudbury is a gritty, physical team,” said Ware.

But while the Warriors (6-2) were able to battle with the Grey Ghosts (7-0) until deep into the game, there was a difference Ware saw.

“Our strength is depth,” said Ware. “We have three or four lines that can roll and just keep coming.”

One of the keys to the game was getting past the Warriors' standout goaltender, junior Sarah Provost, who has recorded five shutouts after just eight games. Ware knew from the start that it would be tough to beat Provost.

“She’s as solid as we’ve seen anyone,” he said. “She moves great side-to-side and she covers the bottom really well, so we tried to roof it. That’s exactly how we scored.”

Ware is happy with the amount of experience that the Grey Ghosts carried over from last season.

“They all take pride in sticking with the system,” he said. He made a point that Westford Academy build from the back, understanding that defense is the cornerstone of his team.

Despite the positive start, Ware is cautious about the season ahead, noting his team’s schedule.

“We’re off to a good start, but we understand we have a difficult schedule throughout the season,” he said. “We’re a long way away, but we’re happy where we are.”

By Chad Graff, Globe Correspondent

St. John’s Prep coach Kristian Hanson didn’t change schemes or strategy. He didn’t need to.

Hanson’s Eagles (5-1) became the first in-state boys’ hockey team to take down mighty Malden Catholic in two years, snapping the top-ranked and defending champion’s 24 game unbeaten streak with a 3-2 win Saturday afternoon in Wilmington. The Lancers posted a 21-0-3 mark during that streak en route to back-to-back state championships. They hadn’t lost to an in-state team since Jan. 15, 2011 (a 2-1 loss to Hingham) and hadn’t lost since Dec. 17, 2011 (a 2-1 loss to Delbarton, N.J.).

"The winning streak was a great accomplishment," Malden Catholic coach John McLean said. "But it's over and it's time to start a new streak."

To pull off the upset, St. John's Prep abandoned a box defense or trap game that other teams had tried.

"Our plan really was to go toe-to-toe with them and may the best team win," Hanson said. "And on this particular day, that was us. We didn’t switch up anything we normally do. We just played our game because I felt we could skate with them."

Mark Azarian netted a goal on a rebound in front of the net and a minute later Ean Mendeszoon recorded a power-play tally on a shot from the point that found its way through traffic to give the Eagles a 3-1 lead with seven minutes remaining in the third.

"But MC is a better third period team and they always find a way to come back, so we certainly weren’t too comfortable at that point," Hanson said.

The Lancers (3-1-2) cut the deficit to 3-2 with a minute to play after a centering pass knocked off an Eagles’ stick and snuck past senior goalie Billy Price (23 saves). But Price and St. John’s Prep hung on in the last minute to deliver the upset.

"We're having a tough time finding out identity," McLean said after watching the game tape. "That's on me. I think we'll be OK though. We have people who can score and good defenders and a good goalie."

Pat Wrenn netted the game’s first goal in the first period before Andrew Brandano’s top-shelf wrist shot in the second period knotted the game at 1-1.

"Anytime you play MC, you know you’re playing the best team in the state," Hanson said. "So anytime you beat MC, it’s a pretty good day. It doesn’t happen often."

Added McLean: "We lost a hockey game. It's not the end of the world."

By Zac Vierra, Globe Correspondent

The Duxbury girls’ hockey team is driven by the offense of senior center Hannah Murphy and the play between the pipes of junior goalie Rachel Myette. In Wednesday’s 4-2 win over Hingham, the pair shined as Murphy scored a hat trick and added an assist while Myette made 18 saves to give the first-ranked Green Dragons (5-0) their 34th straight victory.

Murphy gave Duxbury the lead in the first period when she got a pass from Zoe Griffin, came across the net from the left to the right getting the Hingham goalie to move one way before flipping the puck into the vacant side of the net.

In the second period, Murphy sprung loose in the neutral zone and received a pass from Griffin, then fired a wrist shot stick side that found the back of the net. Later in the period on a power play, Murphy passed to Marissa Fichter who quickly passed back to Murphy as she found the back of the net to complete the hat trick.

“The bigger the stage the bigger she plays,” said Duxbury coach Friend Weiler about Murphy, who has been named Globe All-Scholastic in ice hockey, field hockey, and lacrosse. “She never quits and has the heart of a lion out there.”

Hingham rebounded with two goals in the second to make it 3-2 but Myette came up huge with 10 saves in the period to hold the Green Dragons' lead.

“Hingham was trying to get traffic in front of the net so Rachel made a lot of screen saves. She made the saves when we needed to keep the lead,” said Weiler.

In the third period Murphy found freshman Julia Nolan, who beat the goalie glove side to give Duxbury a 4-2 cushion.

It was the fourth win over a Division 1 opponent this season for Duxbury, the two-time Division 2 state champions.

“We play tough teams and that puts you in position to be ready for the tournament,” said Weiler.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The back-to-back Super 8 champion Malden Catholic Lancers will host the inaugural Christie Serino Christmas Classic this Thursday and Friday at Valley Forum II in Malden.

The event will feature four of the top boys’ hockey programs in a tournament to honor the memory of Malden Catholic coach Chris Serino, who passed away in the offseason after battling throat cancer.

Serino was the architect of a Malden Catholic program that captured consecutive Super 8 championships while sending numerous players to Division 1 college hockey careers.

“He started something that no one thought that we could do,” said former Serino assistant and current Malden Catholic head coach John McLean. “He really accomplished a lot.”

The puck drops at 4 p.m. on Thursday when No. 11 Austin Prep (1-0-1) takes to the ice against St. Mary’s of Lynn (1-1-2). The upstart Cougars are looking to cement themselves as a Super 8 contender and a solid showing in this tournament could go a long way. The Spartans may not have the firepower that had them as the second seed in the Super 8 a year ago, but they have retooled and are always a team to be feared.

In the 6 p.m. slot on Thursday No. 4 Hingham (2-1) gets their first crack at the top-ranked Lancers (2-0). Last season the Harbormen lost both of their matchups against M.C. by a combined score of 12-3. They return a ton of talent and will look to ensure those results are a thing of the past. Of course, it’s been a while since anybody took out the Lancers on their home ice and Malden Catholic will look to honor coach Serino the best way it can.

The consolation and championship games will be played on Friday at 4 and 6 p.m.

By Zac Vierra, Globe Correspondent

Dylan DiNatale’s third period goal was enough as Willmington held on to beat Stoneham 1-0 on Saturday.

The Wildcats (2-1) were frustrated by Stoneham goalie Bob Giardano (27 saves) all game until DiNatale took a feed in the low slot, spun around, and fired a shot that found the low right corner of the net. The goal was assisted by Cam Owens and John Galasso.

Wilmington would hold on for the final 13:32 as Drew Foley picked his first shutout of the season with 14 saves.

“Being able to grind out a win this early in the season was good,” said Wilmington coach Steve Scanlon.

As the defending Division 2 state champs, Scanlon said he anticipates a high level of play from each of the team’s opponents this season. This was true on Saturday as Stoneham put up a solid effort.

“We are expecting to get everyone’s A game,” said Scanlon. “We are the biggest game on everyone’s schedule.”

Although many of the players are returning from last year’s team, the Wildcats have yet to skate a full lineup due to injuries and a flu bug which swept across the locker room. On Saturday two starters were missing.

“We have a lot of talent and are hoping we will get up to speed,” said Scanlon. “It is good to see you can win with people out.”

Willmington will return to the ice on Wednesday against Masconomet in the Haverhill Christmas Tournament.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Over the final two periods, defense helped keep Woburn within one goal of rival Burlington, and late in the game junior defenseman Mark DeSantis helped reel the Tanners reel in a point in a 2-2 tie Wednesday night at Ned O’Brien Rink.

A jumbled mess of bodies in front of Burlington goalie Derek DeCastro caused the puck to squirt out to DeSantis at the right point, where he blasted a slap shot through traffic and into the back of the net with 2:58 left to knot the game at 2-2.

“That’s the type of team we have,” said Woburn coach Jim Duran. “They grind and they work hard…and they’re playing with a lot of confidence right now.”

The Tanners (2-0-1) jumped to an early 1-0 lead when senior captain Jared Baker picked off a pass at center ice and skated in alone, putting a backhander past DeCastro (17 saves) seven minutes into the first period.

A returning salvo came two minutes later when C.J. Grinnell took a defender on a ride inside the left hash marks, flipping the puck up over the right shoulder of Woburn goalie Jeremy Flibotte (14 saves) to tie the game, 1-1.

With the pressure turned up a notch, the Red Devils (1-1-1) struck again just 31 seconds later when defenseman Adam Crowley gathered a pass off the right boards and blasted a shot that trickled between Flibotte’s pads.

“We were getting outworked in the first period,” said Woburn captain Joe Connors. “The boys just came together in the locker room and said we weren’t going to get embarrassed.”

From there the game came down to the defense, and after allowing 12 shots on net in the first period, the Tanners blue liners, led by senior Andrew Deane, clamped down and allowed only four shots the rest of the way.

“We were having a real hard time getting it out of our own end,” said Duran. “What we wanted to do was try to dump into the neutral zone and pressure their D. That’s what we did and we had a lot of success.”

This past weekend, the Lincoln-Sudbury and Concord-Carlisle boys' ice hockey teams participated in the first annual "Warriors 4 Warriors, Patriots 4 Patriots" benefit hockey game. The game was a fundraising event to honor fallen soldier and former Lincoln-Sudbury team captain Lt. Scott Milley.

All the proceeds from the game were raised by students from both schools by selling commemorative wristbands, t-shirts, raffle sales and entry fees went to the Lt. Scott Milley Ranger Foundation and the Military Friends Foundation. Perhaps the only thing more impressive than the play, was that the idea for this benefit game came from Jordan Dow a Lincoln-Sudbury senior and captain of the hockey team.

Though Lincoln-Sudbury came away with the win, both schools look forward to the continuing the tradition of the Warriors 4 Warriors, Patriots 4 Patriots Benefit Game.

See highlights from the game and hear the coaches and players talk about Milley in the video above.

By Nick Ironside, Globe Correspondent

St. Joseph’s Prep girls’ hockey coach Tom McGrath has had teams that were so silent between periods he could have heard a pin drop.

But after two strong performances from freshman goalie Toni Gardner, the St. Joseph’s Prep (0-2) team has rallied behind its goaltender.

In her debut, Gardner made 37 saves in an 8-4 loss against Oliver Ames. But her work in net just two days after the Oliver Ames loss will be hard to top in Gardner’s career.

McGrath said Gardner’s effort on Friday night against Masconomet was one of the best he’s ever seen in his eight years at St. Joseph’s Prep and 23 years in coaching.

“It was remarkable,” said McGrath. “She gave us a chance to win the game with the score tied 0-0 after two periods. Toni’s giving us a real chance, and the girls are competing.”

Despite losing 4-1 at home to Masconomet, Gardner stopped 76 of the 80 shots the Chieftains fired at her.

“Her side to side movement is excellent, and she’s got great glove reactions,” said McGrath.

Before the season, St. Joseph’s Prep had a dilemma. Its senior goalie from the previous season transferred, and Gardner was the only goalie at tryouts. “We didn’t know what we were getting,” McGrath said. Now he’s thankful he has Gardner between the pipes.

“With the addition of Toni, we’re excited,” he said. “It was like a gift.” McGrath said the team believes more knowing Gardner is behind them. Against Masconomet, he and his team thought they could pull off the win.

Although St. Joseph’s Prep lost, three breakaways were squandered in a game that was close for two periods. But the players were still excited and competing. “They were all giving her a standing ovation between periods,” he said. “She’s bringing the kids’ spirits back up.”

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

Malden Catholic athletic director and ice hockey coach Chris Serino has died, associates confirmed. He was 63.

The hockey coach who guided the Lancers to the top of the Catholic Conference, winning the Super 8 Division 1A state tournament the last two years, had been battling throat cancer.

"It's tough, he wasn't in good shape for about a month," said John McLean, who took over as Malden Catholic's hockey coach last season. "He put up a good fight."

Serino, who hailed from Saugus, was also a coach and athletic director at Merrimack College for seven years. He resigned from his position there in 2005 and immediately took over at Malden Catholic.

Serino was a three-sport Globe All-Scholastic in hockey, football, and baseball at Saugus High School.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

This awards ceremony and program are designed to recognize Massachusetts high school student-athletes who have demonstrated excellence in three disciplines: academics, athletics and citizenship. The ceremony will be held from 8:30 a.m. to noon in the Curry Student Center Ballroom at Northeastern University.

The theme of this year’s event is “How Can Student-Athletes Make a Difference in the Community?”

The event, which is being sponsored by Sport in Society at Northeastern University and the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association, is open to schools in Districts A, B, C, D, E and H.

Each school can nominate two male and two female students that merit this recognition and have participated in community service. One faculty member, coach, or parent representative should also be willing to provide transportation and accompany the students.

For more information contact Ted O’Reilly at 617-373-4025 or m.oreilly@neu.edu.

Justin A. Rice can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

After a disappointing finish to its 2011-12 season was marred by a parent pointing a green laser at the team's goalie, the Medway-Ashland girls hockey team was recognized on the floor of the Massachusetts State House after being invited by state Senator Karen Spilka.

"It was really nice," Spilka said. "It was just something to show them the way they handled the situation with grace, with honor and with sportsmanship was greatly appreciated by the state."

Spilka represents communities of both schools, which form a co-op team.

In a Feb. 29 playoff game against Winthrop, Joseph Cordes, 42, stood alone in an upper corner of the bleachers at Larsen Rink and pointed a laser at the Medway-Ashland goalie, the district attorney’s office said. He was charged with disturbing the peace while Winthrop went on to win the game, 3-1. Cordes is a Winthrop parent.

"I’m sure it was difficult for them," Spilka said of the incident. "They dealt with it and they moved on. Hopefully next year most of the girls will return. And hopefully nothing like that will ever happen again. Not just in the commonwealth, but in the country.

"That was clearly more than unfortunate."

By Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

The Medway-Ashland girls hockey team has not been forgotten.

After getting knocked out of the first round of the Division 1 state tournament by Winthrop in a game that was marred by a parent pointing a green laser at the Medway-Ashland goalie, the team was invited to the State House by state Senator Karen Spilka , who represents both communities the team draws players from.

The team will tour the State House at 2 p.m. Thursday and then be recognized on the senate floor in a formal session.

Joseph Cordes, 42, stood alone in an upper corner of the bleachers at Larsen Rink in Winthrop during a Feb. 29 playoff game between Medway-Ashland and Winthrop and pointed a laser at the Medway-Ashland goalie, the district attorney’s office said. He was charged with disturbing the peace.

Winthrop went on to win the game, 3-1, and Medway-Ashland appealed to the MIAA. The MIAA denied the appeal, saying game officials determined Cordes’s actions were not game-changing and the association would not overturn the official’s decision.

St. John's Prep senior forward Sam Kurker scored two goals to lead the North All-Stars past the South All-Stars, 4-2, at the DCU Center in Worcester Sunday in the third annual MSCHA High School All-Star Game.

The South jumped on top at the 41-second mark when Tom Cahill (Pembroke) buried a feed from Conal Lynch (Boston Latin) in the slot to go up, 1-0. The defenses took over until Kurker scored back-to-back goals 20 seconds apart with just over a minute remaining to put the North on top after 15 minutes.

North goaltender Joe Cerulo (Wakefield) made three saves in the period while his counterpart Kyle Moran (Marshfield) stopped seven.

To start the second, the North’s Daniel Holland (Woburn) was tripped on a rush by the South’s Ken Jacobson (Duxbury), drawing a penalty. The North quickly capitalized as defenseman Nikko Markham (St. Mary’s) beat Derek Kwok (Natick) under the crossbar at 1:32 to give the North a 3-1 cushion.

The South’s best chance in the second period came when Jake O’Rourke (Medway) weaved through two defenders but was stoned by North goaltender Dave Letarte (St. John’s Prep).

Kurker almost struck again late in the period when his feed out front deflected off the post, keeping the score at 3-1. The shots stood at 17-12 in favor of the North after 30 minutes of play.

The South cut the deficit to 3-2 in the third as Kevin Emmerling (St. John’s Shrewsbury) buried a cross crease feed from Lynch at the 4:10 mark. The North answered right back at 5:30 when Peter Sikalis (Acton-Boxboro) teed up a shot from the left point that beat Connor Murray (Needham) glove side to give the North another two-goal cushion. The North squashed any hopes of a South comeback, allowing only four shots in the third period. North goaltender Kyle Williams (Central Catholic) made three saves to close out the win.

By Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

The MIAA announced to its 10th annual list of ice hockey sportsmanship award winners in conjunction with the Boston Bruins Monday.

Winners represent each boys and girls hockey league in the state and were selected by a representative of their league with the following criteria, as provided by the MIAA:

- An exemplary record of complying, both in spirit and letter, with all league and MIAA rules and regulations during the season.

- A demonstrated record of respectfully accepting the rulings of game officials during the season.

- A record of conduct, on and off the ice that brings honor to self, team, school, and community.

- An exhibited commitment to teamwork by providing all members with recognition of their talents, an opportunity to contribute them to the team, and a spirit of camaraderie.

- A demonstrated respect for opponents before, during, and after games.

Here is the full list of winners. For a closer look at each winner, visit the MIAA's website (.PDF):

GIRLS
Bay State Conference - Molly McNamara (Wellesley, MA), ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Wellesley
Catholic Central League - Shealyn Anthony (Reading, MA), Austin Prep
Catholic Conference - Emily Lafond (Hanover, MA), Notre Dame Academy
Middlesex League - Sara Lehman (Lexington, MA), Lexington
MVC/DCL - Katie St. George (Newton, MA), Newton South
SEMGHL – Coastal - Kelsey Powers (Duxbury, MA), Duxbury
SEMGHL – East - Maggie Travers (Scituate, MA), ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Scituate
SEMGHL – West - Michelle McNeil (Canton, MA), ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Canton

BOYS
Atlantic Coast League - Cody Murray (East Falmouth, MA), Falmouth
Bay State Conference - Matthew Brown (Norwood, MA), ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Norwood
Big Three - Jake Adams (Dartmouth, MA), New Bedford
Boston City League - Anthony Bruno (East Boston, MA) , East Boston
Cape Ann League - Jonathan Gravallese (No. Reading, MA), North Reading
Catholic Central League Large - Robert Liberge (Lynn, MA), Bishop Fenwick
Commonwealth Athletic Conference - Kyle Edmonds (Gloucester, MA), ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Rockport
Coughlin Conference - Brandon Hennessy (Stow, MA), ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Nashoba Regional
Eastern Athletic Conference - Nelson Dickson (Vineyard Haven, MA), Martha’s Vineyard
Fay Division - Michael Duclos (Greenfield, MA), Greenfield
Greater Boston League - Charlie O’Leary (Somerville, MA), Somerville
Hennessy League - Cam Loehr (Lee, MA), Lee Middle/High
Hockomock League - Brendan Burns (North Attleboro, MA), North Attleboro
Independent Schools - Caleb Dalterio (Cotuit, MA), Cape Cod Academy
Middlesex League - Brian Gramolini (Belmont, MA), Belmont
MVC/DCL (Division 1) - Pat Houghton (Westford, MA), Westford Academy
MVC/DCL (Division 2) - Mike O'Brien (Concord, MA), Concord-Carlisle
MVC/DCL (Division 3) - Max Isberg (Newton, MA), Newton South
Northeastern Conference North - Nick Strangie (Danvers, MA), Danvers
Northeastern Conference South - Michael Harper (Marblehead, MA), ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Marblehead
Patriot League - Jack O’Donoghue (Scituate, MA), Scituate
Roy Conference - Sean Burns (Northborough, MA), ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Algonquin Regional
South Coast Conference - Tommy Davis (Buzzards Bay, MA), Bourne
Tri-Valley League - Patrick Williamson (Bellingham, MA), ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Bellingham

Video by Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

Malden Catholic beat BC High 3-1 for the Super 8 championship at TD Garden. Globe correspondent Craig Forde recaps the game with highlights and interviews.

By Hannah Becker, Globe Correspondent

Burlington took an early lead when senior Brian Hood scored at 1:31 of the first period. The first-line winger took a pass from C.J. Grinnell in the slot and slipped a wrister past Milton goaltender Jay Hankard to give the Red Devils a 1-0 lead. Burlington controlled the play early, but the Wildcats had opportunities. Milton’s best scoring chance came when senior defenseman Dan Curran came out of the penalty box, beat two defenders to gain the line and went one-on-one with DeCastro. Curran got a shot off, but it went chest-high into DeCastro.

Burlington scored early in the second period when senior forward Brett Romkey, who had 14 goals this season, skated to the right dot and sent a backhanded shot soaring past Hankard’s left glove to give Burlington a 2-0 lead.

Milton had a flurry of shots in front of the net with just under eight minutes to play in the second, but DeCastro made some stellar saves.

Burlington opened up a 3-0 lead at 8:24 in the second with a hard-fought goal in front of the net. Senior Joe Moran won a puck battle along the boards and put the puck in front of the net, where Adam Crowley was waiting to muscle it under Hankard’s pads for his second point of the night.

Milton picked up the offensive pressure in the second period and had 10 shots on goal. Milton got on the board with a nifty play from Brendan Kelley to freshman Lloyd Hill to cut Burlington’s lead to 3-1. Kelley picked up the puck behind the net and slipped it to Hill, who was waiting in the slot to net his sixth goal of the year.

Burlington regained its three-goal lead less than two minutes into the third period. The Red Devils had a flurry of shots on Hankard before Dan McMahon finally slipped a goal through. Burlington added another on a slapper from the left dot by Trevor Cimino at 1:16. Milton cut the lead at 3:10 on a tally from Brian Higgins assisted by Paul Curran and Terrence Walsh.

Joe Berardi closed things out for the Burlington with an empty-net goal to seal the victory.

Malden Catholic players and coaches celebrate with the championship trophy after defeating BC High 3-1 in a the boys Super 8 championship game at TD Garden. (Winslow Townson / For the Globe)

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Trailing 1-0 after one period, the defending Super 8 champions Malden Catholic dug deep, grinding out a 3-1 victory over BC High in honor of their head coach Chris Serino, who has been battling throat cancer and was unable to lead the team from the bench all season long.

Sam Topham gave BC High a quick 1-0 lead when he flew down the left wing and tossed a shot on net from a tough angle, but the puck found a slice of space between goalie Connor Maloney and the post to put the Eagles up 1:58 into the game.

The Lancers offense picked up in the second period and fired 17 shots on BC High goalie Peter Cronin, who was more than up for the task, stopping all but one.

The one that Cronin couldn’t contain came off the stick of Malden Catholic captain Brendan Collier who collected a pass from Ryan Fitzgerald on the left side of the net, faked Cronin down to the ice and took it backhand on the right side to knot the game, 1-1, which is where it would stay heading into the third period.

Nick Rolli made a big play stepping up into the slot to shuffle a pass down to Mike Iovanna who backhanded the puck home on the left doorstop for a 2-1 MC lead with less than seven minutes to play in the third period.

Casey Fitzgerald closed out the scoring with an empty-netter and Serino joined his team on ice as the Lancers picked up their second straight Super 8 crown.

Join us for a live chat at TD Garden as we cover the Super 8 hockey final between Malden Catholic and BC High. Chat starts at 6 p.m.

By Jason Mastrodonato, Globe Correspondent

It had been a long ride from Mike Nanartowich’s bench into the starting lineup for Hudson senior Tyler Kirby, but the finely-tuned forward was electric today at the TD Garden. Kirby scored twice and assisted on another to lead the Hawks to their first-ever state title in Division 3, a 5-1 defeat of Medway.

Kirby had seen limited ice time during his freshman and sophomore seasons on the varsity, but he really came alive the past two years for Hudson, finishing off his final season with 24 goals and 16 assists.

The Mustangs (19-7-1) played an even first period with the Hawks (23-1-1) and went into the dressing room tied 1-1. But a few rouging penalties and one hit to the head turned a clean hockey game into a match of who-can-hit-who-harder. There were six penalties in the second period, and it appeared to throw Medway off its game, as Hudson’s Brian Carter gave the Hawks a 2-1 lead into the third.

Kirby scored early in the third and Carter broke up a breakaway attempt from Medway senior Jake O’Rourke (43 goals) as the Hawks scored twice more to cruise to the 5-1 win.

By Ryan Mooney, Globe Correspondent

Just as South Boston was littered with green confetti during the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade on Sunday, Wilmington fans littered the TD Garden ice with hats after junior Cam Owens’ third goal with 7:33 remaining in the game provided the final margin in a 3-2 win over Franklin. The win gave the Wildcats their first Division 2 state hockey title in school history.

"The first of many we hope," Wilmington coach Steve Scanlon said.

The Wildcats (16-4-5) and Panthers (19-3-3) entered the final frame tied at two after Cam Curley and Evan Stawarz brought Franklin back from a two-goal deficit.

A turnover by Owens in his own zone put the puck on the stick of Hockomock MVP Nick Bertoni midway throught the third period. Bertoni got the puck back after his shot from the point was blocked by Brian Pickett, but Pickett stole it away and turned it up ice to Luke Foley. Owens broke into the zone on a 2-on-1 with Foley, but Franklin netminder Mike Donadio made the initial save on Foley after a give-and-go. The puck ended up in the corner, where Jacob Rogers scooped it up and sent it back out to the slot. Owens fired a wrister past Donadio on the stick side, and the hats came raining down.

"You can't even describe the feeling," Owens said. "It was crazy. You get the first goal, the blood starts flowing, you get another one right after, and then when I got that third one I couldn't even believe it happened. It was unreal."

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

"Our girls dug down deep and they were able to bounce back and get their feet moving again and the momentum back in our favor," said Dragons coach Friend Weiler.

With a minute left, Falmouth pulled their goalie allowing Murphy to skate solo on a breakaway, cashing in her second goal on an empty net with 5.3 seconds left in the game, 3-1.

At 7:51 in the second period Dragons (22-0-1) sophomore forward Liz Collins delivered the go-ahead goal off a perfect pass from senior defenseman Martha Findley in the danger zone, 2-1.

Four minutes in the second period Falmouth's (16-6-1) freshman forward Rachel Moore sent in a shot that deflected off the goalie into the net to tie it 1-1. Sophomore forward Alexa Scribner and freshman defenseman Kendall Stouffer had the assists.

Murphy headed off the first period with an unassisted goal, 1-0.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Not only was the Division 1 crown on the line Sunday morning, but the Arlington Catholic's girls hockey team was playing to avenge a regular season series sweep against their rival St. Mary's.

A two-goal surge in the second period proved to be enough to handle St. Mary's, 3-1, earning Arlington Catholic the Division 1 state title at TD Garden.

"The other times we [played St. Mary's] there was that stigma that we’ve never beaten them," said Arlington Catholic coach Maggie Taverna. "[Today] that stigma leaves itself and they came out and we just played our game."

The victory came after a two-year tournament hiatus for the Cougars (21-3-1), their first championship since 2007.

After being outscored by St. Mary's 33 goals to 10 in the last six winless meetings, the Arlington Catholic girls knew they would have to edge out the four-time Division 1 state champion (the record in the state for girls hockey) early on.

The Cougars' top offensive line notched two back-to-back unassisted goals in the second period with a shorthanded goal from freshman forward Adrieana Rossini and another from freshman defenseman Allyson Cunningham to push the score to 3-0. The Spartans (21-4-1) responded with sophomore forward Brittani Lanzilli's unassisted shot in the box to bring the score to 3-1 with nine minutes left in the second period for what would be the last scoring play of the game.

Cougars senior forward Natalie Flynn challenged the Spartans' net in the first period, scoring after an assist from senior defenseman Rebecca Zappala to jump to a 1-0 lead.

Video by Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

Globe correspondents Craig Forde and Ryan Mooney preview the Super 8 final betwen defending champions Malden Catholic and BC High.

BC High's Michael Brooks (right) took down St. John's Prep captain Sam Kurker along the boards during their Super 8 semifinal game (Jim Davis/Globe Staff)

By Ryan Mooney, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER -- BC High didn’t make it through group play in the Super 8 hockey tournament unscathed, but the Eagles soared when it mattered most.

BC High’s 3-2 win over St. John’s Prep at Lawler Arena Wednesday gave the Eagles (13-6-5) the season series with their Catholic Conference rivals, and, more importantly, their first trip to the TD Garden and the Super 8 finals since 2007.

“These kids are spoiled,” joked BC High coach John Flaherty. “They played at Fenway this year, now they get a chance to play at TD Garden ... and they earned it. We knew what the prize was, we knew the opportunity to play there, we had to get by this team, and our guys earned it. They worked hard and now they get to reap the rewards.”

St. John’s (16-6-2) didn’t look like the team that entered the crossover round undefeated in tournament play. Muddled play in their own zone led to turnovers and opportunities for BC High.

“We had a difficult time handling the puck tonight,” St. John’s coach Kristian Hanson said. “Mishandled it quite a bit ... we just weren’t as crisp and smooth as we have been throughout the entire tournament.”

Evan LeClerc pulled St. John’s even at 9:04 of the third period, only to have Chris LaLiberte put BC High back on top and provide the final margin 29 seconds later by getting his stick on a loose puck after a chaotic scrum in front of St. John’s netminder David Letarte (13 saves).

“You have to strike right back,” Flaherty said. “And when we did that I felt good about how the game was going.”

“We weren’t content with a one goal lead,” said senior captain Matt Sullivan. “They scored another goal, which we were expecting, and Chris LaLiberte did a great job, he kept at it and scored the game winner for us.”

Lucky to be scoreless after St. John’s defenseman Nick Pandelena put a rocket off the left post, Tom Besinger gave BC High the early lead with a wraparound at 7:26 of the opening period. Besinger came out of a scrum in the corner, carried the puck behind the net and popped it in to the right of Letarte.

The St. John’s power-play unit went to work for the first time with just under five minutes remaining in the first. With Ryan McDonough in the box for tripping, Pandelena went top shelf on BC High goalie Peter Cronin (18 saves) from the right circle after a brilliant setup from Sam Kurker and Brian Pinho.

BC High took its second lead of the game late in the second period. Letarte caught a Steve DeForge shot from the slot with his stick, sending it wide to the end boards. After a short battle, Tim Larocque came up with it on Letarte’s left. His wraparound bid was deflected, but ricocheted up and over the sprawling Letarte with less than two minutes remaining in the period.

