Hingham looks to recover after shaky Super 8 start

The Hingham Harbormen did everything a coach would want in the third period of their Division 1A (Super 8) hockey tournament opener against Reading Memorial High, held on Sunday at Boston University's new Agganis Arena.

The players hustled, followed through on their checks, and set themselves up for a series of fine scoring opportunities.

Unfortunately, such intensity was nowhere to be found in the first two periods. As a result, Hingham lost the first game of the three-game round robin, 3-0, not the type of showing coach Garrett Regan wanted to see at the start of the MIAA's biggest high school sports event.

The bracket 1 loss left the Harbormen, appearing in the Super 8 for the fourth consecutive season, with little room for error if they want to advance to the tournament's semifinal round. Last year, the team dropped its opening game, 3-0, to Waltham, then finished third in a four-team bracket; only the top two move on.

''We dug ourselves a hole from the outset" on Sunday, said coach Reagan. ''We came back as the game wore on, but we couldn't score. We got our chances, but they played some nice defense and got a couple nice moves and scored a goal. They know they have to pick things up."

The Harbormen, seeded third in the tourney, were simply out-hustled over the first two periods, and gave up a pair of goals on defensive breakdowns. Hingham had a series of decent offensive chances in the third period (10 shots over the final 15 minutes), including a wicked one-timer by junior Tyler McDonald in front of the net, but Reading goalie Joe Bramante was up to the task, stopping all 22 Hingham shots. Reading added an empty-net goal in the final minute.

''This has happened to us before. In order to win we have to play with more fire from the beginning," said Hingham senior defenseman Mike Quinn. ''We think we can always battle back; we've been down before and come back in the third period. But we have to play better in the beginning."

If it was any consolation, Reading Memorial coach Peter Doherty felt that the Harbormen squad that showed up for the third period was good enough to take on anyone.

''They really made us sweat that one out," said Doherty. ''I don't think anyone should count Hingham out yet. They couldn't get one past a hot goalie today, but if they keep up that effort they can beat anyone in this tourney."

If the Hingham loss could be labeled a disappointment, then Boston College High's 3-2 loss to St. John's Prep in the battle of the Eagles can only be called a stunner.

The second-seeded Dorchester school, which has been to the championship game in each of the past six seasons, took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Hingham resident Chris Riley. But their Danvers opponent struck for two goals in 26 seconds in the second period