Join us for a live chat today at Merrimack College where we'll be covering the crossover round of the Super 8 ice hockey tournament. We'll have updates for both games right here.

Video by Cal Borchers for the Globe

Defending champion Malden Catholic advanced to the crossover round along with BC High, St. John’s Prep and Central Catholic. Here's highlights from Sunday's action at Merrimack College.

By Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

Malden Catholic, the defending champion of the Division 1A tournament, will be matched against Central Catholic (Wednesday, 8 p.m., Merrimack College) after going 3-0 in Super 8 play and outscoring opponents 13-4. Central Catholic went 2-1 in the round-robin games.

On the other end of the bracket, BC High will take on St. John's Prep (Wednesday, 5:30 p.m.) Prep also went undefeated, while BC High was 2-1.

The two games for the crossover round will be held at Merrimack College's Lawler Arena.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

However, confusion reigned when Springfield Cathedral pulled its goalie in the final minute of the third period despite having a 4-3 edge. Springfield Cathedral required a two-goal victory if it wanted to advance.

"If not for the format [of the tournament] we wouldn't have been alive today, so we can't complain about that," said Springfield coach Brian Foley. "Needing to win by two is definitely a different way to approach the game."

Springfield Cathedral came out with purpose and DJ Petruzzelli came through just 56 seconds into the game as he skated up the middle alone, faked right and deposited the puck in the open left side of the net for a 1-0 lead.

They continued to ratchet up the attack and Jordan Kozub stuffed home a rebound at the 11:44 mark of the first, followed by Frank Crinella doing the same less than a minute later for a 3-0 lead.

After sleepwalking through the first period, Ryan Daigle opened the Raiders' eyes when he picked off a pass in the neutral zone, skated in on the right wing and ripped one past John Liquori on a shorthanded bid to make it 3-1.

Central Catholic backup goalie Andrew Robbins replaced Williams to start the second and the senior stopped nine shots to keep the Raiders within two after two periods.

"Spotting them three goals early was not what we expected at all," said Central Catholic coach Mike Jankowski. "Coming back with Robbins in net sealed the deal. It's been a pretty special season."

The Raiders gained momentum on an early goal in the third, this time from Christian Thompson who fired one home from low on the left-side of Liquori to make it 3-2 at the 1:30 mark.

Less than two minutes later Nick Gorski got off a slap shot from high in the slot that sailed past Liquori to pull the Raiders even, 3-3.

Midway through the third, Crinella potted his second of the game to seize momentum back in favor of the Panthers.

That's when Springfield Cathedral pulled Liquori with less than a minute to play, while Central Catholic left Robbins in.

"They needed to win so I was expecting them to pull their goalie," Foley said. "They never pulled their goalie, which surprised me."

Central Catholic's Michael Kelleher picked off a pass and netted the game-tying goal with 13 seconds left in regulation, setting up the sixth overtime game in the tournament.

In overtime, Donahue nabbed a puck from the sticks of the Panthers and skated in with a defender draped on him, but managed to get off his shot as he was going down to the ice, scoring 4:20 into the extra frame.

By Ryan Mooney, Globe Correspondent

After BC High eliminated St. John’s of Shrewsbury in the opening game, setting up a possible three-way tie between the Eagles, Hingham and Malden Catholic, Hingham was faced with the daunting task of not only taking down the only unbeaten team in Group 1, but doing it by at least three goals in order to win the goal differential tie-breaker.

But Malden Catholic (18-1-4) had its own agenda, and executed it flawlessly.

The Lancers’ top line of Brendan Collier (2 goals, 2 assists), Ryan Fitzgerald (3 goals, 1 assist) and Michael Iovanna (2 assists) torched Hingham for five goals as Malden Catholic thumped Hingham, 7-2, to win Group 1 outright and advance to the crossover round on Wednesday night.

“I’m very happy that we got the two points, that’s what we came here for,” Malden Catholic coach John McLean said. “I wasn’t very happy defensively how we played ... the first line did what they’re supposed to do. They have a lot of talent, they move the puck well, and when they get a chance they’ll put it in the net.”

Defensive miscues and open-net chances for Hingham had McLean on edge in the second period. Junior goaltender Connor Maloney finished with 12 saves on 14 shots.

“He stood on his head today,” defenseman Colin McGillivray said. “There was a lot of chances and he stopped them.”

“I thought Maloney did a great job,” McLean said. “We didn’t do a good job in our end, he came up with some huge saves ... the kids felt really good after the second period and I kind of blasted them ... [Hingham] probably missed three empty nets. It’s a different game if they put that puck in the net.”

Animosity on the ice grew with each Malden Catholic tally. By the time Collier scored on a shorthanded breakaway to extend the Lancers’ lead to 5 at 3:29 of the third period, roughing minors and matching penalties were being handed out frequently.

“Both teams want to win bad out here, so it’s going to get chippy,” Fitzgerald said. “So it was on both sides, but we just pulled through.”

“We talked to our guys ... you can’t get thrown out or you’re out of the tournament,” McLean said. “But I thought the refs did a good job.”

After a slow start with both sides struggling to get shots through traffic, Collier made a strong move to the net after a drop pass from Ryan Fitzgerald just inside the Hingham zone and deked around netminder John Grenier to put the Lancers up, 1-0, at 7:51 on the first shot of the game.

Less than three minutes later, Patrick Mannion picked Lancers defenseman Casey Fitzgerald's pocket at the Harbormen blue line, and turned MacGillivray inside out at the Lancers blue line to get in alone on Maloney before going top shelf for the equalizer.

As the odd-man rushes and breakaways continued, freshman Ara Nazarian entered the Hingham zone on a partial breakaway with just over three minutes left in the opening frame. Grenier came out of his crease aggressively and Nazarian went forehand to backhand, sliding the puck into an open net to put the Lancers back on top for good. Nazarian has scored in every tournament game so far.

“A lot of guys will take that shot from the outside,” McLean said. “He’ll take it right to the net and sacrifice his body to make a great play. He’s a dynamic player.” FULL ENTRY

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The victory provided the Eagles with hope of moving on to the crossover round on Wednesday, but not before the outcome of the Hingham-Malden Catholic game played out.

“We could've quit, we could've have packed it away, but we didn’t,” said BC High coach John Flaherty. “I’m proud of the resilience. We dug our heels in, fought back and I’m proud of them for that.”

The Eagles jumped to a first period lead when, 30 seconds into a power play, Sam Topham wound up from the point with a blast that Mario Pizzeri (37 saves) kicked off to his right. Matt Sullivan was camped in the left circle and pushed forward, pounced on the rebound and deposited it into the open left side of the net for a 1-0 lead at the 6:45 mark.

The Pioneers got on the board in the second, when Topham misfired as he tried to clear the puck out from behind his own net. The puck slowly drifted into the slot and Kevin Emmerling came in, popping it high over Peter Cronin’s left shoulder to tie the game at 6:18.

After a strong push in front of the Eagles net, Emmerling worked the puck behind the net and found Jay Duquette coming left-to-right into the slot where he wristed his shot glove side to beat Cronin (17 saves) high for a 2-1 lead, which would hold up heading into the third period.

A late, third period boarding call on St. John’s Andrew Smith gave the Eagles the man advantage with just 3:33 left in regulation and BC High worked its power play to perfection, cycling through the zone and firing point-blank shots on goal.

Tom Besinger launched a shot from the left side that Pizzeri saved, but the puck stopped at the base of his right pad and after whacking at it three more times, Besinger was finally able to tie the game.

Knowing they needed a two-goal win to even think about advancement, the Pioneers were forced to pull their goalie in a tie game, but could not muster enough of an attack in the final minute and the game went into overtime.

“I was telling them “see if we can get it down [in their zone] and call a timeout,”” said St. John’s coach Brian Murphy. “It was kind of strange in a 2-2 game to pull the goalie, but that’s what we had to do.”

Things got physical in the extra frame and both teams traded matching minors, leaving the penalty boxes congested with time ticking away in overtime.

Pioneers forward Chris Coveney started to take his puck out of the St. John’s zone, but was halted by Sullivan who ripped the puck from his stick, turned in the slot and fired a shot that beat Pizzeri glove-side.

“We made a quick change,” Sullivan said. “The defenseman got caught with the pucks between his skates, I shot the puck low and it went in.”

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Trying to make sense of who is moving on and who is going home in the Division 1A hockey tournament is enough to drive a person crazy.

Once thing is certain — take note Springfield Cathedral and St. John’s (S) — everyone is still alive.
Now we must try and make sense of it all as we head into the final day of Super 8 pool play Sunday.

First and foremost, the top two teams in each bracket will advance, with the top teams crossing over to play the second-place teams from the opposite bracket Wednesday night.

If two teams finished tied for a spot, then their head-to-head result from the tournament will determine who advances and who gets the higher seed. The tricky part comes when three teams finish tied, which lines up numerous tie breakers scenarios.

The first tie breaker in a three-way tie would be goal differential (goals scored minus goals allowed), the second is goals quotient (goals scored divided by goals allowed) and the third and fourth tiebreakers involve the same as the first two tiebreakers, but only in games that these three play against each other. If somehow nothing has been decided after all of that, the fifth and final tiebreaker will be won by the team that was seeded highest coming into the Super 8.

Both Malden Catholic (+3 goal differential) and St. John’s Prep (+2 goal differential) are 2-0 atop their respective brackets and will advance with victories. If those two win out, then the next simplest formula would involve BC High (0 goal differential) and Central Catholic (0 goal differential), both currently 1-1, advancing with wins of their own.
Hingham (-1 goal differential) and St. Mary’s (0 goal differential), also 1-1, will be facing the 2-0 teams, and if they can pull off victories, then we will surely see the tie breakers come into play.

Which brings us back to Springfield Cathedral (-2 goal differential) and St. John’s (S) (-2 goal differential) who both sit at 0-2 and will need big wins to help their chances, but in doing so will also bring their opponents down to 1-2 with them. If either, or both, win then they will need the top seeds to finish 3-0 and force the three-way tie breakers to be implemented.

Last season we saw the three-way tiebreaker come into play, with Weymouth needing the second tiebreaker, goals quotient, to get into the crossover round.

BC High and St. John’s (S) kick off Sunday’s action at noon, followed by Malden Catholic vs. Hingham at 2:15 p.m., which will clear up the bracket 1 picture early in the day. If BC High wins in the first game then Hingham must beat MC, and by more than one goal for the purposes of tie breakers.

St. Mary’s and St. John’s Prep cap pool play at 7 p.m., following Central Catholic and Springfield Cathedral at 4:45 p.m. A Central Catholic victory will force St. Mary’s hand in the nightcap.

If your head is not spinning after all of this, then you are more than ready for a full day of action at Lawler Arena, where things will begin to clear up as the day plays out.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER -- The final game of the second round in the Super 8 saw a sixth tournament game decided by one goal as St. John’s Prep escaped with a 4-3 win over Central Catholic at Lawler Arena on Wednesday night.

After getting blanked, 4-0, by the Prep in a regular-season matchup, the Raiders got a quick goal from Alex Lester at the 2:48 mark of the first period to gain the early advantage.

The Eagles worked their second power play of the game around the Raiders zone and Sam Kurker unloaded a shot from deep in the slot that was tipped in front by Andrew Brandano to tie the game at 8:15 of the first period.

The Prep put itself in a hole after a major boarding call on Brian Pinho was followed by a minor boarding call on Nick Pandelena and the Raiders took full advantage of the 5-on-3 situation with Ryan Daigle cashing in on the doorstep to put Central Catholic ahead, 2-1.

Brandano had a chance for his second of the night when he picked up a puck near the right post as Central goalie Kyle Williams went down to play it.

With Williams sprawled and the net open, Brandano's shot trickled across the goal mouth to the left side where it was cleared away by the Central defense.

The Eagles come out flying in the second period and wrested the lead from Central Catholic with two quick goals.

Derek Osbahr scored his second goal of the season at the 2:06 mark to pull the Eagles even and that was followed by a Sam Kurker (one goal, two assists) power play goal just a minute and half later, giving the Prep a 3-2 lead with less than four minutes expired.

The Prep would maintain its one-goal advantage heading into the third period and had a chance to increase the lead after gaining a power play opportunity two and half minutes in.

In the midst of killing the penalty, Raiders forward Michael Kelleher picked off the puck in the Eagles zone and deked David Letarte, then flipped it over his pads at 3:45 of the period.

Midway through the third, Brandano (two goals, one assist) broke free up the left side, collected the puck in the neutral zone, then skated in alone down the left wing and deposited his second of the game past Williams, putting the Eagles back on top for good, 4-3.

By Ryan MacInnis, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER -- St. Mary’s of Lynn notched their program’s first Super 8 victory, 3-2, over Springfield Cathedral with captain Brendan Magaery’s scoring the game winning goal in the shootout at Lawler Arena Wednesday night.

“It’s a funny sport because last game we played great and lost in a shootout and today we played lousy and won in the shootout,” said St. Mary’s coach Mark Lee.

At 2:09 in the first period, the Spartans notched the first goal of the night as Cam O’Neill picked up the deflection from Drew DiMaiti, and floated in front of Cathedral’s John Liquori for the back handed wrap around on the left side of the net.

A little over three minutes later, Bobby Mullins dropped another for the Spartans at 5:35 when the junior forward received the pass from teammate Tim Aylward behind Cathedral’s net and drove it home at the left circle with a wrister above the pads of Liquori.

Cathedral’s Peter Crinella continued his Super 8 hot streak (2 goals, 2 assists), pulling the Panthers within one at 9:14, after the freshman forward won the offensive face-off on the left circle, and wristed it home above the shoulders of MacBurnie.

Springfield Cathedral scored the only goal in the second period at 6:08 to tie the game at 2-2, off of their second power play of the night. Cullen Geary wristed a blue line shot that got a friendly tip from a Panther stick to float by MacBurnie.

“Things just weren’t going our way and we just kept fighting and fighting,” Lee said. “We played good enough defense to keep us in it but I give a lot of credit to Springfield, they’re a great team.”

It was 2-2 at the end of regulation, a place where both teams had been before.

“They came out of the gate strong and we got off to a slow start, second game in a row in a 2-0 hole,” Springfield Cathedral coach Brian Foley said. “But we fought back and were confident in our goal scorers and goaltenders going into overtime and the shootout.”

Scoreless in overtime, both teams sent out five skaters to break the tie in a shootout.

Cathedral’s Matt Foley and Frank Crinella and St. Mary’s Bobby Mullins and Jarrod Fitzpatrick notched shootout goals leaving Magaery with the chance to win the game for the Spartans.

Magaery flew down the ice from the right ride, deked twice and snuck the puck left, under the pads of Cathedral’s Liquori.

“I had no plan going in, I felt like coming down I’d find my spot and go for it,” Magaery said. “I came down, he was coming more to the left so I wanted to deked back hand real quick, go left and luckily snuck it through. Its an unreal feeling.”

“I just want everybody to know, the guy who scored isn’t one of our biggest goal scorers,” Lee said. “He was our water boy when he was 6 years old, watching his older cousin play and go up through the ranks and now as a senior captain scoring the game-winning goal, that’s a sweet story right there.”

The No. 2 seed Spartans will have a tough uphill climb going 1-1 and facing St. John’s Prep on Sunday. Springfield Cathedral, now 0-2, will need to defeat Central Catholic Sunday for any chance of making it to the crossover round.

Video by Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

Globe Correspondent Craig Forde recaps the first day of Round 2 in the Super 8 tournament.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Arlington Catholic girls' hockey coach Maggie Tavera confirmed Allyson Cunningham, who suffered an undisclosed injury in Tuesday night's Division 1 state quarterfinal, has been diagnosed with a bruised rib.

In a race for the puck, Cunningham collided with the boards and a Woburn player, injuring her midsection with her stick. Despite the setback, Arlington Catholic went on to win 3-2 in a shootout.

The freshman defenseman is expected to attend practices and compete in the Division 1 state semi-final against the winner of the Acton-Boxboro/Braintree matchup at the Stoneham Arena, Saturday.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER - For the third time this season, Malden Catholic and BC High faced off, and for the second time the Lancers skated away with a victory, 3-1, Tuesday night at Lawler Arena.

“I thought we did OK at times,’’ said Malden Catholic coach John McLean, whose team stopped eight BC High power plays. “We did a little bit of running around at the end, our guys got a little bit tired, but we played against a good team and it was a good game.’’

The lone goal of the first period came off the stick of Tyler Sifferlen, who roofed a rebound from the slot at 9:50, giving the Lancers the lead.

BC High got a golden opportunity to tie the game when MC goalie Connor Maloney failed to push a puck out and left it on his doorstep, but a charging Tom Besinger was unable to get a handle on it and the Lancers’ lead held at 1-0 at the first intermission.

Bartley Regan pulled the Eagles even 1:07 into the second period, whistling a shot from just inside the blue line that zipped past Maloney’s glove side to make it 1-1, where it would stay heading into the third.

It didn’t take long for Malden Catholic to take control.

Ara Nazarian (one goal, one assist) collected the puck in the neutral zone, skated in tight down the left wing, and with a defender draped on his right side, he lifted the puck past goalie Peter Cronin to put the Lancers up, 2-1, at 4:53 of the final period.

“I got a great stretch pass from [Nick] Rolli,’’ said Nazarian. “I used speed to beat the D and just put it top left.’’

“He’s a very good forward and strong,’’ McLean said of Nazarian. “When he gets a chance he’s going to finish it. He’s a very good player.’’

As the third period neared the halfway point, Brendan White unleashed a shot from the point that hit just under the crossbar for a power-play goal that gave MC a 3-1 lead with 7:12 remaining.

Regan looked as if he had pulled the Eagles within one when he ripped another slap shot past Maloney with 1:01 remaining, but the net had been knocked off the moorings before the puck crossed the goal line and the Lancers held on in the final minute.

“I think we deserved a better fate,’’ said BC High coach John Flaherty. “I just don’t understand why we don’t have video replay in this league, everyone else has it.’’

The win puts the Lancers in great position at 2-0 with one game left in pool play, against Hingham (1-1) on Sunday. The Eagles (1-1) will face off against St. John’s (Shrewsbury) in the other Group 1 game Sunday.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

In the end, an injury provided Arlington Catholic with the inspiration it needed.

The Cougars (19-3-1) dedicated their 3-2 shootout win over Woburn Tuesday night in the Division 1 state quarterfinal to Allyson Cunningham, who hit the boards hard late in overtime and had to be taken out on a stretcher with an undisclosed injury.

With 50 seconds left in overtime of a 2-2 tie, Cunningham went into the boards during a Woburn power play. She was taken off and hospitalized for precautionary reasons.

During a timeout, the Cougars dedicated the game to Allyson, with the players writing her number 12 on their hands as a reminder.

After missing their first two attempts in the shootout, Cougars senior forward Allie Stone snapped in a shot, while Woburn was unable to get one past sophomore goaltender Megan Messuri.

“[Allie] really came through. It was her last year, that’s the ultimate ultimatum … you score, we continue, if not, your career is over,” said coach Maggie Taverna.

“Coming into the shootout, I had to give [Megan] major props for getting scored on twice [in regulation] and making sure she made every next save. She loves to compete and hates being scored on,” said Taverna.

The win came after freshman forward Adrieana Rossini’s equalizer pushed the game into overtime. Senior forward Natalie Flynn scored first for the Cougars with a backhander in the first period.

Freshman forward Hannah Sullivan and junior forward Kayla Smith scored for Woburn (16-4-2).

The victory advances the Arlington Catholic to state semifinal action against Acton-Boxboro or Braintree.

By Ryan Mooney, Globe Staff

NORTH ANDOVER -- Hingham sophomore Sam D’Antuono scored the first three Super 8 goals of his young career on Tuesday night -- including the game winner in overtime -- providing all of the offense in a 3-2 win over St. John’s of Shrewsbury.

“He’s had a great year for us,” Hingham coach Tony Messina said. “That whole line has had a very good year. He has a good knack for the net so it was great to see him get three in that game.”

After giving Hingham a 2-1 lead late in the third period -- only to have the Pioneers’ Jay Duquette hammer a loose puck past Harbormen netminder John Grenier 29 seconds later -- D’Antuono put the finishing touch on a pass from Matt Brazel just 1:19 into overtime.

“Defenseman threw it down in the corner, Braz picked it up, made a nice backhand pass, and I was wide open in front,” D’Antuono said. “Just one-timed it five-hole.”

The Harbormen (17-5-2) dominated in the faceoff circle, particularly in the Pioneers zone, which lead to a 30-13 shot advantage and no shortage of quality chances. Mario Pizzeri was stellar in net for St. John’s with 27 saves.

“We worked on faceoffs the last couple of days because we felt like we lost too many in the game on Sunday (against BC High),” Messina said. “What we say to the guys is that if you can win a faceoff in their zone you have an extra 30 or 40 seconds of offense…the offensive zone faceoffs are big.”

D’Antuono broke a scoreless tie with a power-play goal early in the second period. With time winding down on Hunter Burdick’s elbowing minor and the Harbormen yet to test Pizzeri on the man-advantage, D’Antuono picked up a loose puck near the bottom of the right circle and fired it past Pizzeri on the far side at 3:54.

Connor Bertram pulled the Pioneers even just over four minutes later. Chris Adams carried the puck over the Harbormen blue-line on a two-on-one break and dished it to Bertram. Hingham netminder John Grenier came shooting out of his crease to challenge and Bertram made a quick move to his backhand and slid the puck into an empty net to tie it, 1-1.

“It’s tough when somebody has to lose in one of these tournaments but that’s the nature of the beast,” Pioneers coach Brian Murphy said. “I don’t think we controlled as much as we should have but give them credit. They’re big and strong, they move it out pretty quickly and they come at you hard.”

Hingham learned the hard way Sunday that taking too many penalties can be a teams’ undoing in the Super 8 tournament, and they entered the second round determined not to let time spent in the box keep them out of the win column again.

After giving up three power-play goals on 10 penalties against BC High, the Harbormen were only shorthanded once against St. John’s, allowing no shots on a slashing minor to Nolan Driscol in the first period.

“We knew it was a discipline issue we needed to correct,” Messina said. “But the guys know, I mean that’s how they play right there, a good hard game, only a few penalties.”

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Entering the third period down 3-1, the Acton-Boxboro boys’ hockey team scored three unanswered goals to shock Woburn 4-3 in front of their home crowd in a Division 1 North quarterfinal game at O’Brien Rink on Monday night.

Just seconds after Jeremy Flibotte made five big saves to squash a prior Colonials (12-8-2) power play opportunity, the Tanners (13-6-2) got called for too many men on the ice and Tyler McKelvie made it count, flicking a shot from inside the right circle for the game-winning goal with 3:23 remaining on the clock.

“We earned our way in here,” said Acton-Boxboro coach Bob Lavin. “We had a lot of tough games leading up to this one and our kids responded.”

The penalties did-in Woburn from the get-go as Adam Tanner was sent to the box just nine seconds into the game for an elbow.

Colonials’ defenseman Peter Sikalis pushed the puck up through the neutral zone on the left wing and just as he passed over the blue line, unloaded a slap shot over Flibotte’s left shoulder for a 1-0 lead with only 1:30 expired from the clock.

Six minutes into the first, Tanners center Casey Shea picked up the puck in his own zone and skated up ice, crossing from right to left at the red line where he accelerated past a defender, cut in tight to the net and lifted the puck over the shoulder of Erik Wurman to tie the score at one.

Danny Holland put the Tanners in front 2-1 when he took a pass from Joe Connors up ice and blasted a shot past Wurman on his glove-side with 6:09 left in the second period.

“Casey Shea and Danny Holland are great players,” said Lavin. “They burnt us a couple of times.”

Thirty-seven seconds later Shea knocked home a rebound for his second goal of the game, and fourth of the postseason, putting Woburn in control with a 3-1 lead heading into the third period.

“They weren’t down, they were focused,” said Lavin of his teams' mood in the locker room prior to the final period. “They knew that they could play so there was no “we felt like we’re out of this” [attitude] with 15 minutes to play.”

The Colonials got another quick power-play goal, this time from Travis Scott Hamilton just 0:41 seconds into the third.

T.J. Barrett pulled Acton-Boxboro even when he scored a short-handed goal, set up beautifully by Sikalis, with 6:09 left in the game.

“The key was that shorthanded goal, it got the kids fired up,” said Lavin. “That’s a huge momentum changer to score a shorthanded goal when you’re down.”

The Tanners had a great chance to tie the game when Shea pushed the puck up and skated in alone on a breakaway, but Wurman (30 saves) stopped him with a right pad save to preserve the lead and ultimately the victory.

“Eric did a great job,” said Lavin. “He’s quick side-to-side and on that play, Casey likes to shift the puck and he made a good save.”

After knocking out Reading and Woburn to start their tournament, Acton-Boxboro will play a third straight Middlesex League team as they face off against Burlington on Wednesday at the Chelmsford Forum in a 7:10 p.m. semifinal game.

Video by Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

Globe correspondent Craig Forde recaps the first round of the Super 8 ice hockey tournament at Merrimack College Sunday.

By Ryan Mooney, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER — Malden Catholic has not lost a tournament game since March 10, 2010, and Sunday’s effort should be an indication that the Lancers might have what it takes to repeat as Super 8 champions.

Defenseman Colin MacGillivray scored the game-tying goal 3:02 into the third period, and Boston College recruit Ryan Fitzgerald scored with 35 seconds remaining in regulation off a feed from Boston University recruit Brendan Collier to give the Lancers (16-1-4) a 3-2 victory over St. John’s of Shrewsbury at Merrimack’s Lawler Arena.

“Our leaders stood up when they had to,” Lancers coach John McLean said. “Fitzy and Brendan Collier have been carrying us all year and they went out and did the job. They’re clutch players.”

Pioneers goaltender Mario Pizzeri was brilliant in net against a Lancers lineup -- consisting of three Division 1 college recruits -- that lost only one game and put up a plus-66 goal differential in the regular season. The sophomore netminder finished with 34 saves on 37 shots, including 14 in the third period alone.

“[The defense] played great, a lot of the shots were from outside the circles,” Pizzeri said. “They did a good job shutting down the first two lines, that’s what we focused on in practice and I think they executed it great.”

The Pioneers have not appeared in a Super 8 game since they entered the tournament with the top seed in the 2001-02 season. They made the cut this year by defeating eighth-ranked Needham in a play-in game, and after taking the top-ranked team in the state down to the wire, it is clear that they are here to stay.

“The positives are we battled, we played hard, we gave everything we’ve got,” Pioneers coach Brian Murphy said. “We’ll see if we can just get a little more offense next time.”

St. John’s struck on their first shot of the game when Connor Bertram pounced on a loose puck to the left of Lancers’ netminder Connor Maloney after a shot by Kyle Moss from the right point whistled wide and deflected hard off the end boards. With a handful of players jamming to Maloney’s left Bertram was able to corral the puck and put a soft wrister into the other side of the wide open net.

Malden Catholic’s Ara Nazarian put a backhander past Pizzeri to pull the Lancers even with eight minutes gone in the period.

Vin D’Amato, who entered the game second on the team in goals with 24, caught Maloney out of position and put a soft shot into the back of the net from the slot at 11:52 of the second period to put the Pioneers on top. It was their only shot of the second period.

The Pioneers were able to capitalize on the rare offensive opportunities they came across -- they took only five shots on net all night -- all the while weathering a relentless Malden Catholic attack.

“Defensively I thought we played OK,” McLean said. “You got to give St. John’s Shrewsbury all the credit, I thought they played hard, they were smart ... but we just kept digging, rolling out three lines and told the guys to just keep getting pucks to the net, crash the net, do your job, and it worked out in the end.”

St. John’s plays Hingham at Lawler Arena Tuesday night at 5:45, followed by Malden Catholic and BC High at 8:15.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER – Sam Kurker’s overtime winner capped another thriller on Day 1 of the Super 8 tournament at Lawler Arena as St. John’s Prep escaped with a 4-3 victory over Springfield Cathedral.

“Everybody knows how important that first game is in the tournament,” said St. John's Prep coach Kristian Hanson. “We wanted to come out today and get a win. In the end we were fortunate to get a bounce.”

The last time these two teams met, just two weeks ago, the Prep made a miraculous comeback scoring four goals in the final five minutes of the game to walk away with a 5-5 tie.

The Eagles wanted to avoid being behind the eight-ball in this one and Andrew Brandano ensured that they wouldn’t be playing from behind at all when he stuffed home a puck just 1:28 into the game to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead.

The second period started with another quick St. John’s Prep goal as Brian Pinho won a draw forward, picked up the puck and swept in on the left side before stuffing it past John Liquori for a 2-0 lead just 0:53 seconds in.

“We were just trying to get the puck deep and on net,” Pinho said. “I just skated hard to the middle and put one on. Our game plan was to crash the net and it went in for me.”

Frank Crinella got the Panthers on the board mid-way through the second period after picking the puck from the stick of Sam Kurker, then sweeping in from the left to backhand it past David Letarte on a short-handed bid, making it a 2-1 game.

Frank Crinella would pull Springfield Cathedral even when he followed up on a rebound off a shot from Peter Crinella, popping it past Letarte for his second of the game to make it 2-2 before the second intermission.

A power play opportunity allowed the Prep to start the third period like the other two, by scoring first, this time on a missile by Pinho just past the blue line to make it 3-2 at the 3:28 mark.

“I thought Brian was our best player out there,” Hanson said. “He had two big goals and he played well defensively. He was our player of the game.”

Two minutes later Peter Crinella knocked in a rebound for the Panthers second short-handed goal of the game, evening the score at 3-3 and as just like two weeks ago, regulation was not enough time to determine a winner, so a 12-minute sudden death overtime was tacked on to the proceedings.

As the extra frame wound down, a bouncing puck fell in front of Liquori who was unable to snag it in the air and Kurker swooped in on the doorstep to deposit the rebound, giving the Eagles the victory.

“Who better than Kurker to be the guy standing there,” Hanson said. “I saw that far, top-side open and Sam did a great job of putting it up there.”

By Ryan Mooney, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER—Central Catholic narrowly made the cut for the 22nd annual Super 8 tournament by winning a play-in game against seventh-ranked Burlington a week ago, but they made a strong case as to why they belong in the elite tournament on Sunday afternoon at Merrimack’s Lawler Arena.

The Raiders (14-3-5) gave up a two-goal cushion in the third period but survived an onslaught from St. Mary’s in overtime and found a hero in senior forward Steven Merrick, who’s five-hole finish in the fourth round of the shootout was all they needed to snap the Spartans’ state-best 21-game win streak, 6-5.

“I usually go five-hole when I get in on a breakaway,” Merrick said. “So I had it in my head I was going for it and he left it open for me.”

Central Catholic goalie Kyle Williams was perfect in the shootout, stopping all five shooters he faced and stealing the opening-round contest with a stick save on Connor Parent in the final round.

“I think he’s one of the best goalies in the state,” said Raiders forward Ryan Daigle, who tied the score at 3 with a second period goal. “Everyone’s overlooked him because he had a little slow year but he’s kept us in these games and we’ve prevailed.”

The Raiders were lucky to get to a shootout, as they entered overtime looking tired and sluggish while St. Mary’s dialed up the pressure, crashing the net and playing largely in the Raiders’ zone. Twice in overtime Spartans’ shooters rang the post.

“We don’t play much overtime anymore but we worked on a lot of conditioning in the week and a half we had off between games,” said Spartans coach Mark Lee. “I was extremely proud at the effort in the overtime period.”

After a loss to Central Catholic in last year’s play-in game, the Spartans (18-2-3) entered their first Super 8 tournament in school history with redemption on their minds.

“It was a point of emphasis that we talked about briefly,” Lee said. “That we’d like to get a little bit back at them for last year.”

Tied, 3-3, in the third period, Central Catholic took their second lead of the afternoon when Corey Webber snuck a rebound past Spartans goalie Bailey MacBurnie after a shot by Alex Lester at 4:01. Christian Smith added insurance with a power-play goal from in close, deflecting a Zachary Cote wrister from the right point with Thomas Braswell in the box for tripping.

Brendan Magaery responded with his second goal of the game at 8:09 on a brilliant feed from Jarrod Fitzpatrick from behind the Central Catholic net. Magaery didn’t get all of the shot, but it was enough to trickle through Williams’ legs and cut the deficit to 5-4.

Braswell pulled St. Mary’s even with just under three minutes remaining in the regulation when the Raiders turned a great play by defenseman Andrew Markham into transition. Markham saved a goal by laying out to take away the pass on a clean 2-on-1 break for St. Mary’s, leading to a 2-on-1 the other way. Fitzpatrick took a shot from the left of Williams and Braswell was there to put away the rebound.

“You know no lead is safe in this tournament,” Raiders coach Mike Jankowski said. “You know these guys can put a lot of points on the board in a hurry…but we were able to be resilient enough to get through.”

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER – BC High got off on the right foot in the Super 8 tournament as they took advantage of their power play opportunities to defeat Hingham 4-2 in a penalty-filled game (16 total) at Merrimack College’s Lawler Arena.

“I told the guys we’re not going to talk about that,” said Hingham head coach Tony Messina whose team drew ten penalties. “We wanted a tie or a win in this game. With our bracket we are going to have a tough couple of games [moving forward].”

The first period served as a feeling process for both sides, with no goals being scored despite five power play opportunities.

A late first period penalty gave BC High a man-advantage to start the second period and when Hingham’s Jake Hanlon picked up an elbowing penalty eleven seconds in, the Eagles found themselves with a two-man advantage.

“In this tournament everyone is pretty even,” said BC High coach John Flaherty. “Every time you get a man advantage you almost have to capitalize and fortunately for us today we did.”

After working the puck around the zone, Matt Sullivan found Tom Besinger on the right side and the sophomore roofed home his shot for a 1-0 lead.

“I knew that he dropped his blocker to the ice when we got in close,” said Besinger. “So we knew we had to go high with the shots.”

With a skater still in the box, the Harbormen responded when Ryan Linehan forced a turnover and popped it home just twenty-two seconds later, tying the game at one.

The man-up advantage would pay off for the Eagles once again as Brian Furey put them back on top at the 4:52 mark of the second when he flicked home a shot from the point.

Once again the Harbormen would not be deterred as they had an answer just thirty-seconds later thanks to Patrick Mannion who took advantage of Eagles goalie Patrick Cronin who was out of position after trying to play a puck off to his right.

Mannion came behind the net and popped around the open left side with a wraparound shot that tied the game at two, where it would stay heading into the third period.

Hingham’s John Carlson was called for a hook 2:28 into the third and the Eagles struck twenty-seven seconds later as Besinger picked up his second power play goal of the game.

Hingham would get their own power play chances down the stretch, and in the final minute they were capable of clearing goalie John Grenier (15 saves) from the crease for a 6-on-4 attack.

The Eagles defenders stood up to the challenge and a blocked-shot by Furey pushed the puck up the ice where Sullivan was able to collect it and skate in for the empty netter.

“Our job was basically to try and block some shots and that’s what we did,” said Flaherty. “It’s a part of the game that we take pride in and we know that we have to block shots against good teams."

The Eagles will face off against another familiar foe in top-seeded Malden Catholic on Tuesday night.

Video by Zuri Berry / Globe Staff

The Globe's Bob Holmes and high school hockey correspondent Craig Forde preview this year's Super 8 tournament.

For the latest information on the Super 8 tournament, visit our Super 8 central at Boston.com/Super8.

By Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

In a letter to Medway principal Richard Pearson, the MIAA upheld a decision to let the result of a playoff game stand after it was disrupted by an adult pointing a laser at the Medway/Ashland girls' hockey team.

In a Division 1 playoff game between Winthrop and Medway/Ashland Feb. 29, an adult used a hand-held laser in an attempt to distract Medway/Ashland girls' hockey players, including goalie Kathryn Hamer. That adult has been barred from future Winthrop athletic events, according to administrators.

The MIAA invoked the National Federation Ice Hockey rules, indicating that there could be no appeal of the result, a 3-1 loss for Medway/Ashland, because of the rules.

The letter states: "Accordingly, the MIAA affirms that the decision of the referees shall be final."

Barry Haley, the tournament director, told the Globe on Thursday the laser pointing had no influence over the outcome.

"As far as we can determine it didn’t impact the game at all," Haley said. "This was an adult. It wasn’t a student. I want to compliment [Winthrop athletic director] Peter Gobiel and their administration. They've been great. But it's unfortunate."

Here is the MIAA's letter:

Dear Mr. Pearson,

Please be advised the MIAA is in receipt of your letter of appeal of the final results of the Medway vs. Winthrop Girls’ Ice Hockey game played February 29, 2012. While your advocacy for the Girls’ Ice Hockey team is appreciated and the extenuating circumstances you cite respected, Association members schools are obliged to honor the standards of the National Sport Code adopted by the membership. MIAA Girls’ Ice Hockey is governed by National Federation Ice Hockey Rules.

Section 3, Article a. of the National Federation Ice Hockey Rules reads, in part related to your appeal: “The referees shall have jurisdiction over the game upon entry on the ice prior to the game until the ice is cleared of contestants after the game. The referees shall enforce all rules and shall rule on situations not specifically covered by rule. In case of any dispute, the decision of the referees shall be final and there shall be no appeal.”

Accordingly, the MIAA affirms that the decision of the referees shall be final.

For your information the MIAA Assembly, acting on a recommendation of an Ad Hoc Committee appointed by Board of Directors, voted that all interscholastic athletic contest controversies would be resolved by the process identified by the rules of the relevant National Sport Code (cited above).

In closing, please know that the MIAA Ice Hockey Committee will consider this incident while reviewing standards to insure optimal tournament experiences for all.

By Bob Holmes, Globe Staff

An adult who used a hand-held laser in an attempt to distract Medway/Ashland girls' hockey players, including goalie Kathryn Hamer, has been barred from any future Winthrop athletic events. But the score of the game, 3-1 in Winthrop’s favor, isn’t subject to appeal and the game is official.

"As far as we can determine it didn’t impact the game at all," said tournament director Barry Haley. "This was an adult. It wasn’t a student. I want to compliment [Winthrop athletic director] Peter Gobiel and their administration. They've been great. But it's unfortunate."

Haley said the score was tied 1-1 when the man with the laser was spotted and asked to leave Larsen Rink. Winthrop plays again Saturday against Braintree.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The Medford boys’ hockey team advanced to the Division 1 North quarterfinals for the first time in three years after taking out Greater Boston League foe Everett, 3-0, in a first round matchup on Wednesday night at Stoneham Arena.

The fourteenth-seeded Mustangs (9-12-0) earned their tournament berth by winning the GBL title with a 6-0 league record that included two wins over the Crimson Tide in the regular season.

“They say you don’t want to play a team three teams,” said Medford head coach Steve DeBenedicitis. “But the way the draw is and with how many strong teams there are in the north, I don’t mind playing a team that we beat twice in the regular season.”

Eight minutes into the game the Mustangs got what would turn out to be the game winner when Tyler Zizzo snapped a shot from the slot that trickled past Everett goalie Vinny Sottosanti for a 1-0 lead.

Jake Porrazzo followed up a scrum in front of Sottosanti and stuffed home a rebound on the left doorstep to put Medford up 2-0 with two minutes remaining in the opening period.

After a flat start, the Crimson Tide came out with some gusto in the second and put the Mustangs on their heels with a balanced, physical attack.

Defensively, Everett got stand out efforts from C.J. Sylvester and Ryan Considine, alongside Sottosanti (22 saves) who stood on his head to keep things 2-0 after two periods.

“He was a difference maker tonight,” said Everett head coach Alex Naumman of Sottosanti. “If we could have just grabbed one or two rebounds we would have been right there.”

As play wore on in the third period, the Crimson Tide were unable to figure out Medford goalie Jimmy Cecchini (25 saves) who was spectacular during a mid-period penalty kill in which he stopped five point-blank shots.

“I was very happy for him,” said DeBenedictis of his net minder. “It’s been a little bit of a struggle for us in net down the stretch. We got out of him what I know he’s capable of tonight, and I was glad to see it.”

Added Cecchini, “We went in with a mindset that everyone was against us. We wanted to come out strong and it was great team effort.”

Brett Mecrones picked up the third goal for Medford, wristing the puck home from the left circle with just three minutes remaining in the game.

The Mustangs will face the winner of Thursday night’s game between Chelmsford and Arlington Catholic.

After recording only one win a year ago, the Crimson Tide had a monumental turn around, going 13-6-2 and earning their first tournament berth since 2003.

"We have a core of five seniors that really changed everything for us this year," said Naumann. "I’m grateful for them because they got me back to this place and its’ fun to be here as a coach. I’m very proud of every single one of them.”

In the latest episode of High School Weekly, Jon Meterparel and Kelly Emerson have the story on BC High goalie Peter Cronin, who Eagles coach John Flaherty calls the backbone of his team. Cronin sports a 1.940 goals against average in 17 games this season for the 10-5-5 Eagles. BC High opens play in the Super 8 tournament Sunday against Hingham.

High School Sports Weekly profiles the student-athletes from around the region who make high school athletics so compelling. Check out High School Weekly on Facebook.

Matthew J. Lee / Globe Staff

The Globe's Matthew J. Lee took a number of photographs from Monday night's play-in games at Lawler Arena at Merrimack College, featuring Central Catholic-Burlington and St. John's of Shrewsbury-Needham. You can find all of his photos in a photo gallery we've started for the Super 8 tournament. We'll update the gallery as the tournament gets going again Sunday.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

To get you ready for the Monday night Super 8 play-in games, here is a look at the competition, as well as information on how they fared against common opponents and fellow Super 8 teams this season.

Both games will be played at Merrimack College’s Lawler Arena.

St. John’s Shrewsbury vs. Needham, 5:45 p.m.
No. 9 St. John’s (15-4-3) – Twenty goal scorers Kevin Emmerling (24) and Vin D’Amato (22) create one of the most potent 1-2 offensive punches in the state. The defense is backed by a fleet of underclassmen with Andrew Smith providing the senior leadership for the group. Sophomore Mario Pizzeri has gotten the bulk of the work between the pipes, posting a 2.87 goals against average that will need to be tighter for them to move on. Thankfully for the Pioneers it has been of late, as St. John’s went 7-0 down the stretch, allowing only seven goals while posting three shutouts. The last time the Pioneers were in the Super 8 was back in 2003 when they lost a play-in game to Chelmsford. But despite it being nine years since their last appearance, head coach Brian Murphy, now in his 29th season, will certainly have his guys ready to go in this one.
No. 8 Needham (16-4-1) – The Rockets are a senior-laden squad that is well balanced in all aspects of the game. Forwards D.J. Walsh (15 goals, 19 assists) and Lucas Davis (17 goals, 13 assists) led the Bay State League champions in points this season, on a team that potted 89 total goals. Don’t let Timmy Parlato’s size fool you on defense. He is a force who can score goals (9) while throwing the body around with reckless abandon. In net Connor Murray has been solid, posting four shutouts for a team that allowed four goals in a game only two times this year. The Rockets made the Super 8 as the No. 6 seed last season and went 0-2-1 in pool play. Bill Guisti is about as amicable a coach as there is on the scene, but more importantly he knows his team belongs in the field of eight and will do everything to make sure they get there.

RECORDS VS. COMMON OPPONENTS (scores)
Coyle & Cassidy: SJ 1-0-0 (8-2); N 1-0-0 (3-1)
Springfield Cathedral: SJ 0-0-2 (2-2 & 3-3); N 0-1-1 (1-0)
Xavier, Conn.: SJ 2-0-0 (5-3 & 6-2); N 0-0-1 (3-3)
Xaverian: SJ 2-0-0 (7-5 & 3-1); N 1-0-0 (3-0)

RECORDS VS. SUPER 8 TEAMS
St. John’s : 0-3-3
Needham: 0-2-0

Central Catholic vs. Burlington, 8:15 p.m.
No. 10 Central Catholic (12-3-5) - These two teams are more than familiar with the play-in game, having both been there twice over the last three Super 8 tournaments. The Raiders have much to boast about coming out of a very strong MVC/DCL Div. 1 as league champs. Seniors Ryan Daigle and Jake Donahue have lived up to their roles as team captains this season. This is a team that doesn’t score a ton, having 69 goals on the season, but they do have a knack for holding leads once they get them. The difference maker for Central Catholic is goalie Kyle Williams, who is considered by many to be one of the best netminders in the state when he is on. Cool, calm and collected, the senior is capable of single-handedly stealing a game. The Raiders took out St. Mary’s in a play-in game a year ago, but did not advance past pool play after going 1-2. Coach Mike Jankowski is excited to have his team in this position and feels that they can go as Williams goes.
No. 7 Burlington (14-1-6) – The Red Devils can score in bunches, having netted five or more goals in ten games this year. Junior Joe Berardi leads the bunch with 22 goals while seniors Brett Romkey and Trevor Cimino have 17 apiece. C.J. Grinnell is a dynamic player with quickness who can do damage if he gets behind the opposing defense. Derek DeCastro has been a rock in net, posting a 1.83 goals against average to go with 3 shutouts. If the junior goalie gets hot and the offense continues to click after outscoring their last four opponents 25-9, then the Red Devils will do damage. The last time Burlington was in the Super 8 was in 2010 when they lost a play-in game to Xaverian in a shootout. Head coach Bob Conceison picked up his 300th win earlier this season and would certainly love to add a few more over the coming weeks.

RECORDS VS. COMMON OPPONENTS (scores)
Chelmsford: CC 2-0-0 (5-3 & 4-3); B 1-0-0 (7-3)

RECORDS VS. SUPER 8 TEAMS
Central Catholic: 0-1-0
Burlington: 0-0-0

Malden Catholic will defend its Super 8 title as the No. 1 seed in this year's tournament. (Barry Chin / Globe Staff)

The MIAA decided the final teams in this year's Super 8 boys ice hockey tournament, unanimously voting the Globe's No. 1 team and the tournament's defending champion Malden Catholic as the No. 1 seed.

Here are the seeds:

1. Malden Catholic (15-1-4)
2. St. Mary’s (18-0-3)
3. St. John’s Prep (13-5-2)
4. Hingham (16-4-2)
5. BC High (10-5-5)
6. Springfield Cathedral (10-6-6)
7. Burlington (14-1-6)
8. Needham (16-4-1)
9. St. John's Shrewsbury (15-4-3)
10. Central Catholic (12-3-5)

Seed Nos. 7-10 will play in play-in games on Monday at Merrimack College to determine which teams are in the final eight of the tournament. Needham will face St. John's Shrewsbury at 5:45 p.m. before Burlington faces Central Catholic at 8:15 p.m.

For more information on the Super 8 tournament, visit the Super 8 central on Boston.com.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

With just one last day of the regular season left, Thursday night provided some teams with their final chances to impress the selection committee before the Super 8 teams are chosen on Saturday.

The Springfield Cathedral Tournament carried the bulk of the Super 8 action on Thursday night, starting with No. 9 Needham (16-4-1) pulling out a 4-3 shootout victory over Hamden, Connecticut in the consolation game. For the sake of records it will go down as a 3-3 tie, putting the Rockets on the very bubble of things after an 0-1-1 showing out west.

No. 11 Springfield Cathedral (10-6-6) was unable to take down top-ranked Malden Catholic (15-1-4) in the championship game of their own tournament and based on history they may not get a Super 8 bid, as only one non-Catholic Conference team (St. John’s Shrewsbury in 2000) has made it with less than 12 wins. Add to that a tie against Division 3 Longmeadow and a combo of twelve wins and losses and the Panthers should start getting ready for some Division 1 South action next week.

Down on the Cape, No. 8 BC High (10-5-5) finally took down a team in regulation to earn their tenth win of the season with a 3-1 victory over Archbishop Williams that earned them the Cape Cod Classic title. Now, unlike Springfield Cathedral, the Eagles should get in with their win total, as numerous Catholic Conference teams have in the past. The last team to earn a spot in the Super 8 with only ten wins was Catholic Memorial in 2009, and they were the top seed. There is no way that the Eagles will get that honor, but they may have slid into the secure six based on a very tough schedule.

No. 5 Burlington (14-1-6) rolled over Chelmsford 7-3 in the final of the Cahoon Tournament, which should certainly lock them into the field of ten. Now the committee must determine if their body of work is strong enough for a top six slot. Of the five Middlesex League teams to make the Super 8 in the last three seasons, all were relegated to play-in games.

No. 7 Marshfield (18-2-2) won the South of Boston Shootout with a 4-1 victory over Bridgewater-Raynham. The defending Division 1 champs have been looking to make the jump to the Super 8 since last season ended, but have been met with some skepticism along the way. How about this for their case; they are tied with St. Mary’s for most wins in Division 1 (18), they have a goal differential of +42 and a 1.77 per game goals against average. It they are not selected for at least a play-in game than the Rams will have a very solid gripe on their hands.

LAST CHANCE TO DANCE
No. 12 Westford Academy (13-4-3) vs. No. 18 Milton (16-3-2), Fri., 8 p.m. (Irish American Shootout) - It may not be enough for either team, since all other contenders are securely parked in the garage...but it's nice to think that the final game of the regular season will have some bearing on the final decision making process.

By Hannah Becker, Globe Correspondent

Latin Academy made it five city titles in a row as the Dragons defeated East Boston, 6-1, in the City League hockey championship at Northeastern’s Matthews Arena.

Yesterday’s contest marked the fifth consecutive year Latin Academy and East Boston squared off in the title game, with the Dragons taking each of those match-ups. At 5-11-1, the Dragons had an up and down season, making the City Championship title even more meaningful for their team.

‘‘It is nice,’’ said coach Bob McCormick. ‘‘The guys think about this game in particular throughout the whole season. It’s nice to play a team that played up really well at Fenway, so we expected a tough game.’’

The Jets were only able to dress eight skaters, making fatigue a factor in their performance. However, East Boston (4-15) came out strong putting early pressure on Dragon goaltender Shane Finn, but sharp saves from the junior kept the Jets from lighting the lamp.

‘‘We played dump and chase to keep the puck moving, keep the puck down in their zone,’’ said McCormick. ‘‘You have a short bench over there, but I’ll say this much, East Boston played with a lot of heart. So hats off to them.’’

Junior Daniel Moran opened the scoring for the Dragons, sniping a wrist shot past East Boston netminder Sean O’Halloran at 3:08 in the first. Latin Academy followed that up with a second goal just 32 seconds later when Mark Guerard took a nifty pass from Daniel O’Connell and slipped the puck to the back of the net.

Nicholas Mastrogiacomo made it 3-0 with an unassisted play at 8:51. He gained possession in the neutral zone, and then dumped the puck into the offensive end. Without a teammate streaking to pick up the puck, Mastrogiacomo followed his own dump in and regained possession. He wristed a shot from the left corner that soared past O’Halloran into the upper right corner of the net. The Dragons took the 3-0 lead into the first intermission.

Latin Academy came out pressuring to open the second period. They netted their fourth goal, at 2:59 when Paul O’Keefe bounced the puck in for the goal. Again, the Dragons scored two in a short span as Kevin Sweeney roofed the wrist shot 1:30 after O’Keefe’s goal, giving Latin Academy a 5-0 lead.

Frustration began to show for East Boston midway through the second period, as the game got chippy.

‘‘It was emotions,’’ McCormick said. ‘‘You have a state championship on the line, you have seniors our there. For some of them, this is the last time they are going to lace them up. It’s nice to see kids playing with emotions.’’

They took three quick penalties, giving Latin Academy the 2-man advantage. Despite the shorthanded situation, East Boston’s Patrick Sullivan took his frustration out in the form of speed, skating end to end with the puck, dekeing out a Dragon defender and netting the Jets’ first goal of the game with a wrist shot Finn had no chance of saving. Latin Academy led 5-1 at the second intermission.

Strong defense from O’Halloran and his East Boston teammates kept the Dragons off the board for most of the first 10 minutes of the third period, but it wasn’t enough as Moran netted his second goal of the game at 9:51, giving Latin Academy the 6-1 lead.

Third-ranked St. Mary's continued its hot streak on Wednesday night at Nashoba Valley Olympia, shutting out previously undefeated Acton-Boxboro, 2-0, in a potential state championship preview.

Kaleigh Finigan and Brittani Lanzilli each found the back of the net for the Spartans (17-3-1), who handed the second-ranked Colonials (17-1-2) their first loss of the season.

The Spartans recorded their third consecutive shutout and are now unbeaten in their last eight contests.

From the puck-drop both defenses looked on their game, as the first period came to a close without either team finding the back of the net.

The Spartans ratcheted up the intensity in the second period, putting 12 shots on Colonial net-minder, Cali Loblundo. The extra pressure paid off with 2:55 remaining in the quarter, when Hannah Quin found a streaking Finigan, who beat a diving Loblundo to give the Spartans a 1-0 edge.

Early in the third the Spartans struck again. This time Alison Butler made the key pass, finding Lanzilli near the blue line for a break-a-way strike to give St. Mary's a commanding 2-0 advantage.

Holy-Cross bound Kati Goguen did her best to keep the Colonial's chances alive in the third period, just missing the back of the net with a slapper with 3:18 to play.

St. Mary's has played big when it's counted most this season. Since Dec. 21 the Spartans are 7-0-1 against teams in the girls' hockey Top 20.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Wednesday was a flurry of activity on the ice and many from the “Super 8 Watch List” were out trying to prove their worth, with mixed results.

So with only two days left in the regular season, we do have some questions answered, while many more remain to be determined, which should lead to a fantastic finish of a fantastic season.

SHOOTOUT SHUTS ONE OUT

Three of the teams in the Irish American Shootout came in as bubble-busters hoping to improve their case while getting a little help along the way.

No. 12 Westford Academy (13-4-3) kept their hopes alive by taking down Billerica, 4-2, in game one of the shootout. They will get the very last chance to impress the judges as they play in the 8 p.m. final of on Friday night, which turns out to be the final game of all of the regular season.

They will be joined in that affair by No. 18 Milton (16-3-2) , who has flown under the radar much of the way, but has now included themselves in the Super 8 conversation after taking down Woburn, 4-2. It may be hard to make a rock-solid case for the Wildcats, but a win over Westford would make Saturday morning’s debate a bit more lively.

No. 13 Woburn (12-5-3) looks to be out of it for good now after an up-and-down season that saw them back in the mix after taking down Middlesex Large champs Reading last Saturday.

LOCKED AND LOADED

The following teams should be firmly locked in to the Super 8 at this point.

No. 1 Malden Catholic (14-1-4) took a 3-3 tie against Hamden, Connecticut in the first round of the Springfield Cathedral Tournament, but that won’t affect them at all, especially since Ara Nazarian, who scored an OT game-winner against St. Mary’s over the holiday season, advance the Lancers to the final with another overtime.

No. 2 St. Mary’s (18-1-3) finished their season with the most wins of any team in Division 1 after stomping Weymouth 10-2 on senior night.

No. 3 St. John’s Prep (13-5-3) capped their regular season with a 9-0 blanking of Bishop Fenwick in their senior night.

No. 4 Hingham (16-4-2) pulled off a tight 3-2 victory over Arlington Catholic in the Cape Cod Classic, their final game of the regular season. The good news is that the win came in front of Cougars coach Dan Shine, who just-so-happens to head the Super 8 selection committee.

No. 6 Central Catholic (12-3-5) should have sealed their place in the tourney after winding up their season with a 3-2 win over No. 17 Acton-Boxboro that won them the MVC/DCL Division 1 title during a particularly up year for the league.

SOMETHING TO PROVE

The following teams have made a solid case, but may just need a little bit more to seal the deal.

No. 7 Marshfield (17-2-2) won their second straight game in the South of Boston Shootout with a 4-2 victory over Xaverian, setting them up for a showdown against hosts Bridgewater-Raynham tomorrow night in the championship game. A win in that game may secure their spot, but pundits are weary of the Rams chances.

No. 9 Needham (16-4-0) and No. 10 Springfield Cathedral (10-5-6) were both looking for a quality win to make a stronger case for themselves. The Panthers and Rockets battled in the first round of the Springfield Cathedral Tournament, and the hosts came out on top with a hard-fought 1-0 victory. A win for the Panthers in tomorrow’s title game against the mighty-Lancers will certainly put them in. Needham may have been stung by the loss since it was close one against a solid squad, but a win against Hamden wouldn’t hurt their case.

THURSDAYS GAMES
The following are games featuring Super 8 contenders:

• Hamden, Conn. vs. No. 9 Needham, 5 p.m. (Springfield Cathedral Tournament)
• No. 8 BC High (9-5-5) vs. Archbishop Williams, 5 p.m. (Cape Cod Classic)
• No. 1 Malden Catholic vs. No. 10 Springfield Cathedral, 7 p.m. (Springfield Cathedral Tournament)
• No. 7 Marshfield vs. Bridgewater-Raynham, 8 p.m. (South of Boston Shootout)

Ian Speliotis (19) and Cam MacDonald (12) accounted for the Westford Academy goals. (Craig Forde)

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Westford Academy (13-4-3) kept their foot wedged in the door of the Super 8 conversation with a 4-2 victory over Billerica on Wednesday night in Woburn.

"That's a very big win for us," said Westford head coach Bob Carpenter.

The No. 12 Grey Ghosts went down early to the Indians in the opening game of the Irish American Shootout at O’Brien Rink, but managed to bounce back quickly, getting two first period goals from sophomore Cam MacDonald to take a 2-1 lead into the first intermission.

"[The first line] just has an unbelievable knack of knowing where the other guys is," said Carpenter. "When [Billerica] scored that first one it got us down a little."

Midway through the second period, the Indians knotted the game at two when Conor Kelly ripped a shot blocker-side on Zach Webert, which is where the score would remain until the third period.

Just three minutes into the final frame, Cam MacDonald notched his third goal of the game, which would stand as the game-winner.

A couple of minutes later, MacDonald would find Ian Speliotis for a 4-2 lead with under ten minutes to play and the Grey Ghosts defense took care of the rest, advancing them to the finals against Milton on Friday night at 8:00 p.m.

"We'd love to get there," said Carpenter of his team's Super 8 chances. "We're going right down to it. We think we're deserving, as many other clubs do. Friday night will be a big night for whoever comes out of that with a win."

Milton's Paul Curran (19) and Woburn's Casey Shea (10) take the opening face off. (Craig Forde)

In the second game of the night, No. 18 Milton (16-3-2) surprised Woburn in their own building and put a little heat of their own on the Super 8 selection committee with a strong 4-2 victory on Wednesday night.

"I'm not going to say we don't get any respect," said Milton coach Paul Noonan. "This was big for us to maybe start having people talk a little about Milton."

The No. 13 Tanners (12-5-3) played the game without their top defense pair of Adam Tanner and Jake Secatore and the Wildcats took full advantage of it, outplaying Woburn at almost every turn.

Paul Curran got things going for the Wildcats when he skated up the right wing on a shorthanded bid and buried it past Jeremy Flibotte for a 1-0 lead just two minutes into the game.

The Tanners got back at it when Colin Flynn carried the play up the right side, making a great move to pull a defender out of the play at the blue line, and tossed a tape-to-tape pass to Danny Holland on the left side of the net to tie the game at one.

In the second period the Milton attack was insufferable, throwing 16 shots on net and getting two power play goals from Terrance Walsh and Brian Higgins.

"The boys came out in the second period playing hard," said Noonan. "I got a lot seniors and they take charge and they do a nice job."

Despite Joe Connors notching a power play goal of his own to tie the game at two, the Tanners never got any closer and the Wildcats maintained a one goal lead heading into the last fifteen minutes.

As play wound on in the third period, Woburn was unable to mount an attack that sustained any serious pressure and when Paul Curran stole the puck and snapped home his second goal of the game with six minutes to play, the wind was knocked out of the hosts.

"He's all heart, all the time," said Noonan of Curran. "He's been like this since he was a freshman, but what you don't see is how smart he is. All of his decisions seem to be the best one at that particular time."

Milton seems to be peaking at just the right time, winning their eighth straight game and running their Division 1 leading goal total to 114 on the year.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

After tonight’s games we are down to just three more days of regular season play.

Two teams on the “Super 8 Watch List” hit the ice tonight trying to add another peg to their climb towards the elite boys hockey tourney.

No. 5 Burlington (13-1-6) hosted Medford in the first round of the 20th annual Ed Cahoon Tournament. They have won this tourney five straight years, and will get a chance at six straight after taking down the Mustangs 6-1. Chelmsford should provide solid competition for the Red Devils in the final of the Cahoon on Thursday night, which will ultimately help their seeding should they come away with a victory.

Also on the ice Tuesday was No. 12 Westford Academy (12-4-3), who has a busy week ahead with two more games to be played as part of the Irish American Shootout in Woburn. Tonight they easily dispatched of Masconomet, 5-2. The Grey Ghosts are probably on the outside looking in right now, especially after last Saturday’s loss to No. 17 Acton-Boxboro, but they are not our of it yet and will push the selection committee should they win our.

Ten Super 8 contenders are in action on Wednesday:

• Arlington Catholic vs. No. 4 Hingham (15-4-2), 5 p.m. (Cape Cod Classic)
• Xaverian vs. No. 7 Marshfield (16-2-2), 5 p.m. (South of Boston Shootout)
• No. 12 Westford Academy vs. Billerica, 6 p.m. (Irish American Shootout)
• No. 1 Malden Catholic (14-1-3) vs. Hamden, Conn., 6:10 p.m. (Springfield Cathedral Tournament)
• Acton-Boxboro vs. No. 6 Central Catholic (11-3-5), 7 p.m.
• Milton vs. No. 13 Woburn (12-4-3), 8 p.m. (Irish American Shootout)
• Bishop Fenwick vs. No. 3 St. John’s Prep (12-5-2), 8 p.m.
• No. 9 Needham (16-3-0) vs. No. 10 Springfield Cathedral (9-5-6), 8:10 p.m. (Springfield Cathedral Tournament)
• Weymouth vs. No. 2 St. Mary’s (17-1-3), 8:30 p.m.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The last week of the regular season kicked off with some all-day action across the region on Monday.

Six teams with their sights on the Super 8, including one looking to simply keep their playoff aspirations alive, got down to business in an effort to get to the promised land.

No. 4 Hingham (15-4-2) was in early action against Duxbury in the Cape Cod Classic and came away with a 3-0 shutout of the Dragons. Despite going 2-2-1 in their last five, the Harbormen have only allowed seven goals in that span (five in one game versus No. 1 Malden Catholic) and are a lock for the Super 8. Their last regular season game will be on the final day of the Cape Cod Classic this Wednesday versus Arlington Catholic.

Early in the afternoon No. 6 Central Catholic (11-3-5) tied No. 19 Catholic Memorial (7-8-3), 1-1. In the process, the once-mighty Knights were eliminated from postseason contention for the second straight season after making it 27 consecutive years, which included 13 Super 8 titles. The tie will most likely help the Raiders chances of nailing down a slot, but one important game remains against No. 17 Acton-Boxboro on Wednesday, with the MVC/DCL Division 1 title on the line.

No. 8 BC High (9-5-5) notched their second straight tie, 2-2, versus Austin Prep, but ultimately won the game via shootout, their second straight shootout victory. They have gone 0-2-2 over their last four games as they head into the Cape Cod Classic final against Archbishop Williams on Wednesday. The Eagles should be locked in to the Super 8, but will this end-of-season stumble keep them out of the top six secure spots or will they fall to a play-in game? A solid win on Wednesday, and not via shootout, might give them reason to exhale a bit.

No. 14 Reading (12-4-6), who stormed into the big picture after a win over BC High last week, most likely had the door shut on their Super 8 chances for good following a 2-2 tie against Andover. Most would say their loss to No. 13 Woburn this past Saturday did them in, but this one probably hammered the nail home on their Super 8 hopes.

No. 10 St. John's Shrewsbury (15-4-3) capped off their regular season with a 3-0 win over Shrewsbury, their fifth straight victory. The Pioneers have hovered in the mix for pretty much the whole season, but some have questioned their out-of-state schedule and they have been unable to take down any of the top-tier opponents. They may need a little help in making sure they are tied into the Super 8 for sure, and they may just get that as we move forward during a busy week of action.

Here are a list of contenders who will hit the ice on Tuesday:

Medford at No. 5 Burlington, 7:10 p.m. (Cahoon Tournament)
Masconmet at No. 12 Westford Academy, 7:45 p.m.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

It just got a whole lot more interesting thanks to a frantic weekend of action that shook things up a bit heading into the final week of regular season play.

The jockeying for position is in full effect as teams fight and scrape for those final points, as was evident Saturday when everyone was in action and no one was safe.

The following are the Super 8 projections through all games played on Saturday:

1. Malden Catholic (14-1-3) – Don’t expect them to relinquish the top seed, even in the face of the upcoming Springfield Cathedral Tournament which the Lancers will look at as the perfect postseason primer.

2. St. Mary’s (17-1-3) – With only one loss on the season, the Spartans still possess the best winning percentage in Division 1, so one tight tie against Marshfield won’t budge them. That and the fact that everyone under them stumbled throughout the week.

3. St. John’s Prep (12-5-2) – Being down 5-1 against Springfield Cathedral was not a pretty sight, especially when they pulled goalie David Letarte to start the third period. But boy did they ever wake up in the final five minutes to pull off a miraculous tie and show every team out there that no lead is big enough.

4. Hingham (14-4-2) – Their brutal schedule has caught up to them a bit as they are 1-1-2 after rattling off a 12-0-1 prior to losing to Malden Catholic. The good news is that they have already solidified their spot in the tourney and with the other teams tripping-up just the same, the Harbormen stay put.

5. Burlington (11-1-6) – They shook off a four-game tie streak with a heady 7-1 takedown of Watertown and followed that up by winning the Middlesex League Small title after defeating Wilmington on Saturday. They are securely in.

6. Central Catholic (11-3-4) – The MVC/DVL Div. 1 has stepped up as one of the best leagues this season with five teams postseason eligible, so their loss against Andover is not a huge dent in the armor. In more compelling news, they will have their first shot at knocking Catholic Memorial out of the postseason on Monday.

7. BC High (9-5-4) – A loss to Reading and a tie to Hingham keeps the Eagles stumbling to the finish line. They can only hope that the shootout victory that picked up against Hingham (because the game is part of the Cape Cod Classic) gives them some real momentum.

8. Marshfield (15-2-2) – When is a tie a win? If ever a tie could turn into something major, it may have for the Rams in the case of Saturday’s draw against No. 2 St. Mary’s. Time will tell if it holds up alongside the rest of their work.

9. Needham (16-3-0) – They took care of business in their only game of the week against Newton North and have a week off to prepare for the Springfield Cathedral tournament, in which they play the hosts on Wednesday.

10. St. John’s Shrewsbury (13-4-3) – A three-win week keeps the Pioneers on an even plane. Will two ties against Springfield Cathedral and one against St. John’s Prep help them out at all?

BUBBLE

11. Springfield Cathedral (9-5-6) –I have no idea where that tie against the Prep leaves them. Did the collapse in the final five minutes of that game seal their fate one way or the other? It is highly possible that the combo of 11 losses and ties puts them on the outside looking in.

12 (tie). Reading (12-4-5) The Rockets stay at No. 12, with plenty of company, because of their huge win over BC High earlier in the week. Of course, as my mom always said when I dropped food on the floor, "expect company." With Reading's loss to Woburn, they've got it!

12 (tie). Westford (11-3-3) – After keeping them off the bubble last week, they jump into the fray despite catching a tough loss against No. 20 Acton-Boxboro at the end of the week.

12 (tie). Woburn (12-4-3) - Inserted themselves back into the mix by taking out Reading 3-1. They were our preseason No. 4 for a reason.

Next Saturday the votes will be tallied and the seeds finalized and we’ll be sure to keep you on top of all the action up to and through the tournament selections.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

As the end of the regular season nears, the postseason picture continues to intensify in Division 1 as the top few slots in the Top 20 switch for the last time.

The biggest decision-makers came this week after No. 3 Woburn missed its chance to avenge No. 6 Belmont in a 3-3 tie.

No. 4 St. Mary's was bumped up a spot after tying No. 1 Duxbury, 2-2, the first team to do so this season. St. Mary's has cultivated itself into the strong contender it has been the past decade, but regardless, this year is going to be a tough call. No. 5 Walpole hit a big win over No. 11 Norwood, 5-1, in the Bay State Herget matchup keeping the team in the top five.

With the exception of No. 9 Lexington moving up the ladder after capitalizing on a 4-1 victory over Belmont, the rest of the Top 20 teams dropped a notch after nearly every team suffered a lost this week.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The Massachusetts State Hockey Coaches Association released their latest "Super 8 Watch List" on Sunday morning. The list was reduced from 27 teams to 18 heading into the final week of the regular season, and that list will ultimately be paired down to the final ten teams (with the bottom four teams getting matched up for play-in games) by Saturday morning.

Barnstable (13-3-1)
BC High (9-5-4)
Burlington (12-1-6)
Catholic Memorial (7-8-2)
Central Catholic (11-3-4)
Hingham (14-4-2)
Malden Catholic (14-1-3)
Marshfield (15-2-2)
Milton (15-3-2)
Needham (16-3-0)
Norwood (14-3-4)
Reading (12-4-5)
St. John’s Prep (12-5-2)
St. John’s (S) (14-4-3)
St. Mary’s of Lynn (17-1-3)
Springfield Cathedral ( 9-5-6)
Westford Academy (11-4-3)
Woburn (12-4-3)

Eliminated from the initial watch list were: Andover (10-6-2), Arlington Catholic (9-6-4), Boston Latin (13-2-4), Braintree (11-6-2), Canton (14-1-2), Chelmsford (12-5-2), Falmouth (11-4-5), Franklin (14-2-2), Wilmington (10-4-5).

By Andrew MacDougall, Globe Correspondent

Rachel Myette stopped all 26 shots she faced and three underclassmen netted goals for Duxbury as the defending Division 2 state champions upended defending Division 1 state champion Hingham, 3-0, at Pilgrim Skating Arena Wednesday night.

“Our girls were really up for this game,” said Duxbury coach Friend Weiler. “I feel our defense played really strong. Just moved the puck well. Got it up to the forwards, and capitalized on our opportunities. We knew you don’t get that many opportunities against a team like Hingham, but I’m glad we were able to convert when we needed to.”

With less than seven minutes to play in the first period, Duxbury’s Caroline Shaunessy carried the puck in the offensive zone before being forced behind the Hingham net. Shaunessy passed the puck to fellow defenseman Ally Hammel at the blue line, who tucked a slap shot past Hingham netminder Taylor Walsh just inside the right post for an early 1-0 lead.

“[Hammel] had a nice, low, hard shot on net, and that’s what we worked on in practice,” said Weiler, “just getting it on net and getting traffic in front, and she did exactly what we were asking of her all week long.”

The Dragons stretched their lead to two just over a minute into the second. Shaunessy squeezed a pass through Hingham’s defense to freshman forward Meredith Wright, who was on a breakaway. Walsh was able to come up with the save, but the rebound was stuffed home by freshman Jane Dudley for the 2-0 lead.

The Harbormen had their chances in the second period. Hingham had the opportunity to capitalize on three consecutive Dragon penalties, but Duxbury’s aggressive defense kept Jane Freda, Samantha Ryder, and the rest of the potent Hingham offense chasing the puck down in their own end.

“Our penalty killers did a phenomenal job,” said Weiler. “Jacqui Nolan and Liz Collins, Martha Findley and Caroline Shaunessy, they really did an excellent job just hitting them back and not giving them an inch when they were trying to come into the zone. I was happy with the way our special teams worked tonight.

The Dragons added an empty net goal by freshman Marissa Fitcher with less than 20 seconds remaining to seal the victory, and lock up Myette’s fifth shutout of the season.

The Dragons (16-0) will continue their quest for perfection with a home game against perennial power St. Mary’s of Lynn this Saturday at 5:15, while the Harbormen (12-5-1) will look to right the ship with a home game against Braintree Saturday at 1.

Central Catholic goalie Kyle Williams turned aside 19 shots and came up big down the stretch to preserve a 4-3 victory. (Craig Forde)

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The Central Catholic hockey team carried a three-goal lead into the third period on Wednesday night and seemed to be in full control, but a late Chelmsford push fell just short, allowing the Raiders to escape with a 4-3 win at Chelmsford Forum.

“You got to give them a lot of credit,” said Central Catholic coach Mike Jankowski. “We knew coming into their rink that it was going to be that kind of contest.”

The fifth-ranked Raiders (11-2-4, 7-1-2) struck first when Zack Cote banged home a Ryan Daigle pass on the left doorstep for the only goal of the first period, due in large part to the leather of Lions goalie Derek Noble (25 saves) who made some spectacular glove saves.

“He held them in early,” said Jankowski of Noble. “In the second period we got a little bit of space.”

Central Catholic used the power play to add to their lead three minutes into the second period as Daigle unloaded a shot just past the left circle that found its way past the blocker of Noble for a 2-0 lead.

Less than a minute later Mike Hovnanian stole a puck and raced in with a defender on him, but managed to slide his shot right side for a goal and a 3-0 Raiders lead.

The Lions (11-5-2, 5-4-2) never relented and Billy Kamenides found Matt Winter for a bang-bang goal with three minutes left in the period to put Chelmsford on the board.

The Raiders would get their three goal lead back before the end of the period when Alex Lester picked off a pass at the blue line and skated into the slot, wristing a shot glove side for a 4-1 lead.

Just three minutes into the third period Tommy Bishop gave Chelmsford the momentum when he unloaded a blast high and tight for his 14th goal of the season, pulling the Lions within two.

With under five minutes to go, sophomore Danny Ferri carried the play through the neutral zone and over the blue line, and with no defender in his line of fire he unloaded a long shot that found the back of the net and made the score 4-3.

The Raiders made things tough for Chelmsford to gain the extra attacker as time ticked away, but the Lions were able to get a faceoff in the Central Catholic zone with 18 seconds remaining, allowing them to get six guys on the attack.

As the puck dropped Central Catholic cleared the zone, but the game clock never started back up and play was halted with the referees deciding to remove just ten seconds off the clock while having another draw in the Raiders zone.

A quick shot off the faceoff was turned aside by Kyle Williams (19 saves) and pushed into the corner where time ran out on the Lions.

Central Catholic has now won five straight games and is 8-0-3 since a 4-0 loss to third-ranked St. John’s Prep back on January 7th.

The win puts the Raiders in first place of the Merrimack Valley/Dual County League Division 1 by one point over Westford Academy.

“It’s nice to have all the teams moving up to the top of the chain within our division because we haven’t seen that for a while,” said Jankowski of his league which has had five teams qualify for the postseason. “I’m glad to have it all back.”

Central Catholic has two league games to play against Andover (Saturday) and Acton-Boxboro (February 22nd), and one non-league game versus No. 15 Catholic Memorial (Monday).

In the latest episode of High School Weekly, the team at Element Productions profiles Bishop Feehan defenseman Chris McGrath.

High School Sports Weekly profiles the student-athletes from around the region who make high school athletics so compelling. Check out High School Weekly on Facebook.

At No. 1 in the Globe Top 20, Malden Catholic is likely to be the No. 1 seed in the Super 8 tournament. (Barry Chin / Globe Staff)

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

With just a little more than a week remaining in the regular season, it’s time to sit down and take a look at the possible Super 8 participants this season. The following are projections on how things might shake out based on where we are right now, keeping in mind of course, that there are still some big games to be played.

No. 1 – Malden Catholic (13-1-3)
Why they’re in – The defending champs are a lock for the top seed once again. Their offense is obviously talented, especially when their top three lines are running full tilt, which is almost always the case. However the unsung unit here is a slot-clogging defense that continues to hold opponents to under 20 shots a game thanks to the efforts of Casey Fitzgerald and Brendan White,.
Key wins – St John’s Prep (2), BC High, St. Mary’s, Hingham, Catholic Memorial
Remaining schedule – 2/18 at Framingham; 2/22 vs Hamden, Conn. (Springfield Cathedral Tournament); 2/23 vs. No. 10 Springfield Cathedral or No. 9 Needham (Springfield Cathedral Tournament).

No. 2 – St. Mary’s (16-1-2)
Why they’re in – The Spartans are having a monster year and deserve to be in this slot having already nailed down the Catholic Central league. They have a goal differential of 54 and their only loss of the season came in their very first game against No. 1 Malden Catholic, a loss which they nearly avenged in a 3-3 tie at the end of December.
Key wins – Springfield Cathedral, Hingham, Arlington Catholic (2)
Remaining schedule – 2/15 vs. Archbishop Williams; 2/18 at No. 7 Marshfield; 2/22 vs. Weymouth.

No. 3 – St. John’s Prep (11-5-1)
Why they’re in – Do not let the five losses fool you. This is a team that is surging at the right time and they carry with them one of the best first lines around in Sam Kurker, Brian Pinho and Tyler Bird. If goalie David Letarte plays like he did last year in the Super 8, the Prep will be tough to beat.
Key wins – BC High, Central Catholic, Hingham
Remaining schedule – 2/15 at Framingham; 2/18 vs. No. 10 Springfield Cathedral; 2/22 vs. Bishop Fenwick.

No. 4 – Hingham (13-4-1)
Why they’re in – Early in the season, head coach Tony Messina talked about the inexperience of his defense. But they turned out to be mighty quick learners and now the 2010 Super 8 champs are in great position after dealing with one of the hardest schedules around.
Key wins – Marshfield, Needham, Catholic Memorial, Reading, Westford
Remaining schedule – 2/15 at Coyle & Cassidy; 2/18 vs. No. 6 BC High (Cape Cod Classic); 2/20 vs. TBA (Cape Cod Classic); 2/22 vs. TBA (Cape Cod Classic).

No. 5 – Central Catholic (10-2-4)
Why they’re in – The consistency of the Raiders has put them firmly in the Super 8 discussion. They have gone 10 straight games since their last loss back on Jan. 7 and a strong finish against some tough competition could justify them in the fifth slot.
Key wins – Westford, Arlington Catholic, Tewksbury
Remaining schedule – 2/15 at Chelmsford; 2/18 vs. Andover; 2/20 at No. 15 Catholic Memorial; 2/22 vs. #20 Acton-Boxboro.

No. 6 – BC High (9-4-3)
Why they’re in – Although probably deserving of a higher seed, the Eagles have run into a 3-3-3 stretch over their last nine games that has them stumbling. Goalie Peter Cronin made a name for himself in the Super 8 last season and once again has BC High with their eyes on the prize.
Key wins – St. John’s – Shrewsbury (2), St. John’s Prep, Springfield Cathedral
Remaining schedule – 2/16 at No. 12 Reading; 2/18 vs. No. 4 Hingham (Cape Cod Classic); 2/20 vs. TBA (Cape Cod Classic); 2/22 vs. TBA (Cape Cod Classic).

No. 7 – Marshfield (15-2-1)
Why they’re in – Looking for their first Super 8 appearance in program history, the Rams are looking to make a leap with the big boys after grabbing the Division 1 crown last season. A strong senior class led by Connor McLean and Chris Perry could be the key to the Rams reaching their goal. A Wednesday battle against St. Mary’s will be a great chance for the Rams to add a strong win to a fairly light resume.
Key wins – St. John’s Shrewsbury
Remaining schedule – 2/18 vs. No. 2 St. Mary’s Lynn; 2/20 vs. Barnstable (South of Boston Shootout); 2/22 vs. TBA (South of Boston Shootout); 2/23 vs. TBA (South of Boston Shootout).

No. 8 – Burlington (10-1-6)
Why they’re in – Prior to the start of the season, Woburn head coach Jim Duran pointed to the Red Devils as one of the most dangerous teams in the Middlesex League. He was dead on. Now Burlington stands as the cream of the crop from a league that consistently sends a solid team into the Super 8.
Key wins – Woburn (2), Reading
Remaining schedule – 2/15 vs. Watertown; 2/18 vs. Wilmington; 2/21 vs. Medford (Cahoon Tournament); 2/23 vs. TBA (Cahoon Tournament).

No. 9 – Needham (15-3)
Why they’re in – Slight hiccups along the way have the Rockets a bit lower than expected, having come into the season with high expectations. They seem to have righted the ship and a strong showing in the Springfield Cathedral Tournament will solidify their entry. Senior captain Timmy Parlato has been a huge sparkplug for a defense that has only allowed 25 goals this season and Connor Murray has only allowed two goals over his last three games.
Key wins – Catholic Memorial, Braintree
Remaining schedule – 2/15 at Newton North; 2/22 at No. 10 Springfield Cathedral (Springfield Cathedral Tournament); 2/23 vs. No. 1 Malden Catholic or Hamden, Conn. (Springfield Cathedral Tournament).

No. 10 – Springfield Cathedral (8-5-5)
Why they’re in – Springfield Cathedral followed up a big win over BC High with a tough loss against St. Mary’s, which has been the story of its season. The Panthers can’t seem to put a string of wins together, having gone 1-2-2 over their last five games. Springfield Cathedral may be relegated to the play-in game for the second straight season, but they still have some big games to go before they can lock themselves into anything.
Key wins – BC High, Catholic Memorial
Remaining schedule – 2/16 vs. East Longmeadow; 2/18 at St. John’s Prep; 2/22 vs. No. 9 Needham (Springfield Cathedral Tournament); 2/23 vs. No. 1 Malden Catholic or Hamden, Conn. (Springfield Cathedral Tournament).

THE BUBBLE

No. 11 – St. John’s Shrewsbury (12-4-3)
Why they’re on the bubble – Although they don’t have a ton of Super 8 resume-ready wins under their belt, they do have some big ties against the likes of St. John’s Prep and Springfield Cathedral. They’ll probably need some help to slip into the fray. But if they do, the firepower of Kevin Emmerling (14 goals, 20 assists) and Vin D’Amato (16 goals, 7 assists) could put a scare into opposing defenses.
Key wins – Arlington Catholic
Remaining schedule – 2/15 at Xaverian; 2/18 at Coyle & Cassidy; 2/20 vs. Shrewsbury.

No. 12 – Reading (11-3-4)
Why they’re on the bubble– This spot was a huge toss-up between the Rockets and Westford Academy. Reading takes it, for now, and could make a big jump this week if they can somehow knock off BC High and Woburn. Earlier injury issues have been resolved and while the Rockets were once left for dead, they now cling to hope for a last minute entry into the Super 8 tournament.
Key wins – Woburn, Winchester, Wilmington
Remaining schedule – 2/15 at Arlington; 2/16 vs. No. 6 BC High; 2/18 at No. 13 Woburn; 2/20 at Andover.

By Seth Lakso, Globe Correspondent

Freshman netminder James Offner stopped a career-high 30 shots on Monday night to pick up his fourth career win, as the Sachems (8-7-4) knocked off No. 4 Hingham, 1-0, in Winchester.

The win is the second in row over a ranked opponent for Offner and the Sachems, who defeated No. 13 Woburn, 3-2, on Saturday.

"James is on the small side," said Winchester coach Matt Stang. "He likes to come out and cut down on the angles and is a quick kid. He plays with a lot of poise for freshman and has been on a role as of late."

Senior winger Michael Marx netted the game-winner on the power-play midway through the first period, when he cleaned up the rebound on a shot from the point by Alex Sharp.

Midway through the third period Offner showed his poise, making his best save of the night, sliding to stop a Harbormen (13-4-1) two-on-one attempt.

"That was pretty much Hingham's only quality scoring chance in the third," said Stang. "We did a nice job limiting their scoring chances and clearing the puck out from in front of our net.

"It's nice to finally have some momentum," continued Stang. "We had a couple of tough losses early on and couldn't get over the hump, but in the last few weeks we've kind of figured things out."

The goal was the sixth of the season for Marx, whose team won despite being outshot, 30-16. Offner now has 57 saves in his last two games.

The Sachems must win one of their three remaining games to earn a spot in the state tournament.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The top-ranked Lancers (12-1-3) snapped a 1-1 tie after the first period with four unanswered goals as they took down second-ranked Hingham, 5-1, at Valley Forum II in Malden on Saturday night.

“They’re a very good team, and I think we’ll see them again in the Super 8,” said MC coach John McLean. “We had some chances early that we didn’t bury, but I thought it was a good hockey game.”

Freshman Ara Nazarian opened up the scoring mid-way through the first period when he one-timed a pass from Tyler Sifferlen to make it 1-0.

Three minutes later Hingham (13-3-1) would respond when Matt Brazel powered one home from the slot, snapping it past Connor Maloney to tie the game at one.

Hingham’s physical defense remained tight on the speedier Lancers, but eventually the skill of MC broke through when Ryan Fitzgerald potted one seven minutes into the second period, for what would turn out to be the game-winner.

“They did a good job clogging it up and it was pretty hard to score the first period and a half, but then we finally broke it in,” said Fitzgerald. “They’re a physical team and they tried to get us off our game, which is speed. We just kept at it, kept grinding.”

Malden Catholic continued to wear down the Hingham defense and Mike Iovanna’s power-play goal with five minutes left in the second put the high-scoring Lancers in the right state of mind.

“They packed it in, their goalie played good,” said Fitzgerald. “We were pressuring them a lot, so the goals were going to come.”

Fitzgerald (20 goals) and Nazarian (10 goals) both collected their second goals of the game in the final frame to ice things for the Lancers.

Hingham came into this game with a 12-0-1 mark since going 1-2 to start the season. This was their first loss since Dec. 21 against No. 3 St. Mary’s.

“We had a good effort, good intensity, but against a team like that, you give them one opening and they’re going to take it,” said Hingham coach Tony Messina. “They can score three goals in a shift, so 5-1, I guess we don’t like the score, but I felt like it was closer and we played tough.”

The Lancers were 12-0-2 coming in since their only loss of the season versus Delbarton School (N.J.) back on Dec. 17. Malden Catholic only had one penalty on the night and are clamping down on what was an earlier issue.

“The key word is discipline,” said McLean of his team’s effort to stay out of the box. “There is no reason to take any retialiatory penalties. You take the hit and make the play. We’re a pretty good hockey team, but we’re not good with four guys, we’re good with five.”

Malden Catholic has scored 32 goals over their last six games, notching five or more goals in five of the six games.

“We’re in a good spot right now,” said Fitzgerald. “We have a good shot to repeat if everyone focuses up. I like our chances this year.”

Craig Forde can be reached at cforde@globe.com

By Ayoub Kourikchi, Globe Correspondent

It was a memorable night for senior captains Matt Hughes and James Gordon, as the second-ranked Hingham boys’ hockey team celebrated its senior night by squeezing out a 4-3 victory over No.14 Westford Academy yesterday.

The Harbormen (13-2-1) came out firing for their last home game of the season, outshooting the Grey Ghosts, 38-27.

“It was an important game for the seniors’ careers and we have been performing well at home so it was important to continue that,” said fourth year coach Tony Messina. From the beginning, I think we came out strong and we had good shot selection.”

The Harbormen jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the first period as Hughes scored the initial goal on a wrap-around effort.

Sophomore defensemen John Carlson battered through a screen and wristed one to the back of the net to extend their lead.

The Grey Ghosts (10-3-2) clawed their way back, taking a 3-2 lead in the third after a power-play goal with four minutes left.

“They carried the play in the second period and into the third. They came out real strong. They outshot us,'' said Messina. “[Westford] moves through its neutral zone with speed and they are good at moving the puck out of the zone quickly with long passes.”

With their backs to the wall, the Harbormen responded in resounding fashion, stuffing in two quick goals. Gordon and sophomore center Matt Brazel each scored on rebounds.

The Harbormen outshot the Grey Ghosts, 19-6, in the third period.

“Our defense shut them down pretty good,” said Messina. “We just tried to take away that long pass. They are a good skating team, and they get a lot of speed in the neutral zone. Our defense stood up to them and did not give them too much space.”

The Harbormen face against No. 1 Malden Catholic Saturday at 5:40.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Once again there is little movement across the Top 20, as Malden Catholic (10-1-2) remains atop the latest edition of the boys hockey poll, having monopolized the No. 1 slot since preseason.

No. 5 St. John's Prep (10-5) and No. 3 St. Mary's (14-1-2) swap slots, while No. 8 Woburn (10-3-2) and No. 9 Marshfield (13-2-1) leapfrog Springfield Cathedral (7-4-4) to round out the Top 10.

Catholic Memorial (6-6-1) slides up one spot to No. 11 after a win and a tie. Check out this week's boys' hockey notebook to see what the Knights are up against coming down the stretch.

Following Saturday losses, both Braintree and Chelmsford are knocked out of the Top 20 after making their debuts only one week ago.

Franklin (13-1-1) returns to the list as our 18th ranked team, having outscored their opponents 43-1 in the five games since their only loss of the season back on January 16th.

No. 19 Norwood (12-2-4), also featured in this week's notebook, is our other newcomer after they took down Needham Wednesday in a big Bay State Conference game, then followed that up with a 4-0 win over Dedham Saturday to remain unbeaten (9-0-4) in league play.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

With Woburn having been dealt a stunning 3-2 loss to Wakefield, the now-No. 4 Tanners vacated the top spot to the undefeated defending Division 2 champion Duxbury. The Dragons are the only perfect team in the state, with a 13-game run with no losses or ties and at the rate they are going, it doesn't look like there is much stop them.

Third-ranked Arlington Catholic (15-1-1) saw the same luck with its undefeated run blemished after No. 5 St. Mary's handed the Cougars a 5-2 loss behind Alison Butler and Kaleigh Finigan. The loss bumped unbeaten Acton-Boxboro to No. 2 after beating No. 12 Braintree.

Barnstable dropped to No. 11 after losing to Duxbury, 4-0, and No. 14 Winthrop, 4-1 in the same week. No. 19 Austin Prep put a dent in Hingham, 4-3, to drop the once top-ranked Harborwomen to No. 9.

By Brock Parker, Globe Correspondent

The varsity hockey team at Cambridge Rindge and Latin has been told it must forfeit all but one of its five victories this season because an ineligible student was allowed to play.

The student, whose name has not been released, needed a waiver of what is referred to as the “five-year rule” in which a student’s eligibility to play high school sports expires four years after he or she graduates from the 8th grade, according to MIAA spokesman Paul Wetzel.

But Maryann Cappello, the athletic director for Cambridge Public Schools, said she did not file the waiver application by the Dec. 15 deadline because she became seriously ill on Dec. 13 and was then hospitalized for six days.

By the time Cappello filed the waiver application in January, the student had played in four of the team’s five victories and the MIAA ruled the school had to forfeit those games. The school received word Friday that an appeal of the decision had been denied.

“It’s not their fault,” Cappello said of the team, which has a 5-10 record. “They went out there and they played. It’s on administration, it’s on me. It should have been in on the 15th. I was sick and I wasn’t able to do it.”

Peter Cohen, whose son Byron Cohen is a captain of the hockey team, said forfeiting the games ruins any chance the team has of making the state playoffs this year, and it could also affect individual achievements, such as being one of the top goal scorers in the league.

Cohen wrote a letter to Rindge and Latin School Interim Principal Damon Smith Tuesday asking that the school petition the MIAA on behalf of the hockey team so the games wouldn’t have to be forfeited.

“We feel strongly that the students should not be penalized due to an error that was soley the responsibility of [Cambridge Rindge and Latin School] administration,” Cohen wrote.

Smith did not return a respond to a request for comment Friday, but Cappello said the school did appeal the ruling this week, and was informed this morning that the decision was final.

Wetzel said the MIAA allowed Rindge and Latin to file a late application for the student’s waiver because of Cappello’s illness. But Wetzel said the MIAA did not find there was sufficient reason to grant the request for the fifth-year waiver, and the hockey team must still forfeit any victories in which the ineligible student played.

“It’s over,” Wetzel said of the chances the decision could be overturned.

Cappello said she had become seriously ill in December and had spent time in intensive care before she returned to work on a part-time basis in early January. She said she was trying to catch up with a backlog of work when she returned, and did not remember to file the waiver until she got a call from a guidance counselor.

By then, Cappello said the student’s second quarter grades had been issued and he was no longer academically eligible to be on the team, either.

Prior to his second quarter grades being issued, the student did have the grades to play, Cappello said. But without the waiver for the five-year rule, the student still wasn’t eligible to play, she said.

The team’s first game was Dec. 17, and Cappello said the ineligible student played in a total of 10 games.

Wetzel said the MIAA typically receives about 100 applications per year for waivers of the five-year rule. He said many of the waivers are approved, but he said he would not call the waivers “routine.”

He said Cambridge must now send notice of the forfeits to the teams it beat while fielding the ineligible player.

Cappello said that despite its 5-10 record, the hockey team had still been hoping that it could rally and make the playoffs.

“I feel really, really bad about the situation,” she said.

-brock.globe@gmail.com

By Ryan MacInnis, Globe Correspondent

On Saturday, February 11th, the Wilmington boys’ hockey team will host Melrose at Ristuccia Memorial Arena at 4pm.

The hockey team will show its support for The Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation by wearing pink game jerseys. “We have players on both varsity and JV teams impacted by breast cancer (moms)” said coach Steve Scanlon. “The Hockey has been a great escape and source of support for all of them.”

Wilmington, which started the season 8-3-3, has been rolling as of late led by senior captain Dalton Rolli (15 points).

“We’ve been playing great hockey” said Scanlon. “It will be a great night since our boys have a little something more to play for.”

Donations for “Pink in the Rink” can be made until the end of the game.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

In a crossover matchup of Bay State League division leaders, the upstart Norwood (11-2-4, 8-0-4) boys' hockey team kept its unbeaten league mark intact and put a dent in eighth-ranked Needham's Super 8 resume, with a 4-3 win in Wellesley Wednesday night.

The Mustangs' relentless forecheck from the jump allowed them to frustrate the Rockets into numerous turnovers in the neutral zone.

That early pressure led to early goals as Peter Kelly and Mike Murray scored 35 seconds apart, giving Norwood a 2-0 lead before four minutes had run off the clock.

“To get off on a quick foot like that was good,” said Norwood coach Bill Clifford. “I told our kids to go to the net, get shots on the net, and we’ve been doing that the last few games and it’s paying off for us.”

The Rockets (12-3, 9-2) came out with more purpose in the second period, tightening the reins on defense and creating more plays in the offensive zone.

Chris Lambert put the Rockets on the board at the 7:53 mark, knocking home a bouncing puck on the left doorstep to make it 2-1.

Despite Needham’s continued efforts, the Mustangs were determined to head to the locker room with another two-goal lead when they scored with 1:18 left in the period on a beautiful feed by Tyler Gover (three assists) from behind the net to captain Brendan Cathcart out front, who snapped the puck glove side for a 3-1 lead.

As the period was winding down, Rockets captain Lucas Davis worked the play near the left side of the crease, and with Jordan Davis (21 saves) down to cover his shot, Lucas Davis slid the puck to his right finding James Fisher, who buried it with 12 seconds left in the period.

Once again Norwood got the jump on the Rockets to start the final period and just 2:23 into the frame, Mark Powers worked the puck behind the net, faked to his right, and wrapped the puck in on his left side, putting the Mustangs ahead, 4-2, deflating Needham.

With an extra attacker on the ice, Needham cocaptain Timmy Parlato scored with just 12.6 seconds remaining in the game.

“We did a good job along the boards, our forecheck was good, defense and zone coverage was good,” said Clifford. “They’ve been working hard all year and it’s starting to pay off for them.”

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

With the Catholic Conference title already secured, top-ranked Malden Catholic looked to make a statement against St. John’s Prep, and used a four-goal second period to skate off with a 5-2 victory yesterday at Valley Forum II in Malden.

‘‘It was wonderful winning the Catholic Conference this early,’’ said Malden Catholic coach John McLean. ‘‘There’s not going to be any letdown. We only play one game at a time and just try to get two points each game.’’

The Lancers (9-1-2), who went 6-0-1 in January against Catholic Conference opponents, controlled every aspect of the game from the drop of the puck, but the third-ranked Eagles got on the board first on a Brian Pinho one-timer from Sam Kurker with 2:16 remaining in the first period.

The Lancers continued to mount pressure, which paid off on the power play when Pat Wrenn backhanded home a loose puck in front of the net to even things up 2:13 into the second period.

One minute after breaking David Letarte’s eight-period shutout streak, captain Brendan Collier put Malden Catholic up for good when he wristed home a shot from the slot.

Collier netted his second goal two minutes later, tipping home a blast that Brendan White unleashed from the left point, putting the Lancers up, 3-1.

‘‘It was a big game and we knew we had to come in flying,’’ said Collier. ‘‘We beat them once and it’s tough to beat anyone twice, so we knew it’d be a struggle.’’

Malden Catholic gave the Prep ample opportunities, racking up eight penalties, but the Eagles only capitalized on one of those chances when Pinho scored his second of the game after Kurker pinged one off the crossbar, making it 3-2 with 3:45 left in the second period.

‘‘Our boys are competing so hard,’’ said MC assistant coach Phil Antonelli. ‘‘Any little action is going to get called. No one’s going to give us anything.’’

The Lancers found themselves shorthanded once again as the second period wound down, but the Eagles could not pin the puck in their zone, sending Lancers freshman Ara Nazarian up on the left side, where he made a pinpoint stop and spin move before backhanding it over to Tyler Sifferlen for the fourth goal of the period.

Ryan Fitzgerald capped the scoring on a shorthanded empty-netter with a minute to play in the game.

Since Week 1, Malden Catholic has had a stanglehold on the top spot in our poll, but BC High almost knocked them off their perch, coming away with a key tie on Wednesday night, allowing the Eagles to stay at No. 4 following a 1-1-1 week in the Globe boys hockey Top 20.

MC's last chance at an unbeaten January will be a tall task on Tuesday when they face St. John's Prep who are easily one of the hottest teams around, which is why they jumped up to No. 3, one spot behind No. 2 Hingham who are riding a 10-game win streak.

St. Mary's gets bumped down to the fifth slot after a disappointing tie against Archbishop Williams.

No. 6 Central Catholic and No. 7 Burlington both jump up two spots and Needham makes the biggest move of the week, leapfrogging Woburn and Springfield Cathedral into the eighth spot following a 3-0 week where they torched their opponents for twenty goals.

Bay State rival, and the source of Needham's only league loss, Braintree makes its first appearance in our Top 20 at No. 19, as the Wamps are in the midst of one of the longest shutout streaks in the state this season, three-plus games and counting.

No. 20 Chelmsford is the only other newcomer to the list after their 10th victory qualified them for postseason play.

Gone is Austin Prep, which had a tough two-loss week, and Canton, which made a quick one-week stop on our poll before bowing out following a tie to Oliver Ames.

This weeks bubble teams include Boston Latin (9-0-3), Norwood (10-2-4), Franklin (11-1-1), Pembroke (11-1-2) and Lynnfield (10-2-1).

See the full Globe boys hockey Top 20.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Girls hockey action saw some of the biggest upsets this week, resulting in a completely restructured Globe Top 20.

Woburn (10-1), Arlington Catholic (13-0-1), Duxbury (10-0) and Acton-Boxboro (12-0-1) remain at the top -- the few of which did not see their records drop this week.

St. Mary's (10-3) saw a roadblock when it fell to the Winthrop/Lynn co-op, 3-2. The unexpected loss bumped St. Mary's to No. 7. Another notable loss was Hingham's 3-1 fall to Austin Prep (5-8), which advances the Cougars into the Top 20 at No. 19.

Belmont (11-2) continues to beat up top-notch teams -- Woburn, Lexington -- for a seven-game win streak to move to No. 5.

Barnstable (10-1) scored 18 goals this week alone, earning it a No. 6 spot. Otherwise, Dedham (10-4), Fontbonne (7-5), Sandwich (10-3) and Westford (10-2-1) each saw losses that bumped them down the rankings.

See the full Globe girls hockey Top 20.

By Andrew MacDougall, Globe correspondent

The Rockets (11-2) capitalized from two 5-on-3 power plays to take a 2-0 lead into the first intermission before exploding for six goals in the second, including two tallies form Fisher, and a tally from Doisneau, Rosata, and freshman Danny Jacobs.

Senior captain Paul Curran tallied both goals for the Wildcats. The forward now has 10 goals on the season.

The Wildcats, who only lost for the second time in their past 10 games, fall to second place in the Herget division with their loss, coupled with Norwood’s 2-1 victory over Framingham earlier in the evening.

Both teams will continue their conference schedules this week, as Needham will head to Natick tomorrow for a 7:40 game, while Milton will look to get back on track with a home game versus Weymouth on Wednesday at 7.

By Liz Torres, Globe correspondent

Lily Connolly scored a hat trick to lead No. 3 Duxbury to its ninth straight victory, a 6-1 rout of No. 16 Sandwich in a Southeastern Massachusetts Girls Hockey League matchup at the Gallo Ice Arena in Bourne Wednesday.

"Being undefeated, we just know that we want to keep it and beat every team and come out strong like we usually do," Connolly said.

Duxbury coach Friend Weiler was concerned the team's performance would decline after a break for mid-terms and a recent cancellation against Barnstable because of poor weather.

Weiler believed the Green Dragons (9-0) needed a "wake-up call" and Sandwich (9-3) obliged. In the opening period, freshman Nicole Martin scored with an assist from junior defender Katie Flynn to give the Blue Knights a 1-0 lead.

"We've had a long layoff and that first goal really woke our girls up, but thankfully we were able to rebound quickly and play with more urgency," Weiler said. ""It took that wake-up call to get us in motion."

Connolly tied the score 31 seconds later with a shot just below the crossbar past freshman goaltender Molly Kennedy. Two minutes later, senior defenseman Martha Findley blasted a slap shot from the blue line for a 2-1 lead.

"At first, we weren't playing like we usually do but we got back into the game," Connolly said. "Our forwards were strong and we passed well and were able to score."

Connolly netted her second goal to give the Green Dragons a 3-1 lead in the second period.

"[Sandwich] moves the puck well and we just wanted to make sure we applied pressure to put them back on their heels," Weiler said.

Connolly completed her hat trick in the second period. Duxbury was even stronger in the third period with speed, solid passing, and an impenetrable defense. Sophomore forward Caroline Shaunessy and senior forward Colleen Leddie finished the scoring for the Green Dragons. Sophomore Rachel Myette made 17 saves for Duxbury.

Boys basketball

Norwell 60...Rockland 53
Captains Peter Marchetti (20 points) and Nick Volpe (19 points) led the Clippers (11-0) over the Bulldogs (11-2) in a battle of the top two teams in the South Shore League.

Chelsea 74...Revere 64

Sean Quiroz scored a season-high 27 points and Sammy Mojica added 23 and nine rebounds as the Red Devils beat the rival Patriots.

Boys hockey

Central Catholic 5...Austin Prep 2

Zach Cote's two goals helped the eight-ranked Raiders (6-2-2) rally from down 2-1 entering the third period to defeat the 13th-ranked Cougars. Jake Donahue netted the eventual game winner midway through the third and Ryan Daigle added three assists.

Catholic Memorial 3...Weymouth 0

Junior forward Jack O'Hear netted two goals to lead the 12th-ranked Knights (4-5, 1-1).

Girls hockey

Norwood 6...Scituate 1

Sophomore Emily Kelly scored three goals to lead the 11th-ranked Mustangs.

Belmont 5...Needham 1

Senior captain Shannon Reynolds had a goal as the seventh-ranked Marauders improved to 10-2.

For a look at all the scores from Monday, click here, and make sure to weigh in on the new Globe Top 20's.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Malden Catholic maintains the top spot of the Globe boys hockey Top 20 following a big 8-3 win over Xaverian which kept them undefeated, 4-0, in the Catholic Conference.

BC High dropped down just one spot after an 0-1-1 week, with the loss coming at the hands of St. John's Prep who look ready for another second-half surge as they move up to number five.

Woburn takes the biggest hit of the week, dropping from No. 2 to No. 10 after losses to Burlington and Reading. Of course Burlington gets the biggest bump (up from No. 14 to No. 9), since their 3-0 win over Woburn was the team's second this season over the former No. 2 team.

It's tough to keep Catholic Memorial in the Top 10 when they are a sub-.500 team in the midst of a four game losing streak. Yet all of those losses have come at the hands of Top 10 opponents and CM will always be CM, so they remain in striking distance at number 12. We will know where they truly stand when they hit a five game Catholic Conference run following their game on Monday against Weymouth.

No. 13 Austin Prep and No. 14 Reading jump up two spots each and No. 15 Falmouth and No. 16 Westford Academy slide up three spots apiece, but there is a huge logjam ahead of these teams, so they will need big wins moving forward and each team should have ample chances to prove themselves.

Franklin and Andover are out , making way for 19th-ranked Arlington Catholic to find their way back into the mix and Canton to make their debut at number 20.

Some bubble teams for this week include Boston Latin (7-0-3), Braintree (7-2-2), Chelmsford (8-3), Milton (9-2), Norwood (8-2-3).

See the full Globe boys hockey Top 20.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Since its tough losses to Hingham and Woburn, St. Mary's has been recharged with a seven-game sweep of top-notch teams like Arlington and Lexington. And most recently, the Spartans (9-2) avenged a loss to Hingham with a 2-1 win to place them at No. 5 in the Globe girls hockey Top 20.

Belmont is another underdog that shined this week after a 5-3 win over Lexington to shift up to No. 7. Belmont (9-2) also knocked down Woburn two games prior.

Eighth-ranked Walpole (7-1-1) climbed up the standings and atop of the Bay State Herget after dishing out a 6-1 victory over long-time rival Norwood (7-2-1) with a hat trick from Brooke Matherson.

With those teams' momentum being the strongest of the batch, we're left with a big upset in the meat of the Top 20.

Norwood, Dedham, Fontbonne and Chelmsford each moved down in the rankings with losses this week bumping out Franklin and giving Westford a shoe-in at No. 20.

Arlington Catholic, Duxbury and Acton-Boxboro are the only teams to remain undefeated in the rankings with Woburn (8-1) holding onto the top spot.

See the full Globe girls hockey Top 20 here.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

This week the top three (Malden Catholic, Woburn and BC High) in the Globe boys hockey Top 20 remain unchanged while St. Mary’s and Hingham slide up one spot each to round out the top five.

St. John’s Prep and Catholic Memorial stumble and barely remain in the top 10 after both schools suffered a rare, two-defeat week.

That middle-of-the-pack group, which includes Springfield Cathedral, Central Catholic, Needham and St. John’s Shrewsbury, will continue to jockey for Top 10 positioning and it’ll be interesting to see who will survive the balance of their schedules.

Falmouth and Westford Academy are the newest additions to the Top 20, coming in at No. 18 and No. 19 respectively.

The Clippers have jumped out to an 8-1-2 start to the season, with a 5-0-1 record in the Atlantic Coast League that has them on par with No. 6 Marshfield.

Westford Academy finally cracks our Top 20 after taking down No. 20 Andover in their only game last week.

Arlington Catholic and Billerica are the unfortunate teams bounced off the poll, but expect both to pull it together and put forth a more consistent effort the rest of the way. We’ll hold a spot for them.

Our bubble teams this week include Braintree (5-2-2), Norwood (7-2-2), Chelmsford (5-3), Boston Latin (6-0-2) and Milton (7-2).

See the full Globe boys hockey Top 20 here.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Belmont gets a shoe-in the new Globe girls hockey Top 20 after handling Woburn 3-2 for the Tanners' first loss of the season. And despite the hiccup, strength of schedule and power in the front line keeps the Tanners (7-1) at No. 1.

Arlington Catholic (10-0) has gradually moved up the rankings, taking the No. 2 spot after capitalizing on its second win over No. 11 Fontbonne (6-3). The Cougars have the toughness and physicality to overpower top-ranked teams so their progression will be one to watch.

Hingham dropped three spots to No. 5 after tallying a tie onto its earlier loss this season against an unranked team. The Harborwomen (5-1-1) are going to need more fight to keep up with top powerhouses if they want to glance at another championship.

Concord-Carlisle and Arlington were bumped off the rankings with repeated losses as Chelmsford snuck up to No. 12 with a 7-1 run. Franklin is the newest team to be added with a big scoring margin at 5-1-1.

See the entire Globe girls hockey Top 20 here.

By Jason Mastrodonato, Globe Correspondent

With the Green Monster as a backdrop, and the emphasis on soaking up atmosphere, the Waltham High boys' varsity hockey team skated against the East Coast Jumbos on the frozen surface at Fenway Park Wednesday afternoon.

The Hawk players just wanted to make the experience memorable for the Jumbos, a special needs team based in the Watch City. That is always their goal when volunteering their time to the program, which fields a roster of players from high school age to the late 20s.

The two teams shared players to balance the competition, and while the play was mostly back-and-forth, two players seemed completely separated from the rest of the gang.

Round and round they went, skating in circles along the inside of the Fenway rink as their colleagues battled for the puck.

The White team scored, and the pair kept circling. The Black team scored, and still, the two were circling. Finally, the buzzer sounded, signaling a two-minute shift was over, and both players went back to their bench.

"That would be my son Shane," said Jumbos coach Ray LeBlanc, ever so proudly. "He's 19 years old and he's autistic."

East Coast Jumbos goalie Brian Johnson
at Fenway Park. (Jonathan Wiggs / Globe Staff)

"The whole back and forth of the game really frustrates him," Ray said. "So we just let him skate. And we found out a couple years ago that when someone plays tag with him and chases him, he'll turn it up. He loves it."

That would explain the tail Shane had closely behind him during every shift. Waltham senior J.J. Murphy never got more than a few feet of separation, occasionally skating in front of Shane and encouraging him to pick up speed just a little bit.

Autism is a daily challenge, but skating seems to make everything better for Shane – for at least a few minutes.

"I think when he first gets on the ice he’s usually pretty angry," said Shane's 12-year-old brother, Jake. "He really doesn't love hockey. But he just loves to get out there and skate."

Shane wasn’t the only one enjoying himself at the park. The Jumbos had been looking forward to their day at the park for months, even though they have also played exhibition matches against the men's and women's programs from Boston College and Harvard in the past. Recently, they skated against the Holliston boys' squad at the DCU Center in Worcester. (Ray LeBlanc is an assistant coach for his cousin, Rick, at Holliston).

For the past few years, Waltham coach John Maguire has asked his varsity players to team up with the Jumbos program and teach the players the game. But it’s not just a few minutes of drills after a weekday practice – Maguire asks for a commitment, from December to March.

On three consecutive Sundays, four of his players will wake up at sunrise and drive to the Rivers School in Weston to volunteer for a few hours. Practice starts at 6:30 a.m.

"It's unbelievable," said Ray LeBlanc. "I said that to my parents, 'Do you guys realize what these kids give up? They give up their Saturday nights. They don't have too many mornings that they can sleep in. They don't.' "

But the Waltham players are happy to help out.

"It's worth the time," said Maguire's son, Chris, a senior captain for Hawks.

"You take away a lot from them. Just to appreciate both life and the games you get to play. During hockey season, it gets pretty intense and a lot of emotion builds up, but this just makes hockey a lot of fun."

Waltham is having a down year on the ice. A 1-5 start isn't what the Hawks were looking for after a bizarre season (seven ties) a year ago.

"Sure, when you're losing it can be frustrating," said senior captain Jack LeClair. "But when you go to the Rivers School on Sunday mornings and you see how upbeat and happy these kids are, it's like, 'Wow, I should be thankful about playing hockey and not frustrated or worried about our games and if we’re winning or losing.'

"It puts things in perspective."

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Underclassmen are shaking up the girls hockey panorama this season with the loss of some big contributors to graduation in the new Globe girls hockey Top 20.

The change has shifted the focus to several eighth and ninth graders who are altering the platform for girls hockey. Recently, Acton-Boxboro eighth grade goalie Cali Loblundo shutout No. 2 Hingham, 1-0, to bump up A-B to the top four and shift last year’s Division 1 champion down from the No. 1 spot, replaced by Woburn.

Woburn (6-0) is going to be tough to beat with 33 goals scored so far this season, boosted by the return of leading scorer Kayla Smith. They've edged a number of Top 20 teams like St. Mary’s and Middlesex League rivals Lexington and Arlington too.

No. 5 Arlington Catholic (7-0) is another undefeated strong contender who has taken out powerhouses Fontbonne and Lexington with senior forward Natalie Flynn leading the team with eight goals and two assists.

Although No. 6 Lexington suffered a loss to Woburn, the Minutemen were the first to end Woburn’s shutout streak with goals from Danielle Delgreco and Emily Wilson.

Most of the movement in the rankings will come from the bottom 10. With all the loaded talent in the top 10, Norwood shifted to down to No. 11, still ahead of St. Mary’s and Braintree who have two losses apiece.

Barnstable has emerged as a top challenger at No. 7 after defeating No. 14 Sandwich with one of the state’s top goalies, Megan O’Connell, and No. 15 Winthrop/Lynn who left a big footprint last season.

See the full Globe girls hockey Top 20 here.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Malden Catholic remains the king of the hill following a 7-4 win over BC High, who also stay put in the third spot after a very strong start to their season in the Globe boys hockey Top 20.

Woburn makes the leap to the second spot because they sport one of the stingiest defenses around allowing only 11 goals in their first seven games. They have also proven that they can bear down in tight games and come away the desired outcome.

St. Mary’s makes the biggest jump of the week after flattening nearly everyone in their path with their only loss and tie of the year coming at the hands of the top-ranked Lancers. In their seven wins the Spartans have outscored their opponents 39-8.

Hingham, in the midst of a five-game win streak that has included wins over Marshfield, Needham and Catholic Memorial, also makes a leap into the Top 10 and are one of the hottest teams around. There is no let up in their schedule, so it’ll be a test of endurance the rest of the way for the Harbormen.

Speaking of Catholic Memorial, they dip from No. 2 to No. 8 after suffering losses to Needham and the aforementioned Harbormen. They have a busy week ahead that could set the tone for the rest of their season as they face No. 11 Springfield Cathedral on Thursday, then take to Frozen Fenway for a key Catholic Conference matchup against the No. 3 Eagles on Saturday.

New to the Top 20 this week are Franklin, Burlington and Andover, while Weymouth, Wilmington and Xaverian duck out.

Some teams on the bubble right now include Falmouth, North Andover, Lynnfield and Westford.

See the full Globe boys hockey Top 20 here.

By Jason Mastrodonato, Globe Correspondent

When a girls’ hockey team has found the net 16 times through its first three games of the season, the scouting report will probably point to a high-scoring game.

But it doesn’t matter who comes to play at Nashoba Valley Olympia, Acton-Boxborough coach Brian Fontas knows his goalie is always ready.

Eighth-grade sensation Cali Loblundo shut down Hingham’s high-scoring offense Saturday night, making 31 saves, including 14 in the third period, as the Colonials got some revenge in a 1-0 win.

“She played incredible,” said Fontas. “[Hingham’s] offense is explosive and we just focused on team defense and getting in their face -- and we did that tonight.”

It’s been almost 10 months since the Colonials’ season came to a bitter end at the hands of Hingham at TD Garden. Loblundo fought a plethora of scoring chances that evening, but the Harbormen found the net three times.

On Saturday, Fontas had his crew key in on Hingham’s top group of forwards. And even though the coach rarely matches lines, having last change gave him some flexibility while senior captain Emily Loebs and the entire A-B defense kept the Harbormen scoreless for the first time in nearly a year.

“It was just lingering from last year,” Fontas said. “You don’t need another reason to get up for this game. It was a completely different game this time around.”

Without first-line center Leah Cardarelli, who will be out until at least February with a stress fracture in her hip suffered during field hockey season, the Fontas watched his second line of all eighth-graders create some magic. The “Smurf line,” as he calls it, put A-B on the board early when Kaitlin Hoang found the net in the first period.

From there, the Colonials played tight defense, killing off seven power plays, including a pair of five-on-threes, as A-B improved to 5-0-1. Hingham dropped to 3-1-0.

“It’s just nice to know that we can do that,” Fontas said. “Keeping an offensive-explosive team off the score board – that’s impressive.”

By Jaclyn Reiss, Globe Correspondent

Natick High School students and administrators are mourning the death of Justin Bailey, 17, a high school senior who died in his home last night.

According to an email sent out by Natick Superintendent Peter Sanchioni, Bailey passed away unexpectedly from natural causes.

Sanchioni wrote that Bailey was a member of the varsity hockey team, and was well-liked and respected by his classmates and teammates.

Bailey’s mother works as the Kennedy Middle School’s cafeteria manager. He has two brothers who also attend Natick public schools.

Varsity hockey coach Karl Infanger said he talked to Bailey Tuesday.

“You couldn’t ask for a nicer kid,” said Infanger. “I meet with the kids after every five games to go through what you’re doing right, what you’re doing wrong, what to work on and that stuff. And Tuesday, I met with him – and this will resonate with me for the rest of my life – he said, ‘I know I’m not playing, I know why I’m not playing, I just want to win. I want to help out any way I can, but I just want to win.’

“And to hear that it from a senior, it puts things in perspective. You can’t say a bad thing about him. A super nice kid who was always smiling and laughing.”

Infanger said he learned of Bailey's death from the boy's father Wednesday afternoon.

The coach met with his team on Thursday and will meet with them over the next few days, but Saturday’s scheduled game with Milton has been postponed. The Natick girls' squad was also supposed to play Milton, but that game has been postponed as well.

Wednesday's game against Needham was also postponed.

Infanger said there was some chatter among the players about creating a uniform patch to remember Bailey, but no decisions have been made yet.

“The kids were one big family,” the coach said. “They really pull for each other and we’ll get through this together. But that sense of invincibility that a high school kid has can come crashing down pretty quick.”

Sanchioni said guidance counselors at all Natick school buildings will be available for any students or staff members experiencing grief and sadness due to Bailey’s death.

“On behalf of all the Natick Public Schools community, our deepest sympathy during this time of great sadness goes out to Justin's friends, family and teachers. He will be greatly missed,” Sanchioni wrote.

Natick Police confirmed that they responded to a medical call last night, but could not comment further.

Cara O’Brien, spokesperson for Middlesex District Attorney Gerard Leone’s office, said they are not investigating the death, as it does not appear to be suspicious.

Natick Athletic Director Tim Collins said Thursday proved challenging for faculty, students, and coaches alike.

"Justin was a terrific kid, and was really loved by his classmates and teammates," Collins said. "He was someone who sort of transcended groups, and was friends with a whole variety of kids."

Both the boys and girls hockey teams spent the day together, remembering Bailey over pizza and water, Collins said.

He said the students are holding off on planning a memorial event until Bailey's parents are ready to become involved, giving them space and time to grieve for their son.

"There are plans in the works, but we're waiting for his family to really dictate when they’re ready for that and what type of memorial they want to be a part of as well," Collins said. "We will do a number of things, but haven’t put anything into motion yet."

Collins said he has no further information on the cause of Bailey's death.

Friends of Bailey started a Facebook page dedicated in his memory, and many users have changed their profile pictures to a red image with the number 17 – Bailey’s playing number in hockey – and text that reads, “#17 Justin Bailey/Forever in our hearts/Never forget.”

As of 3:15 p.m., 771 Facebook users have “liked” the page honoring Bailey.

Globe Correspondent Jason Mastrodonato contributed to this report. Follow Jaclyn Reiss on Twitter @jaclynreiss. Contact her via e-mail at jreiss.globe@gmail.com.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

LEXINGTON -- With 48 seconds left, Woburn junior forward Kayla Smith gave the Tanners all the insurance they needed on a breakaway goal against Lexington, sealing a 4-2 win in girls ice hockey action Wednesday night for the Tanners' first league win.

“At the end of the game when it went on her stick, I was pretty confident we were going to finish it,” said Tanners coach Bob MacCurtain.

The pressure is not anything new for Smith, who last scored against Lexington in the Tanners state quarterfinal victory, 3-1, nine seconds into the game.

The Tanners (5-0) remain one of the top scoring teams in the state with 31 goals.

Despite the loss, Lexington (3-2) ended the Tanners four-game shutout streak with two goals.

“It would have been nice to have a shutout, but once they got a goal we just got back at it,” Smith said.

Smith scored the third goal on a powerplay after a back and forth pass from junior defenseman Cassandra Connolly to hit high center net, 3-2.

The Minutemen took an early charge in the first period with senior forward Katy Delgreco emerging from behind the net to rocket a pass to sister Danielle Delgreco, putting the Minutemen on the board, 1-0.

But the goal fired up the Tanners and 22 seconds later the team responded with senior forward Bryana Harron tying the game, 1-1, with sophomore Ashley Moran and junior Kylee Maher on the assist. With less than a minute remaining, Lexington was unable to score in the final minute of the first, getting a wide open opportunity with Woburn's goalie out of position.

Lexington started off the second period with a slapshot goal at the 12:32 mark from senior forward Emily Wilson after changing lines, putting them up 2-1.

“We went down twice in this game and we find a way pretty instantly to get back in it,” MacCurtain said.

The Minutemen held up rock solid line of defense until a one-on-one ended up in favor of the Tanners as sophomore forward Emily Lissner snuck past Minutemen’s senior goaltender Katie Legnard, 2-2. Harron had the assist.

“We just played our hardest and make sure we were spread out and playing our positions,” Smith said.

Milton Academy's Sean Brennan, center, cut through two players from Noble and Geenough School during first period action at Fenway Park. The two prep school hockey teams got their shot to play at the hallowed baseball stadium. (Jonathan Wiggs / Globe Staff)

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The Rivers School 7, St. George’s School 0
Frozen Fenway played host to a quadruple header of ISL hockey action Wednesday that kicked off with the girls of Rivers defeating St. George’s 7-0 on the Fenway Park “Rink.”

The Red Wings (6-3) used seven goal scorers and outshot the Dragons, 14-1, in the first period and 22-7 overall.

Sophomore Melissa Maffeo (Melrose) had a goal and an assist and freshman Jordan Cross (Saugus) had two assists, while goalie Abigail Burke (Bedford) nailed down the shutout.

Noble and Greenough School 6, Milton Academy 2
Noble and Greenough used a four-goal third period to pull away from Milton Academy for a 6-2 victory in the second game.

Adam Gilmour started the third period blitz when he skated in all alone and gave a head fake to beat Andreas Graham and make it 3-1 in favor of Nobles.

Max Franklin followed that effort with a goal from the left wing that he squeezed through the near-side of Graham six minutes into the period.

Tim Boyle snapped a shot high right to make it 5-1 and then Andrew Doane stole the puck in the neutral zone and scored on a shorthanded breakaway to put the Bulldogs up by five goals with just under six minutes remaining.

“It was pretty lucky for me, the D-man coughed it up and I just shot it,” said Doane, who finished with two goals and an assist. “It was a real team effort and everyone played hard and that’s why we got the win out there.”

This was the first of three regular-season matchups between the teams. Last season Milton took all four games played versus Nobles.

“We want to stay true to what we want to do, be disciplined, play hard, play together and not worry so much about the opposition as much as what we can do and control,” said Nobles coach Brian Day. “They're a terrific group. They genuinely care about each other and its fun to come to the rink every day.”

Lawrence Academy 6, Thayer Academy 0
In the third tilt of the day, the boys’ clubs from Lawrence Academy and Thayer Academy played to a 0-0 tie after the first period

The Spartans held a 14-9 edge in shots, but overall it looked to be fairly even matchup across the ice.

That was until Lawrence Academy exploded for five goals in the second period, which started with a Devin Tringale tally just twenty-three seconds in, followed by a William Messa goal 61 seconds after that.

“The whole team played well down low and it was one of our better nights,” said Tringale, a native of Medford who is used to playing on the local ponds. “Last winter was the last time [playing outdoors]. I’ve never played on a rink like this, but I’ve played on the pond a couple of times.”

Fifteen seconds later, after Jacob Schechter led a rush up the left side of the ice, Conor Helfrich scored on a one-timer from Thomas Newton and Thayer found themselves trailing, 3-0, with less than two minutes expired from the second period.

A change in net did nothing to ease the Tigers’ pain as Tringale and Matthew Baldino both caught replacement goalie Patrick Finn out of place for goals that stretched the lead to five.

The final Spartans tally came in the third period when Tringale slid the puck down low to George Hunkele who buried it on the wide-open far side of the net.

“It’s just crazy,” said Tringale on playing at Fenway. “I never expected to play here…maybe the Garden. It’s great to be out here and I’m loving it right now.”

Goaltender Nathaniel Heilbron stopped 22 shots for the shutout, and despite hailing from West Vancouver, British Columbia, he was well versed on what it meant to play on the frozen surface of the 100-year-old Fenway Park.

“It’s unbelievable being out here,” said Heilbron. “It’s a once in a lifetime experience. We had been counting down the days and it’s surreal to be here on the same park as all these famous Red Sox players like Ted Williams and Youkilis and Ortiz and Pedroia. It’s just incredible.”

Belmont Hill 2, St. Sebastian's 1
Belmont Hill turned off the lights on a busy day at Fenway Park with a 2-1 win over St Sebastian’s on the heels of goaltender David Cunningham’s 31-save performance, which was highlighted by some late game saves that secured the outcome.

“It’s special,” said Cunningham of the experience. “We had the chance to come here two years ago, but I was the backup so I didn’t get a chance to play. So this meant a lot to me and my whole family was here so it meant a lot for them to.”

The Hillies got on the board first after Stephan Brennan was stoned on a breakaway from Arrows goalie Gordon Donnelly who was unable to control the puck. Dan Doherty dug out the puck and dished it to Mike Leary who banged it in for the 1-0 lead.

Belmont Hill dominated play for the majority of the first period following their goal, but the Arrows evened things up when Corey Ronan collected the puck on the left side and fired a gorgeous goal stick side with 28.4 seconds left.

Belmont Hill took advantage of a power play opportunity and took the lead back with the only goal of the second period as Mike Najjar, from behind the net, found Terry Goguen who fired a shot on that Najjar got a piece of to knock over Donnelly’s pads to put the game at 2-1.

“I just tried to set it up on the power play which we hadn’t been running very well this year,” said Najjar. “We got it back to the point and he gave it back down to me and I hoped it would go in.”

Najjar’s goal would hold up as the game winner with both teams clamping down defensively the remainder of the way, with the Hillies leaning heavily on Cunningham.

“I felt really good the whole way through,” said Cunningham, who finished with 31 saves. “The guys were bringing it and I know that if I do my job, they’ll do their job.”

By Michael Giesta, Globe Correspondent

No. 8 Needham got goals from Shaymus Colman and Lucas Davis in the final 39 seconds to stun second-ranked Catholic Memorial, 2-1, last night at Babson College in Wellesley.

The game was scoreless until 2:53 into the third period when CM (2-1) broke the deadlock.

Needham (3-0) called a timeout with 1:15 to go and pulled the goalie for an extra attacker.

Sophomore defenseman Shamus Colman fired a shot from the point through a screen that found its way to the back of the net to tie it with 39 seconds to go. The goal was assisted by junior defenseman Brendan Joyce.

After the ensuing faceoff Needham got the puck in deep and senior defenseman Timmy Parlato's shot was turned aside but senior forward Lucas Davis put the rebound home with nine seconds remaining.

“It was a great win,” said Rockets coach Bill Guisti. “Everyone was very excited. It was great to tie it up and with 39 seconds left we just hoped to preserve the tie.”

Three defensemen factored into the scoring in Needham’s comeback.

“We like to use the points a lot,” said Guisti. “Getting shots to the net is what we preach all the time, and then our guys can get in there and do the dirty work it takes to get the goals.”

Senior goalie Connor Murray had 25 saves in the win.

Guisti is very satisfied with his net minder. “He’s got good size, very athletic, great kid. He was our No. 1 guy last year, and played exceptionally well in the Super Eight.”

Murray has continued his strong play into this season.

“One of our biggest problems is getting timely goals,” Guisti said.

When they’ve made the Super 8, they always play well but tend to be snakebitten when it comes to scoring goals. But with 14 seniors on the squad this year, the Rockets are off to a terrific start.

“It’s a great win, gives us momentum going into our game against Hingham on Saturday,” said Guisti.

By Ryan MacInnis, Globe Correspondent

In a tense finish in the 18th annual Kevin Mutch Cup, John Malewicz and Jared Beckwith scored in the second period and goaltender Shane Starrett made it stand up as Catholic Memorial defeated St. Sebastian’s, 2-1, at Bright Hockey Center last night before 1,500.

The Knights (2-0) held on in a hard-nosed game behind Starrett, who made 32 saves.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

The Wilmington boys’ hockey team got a last minute goal to kick off their new life in the Middlesex League with a 2-2 tie against defending league champion Woburn at Ristuccia Arena Wednesday night.

After the the Wildcats won a face off in the Woburn zone with less than 30 seconds on the clock, sophomore Cody McGowan swooped in and collected a rebound off of a Brendan McDonough shot and deposited it over Woburn goalie Jeremy Flibotte for the tying goal with just 21 seconds left.

“Out of the gate we have a brutal schedule,” said Wilmington coach Steve Scanlon. “We know that we are going to be in for a battle every single night.”

Without two-thirds of their top line, the Wildcats (0-0-1) also knew that they would have a tough time generating offense against a Tanners defense that returned five of their top six.

Wilmington could only muster 12 shots on net while sophomore goalie Drew Foley came up big with 37 saves to slow the potent Tanners’ offense.

“He kept us in it,” said Scanlon of his goalie. “We were doing all we could to play with these guys and at times we were outmatched.”

Woburn (0-0-1) got on the board first when senior Dan Holland potted his first goal of the season, assisted by Joe Connors and Casey Shea, with 9:30 left in the first period.

Sophomore Luke Foley made sure Wilmington did not hit the locker room trailing, as he scored a power play goal with time winding down in the first period to knot the game at one.

Keith Carpenter accounted for the second Woburn goal at the midway mark of the second period, with John Concannon and Cole Connolly picking up assists on the play.

“There are good ties and bad ties,” said Scanlon. “This was a good tie for us.”

This winter, Fenway Park will host a number of high school hockey games for Sun Life Frozen Fenway 2012, a 16-day event that will include public ice time and six college games.

Frozen Fenway will start on Sunday, Jan. 1 and continue through Monday, Jan. 16.

Here is the full schedule, including eight school hockey games:

Jan. 1: Mayor's community skate day
This free, day-long public skating day will be open to residents of the City of Boston, courtesy of Mayor Menino and Sun Life Financial. Information on tickets will be available through the Mayor’s office in the coming weeks.

Jan. 2: Free public and private high school hockey tripleheader
3 pm. Boston Latin Academy vs. East Boston High School (boys)
5 pm. Boston Latin School vs. Boston Latin Academy (girls)
7:30 p.m. Mount Saint Charles Academy vs. Cathedral High School (Springfield) (boys)

The high school tripleheader will be a free, single ticket event. Tickets will be distributed in advance by the participating schools. A limited number of tickets will also be available at Fenway Park’s Gate E on game day for walk-ups.

Jan. 4: Independent School League (ISL) boys and girls high school hockey
1:30 p.m. St. George’s School vs. Rivers School (girls)
3:15 p.m. Noble and Greenough School vs. Milton Academy (boys)
5:30 p.m. Thayer Academy vs. Lawrence Academy (boys)
7:45 p.m. Belmont Hill School vs. Saint Sebastian's School (boys)

Tickets for these four games are available by phone at 877-REDSOX9 and online at redsox.com/frozenfenway, and are valid for all four games.

January 7: Hockey Day in New England
4 p.m. University of Vermont vs. University of Massachusetts
7:30 p.m. University of New Hampshire vs. University of Maine

This inter-state college hockey doubleheader will match four New England state schools, and will be preceded by the 1 p.m. Bruins game where they will face the Canucks for the first time since the Stanley Cup. While tickets to this doubleheader are sold out, New England Sports News (NESN) will carry all three games live.

Jan. 10: Women's college hockey
3 p.m. Dartmouth College vs. Providence

Tickets for this women’s college hockey game are available by phone at 877-REDSOX9 and online at redsox.com/frozenfenway.

Jan. 13: Division I and Division III hockey doubleheader
3:30 p.m. Norwich University vs. Babson College (ECAC East/DIII)
7 p.m. Union College vs. Harvard University (ECAC Hockey/DI)

Tickets for this men's college hockey doubleheader are available by phone at 877-REDSOX9 and online at redsox.com/frozenfenway.

Jan. 14: Boston rivalry doubleheader
3 p.m. Catholic Memorial vs. Boston College High School
6 p.m. Northeastern University vs. Boston College

Tickets for this doubleheader are available by phone at 877-REDSOX9 and online at redsox.com/frozenfenway.

Jan. 16: Mayor's community skate day
This free, day-long public skating day will close out the 16-day Sun Life Frozen Fenway schedule. As with the January 1 Community Skate Day, information on tickets will be available through the Mayor’s office in the coming weeks.

Tickets for the Jan. 4, 10 and 13 hockey games went on sale today at 12 noon. Tickets for the Jan. 14 hockey doubleheader are currently on sale now at redsox.com/frozenfenway.

The Massachusetts State Hockey Coaches Association will hold its annual coaches clinic Sunday at the New England Sports Center in Marlboro. The clinic begins at 11 a.m. and ends at 2 p.m.

By Seth Lakso, Globe correspondent

The starting lineups for the second annual Massachusetts State Hockey Coaches Association High School All-Star Classic will be released today live on FOX25 News at 6pm.

The All-Star game features the state’s top 46 seniors from MIAA schools, as selected by the MSHCA. The game will be played at the DCU Center March 27 at noon.

The seniors will be split into North and South teams. The starting lines for each team were selected based upon fan voting.

Team North Roster: coached by Paul Yameen from Newburyport High School

# Name...Pos...School
2 Josh Gallagher, D Central Catholic HS
3 Nico DiSalvo, D Peabody HS
4 Sean Kavanaugh, D Springfield Cathedral
5 Jake Kulevich, D Marblehead HS
6 Christopher Milne, D Danvers HS
7 Terry Murphy, D Waltham HS
8 Joe Nardella, D Saint John's HS
9 John Sartell, D Wakefield HS
10 Terrence Durkin, F BC High School
11 Patrick Crosby, F Masconomet HS
12 Tom Crowley, F Reading Memorial HS
13 Ryan Doherty, F Tewksbury HS
14 Daniel Graham, F Arlington Catholic HS
15 Alex Holland , F Woburn HS
16 Nick Leonard, F Central Catholic HS
17 Kevin Peduto, F Acton Boxboro HS
18 Devin Smith, F Saint John's HS
19 Christopher Surette, F Saint Mary's of Lynn
20 Matthew Swett, F Andover HS
21 Garrett White, F Malden Catholic HS
1 Kyle Berthiaume, G Andover HS
30 Zach Rondeau, G Springfield Cathedral
35 Steve Burgoyne, G Westford Academy

Team South Roster: coached by Brian Shuman from Canton High School

# Name...Pos...School
2 Steven Bristol, D Weymouth HS
3 Pat Cull, D Marshfield HS
4 Marc Hetnik, D Catholic Memorial
5 Chris Joyce, D Needham HS
6 Alex Pompeo, D Hingham HS
7 TJ Ryan, D Newton North
8 Alex Tadeo, D Franklin HS
9 Mike Thiesing, D Archbishop Williams HS
10 Garrett Allen, F Dartmouth HS
11 Mike Cashman, F BC High School
12 Tom Coleman, F Needham HS
13 Ryan Connors, F Marshfield HS
14 Tim Driscoll, F Hingham HS
15 Anthony Hardy, F Bridgewater Raynham
16 Tommy Jenkins, F Xaverian Brothers HS
17 Jim Magrath, F Medfield HS
18 Sean Parker, F Hudson HS
19 Tyler Piacentini, F Weymouth HS
20 Jared Rizo, F Braintree HS
21 Haydon Voss, F Marlborough HS
1 Patrick Farrington, G Sandwich HS
30 Kyle Jacobs, G Pembroke HS
35 Chris Treon, G Westwood HS

To Purchase tickets ($11.00 in advance) call 508-929-0500, or log on to the MSHCA High School All-Star Game Website.

By Michael Mancinelli, Globe Correspondent

His right leg was cut open by the skate of a Wakefield player, and for roughly 5 minutes, the crowd at TD Garden was silent as Perry was attended to on the ice near the penalty box. With a 12-inch gash in his leg and losing blood, he was transported to Mass. General.

According to Marshfield High athletic director Lou Silva, Perry underwent surgery on the deep muscle cut Sunday evening.

"There were no broken bones and no severing or injury to any arteries," said Silva in a phone conversation on Monday afternoon. "It was certainly very frightening. He's very lucky that it didn't come close to hitting an artery."

Silva said that Perry will be on crutches for a while and hopes to start physical therapy within three weeks. Before the accident, Marshfield coach Dan Connolly felt that Perry was his team's best player on the ice. The Rams rallied for a 3-2 win for the program's first state crown since 2006.

Perry was expected to be released from the hospital on Monday.

The Atlantic Coast League champs finished the season 19-3-5 after outscoring opponents 38-13 during an eight=game win streak dating back to mid-February.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com staff

Globe correspondent Jake Seiner recaps Malden Catholic's 4-3 overtime win over St. John's Prep for the Super 8 hockey title at TD Garden. Highlights from the game? Of course.

Acton-Boxboro's Annie Nero (10) briefly tied the game at 1-1 with this goal. (Barry Chin / Globe Staff)

By Anthony Gulizia, Globe correspondent

There's one cardinal rule to obey when playing against Hingham's Catherine Linehan – do not give her any second chances.
 
If you do, she'll take advantage. And that's exactly what she did in the Division 1 state championship. The freshman forward slammed home two rebound goals to help Hingham (20-4-2) to a 3-1 victory over Acton-Boxboro (19-5-1) Sunday night at the TD Garden.
 
The Harbormen maintained the two-goal lead throughout the period, despite littering the net with 11 shots.
 
After the first intermission, Hingham stormed the ice and scored an early goal after sophomore defender Emily Falvey's slapshot fluttered past AB goaltender Cali Loblundo.
 
The 12-year old goaltender, who finished with 21 saves, made the initial save, but the puck deflected off her shoulder and bounced in.
 
However, the Colonials cut the deficit to one when Annie Nero lit the lamp just three minutes after Hingham’s score.
 
But Linehan and the Harbormen were not satisfied with the one-goal lead. With 3:59 remaining in the period, the freshman forward took a pass from senior defenseman Catherine Chittick and attacked the goal. But Loblundo made a stellar save and looked to have the puck in her possession. Before the play was whistled dead, Linehan aggressively poked at the puck and knocked it home for her second score of the day.
 
In the first period, Hingham jumped out to an early lead when freshman forward Catherine Linehan scored her eight goal of the season 11:56 into the first period.
 
Sophomore Sarah Schwenzeier put the initial shot on net, but Linehan controlled the rebound and sent the puck past Loblundo.
 
Acton Boxboro had an opportunity to tie things up after Hingham's Kaitlin Sullivan took a tripping penalty with 2:24 to play. However, the Harbormen were able to successfully kill the penalty.
 
Hingham senior goaltender Beth Findley put together a strong performance, saving 17 of AB's 18 shots.
 
The Harbormen, who captured the Division 2 state title in 2008, add to their trophy case with their first Division 1 title in school history.

Malden Catholic posed for pictures after beating St. John's Prep 4-3 in overtime for the Division 1A Super 8 championship at TD Garden. (Barry Chin / Globe Staff)

By Jake Seiner, Globe correspondent

Malden Catholic has been waiting 20 years to win a Super 8 championship, with none more eagerly than the three seasons since the Lancers lost in the finals to Reading.

A few extra minutes of hockey certainly wasn’t going to damper MC’s celebration.

Celebrate the Lancers did after junior Brendan Collier’s overtime goal pushed MC to a 4-3 win over St. John’s Prep in last night’s Super 8 final –– the program’s first Super 8 title since the tourney’s inception in 1991 and the school’s first hockey title of any kind since 1974.

“I heard we had 100, more than 100 alum flying in just to watch us,” Collier said. “It’s not just us. It’s not for the team. It’s for the school. We had kids from last year coming in the locker room crying, that’s how happy they are. It’s just for everybody."

The overtime finish was the first in a Super 8 finale since Catholic Memorial knocked off BC High, 1-0, in overtime in 2001.

Collier netted the goal –– his 30th of the season –– with an individual effort for the ages. The Boston University-commit took control of the puck in the high slot, cut right around an SJP defender, and lifted a no-look, backhand shot right by Prep goalie David Letarte at the opposite corner.

“I started going left and saw there was more room right, so I made a quick little forehand-backhand move,” Collier said. “Got a little step on their defenseman and threw a backhand on net, and it just happened to go in.”

Marshfield's Mike Carbone (4) was ridden out of the crease by Wakefield's Patrick McCarthy (14) and Kyle Leone (18). (Barry Chin / Globe Staff)

By Michael Mancinelli, Globe correspondent

When Wakefield took a 2-1 lead early in the third period of Sunday’s Division 1 state final, it looked like Marshfield was ready to pack it in as the Rams had lost all sense of urgency in their skating and shots.

That was until Marshfield junior forward Connor McLean tied the game at 2-2 with a crossing shot past Wakefield junior goalie Joseph Cerulo. McLean’s goal with 3:35 remaining in regulation breathed new life into the Rams’ bench and sparked sophomore Mike Carbone to the game-winner.

Carbone blasted a slap shot top shelf past Cerulo with 1:31 to play and Marshfield junior goalie Kyle Moran made a key basket save with his chest with 6.4 seconds remaining as the Rams skated to a 3-2 win and their first state title since 1997.

Marshfield’s win was underscored by the loss of starting junior forward Chris Perry to an injury midway through the second period. Perry was taken to Mass General Hospital with a 12-inch bleeding gash on his leg. He was cut by a Wakefield player’s skate.

“Once Chris [Perry] got hurt, honestly up until that point he was our best player,” Marshfield coach Dan Connolly said. “He was playing unbelievable, making plays in every zone. He’s the catalyst for our team. Our kids saw that and were like ‘oh what’s going to happen now.’ He’s one of our top penalty killers too so that changed a few other things.”

Perry had given a fiery pregame speech and had written “a novel about what it meant to him to be a hockey player,” said Connolly.

For Wakefield it was a disappointing end to the season, but coach Derek Edgerly was proud of his team for their turnaround after a five-win season a year ago.

“These kids should be real proud that they made it to the Division 1 final,” Edgerly said. “There’s going to be a winner, there’s going to be a loser. I’m just proud the kids came out and gave 100 percent for us.”

Tewkesbury's Frank Mazzei (15) celebrated after tying the game at 1-1 during the second period. (Barry Chin / Globe Staff)

By Jason Mastrodonato, Globe correspondent

Tewksbury fought back from a first period deficit to beat an explosive Franklin team at the TD Garden Sunday afternoon 2-1 in overtime to capture the school’s first Division 2 state title since 1995.

Tewksbury coach Derek Doherty, in his 10th season on the bench, thought his team was nervous after falling behind in the opening period, but the Redmen settled in for the remainder of the game as they capped off their dramatic postseason run.

'In my head I said, ‘Oh man, we need the next one because the way the game was going, if they would have gotten it, we might have sunk a little bit and the momentum would have been there's,' Doherty said. “But we got that next goal and we played hard after that. I'm proud of them.”

With two seconds left in the first period, Panthers' senior captain Thomas Carlow rifled a slap shot from the point that bounced off the back boards and trickled behind Tewksbury goalie Niko Cunha. Franklin senior James Marchand picked up the loose puck before Cunha could locate it and poked it in for the game's first goal.

The Panthers lost some of their stride in the second, killing two power plays before the Redmen got on the board with their third extra-man advantage of the period. Senior Ryan Doherty split the defense with a cross-ice pass to sophomore Derek Petti, who slapped a shot on Franklin senior goalie Bill Spillane. Spillane made the initial save, but senior Frank Mazzei was waiting for the rebound to put the Redmen on the board.

"That was the worst first period we played in the tournament," said Doherty, who picked up his 100th career win earlier this season. "We regrouped after the first, came back out, and I thought the kids played very well in the second and third. If they didn’t we were in big trouble."

The aggravation started to build for the Panthers in the second and third periods,when Cunha and the Redmen defense turned away a flurry of odd-man rush attempts by the speedy Franklin forwards.

"We were getting a little frustrated," said Franklin coach Chris Spillane. "We had four or five penalties and it took the flow out of our game. When you're shorthanded you tend to play the same four or five guys over and it takes a lot out of them."

Four minutes into overtime, Mazzei tried stuffing a wrap-around attempt through Bill Spillane's pads, and the puck trickled along the goal line before senior Mark Petti tapped it in and Tewksbury captured the state championship.

“Frank went around the net (and) shot it out front and the puck was loose so I just put it right in,” Petti said. “We just wanted to put it to the net. That’s what [coach] said, just put it on net and hope for the best.

“This is unreal. I can’t believe it. Just a dream come true.”

Join us for live updates on the Super 8 hockey final between St. John's Prep and Malden Catholic at 5:30 p.m. Game starts at 6 p.m. and we'll conclude at its end.

By Arielle Arronson, Globe correspondent

The Marblehead boys hockey team coasted on the fumes of a four-goal second period to a 6-3 Division 3 state championship win over Westfield Sunday.

The Headers outshot the Bombers 42-19. Senior forward Chris McLeod had a goal and two assists in the winning effort.

“This is Marblehead’s finest moment right now,” Marblehead coach Bob Jackson said. “We had nine guys who have been here for four years. I can’t tell you the dedication, commitment and enthusiasm they brought every day. Good things happen to good people, and we had some good kids.”

Marblehead controlled play early in the first. The Headers outshot the Bombers 5-0 through the first four minutes and maintained strong puck possession. Still, it was the Bombers who scored first.

With 5:12 left in the opening period, Marblehead junior forward Austin Haley attempted a pass in the defensive zone that Westfield junior forward Nick Sibilia intercepted and shot easily through Header goaltender Tony Cuzner’s five-hole to give the Bombers a 1-0 lead.

Haley made up for the errant pass with 7:37 to go in the first as he banged a rebound home off a McLeod shot to knot the game at 1-1.

Westfield regained the lead with one minute remaining in the period. Junior forward Kyle Levere caught a long pass at the blue line and charged into the offensive zone on a breakaway. Cuzner broke up his initial attempt with a poke-check, but the rebound went out to Cuzner’s right and the goalie sprawled on his back in an attempt to stay in front of the puck. Westfield’s Conner Laraway lifted the puck over the sprawled Cuznor to put the Bombers up 2-1.

Marblehead erupted for four goals in the second period. The scoring started when Westfield’s Nate Barnes was whistled off for tripping. The Headers scored halfway through the power play when Ryan Dempsey drew Liberto to the left side of the net and then sent a blind pass from behind the net to McLeod, who was waiting backdoor and fired into a virtually empty net.

Duxbury's Hannah Murphy (13) scored the game-winning goal past Fontbonne keeper Lan Crofton (29) during the third period. (Barry Chin / Globe Staff)

By Liz Torres, Globe correspondent

When it came down to the final minutes, Duxbury delivered.
 
The Green Dragons handed Division 2 powerhouse Fontbonne a 2-1 upset in the state final to collect its first-ever Division 2 state championship. The victory snaps the two-game advantage Fontbonne has had over the Green Dragons the past two years, knocking them out of the state semifinals, 4-3, 3-0.
 
With 45.5 seconds left to play, Duxbury sophomore Hannah Murphy scored to make it 2-1 with junior defenseman Martha Findley and sophomore forward Briana Connolly on the assist to lift the Green Dragons. The Green Dragons (21-3) outshot Fontbonne 32-16 and carried a potent defensive game that made was difference.
 
With 2:40 left in the third period, Ducks junior forward Erin McLoughlin sent a line pass from the red line to Ducks scoring leader Taylor Shepherd for a one-on-one past Duxbury’s Rachel Myette to tie the game, 1-1.
 
Thirty-nine seconds into the second period, Green Dragons freshman defenseman Ally Hammel won the draw to send the puck to senior forward Briana Connolly as she blasted one past Fontbonne’s Lan Crofton to take a 1-0 lead.
 
Duxbury’s momentum never let up despite a scoreless first period with an attempt after the buzzer by junior defenseman Martha Findley at the post.
 
The Green Dragons have been the ‘on-the-rise’ program this winter after locking in their first-ever 21-win season.

Video by Cal Borchers for Boston.com

Globe correspondent Jake Seiner recaps the Super 8 semifinals at Lawler Arena as St. John's Prep beat Weymouth 5-1 and Malden Catholic finishes off BC High 4-2.

By Seth Lakso, Globe correspondent

And then there were two.

The finals for the Super 8 are set, as Malden Catholic and St. John’s Prep prepare to face off for the Division 1A championship Sunday at TD Garden at 6 p.m.

Neither school has won a Super 8 title since the tournament was established in 1991 - only five schools can stake claim to the “Catholic Memorial Trophy.”

Kidding ... although with 13 titles, CM has nine more than BC High. No one else has more than one.

But before they decide the sixth winner ever, let’s take a look back on just how these two teams got where they are today.

Records in Super-8 play: MC: 4-0; SJP:4-0

Goal differential: MC: 21-10; SJP: 20-6

Notes:

St. John’s Prep has dominated Super 8 play, allowing just a single goal in each of their past three games, while outscoring opponents, 16-3.

The last Division 1 title for either school was in 1985, when the Prep won it all. You have to go all the way back to 1974 for Malden Catholic’s last title.

Both teams have some impressive offensive firepower: MC has Mike Vecchione (going to attend UNH) and Ryan Fitzgerald, who’s already signed with BC, as a sophomore. Saint John's Prep has a "game changing center" in Colin Blackwell, who is heading to play for Harvard in 2012.

So, there’s your breakdown, now it’s your turn to voice your opinion - vote in the poll and defend your vote in our comments section below and make sure to check out all our Super 8 coverage.

By Jason Mastrodonato, Globe correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER — Malden Catholic continued its assumed run to Super 8 glory on Wednesday night, knocking off Catholic Conference rival BC High, 4-2, in front of a sold-out Lawler Arena crowd of 1,500.

The Eagles (15-6-3) nearly stormed ahead in the second frame, scoring once on the power play and winning the period shot total 11-6, but the Lancers (20-2-2) held on and will face St. John’s Prep (18-5-1) for the Super 8 title at TD Garden Sunday at 6 p.m.

MC coach Chris Serino said he thought his players were too offensive-minded in the first two periods and it nearly cost them the game.

“We’ve been doing this the whole tournament,” he said after the win. “We’re just looking to go for the offense, giving up too many scoring chances. Hopefully we have one more stored up in us because we’re going to need it the way we’re playing.”

The explosive offense of Malden Catholic was on display within the games first minute, when a few early shots on Eagles’ sophomore goalie Peter Cronin, who made 24 saves in the game, led to a loose puck that sophomore Ryan Fitzgerald poked in for an early lead.

Killing a penalty midway through the second period, MC senior captain Mike Vecchione intercepted a pass in his own zone to give the Lancers a shorthanded 2-on-1 chance. But Cronin made the initial save to send the Eagles back the other way, and Fitzgerald was whistled for a tripping penalty that gave BC High a brief two-man advantage. Just seconds into the 5-on-3, senior defenseman Jack Buckley ripped a slap shot from the point that snuck through Young’s legs to tie things up, 1-1.

“I know we’ve scored more goals shorthanded than we’ve given up on the power play, but sometimes it hurts you,” Serino said.

MC killed two straight power plays following the goal, eventually taking the lead back when junior Brendan Collier knocked in a far-side rebound off a Vecchione wrist-shot.

If the Eagles were going put pressure on the tournament-favorites, the second period might have been their best chance. They had four power plays and peppered MC senior goalie Patrick Young, but Collier’s goal with four minutes left in the period allowed the Lancers keep the lead.

“In the second period, we played well,” said first-year Eagles’ coach John Flaherty. “We out-chanced them. But they capitalized as good teams do. And we didn’t capitalize on our chances.

“That team down the hall is a very, very good hockey team. We made them fight for their life tonight and I’m very proud of our guys for that.”

The Lancers’ second line got in on the scoring in the third period, when senior Garrett White beat Cronin top-shelf with a pair of wrist shots that gave MC a 4-1 lead. BC High freshman Tom Besinger put one in with three minutes left, but it was too late as the Lancers held on for the 4-2 win.

“They were taking the momentum away [in the second period], really coming at us,” Serino said. “I thought we played really well after we got the 3-1 lead. That lightened things up for us a little bit and took some of the pressure off. Hopefully the way we played in the third will carry over into the Garden.”

Young made 20 saves for Malden Catholic.

“He played awfully good,” Serino said. “He’s played really well in the tournament, made crucial saves at times when we needed him. He might have won the game for us tonight.”

Regardless of Sunday’s outcome, the tournament crown will be back in the hands of a private school following a one-year hiatus – Hingham took home the title in 2010.

Both the Lancers and the Eagles will be playing for the first Super 8 championship in school history, but Serino knows his squad will be under the spotlight.

“There’s a lot of pressure on these guys,” he said. “They’ve been No. 1 since the beginning. Anything more than the state title is going to be a disappointment for everybody, that’s what they believe.”

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER — After his team’s 5-1 loss to St. John’s Prep Wednesday night, Weymouth hockey coach Matt Cataldo was understandably disappointed and disheartened, and his tone reflected his deflation during his postgame meeting with the press.

At least until he was asked about Prep (18-5-1) centerman Colin Blackwell, who torched Cataldo’s Wildcats (18-6-2) for three goals and two assists in the win, which sends the Eagles to their first Super 8 final in program history.

“That Blackwell kid, I don’t know how you contain him,” a wide-eyed, flabbergasted Cataldo said. “Put him in a cage? He’s just so fast and so talented. He was unbelievable tonight. I’ve never seen anything like it at the high school level.”

Blackwell netted his first goal fifteen seconds into the second period. The Harvard-bound centerman scooped up a loose puck in the neutral zone, and rocketed down the right wing. Two Weymouth defenders were in prime position to defend the play, but by the time Blackwell reached the in-zone faceoff dot, he was already turning the corner on both players.

With the defenders’ sticks desperately slapping the ice at his heels, Blackwell swung the puck to his backhand and poked it past Weymouth goalie Brian Brady.

“That kid, I’ve just never seen speed like that,” Cataldo said. “His first two steps, it’s like a rocket ship.”

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com staff

Globe correspondent Jake Seiner breaks down the third round of the Super 8 tournament, paying attention to who moves on to the crossover round while looking at the day's action.

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

LOWELL –– Of the 12 round-robin games played in this year’s Super 8 tournament, nine were decided by a goal or less.

Sunday's nightcap wasn’t one of them.

Harvard-bound senior Colin Blackwell put No. 2 St. John’s Prep on the board 10 seconds in, and the Eagles soared to a 6-1 victory over No. 3 BC High.

The win makes Prep the top-seeded team to come out of Bracket Two, meaning St. John’s will skate against No. 4 Weymouth Wednesday night. Meanwhile, BC High earns the unpleasant task of taking on No. 1 Malden Catholic

Over its previous six games, BC High had allowed three goals total. St. John's Prep matched that in the first 1:37 of Sunday's showdown.

Blackwell’s (one goal, two assists) goal was the first of four in the first period for St. John’s Prep. Blackwell scored the breakaway goal by simply toasting the entire BC High defense down the left wing. The senior cut at the left dot toward the net, and backhanded one through the five-hole of Eagle goalie Peter Cronin.

Thirty seconds later, Devin Murray turned a Ryan Palmer breakout pass into another breakaway finish. Then, 57 seconds after that, St. John’s Prep played pinball with the puck as Colin Blackwell one-touched a pass to John Farrow on the doorstep, where Farrow one-timed in the third goal.

End of 2nd period, St. John's Prep 4, BC High 1 -- BC High got on the board in the second, with Terence Durkin poking in a loose puck in front. The shots are dead even at 13 apiece, but SJP has clearly been the better team so far.

End of 1st period, St. John's Prep 4, BC High 0 -- It's safe to say there was more drama below the rink than on it during the first 15 minutes of this one. On the ice, St. John's Prep scored three times in the first 1:37. Colin Blackwell started the scoring with a breakaway finish 10 seconds into the game, followed 30 seconds later by a breakaway tally from Devin Murray. Then, 1:37 in, Blackwell played keystone in a tic-tac-toe passing play that resulted in a tap-in goal for John Farrow.

Shane Eiserman added a third breakaway goal with 25 seconds to play in the frame.

While all this was going on, MIAA officials met in the tunnels with coaches from Weymouth and Central Catholic discussing the outcome of their identical 1-2 records in round-robin play. Central beat Weymouth head-to-head, and both held an identical advantage in goal differential over Hingham, also 1-2.

Officials eventually informed the teams that Weymouth would advance thanks to an advantage in goal quotient, which is goals scored divided by goals allowed.

Stay posted for updates throughout the game. You can also follow along on Twitter at @GlobeSchools or @jseiner.

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

LOWELL –– Ryan Fitzgerald sniped home the game-winner with 1:21 to play, and No.1 Malden Catholic marched into the crossover round with a come-from-behind, 5-4 victory over No. 4 Weymouth.

Despite the loss, Weymouth advances to the Super 8 crossover round thanks to an advantage in goal quotient, which is goals scored over goals allowed.

The tiebreaker leaves No. 8 Central Catholic out of the crossover round, despite a tournament victory over Weymouth and an identical record and goal differential.

Malden stormed back from a 2-0 deficit with a three-goal second period, only to watch the lead vanish in the third. Wildcat senior Corey Tulpin netted the equalizer, zipping a point shot through traffic and by MC goalie Pat Young.

Minutes later, Tyler Piacentini failed to get off a shot on a breakaway attempt for Weymouth, but recovered and slid a pass back to linemate Trevor King. Young went down on the play, and King floated the puck over the fallen goaltender and in to give Weymouth a 4-3 lead.

With just under four to play, Malden Catholic reknotted the score. The squad's second line of Mike Iovanna, Nick Roberto, and Garrett White has been unstoppable throughout the tournament, and came through again with two big goals, including the equalizer in the third.

This time, it was Nick Roberto scoring the tally, deflecting a shot from Iovanna with his skate and by Weymouth goalie Brian Brady.

Malden Catholic will play Wednesday against the loser of tonight's St. John's Prep-BC High night cap, while Weymouth gets the winner.

End of 2nd period, Malden Catholic 3, Weymouth 2 -- A big three-goal period for Malden Catholic, capped by a Ryan Fitzgerald breakaway tally with 4 seconds to play. The lefty sniped the go-ahead goal top shelf by Wildcat goalie Brian Brady.

The Lancers got on the board about five minutes into the second on a big Weymouth miscue. Brady attempted and failed to clear a puck from behind his own cage. MC sophomore Mike Iovanna picked off the attempt, and two strides later slid the puck into an empty Weymouth net to cut the lead to 2-1

The Lancers squared the score midway through the frame. MC's Garrett White netted the goal, deflecting a grounder from the point by defenseman Colin MacGillvray. The trickler slid by Brady unnoticed, tying the score 2-2. Despite the deflection, MacGillvray was credit with the goal, with Iovanna picking up the primary assist for his second point of the night.

End of 1st period, Malden Catholic 0, Weymouth 2-- Weymouth dominated the early going, jumping to a 1-0 lead and a 10-4 shot advantage in the first ten minutes of play. Ian Sheridan scored the Wildcats' first goal, following up after Bob Ganley was stoned by MC goalie Pat Young on a breakaway chance. Young slid out of the crease to make the save, and when Sheridan found the rebound at the doorstep, the entire cage was open for scoring.

Minutes later, Tyler Piacentini extended the lead to 2-0, putting his stick on a rebound in front and beating Young to the goalie's left. Corey Tuplin and Trevor King pick up assists on the goal.

Stay posted here or follow along on Twitter at @GlobeSchools and @jseiner for updates throughout the night.

By Michael Grossi, Globe correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER -- For one night, Central Catholic players were Malden Catholic fans.

The Raiders lost in their final round robin game, 2-1, to Hingham and needed Malden Catholic to beat Weymouth by at least two goals to advance to the crossover round.

No dice.

Malden Catholic beat Weymouth, 5-4, putting MC, Weymouth, St. John's Prep and BC High in the crossover round.

James Gordon scored the game winner for Hingham with 6:51 left in the second period. Steve Bellew also scored a goal and Alex Pompeo tallied two assists.

Tommy Evangelista scored for Central Catholic.

End of the 3rd period: Hingham 2, Central Catholic 1 -- No Scoring in the period. Hingham goalie Derek McInnis made 22 saves to pick up the victory.

End of 2nd peroid: Hingham 2, Central Catholic 1 -- James Gordon gives the Harbormen a 2-1 lead with 6:51 remaining. He slid a wrister underneath Central Catholic goalie Kyle Williams' pads from the right hash. Alex Pompeo also picked up his second assist of the day.

End of 1st period: Hingham 1, Central Catholic 1 -- Steve Bellew put the Harbormen on top with a nifty goal. After receiving a pass from Alex Pompeo, the defenseman put on a deke to his right to lose a defender and then roofed a backhand past Williams.

The Raiders struck back with 3:23 remaining on a Tommy Evangelista snap shot from the left face off circle.

By Michael Grossi, Globe correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER -- John Concannon scored with 5:28 left in the game to give Woburn a 2-2 tie with Needham in their final Super 8 game.

Since both teams were out of contention for the crossover games, the game did not go to overtime.

In the second period, Needham scored twice in less than two minutes to take a 2-1 lead into the final frame. DJ Walsh tied the game at 1-1 with 9:42 remaining after tipping a point shot on net and then banging home his own rebound. Timmy Parlato followed with 7:48 remaining. Parlato scored on a seeing-eye wrister from the point with 1 second left on a power play.

Daniel Holland gave the Tanners a 1-0 lead with 10:14 remaining in the second period by chipping the puck over Needham goalie Connor Murray.

End of 3rd period: Needham 2, Woburn 2 -- John Concannon tied the game with 5:28 to play, sweeping in a loose puck.

End of 2nd period: Needham 2, Woburn 1 -- Woburn took a 1-0 lead after Daniel Holland chipped a rebound over Needham's Connor Murray. However, the Rockets tied the game 32 seconds later on a goal by DJ Walsh. Walsh tipped a Scott Atkinson point shot on goal and then banged home his own rebound. The Rockets took a 2-1 lead on a power play goal by Timmy Parlato. Parlato's shot from the point took a funny bounce and squeezed past Woburn's Cam McGlashing.

End of 1st period: Woburn 0, Needham 0 -- No scoring in the first period but there were a few quality opportunities for both squads. Needham's Sam Nickles had a short-handed breakaway but was stoned by McGlashing. The Tanners went 0-2 on the power play. Woburn outshot the Rockets, 12-6.

By Phillip Shore, Globe correspondent

Only one Rams player scored in the shootout of the boys’ North Division 3 semifinals between Shawsheen and Wayland.

Only one goal was all that was necessary to win.

Junior Joe Sodergren was the first shooter for the Rams and the only player from either team to put the puck in the back of the net, lifting Shawsheen to a 3-2 victory and its second finals appearance in three years.

“He’s a hard-nosed player and he was all over the place tonight,” Rams coach Chuck Baker said. “That whole line — him, Mike DiGiorgio and Tom Price — they were all fantastic.”

Sodergren and DiGiorgio both scored in regulation to give the Rams a 2-1 lead in regulation. Warriors’ Zach Bastarache scored the equalizer from about 40 feet out with just under five minutes remaining in the third-period.

Also stepping up with a big performance for Shawsheen was senior goalie Ryan Maskell, who made 32 saves and stopped all five shots in the shootout.

“Maskell was outstanding. He’s the All-Star goalie out of the conference and he played like an all-star tonight,” Baker said. “For the most part we [played hard], but when they did slip up Maskell was there to bail them out.”

Shawsheen will face Marblehead, last year’s champion — who beat Dracut 5-1 — in the championship game on Saturday at 5:40 p.m.

By Liz Torres, Globe correspondent

For the first time in three years, the St. Mary’s program came out as the underdog as Hingham shut down the Spartans in a 3-2 overtime knockout to terminate the dynasty’s run at 100 unbeaten games.

The last time the Spartans (20-1-3) saw a loss was in 2007 in a Division 1 State semifinal matchup with Austin Prep that ended in a 3-2 overtime shootout.

Forty-five seconds into overtime, Hingham's Jane Freda went-back-to-back with puck possession on a breakaway to challenge Spartans goaltender Sarah Foss one-on-one for the Hingham upset, 3-2.

It was Harbormen Sarah Schwenzfeier’s rebound in the second period at 14:03 off a shot by Jane Freda that headed off scoring, 1-0, as St. Mary’s came back in the third period at 7:00 with Spartans Marisa Maccario plowing through a goal to tie, 1-1.

The Spartans charged back with their usual swift attack to notch their second goal off a slapshot by Hannah Quinn at 6:26 for the first lead and what looked like a typical St. Mary’s comeback.

But, Harbormen’s Jane Freda made sure to dim those chances with a tight shot at a tousled net at 5:36 to tie 2-2 to send the game into overtime.

The Harbormen surfaced as the faster and more aggressive team (previously lost to St. Mary’s 2-0, 4-2) that was anchored by its defense behind goaltender Beth Findley who made the game difference, said Hingham coach Tom Findley.

Overtime - Hingham 3-2

- 11:15 - Hingham's Jane Freda steals puck and scores on the ensuing breakaway to win the game, 3-2.

Third period - Hingham 2, St. Mary's 2

- 10:44 - St. Mary's Genevieve Benoit attempts to sneak one in but is stopped by Hingham's Findley.
- 7:00 - St. Mary's comes from behind to tie 1-1 after an attempted shot by Iannetti with a repeated efforted by St. Marys Marisa Maccario for the tying goal.
- 6:26 - St. Mary's Hannah Quinn takes a slapshot to take the first St. Mary's lead 2-1.
- 5:36 - Hingham scores behind Jane Freda with a tight shot at a tousled net to tie, 2-2.
- Period ends with 2-2 tie as we head into overtime.

Second period - Hingham 1, St. Mary's 0

- 14:03 - Hingham's Jane Freda makes a shot at with Sarah Schwenzfeier on the rebound tight at the net to lead Hingham 1-0.
- St. Mary's is barely able to keep control of the puck with Hingham isolating St. Mary's leading scorer Sabrina Iannetti and any other potential scoring opportunity.
- 5:01 - Rough play by Hingham's Catherine Linehan for a Hingham penalty. One of the few calls on Hingham's "aggressive play." Two minutes later Iannetti moves to score on breakaway but Hingham's Beth Findley blocks the shot.
- 1:18 - Iannetti plows forward past a Hingham defender for St. Mary's closest chance at scoring but falls into the net. With under 30 seconds left, Iannetti fails on two attempts along with Alison Butler's as Hingham's Findley barricades net to keep 1-0 lead.

First period - Hingham 0, St. Mary's 0

- 4:08 left... another puck outside the rink. Hingham keeps St. Mary's on their toes with great defensive game to keep the period scoreless so far,
- Both teams saw several opportunities tight at the net, but slipped (literally). With eight seconds left in the first, Hingham's Catherine Chittick goes for an open slapshot but misses net to end the first period, 0-0.

Belmont Hill's Ken Martin, center, celebrated with his team after winning his 700th game of his coaching career. (Courtesy of Belmont Hill)

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com staff

Belmont Hill's Ken Martin, the winningest hockey coach in Massachusetts history, has stepped down, according to the school.

Martin just finished his 39th year at the helm of the boys hockey program, eclipsing the 700-win mark for an esteemed career. He has the most wins as a coach in Massachusetts history with a record of 707-270-43.

"I really didn't want to reach a point where people might think I stayed too long," Martin said on the school's website. "We just finished our sixth consecutive season in post-season play — no day school has done that — and with the 700 wins behind me, I thought the time was right. I am looking forward to spending more time with my family, especially during the winter holidays."

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com staff

The MIAA announced the sites for its Super 8 Division 1A hockey game this upcoming Sunday, with the four games being split between Tsongas Arena in Lowell and Merrimack College in North Andover.

To start the day, and Round 3 of the tournament, Needham will play Woburn at 11:30 a.m. at Merrimack College, followed by Hingham vs. Central Catholic at 1:30 p.m.

In the evening, Malden Catholic will play Weymouth at 5 p.m. at Tsongas Arena, followed by St. John's Prep taking on BC High at 7 p.m.

The sites of two of the games had previously been undetermined because of a conflict with Merrimack College's Lawler Arena. Merrimack's men's hockey team is currently in the Hockey East quarterfinals and could possibly host a 5 p.m. game on Sunday.

Tsongas Arena hosted last year's Super 8 tournament.

By Seth Lakso, Globe correspondent

With two wins each, St. John’s Prep and BC High have already punched their tickets to the Super 8 crossover round and top-ranked Malden Catholic, also 2-0, is a virtual lock to advance, with Central Catholic and Weymouth each suffering a loss. It also helps that the Lancers’ goal differential is a Super 8 best plus-8.

That leaves Central Catholic and Weymouth to battle for the fourth and final spot in the crossover round.

On Saturday Weymouth will take on the Lancers, while the Raiders will face winless Hingham.

So with three of the final four teams essentially set and Weymouth and Central Catholic battling for their hockey seasons to continue the question is, “Who do you think will win the crown?”

We took a quick poll around the sports desk and this is what we’re thinking.

Craig Forde: MC -- in the interest of full disclosure Fordy is a Lancer alumnus, “Blue and Gold baby!”

Lorenzo Recupero: St. John’s Prep -- We’re pretty sure it’s just to spite Fordy

Mike O’Brien: BC High -- No explanation offered

Jim Hoban: Xaverian -- Champ, who played for the Hawks back in...let’s say 1903 maybe... would say Xaverian no matter what we asked him. Yes, he knows they’re not in the tournament this year, he just doesn’t see why the Hawks can’t come from out of nowhere.

Jim McBride: MC

As for myself, BC High -- In an effort to get a little serious...I like the work Peter Cronin has done between the pipes and the shot blocking ability of the Eagles. If you don’t give up any goals, you can’t lose.

Will Weymouth be the only public school to get beyond round-robin play and take its place as one of the last four standing? Hingham won it all last year, so you know it’s possible. Who’s daring enough to pick Central Catholic? None of us were for some reason.

Let us know your opinion by voting in the poll.

Video by Cal Borchers for Boston.com

St. John’s Prep pummeled Needham 5-1 and BC High eked by Woburn, 1-0, as the Catholic Conference rivals clinched crossover round berths in the Super 8 tournament.

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

Tom Besinger scored the game-winner with less than five minutes to play in the first period, and BC High clinched a spot in the Super 8 crossover round with a 1-0 win over Woburn.

Both goaltenders shined in net, with Eagle goaltender Peter Cronin earning the shutout on 18 saves. Woburn's Cam McGlashing may have been more impressive in the loss, turning away 23 BC High shots.

Tom Besinger put the Eagles up 1-0 in the first period, finishing a play started by linemate Terence Durkin. Durkin moved the puck into the zone, and spun one defender around so hard, the defender lost his stick and his footing. Durkin lost control trying to deke a second defender, and the puck slid atop to the right side of the crease, where Besinger dove and poked it in.

The goal sparked a fast-paced finish to the first period that carried over into the second. Both teams struggled in transition defense in the second period, forcing both goalies to make a handful of tremendous saves to keep the score where it was.

Woburn had a few substantial scoring chances in the frame, none better than Casey Shea's look from the left side of the crease. The righty wound to fire a one-timer at a wide-open cage, but on his downswing, his stick blade slid out of its graphite shaft, causing the junior to duff the shot wide.

The Tanners had another close call in the third, when a point shot slid behind BC High's Cronin and trickled toward the goal line. Eagle defenseman Matt Doherty bailed out his goaltender, though, by diving through the crease to clear the puck from danger with his stick.

Final, BC High 1, Woburn 0 -- For the second straight game, Woburn just refuses to go away, but in the end, BC High blocked too many shots, and BC High goalie Peter Cronin was ready for the 18 that got through. BC High and St. John's Prep have now clinched spots in the crossover round.

End of 2nd period, BC High 1, Woburn 0 -- Things opened up early in the first period and stayed that way in the second. Tons of back and forth action as both teams struggled mightily with transition defense. And yet, no goals in the second frame either way, mostly thanks to the goaltending of Peter Cronin (11 saves) and Cam McGlashing (15 saves).

End of 1st period, BC High 1, Woburn 0 -- A very cautious first eight minutes gives way to a frenetic final seven, and BC High heads to the dressing rooms up 1-0. Tom Besinger scored the goal, completing a magnificent play started by Terence Durkin. Durkin spun one defender around so quick with a deke, the player lost his stick, then moved the puck to Besinger's direction. The puck was way ahead of Besinger, but the freshman dove for it and put just enough stick on the puck to slide it into the cage.

By Jake Seiner/Globe Correspondent

Final, St. John's Prep 5, Needham 1 -- More dominant play from the Eagles in the third backed by goals from Devin Murray and Shane Eiserman, and Prep skates away with the victory to move to 2-0 in Super 8 play. With a win tonight from BC High or a win Sunday over BC High, St. John's Prep can guarantee itself a spot in the crossover round.

End of 2nd period, St. John's Prep 3, Needham 1-- The Eagle lead stays at two thanks to a goal from Colin Blackwell 57 seconds into the frame. The senior charged the Needham zone for a one-on-two, but by the team he reached the hashes, he'd already deked through both defenders. Blackwell roofed the puck by Murray from right atop the doorstep.

Needham had consecutive power-play chances right after the Blackwell goal, but failed to convert, and didn't get on the board until the 2:08 remained in the frame. No word on Rocket forward DJ Walsh's religious views, but either way, the junior's Ash Wednesday prayers were answered when he whipped a desperation centering pass into a pack of Prep defenders. The puck bounced off an Eagle leg and skidded five-hole on goalie David Letarte, cutting the deficit to 3-1.

End of 1st period, St. John's Prep 2, Needham 0 -- Freshman Shane Eiserman put the Eagles on the board first, but credit should really go to senior Harvard-commit Colin Blackwell. The standout broke from the left halfwall with the puck and emerged with it in the slot after deking around the entire Rocket defense, which was cramped mostly around the left hashmarks. From the slot, Blackwell wristed one in front, where Eiserman's tip bounced off Needham goalie Connor Murray and in for the 1-0 lead.

Nick Pandelena stretched the lead to 2-0 with a buzzer-beater at the end of the frame. Yes, that's right, a hockey buzzer-beater. The defenseman wound and fired a desperation slapper from the right point, and just before the horn sounded, the shot zipped under the crossbar.

Video by Zuri Berry, Boston.com staff

Globe correspondent Jake Seiner recaps the first day second round Super 8 hockey action at Merrimack College.

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

Final: Central Catholic 2, Weymouth 1Kyle Williams makes 23 saves in total, including eight in the third period, and Central holds on for the win. Central, Weymouth, and Malden Catholic could all now advance to the Super 8 crossover round, with Malden Catholic almost assuredly passing with by far the largest goal differential.

End of 2nd period: Central Catholic 2, Weymouth 1
Central takes a 2-1 lead on a power-play goal by Tommy Evangelista. Nick Leonard (1 goal, 1 assist) started the play, skating the puck down the right wing to beneath the goal line. Leonard backhanded a drop pass to Evangelista atop the right side of the crease, and the junior ripped the go-ahead tally home from there on a one-time effort.

End of 1st period: Weymouth 1, Central Catholic 1
Tyler Piacentini put the Wildcats up early on a goal assisted by, of course, linemate Riley Flanagan. The goal gives Piacentini 64 points and 32 goals for the season. Central knotted the score late in the frame after Nick Leonard was tripped on a short-handed breakaway chance. The officials awarded Leonard a penalty shot, and Central's leading point-scorer didn't waste the chance, converting on a quick backhand-to-forehand deke.

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com staff

NORTH ANDOVER — After changing arenas to host the Super 8 Division 1A hockey tournament, the MIAA boasted of the attendance in the tournament's first round at Merrimack College's Lawler Arena.

Now, the MIAA has to possibly find a new site for two games slated for Sunday, says MIAA president Bill Gaines.

"What I can tell you is this, there will be a game at 11:45 (a.m.) and 1:45 (p.m.) here," said Gaines. "But the other two games, we've yet to determine."

Merrimack College's men's hockey team is in the Hockey East quarterfinals and could possibly host a 5 p.m. game Sunday, pushing the high schoolers out of college's arena.

Gaines said the MIAA will know by Thursday which two games will be played at Merrimack College. One tournament official said the other two games, if it comes to that, would likely be played at the Chelmsford Forum.

Lawler Arena is smaller than Tsongas Arena, seating a little more than 1,000 spectators, but has fit well, according to the MIAA.

"We were very pleased,'' tournament director Jim O'Connor told the Globe after the first round. He added the attendance was up from last year's opening day in Lowell.
"The games were all very exciting.''

About 100 to 150 fans were turned away during the first round's nightcap game between Malden Catholic and Central Catholic.

Garrett White, right, scored four goals for Malden Catholic in an 8-1 win over Hingham. (Winslow Townson / For the Globe)

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

Final: Malden Catholic 8, Hingham 1--
Two more goals for the Malden attack as Garrett White picks up his fourth of the game and Brendan Collier adds one as well. With a Weymouth win in game two tonight, Malden would clinch a spot in the crossover round.

End of 2nd period: Malden Catholic 6, Hingham 1 --
The Harbormen just found out the hard way just how explosive and deep Malden Catholic is. Garrett White scored two more goals to complete a hat trick, Mike Iovanna netted two goals and Ryan Fitzgerald added another, giving MC five goals on 9 shots. Derek McInnis hasn't been as good as he was in the first, but hasn't been awful either –– the Lancers are just toying with the Hingham defense at this point.

End of 1st period: Malden Catholic 1, Hingham 1--
Both goaltenders got off to a rough start in the first period. Hingham scored on its second shot of the game, when James Gordon zipped by a downed Lancer defender, turned at the goal line and backhanded the game's first score stick side by MC's Pat Young. Malden Catholic responded quickly, as Garrett White one-timed a Nick Roberto faceoff win off Hingham goalie Derek McInnis and in to knot the game at 1-1. MC upped the pressure from there, winning the first-period shot battle 10-6, but McInnis has been outstanding since allowing the first tally.

By Bob Holmes, Globe staff

Attendance for the first day of the Super 8 hockey tournament at Merrimack College was 4,527, a figure that had MIAA officials smiling. "We were very pleased,'' said tournament director Jim O'Connor, who added the attendance was up from last year's opening day in Lowell. "The games were all very exciting.''

O'Connor said that approximately 100-150 fans were turned away at the door for the game between Malden Catholic and Central Catholic, the last of four games at Merrimack.

The tournament resumes Tuesday at Merrimack.

Video by Cal Borchers for Boston.com

Globe correspondent Jake Seiner recaps the first round of the Super 8 hockey tournament, highlighted by top-seeded Malden Catholic beating Central Catholic, 4-3, in the nightcap in front of a packed house.

Winslow Townson / For the Globe

Check out photos of the first round of the Super 8 tournament here, featuring St. John's Prep's 4-3 overtime win over Woburn and Weymouth's comeback win over Hingham. There's also shots from Malden Catholic's close win over Central Catholic.

By Liz Torres, globe correspondent

Host St. Mary’s beat Shrewsbury, 8-0, Saturday night in the first round of the Division 1 girls hockey tournament but the talk afterward was of a more impressive number. The win pushed St. Mary’s unbeaten streak to an even 100.

‘‘I’m proud of the kids. It’s the last home game and they’ll play here and they knew that and [the upperclassmen] led today,’’ said Spartans coach Frank Pagliuca.

It was like target practice for the Spartans in the early going with senior forward Sabrina Iannetti scoring first at 11:34. Sophomore forwards Marisa Maccario and Alison Butler pushed the lead to 3-0 before senior defenseman Angela Dandreo made it 4-0 with a slapshot at the buzzer.

The second period was no different with back-to-back goals from junior forward Genevieve Benoit and junior defenseman Rachel Donahoe to make it 6-0. Benoit scored again off an assist from Maccario for make it 7-0 before Madison Molea finished the scoring with an assist from Butler to end the game, 8-0.

‘‘They were perfect. You can’t let off at all and they didn’t. We played well from the goalie to defenseman to forward, and our speed tonight … that was the difference,’’ said Pagliuca.

The Spartans will play Hingham in the quarterfinals.

Malden Catholic's Brendan Collier celebrates his first
period goal. (Winslow Townson / For the Globe)

By: Michael Grossi, Globe correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER -- Malden Catholic's Brendan Collier and Ryan Fitzgerald scored 25 seconds apart in the third period to break a 2-2 tie en route to a 4-3 win in Super 8 play.

Collier also scored a goal in the first period and UNH-bound Mike Vecchione recorded three assists. Lancers goalie Patrick Young rebounded from a shaky first period performance to tally 21 saves.

Alex Lester and Mike Kelleher scored first period goals for the Raiders. Goalie Kyle Williams made 23 saves.

Final: Malden Catholic 4, Central Catholic 3: Brendan Collier and Ryan Fitzgerald scored goals 25 seconds apart to give the Lancers a 4-2 lead with 10:03 remaining in the game.

Central Catholic's Nick Leonard one-time a shot past Patrick Young to pull the Raiders within goal, 4-3, with 4:54 left in the game.

End of 2nd period: Malden Catholic 2, Central Catholic 2 -- No scoring in the period. MC had a few good chances towards the end of the frame, but nothing materialized. Shots in the period: MC 12, Central Catholic 10.

End of 1st period: Malden Catholic 2, Central Catholic 2 -- After Brendan Collier gave Malden Catholic a 1-0 lead with 12:10 remaining, Central Catholic responded. 2:00 after MC scored, Mike Kelleher tied the game. 1:25 after that, Alex Lester roofed a rebound to give the Raiders a 2-1 advantage against the No. 1 seed in the tournament.

Garrett White tied the score at 2-2 with 1:10 remaining. Nick Roberto centered a pass from Gretzky's office and White deposited it in the back of the net.

Malden Catholic and Central Catholic have taken the ice for warm ups. This is the final game of the Super 8's first day of round-robin play. Puck will drop in about 10 minutes. Stay tuned for end of period updates.

St. John's Prep's John Farrow (9) contolled the puck in the crease just before scoring the game-winning overtime goal on Woburn goaltender Cam McGlashing during the MIAA Super 8 hockey tournament. (Winslow Townson / For the Globe)

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER – The last time No. 2 St. John's Prep and No. 7 Woburn collided, the Eagles soared over the Tanners in a 6-0 trouncing.

This one, it's safe to say, was quite a bit closer.

Casey Shea –– who scored five goals in Woburn's 5-2 play-in game victory over Springfield Cathedral Monday –– netted an equalizing tally with 6:41 to play to send the game to overtime.

But the Eagles prevailed in the extra frame, with John Farrow netting his second goal of the game to secure a 4-3 St. John's Prep victory.

Harvard-bound senior Colin Blackwell started the winning play, crashing the Woburn net from the left side with the puck. Blackwell's initial shot was denied by goalie Cam McGlashing, but the rebound trickled beyond the right side of the crease.

Farrow was there, albeit on his rear, to shove the puck back into the cage.

The goal was Farrow's second of the game, with the first coming 44 seconds into the second period. The senior scored fresh off the bench, leaping over the boards and heading straight for the slot. Matt MacDonald found Farrow with a pass from below the goal line, and Farrow slid the puck five-hole on McGlashing.

Final: St. John's Prep 4, Woburn 3 (OT)-- Colin Blackwell rushes the puck to the Woburn net and slides a shot off goalie Cam McGlashing's pads. The rebound comes right to John Farrow, who was put on his rear by a defender. Farrow swooped the puck while on his back once off McGlashing, then by him for the overtime winner.

End of 3rd period: St. John's Prep 3, Woburn 3-- Midway through the frame, Casey Shea continued his dominant Super 8 run with the goal of the tournament to this point. Shea rushed the zone 1-on-2, smoked one defender down the wing then slid into the slot by deking through the other D-man's legs. The deke threw Prep goalie Dave Letarte off the trail, and the junior tied the game with a backhanded finish.

With that, we're headed to a 12-minute, sudden-death overtime. If that doesn't solve things, we'll head to a shootout.

End of 2nd period: St. John's Prep 3, Woburn 2 --It took the Eagles just 44 seconds to extend their first period lead, with John Farrow hopping off the bench and sliding a pass from Matt MacDonald five-hole. Two minutes later, the Tanners responded, as Alex Hollan joined his brother on the scoresheet with a snipe from near the right faceoff dot.

End of 1st period: St. John's Prep 2, Woburn 1 -- Dan Holland put the Tanners up early, swooping behind the cage and spinning a pinpoint wrister just under the crossbar. The Eagles responded with back-to-back tallies just past the midway mark. Colin Blackwell netted the first, one-touching a centering pass from rookie Shane Eiserman past Woburn goalie Cam McGlashing. Then Sam Kurker put St. John's Prep on top by beating his defender down the right wing and sliding one five-hole on McGlashing about a minute later.

Weymouth's Riley Flanagan (3) got his stick around the neck of Hingham's Tim Driscoll during the MIAA Super 8 hockey tournament in North Andover Saturday. (Winslow Townson / For the Globe)

By Michael Grossi, Globe correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER -- Riley Flanagan scored the game tying goal and assisted on the game winning goal as Weymouth defeated defending Super 8 champion Hingham, 4-3, at Merrimack's Lawler Arena. Trevor King scored the game winning goal with 2:45 left in the third period, poking home a centering pass from Flanagan.

The Wildcats Tyler Piacentini tallied two assists and goalie Brian Brady made 16 saves including a highway robbery of a Ryan Linehan shot that was ticketed for the top corner of the net.

Hingham's Alex Pompeo had a two point night (goal, assist). Linehan and Dan Griffin also scored for the Harbormen.

End of 3rd period: Weymouth 4, Hingham 3 -- The Wildcats came out of the intermission reinvigorated. Riley Flanagan tied the game with a doorstep tip in off a pass from Tyler Piacentini. Flanagan then set up the game winner. He centered a pass to Trevor King who deposited the puck in the net with 2:45 remaining in the game.

End of 2nd period: Hingham 3, Weymouth 2 -- That was an entertaining period. Weymouth took a 2-1 lead on the power play. Riley Flanagan tipped a Steve Bristol point shot past McInnis. After that, however, Hingham lived in their offensive zone. The Harbormen had a flurry of chances that included a hit post. Dan Griffin tied the score for Hingham, redirecting a John Carlson shot.

Ryan Linehan gave the Harbormen a 3-2 lead with 50.2 seconds remaining. He took a pass in the slot and picked the top corner of the net with a wrister.

End of 1st period: Hingham 1, Weymouth 1 -- Some nice back and forth action between the two rival squads. The Wildcats took an early lead after Jonathan Wilson zipped a shot glove side on Hingham goalie Derek McInnis. Wilson was set up by a nifty back handed pass from Ian Sheridan. The Harbormen tied it on the power play with 5.2 seconds remaining in the period. Alex Pompeo let loose with a blast from the blue line that found its way through traffic and past Weymouth goalie Brian Brady.

Hingham and Weymouth have taken the ice for warm ups. We are about six minutes from the drop of the puck. Stay tuned for updates at the end of the periods.

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

NORTH ANDOVER –– For two and a half periods, No. 3 BC High and No. 6 Needham played scoreless hockey at Lawler Arena.

But the Eagles, who dominated time of possession and built a 26-14 shot advantage, earned the Super 8 round-robin win, 2-0, on the strength of Mike Cashman's power-play goal with 6:28 to play.

Cashman scored from point-blank range, taking in a pass just above the right-side goal line and moving toward the slot before ripping a water-bottle popping wrister over Needham goalie Connor Murray's shoulder.

Needham put just three shots on goal in the third, and Andrew White scored an empty-netter to lock up the win with 32.2 seconds to play.

Peter Cronin earned the shutout for BC High, making 14 saves.

Final: BC High 2, Needham 0-- BC High's Mike Cashman breaks the 0-0 deadlock with 6:28 to play as the Eagles dominate the possession game in the third. Needham put together a scoring push near the end, but Andrew White's empty-netter with 32.2 seconds to play clinched the win. BC High's Paul Cronin picks up the 14-save shutout.

End of 2nd period: BC High 0, Needham 0 -- BC High piles up 10 shots in the second period –– including six on an early power-play chance –– but we're still scoreless. The Eagles dominated a big chunk of that period, but Needham came on strong with a flurry of scoring chances late in the frame. After a lot of passive play, things opened up a bit in the last five minutes of the second. Should be a fun third period if that keeps up.

End of 1st period: BC High 0, Needham 0 -- Scoreless after one here at Lawler. BC High holding a 6-2 advantage in the shot department and generally playing a stronger game as of now. Both teams failed to convert on power-play chances, with BC High blocking four Needham shots on the Rockets' man-up try, while Needham actually outshot the Eagles, 1-0, when BC High went on the power play.

By Liz Torres, Globe correspondent

Here are the Super 8 games scheduled for Saturday, March 5:

Noon - BC High vs. Needham
2 p.m. - Weymouth vs. Hingham
4 p.m. - Woburn vs. St. John's Prep
6 p.m. - Malden Catholic vs. Central Catholic

All games will be held at Merrimack's Lawlor Arena.

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

9:57 - An empty-netter from Ricky Sheehan, and the Raiders advance with a 3-1 victory.

9:49 - 2-1 Central Catholic, 2:19 to play - Raider freshman Lloyd Hayes breaks the tie, ripping home the rebound from Kevin Poulin's put-back try.

9:48 - And Central returns the favor, killing off the St. Mary's man-up. 2:34 to play in the third.

9:44 - Now it's St. Mary's turn on the man-up Kevin Poulin sent to the box for hooking with 4:28 to play.

9:43 - A few fantastic chances for the Raiders on the power play, but St. Mary's netminder Don Hesse is as dazzling as ever and keeps this one knotted at 1-1.

9:39 - Big chance here for Central after Perkins takes a contact-to-the-head minor. The Raiders have generated almost zero offense five-on-five, so this 1:30 chance with 7:17 to go could be their best opportunity to break the deadlock.

9:17 - We're tied up 1-1 after two periods. Corey Bartlett with the first goal for St. Mary's back in the first period, and then an equalizer from Mike Kelleher for Central Catholic midway through the second. Really tough, physical, defensive game so far. St. Mary's is controlling the possession game for the most part, but the shot totals are all squared at 12 so far.

9:05 - 1-1, 6:02 left in 2nd - Central ties it up with a power-play goal. Mike Kelleher takes the honors, one-timing a pass from Nick Leonard from the left doorstep.

8:47 - The Spartans maintain the 1-0 lead into the first intermission, and hold a slim 5-3 advantage in the shot department despite a strong possessional advantage.

8:31 - 1-0 St. Mary's, 7:40 left in first - St. Mary's strikes first as Corey Bartlett rifles a point-shot though traffic and in for the tiebreaker.

8:24 Central Catholic and St. Mary's are underway here in Billerica. We're still scoreless through about five minutes.

8:00 Final score from Billerica – 5-2 Woburn. Stay tuned for updates from Central Catholic-St. Mary's.

7:47 - 5-2 Woburn, 3:26 to play - Cathedral's Matt Peloquin cleans up a deflection off the boards behind the Woburn cage by poking the loose puck home.

7:42 - 5-1 Woburn, 6:37 to play - Cathedral cuts the deficit to four on a power-play tally by Thomas Quinlan. The goal moves the Panthers to 1-for-7 on the man-up for the game.

7:31 - Cathedral generates some power-play offense finally, putting its first three man-up shots on net, but fails to convert. Still 5-0 Tanners.

7:28 Teams back on the ice, and we're underway in the third here. Twenty-seven seconds of 5 on 3 time for Cathedral to start.

7:15 - 5-0 Woburn, second intermission - With 15 minutes left to play, we might as well start focusing on the 8 p.m. Central Catholic-St. Mary's contest. The Tanners are in complete control of this one, scoring five goals on 17 shots, while holding the Panthers shotless on three power-play chances so far.

Cathedral will get 27 seconds of 5 on 3 and 1:27 of power-play time to start the third, and you have to think they need a goal in that span to stage a comeback in this one.

Also, Shea has officially been awarded the Cathedral own-goal, and now has five goals in the game.

7:12 - 5-0 Woburn, :07.7 let in 2nd - Cathedral gets 53 seconds of 5 on 3 power play time, and not only fails to get off a shot, but with another delayed penalty coming on the Tanners, a Cathedral player scored on his own net.

The Panther whipped a pass from the corner of the Woburn zone toward the point, but missed his man. Rondeau was already to the bench for the extra-man with the delayed call coming, and the puck rolled slowly right into the Cathedral cage. Still no ruling on who gets the goal for Woburn.

7:05 - 4-0 Woburn, 4:06 left in 2nd - Casey Shea's big night continues. The junior with his fourth goal –– and second power-play tally –– on a big deflection of Jake Secatore's shot. Secatore, fighting to keep the puck in the zone, just whipped a would-be harmless shot at net, but timed the throw-in perfectly with Shea cutting through the slot.

Shea put a big deflection on it that Rondeau wasn't ready for in net, and the puck bounced by just inside the right post.

6:47 - Teams back on the ice, just about ready to get rolling on the second period here at the Chelmsford Forum.

6:36 - End of first - First period is in the books, and its a big 3-0 lead for the Tanners so far. Woburn one-for-three on the power play that period, with Casey Shea netting the one conversion on a wrap around with five seconds to play.

Shea with picked up a natural hat trick in the frame, scoring the first on a gorgeous give-and-go with linemate Alex Holland, and the second on a breakaway chance off a turnover he forced. Heck of a period for the junior center.

6:34 - 3-0 Woburn, :05.6 to play in 1st - - Woburn gets another power-play try with 18.1 seconds to play, and Shea capitalizes to extend the lead to three with a natural hat trick.

Off the faceoff, Shea took control behind the Springfield cage. The junior skated to his right and wrapped one around the left post and by Rondeau for the trick-clincher.

6:31 - 2-0 Woburn, 2:31 left in 1st - Casey Shea strikes again for the Tanners. A Springfield turnover sprung Shea straight up the gut, where he smoked two Panther defenders for a loose puck. Rondeau had charged out of his crease trying to get to the loose puck as well, and with a wide deke to his right, Shea evaded the goaltender and slid the puck into a wide-open cage.

6:30 - Griffin Foley takes his second minor penalty of the game, this time a hooking call, and Woburn gets its second man-up chance.

Adam Tanner gets a good look from down low midway through the advantage, but Rondeau with a big glove save to deny the defenseman.

In the end, a handful of shots blocked by the Panthers, and Woburn again fails to convert on the power play.

6:25 - Cathedral gets a power-play chance shortly after the Woburn goal, but fails to even put a shot on net.

6:22 - 1-0 Woburn, 8:56 left in the 1st period - The Tanners get on the board first on a slick give-and-go play orchestrated by Alex Holland and Casey Shea. Shea skated the puck in on a 3 on 2 from the right wing and centered a pass to Holland high in the zone. Holland moved the puck into the slot before sliding a pass back to Shea atop the right side of the goal crease. Shea moved the puck to his backhand, then beat goalie Zac Rondeau five-hole.

6:18 - Woburn with a power-play chance as Griffin Foley sits for 1:30 for boarding. Three shots on goal but no tallies for the Tanners on the early man-up try.

6:13 - National anthem has been played, and we're just about ready to go. Woburn's Casey Shea vs. Springfield's Mickey Foley on the draw, and Springfield takes first possession.

6:02 - Teams have just taken the ice for warmups. About five minutes away from dropping the puck. Springfield sporting purple jerseys and Woburn in white.

5:47 - We're about 15 minutes away from the scheduled start of tonight's first Super 8 play-in game between Woburn and Springfield Cathedral.

No. 10 Springfield comes in at 12-9-1 overall, but are just 0-2-1 in its last three. Meanwhile, No. 7 Woburn has reeled off five straight wins, finishing the year with a 17-3-1.

Be sure to stay tuned for regular updates here from Chelmsford Forum.

By Jake Seiner, Globe correspondent

The MIAA has announced the field for the Super 8 boys ice hockey tournament. Here's the field:

1. Malden Catholic (16-2-2)
2. St. John's Prep (14-5-1)
3. BC High (13-4-3)
4. Weymouth (17-3-2)
5. Hingham (13-5-4)
6. Needham (12-6-4)
7. Woburn (17-3-1)
8. Central Catholic (16-5-1)
9. St. Mary's Lynn (14-5-3)
10. Springfield Cathedral (12-9-1)

Woburn and Cathedral will play at 6 p.m. in Chelmsford Monday Feb. 28, and Central vs. St. Mary's will follow at 8 p.m. for the play-in round. Winner of the Woburn-Cathedral game gets the No. 7 seed moving forward, and winner of the Central-St. Mary's game gets the No. 8 seed.

By Liz Torres, Globe correspondent

In a rally to break St. Mary's girls hockey unbeaten streak (99), Winchester senior forward Michaela Chiuccariello unleashed a wrist shot in the first period to lead the Sachems 1-0.

“We hoped we were going to be the ones to end that streak,” said Winchester coach Tom Johnson.

Although the Sachems came up short, losing 4-1 to St. Mary's, Chiuccariello added to her own accolades with the goal putting her at 164- career points heading into the tournament.

The forward also set a Sachems milestone with her 100th career goal in 3-0 win over Marblehead and notched a career 123 points during the regular season to break a school record of 113 set in 2003 by Carly Robinson.

“I knew she was going to break it,” said Johnson.

By Jason Mastrodonato, Globe correspondent

After seven years of operating as a varsity program, the Ursuline Academy (Dedham) girls’ hockey team this season will be playing in meaningful games in late-February.

The Bears picked up a 3-2 victory over No. 11 Walpole Monday night to punch their inaugural ticket to the state tournament.

“The girls are ecstatic,” said coach John Enright. “And I said to them, ‘We don’t want to wait until till last game to decide our fate. We want to take care of business tonight.’'

Ursuline (8-6-4) will enter the Division 2 bracket, which includes No. 7 Fontbonne, a team that has beaten the Bears twice this season by a combined score of 12-4. But Enright believes his team can make a postseason run.

“We’ve seen [Fontbonne] before and I think the girls are ready if we have to face them,” the coach said. “Wherever we get placed, we’re going to come out and be ready to go. We’re ready to take them.”

Juniors Emily Sullivan and Delia O’Malley (who leads the team in scoring with 15 goals and 6 assists) have captained a young team that includes just one senior.

Sophomore Erica Ragazzo has played strong between the pipes, making 18 saves in the win over Walpole.

“She’s been playing phenomenal,” Enright said. “And she’s been playing pretty strong towards the ends of the games. We’ve had a couple let downs but one spot that has been strong and consistent has been the goaltending.”

By Jake Seiner, Globe correspondent

FALMOUTH — As if the raucous student sections and the packed house wasn’t enough to tip off BC High senior Terence Durkin about the importance of yesterday’s game between his No. 5 Eagles and No. 3 Hingham, a bit of mid-week reading certainly did the job.

The Eagles (11-4-3) headed into the game as a likely Super 8 squad. But backed by two goals from Durkin, BC High took a decisive 5-0 win from the Harbormen (11-5-4) in first-round Cape Cod Classic opening round action.

In the process, the Eagles moved from contender to team-to-beat status in the state’s ultimate high school hockey tournament.

“I read a couple newspapers talking about how this is the game of the week, that it would kind of tell who would be in the Super 8 and where we would be and all that,” Durkin said. “It was big for seeding or for us getting in.”

BC High jumped on the Harbormen right out of the gate. Senior Jake Tenaglia put the Eagles on the board less than four minutes in, scooping up a rebound off Sean Talbot’s shot and depositing the puck into a wide-open cage.

The goal was the first of three straight rebound goals for the Eagles. Tom Besinger netted goal No. 2, crashing the net and lifting the puck over downed Hingham netminder Derek McInnis with 4:06 to play in the first.

Midway through the second, Durkin extended the lead to 3-0 in similar fashion, stuffing home a loose puck that Hingham goalie Derek McInnis failed to control with the glove.

Hingham got its best chance at a comeback about four minutes later. Within seconds of each other, BC High’s Talbot and Tenaglia took penalties, giving Hingham a full 1:30 of five-on-three time.

The Harbormen moved the puck effectively on the man-up try, but managed just one shot on net — a relatively easy save for netminder Peter Cronin (24 saves).

“We’ve been good on five-on-three all year,” Hingham coach Tony Messina said. “We got some good chances on diagonal passes. It would’ve really changed the momentum for us, or at least made us feel a bit better about the game.”

Senior Andrew White’s early third-period tally extended the lead to four, and then Durkin struck again with a mesmerizing forehand-to-backhand breakaway score.

“Terence Durkin can fly,” BC High coach John Flaherty said. “When he’s moving his feet, there aren’t many defensemen who can keep up with him. He has a gift, and he uses it and you saw that tonight”

By Alex Prewitt, Globe Correspondent

Last season, on the brink of its first 20-win season since 1991, the Milton Academy boys' hockey team lost a shot at its first ISL Keller League championship in 45 years by 2 points to Nobles and wound up finishing the year at 19-6-2.

This time around, there will be no such heartbreak.

The Mustangs received two goals from senior forward Woody Hudson and a trio of assists by senior captain Pat McNally en route to a 4-1 victory over visiting Belmont Hill, which clinched Milton Academy (20-3-1) its first Keller League title since 1965.

“You’re certainly always happy when the kids are happy,” Milton Academy coach Paul Cannata said. “I’ve been coaching for a long time, and you realize that winning championships isn’t too common, no matter where you are, so you always appreciate it, especially in a league like the ISL.”

Milton Academy kicked off the scoring with 53 seconds remaining in the first period, then opened up a four-goal lead by the end of the second period, hanging on to reach 20 wins.

“It was good, but at the same time measured,” said Cannata, in his eighth season with the Mustangs and 21st overall as a coach. “They were certainly a happy bunch, happy to get this part of it done. But at the same time they were realistic that we have three weeks of hockey left, and still another trophy to play for.”

With 12 seniors, including McNally, a fourth-round draft pick by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2010 NHL draft who will attend Harvard in the fall, the time is now for the Mustangs to continue making history.

So far, they’re off to a good start.

By Jake Seiner, Globe correspondent

Here's the way we rank the contenders.

1. Malden Catholic (13-2-2) – It seems like a safe assumption the Lancers will qualify for the Super 8. The squad bolstered its already impressive resume by knocking off No. 2 St. Mary's.

2. St. Mary’s (13-2-3) – It’s not often teams lose a game and slide up a spot, but that’s precisely what the Spartans did Monday. Prior to this week, the big blemish on St. Mary’s resume was an 8-0 loss to Malden Catholic in December. The Spartans proved Monday that they can, in fact, skate with the state’s top teams in a 3-2 loss to the Lancers.

3. Hingham (10-4-4) – The defending Super 8 champs are playing their best hockey of the year. The Harbormen have won four straight –– including three over squads up for Super 8 consideration.

4. St. John’s Prep (10-5-1) – Colin Blackwell and company punched their ticket to the state playoffs Monday in a decisive 6-0 win over No. 11 Woburn. Their reward? A Thursday showdown with No. 12 Arlington Catholic.

5. BC High (9-4-3) – John Flaherty has done an excellent job in his first year coaching the Eagles, taking the squad from the cellar of the Catholic Conference to a favorite for Super 8 qualification. BC High finishes up its conference schedule Tuesday against Xaverian.

6. Catholic Memorial (7-7-1) – The talent is there, as are the marquee victories. The big question, though, is about the points –– namely, will CM have enough of them. The Knights need five points in five games to qualify for the state playoffs. If they get those, they should be a Super 8 shoo-in.

7. Xaverian (8-5-2) – The last of the Catholic Conference teams in this projected field, the Hawks have work to be done. Tough losses to BC High and Malden Catholic this week could drop Xaverian out of the top 10.

8. Weymouth (14-2-1) – It’d be tough to imagine the Wildcats missing out on the Super 8 tournament after maintaining a top 10 spot for much of the season, but a loss to Needham last week could bring things down to the wire. The committee has a, “What have you done for me lately?” reputation, and a loss to Braintree Wednesday could jeopardize the ‘Cats tourney hopes.

9. Central Catholic (12-4-1) – The Raiders should cruise through the remainder of their schedule until the last game of the season –- a potentially crucial showdown with Weymouth on Feb. 24. A potential play-in game before the play-in games? Could be.

10. Billerica (7-1-7) – It’s tough to imagine a non-Catholic Conference team sneaking into the Super 8, but it’s hard to argue against the Indians. The squad just doesn’t lose, and a 1-0-1 record against Central Catholic helps, too. A Merrimack Valley Conference/Dual County League title would probably provide the biggest boost, though.

The next 11 (in order): Woburn, Arlington Catholic, Reading, Needham, Braintree, Cathedral (Springfield), Marshfield, Austin Prep, St. John's (Shrewsbury), Winchester, Barnstable

By Michael Mancinelli, Globe Correspondent

BRIDGEWATER – Bone-rattling board checks, several altercations involving multiple players and even the third period ejection of one player from each team underscored Barnstable’s 3-1 boys’ hockey win over Old Colony League rival Bridgewater-Raynham in Saturday afternoon’s de facto league championship game.

After a very physical three periods of hockey, the Red Raiders emerged with the OCL title and with just one remaining league game a week from today against Dartmouth, Barnstable (11-1-3, 5-0 OCL) officially dethroned three-time defending league champ Bridgewater-Raynham (9-4-1, 3-2 OCL).

“We haven’t won the league title outright in a few years,” Barnstable coach Scott Nickerson (cq) said. “We’ve got a good team, we’re playing well. Very physical game.

“More and more we’re getting some confidence to play against good teams, and Bridgewater-Raynham is a good team. It helps us in our run here now to the tournament. It was one of our goals to win the league. We’ve accomplished that but now the more important thing is we’re playing well defensively all over the ice.”

Barnstable led 1-0 after an off-angle first period goal slipped past Bridgewater-Raynham sophomore goalie Peter Drowne (cq).

Junior Danny Goncalves (cq), who Nickerson identified as a fourth line player, gave the Red Raiders a 2-0 cushion with 9:26 remaining in the second.

Barnstable scored again with 9:53 remaining in the third to silence the large Bridgewater Ice Arena home crowd and a boisterous B-R student section. The lone Bridgewater-Raynham goal was insignificant, coming with 31.4 seconds on the clock and an empty Trojan net.

Despite Bridgewater-Raynham’s 10-6 shot advantage in the second period, the Trojans couldn’t find the back of the net due in large part to Barnstable freshman goalie Sean Cleary’s (cq) defensive effort.

“We’ve had a little bit of a problem even dating back to last year’s [first round] tournament loss to Marshfield – like in big games against solid goaltenders, and he [Cleary] played very well – finding a way to score goals,” Bridgewater-Raynham head coach Mark Jones said. “I thought it was a good game, I thought our goalie played well too.

“We had plenty of chances, I thought we moved the puck around well on the power play. You have to hand it to them. Their goalie played a really good game. You’ve got to give credit where credit is due.”

The Red Raiders defeated the Trojans, 4-1, in Hyannis earlier this season.

By Seth Lakso, Globe Correspondent

Eighth-ranked Norwood exacted its revenge on the road against Wellesley Wednesday night, defeating the No. 6 Raiders, 4-3, and in the process atoning for the only blemish in its 13-1 record, a 2-0 defeat to the Raiders earlier this season.

The Mustangs survived 50 seconds of six-on-four play to end the game. Christina Frasca made a sprawling save on a shot from Raider winger, Ellie DeCaprio that was destined for the back of the net. The Mustang defense gathered the rebound and cleared the puck.

“Wellesley is a well coached and formidable opponent,” said Norwood coach Bill O’Donnell. “They beat us at home and we returned the favor.”

Norwood led, 2-1, at the end of the first period, behind goals from Taylor Donners (assisted byEmily Kelly) and Kelly (assisted by Donners). But Shanna Hickman scored the next two goals of the game for the Raiders, who entered the third period with the Mustangs all square at 2-2.

The Mustangs jumped ahead early in the frame when Hayley O’Rourke’s wrister was tipped home by captain Lisa Coskren. A few minutes later, the Mustangs' scoring leader, Ally Maloof,broke free and beat the Raiders goaltender glove side for the two-goal edge.

“[The goal] gave us a lot of confidence,” said O’Donnell. “But I told them that a two-goal lead isn’t [enough] against a team like Wellesley.”

And sure enough Hickman tallied her third goal of the night and brought the Raiders within one strike.

A Norwood penalty with 50 seconds remaining then made things even tighter, but Frasca held strong, finishing with 20 saves. The Raiders fell to 10-6-1.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

For the past few years, the St. Mary’s girls’ hockey team has vacuumed up top-notch teams, and Wednesday night was no different.

Top-ranked St. Mary’s defeated No. 4 Fontbonne, 6-0, in Lynn continuing its 92-game unbeaten streak, in what coach Frank Pagliuca called his team’s ‘‘best performance of the season.’’

‘‘I thought we just came out for the first time this season and played three strong periods,’’ he said. ‘‘We did a great job on puck pursuit and pressured them in their defensive zone. They have such an explosive team but we did a good job on backchecking and limiting chances [by] Taylor Shepherd.’’

Senior Sabrina Iannetti had a pair of goals for St. Mary’s. Senior Bridget Donovan (goal, two assists), sophomore Alison Butler (goal, assist), sophomore Gabrielle Crugnale (goal), and freshman Gina Beth Manganiello (goal) all contributed, as did freshman defenseman Hannah Quinn (two assists).

Goalie Sarah Foss had 12 saves. She’ll be featured in the Feb. 14 edition of Sports Illustrated in its Faces in the Crowd.

‘‘It’s a great accomplishment for her and the program,’’ said Pagliuca. ‘‘It’s well-deserved for such a great young lady and she worked hard for it on and off the ice.''

‘‘She’ll tell you it’s a nice gesture, but she’s only focused on getting better.’’ he said.

With all of the team’s success, all that is on Pagliuca’s mind is ‘‘continuing to play with consistency. It’s a tough stretch and it’s nice to come out and play at high quality against an excellent team.

‘‘Our goal is to accumulate as many points as possible. It’s important for senior purposes and for playing our best in the tournament. We need to come out with a sense of urgency.’’

By Jake Seiner, Globe Correspondent

BILLERICA –– With 4:17 to play, No. 7 Central Catholic’s Tommy Evangelista was sure he’d just netted the go-ahead goal in a tight contest with Merrimack Valley Conference/Dual County League rival No. 17 Billerica.

Even though the puck whizzed into the net long before any officials blew their whistles, the goal was waived off, and instead, the Raiders (10-4-1, 6-1-1 MVC/DCL) were forced to settle for a 1-1 tie with the Indians (6-1-6, 5-0-4).

“The explanation was the net was off,” Central Catholic coach Michael Jankowski said. “There was never a whistle, but I guess there doesn’t have to be a whistle. It’s hard to swallow.

“It’s called a goal and it’s called back, and it’s tough to accept. There’s film so we’ll see, but that’s a big call to make. Hopefully, they got the call right.”

The win puts the Raiders in an unusual situation. Central is widely considered a Super 8 squad, but with the tie, Billerica is still the only unbeaten squad left in MVC/DCL play, having knocked off the Raiders 2-0 on Dec. 22.

After an even first four minutes, The Indians pinned the Raiders in their own zone for much of the first period thanks primarily to better play along the boards and in the corners. It took most of the frame for Billerica to translate the possession advantage into a notch on the scoreboard though.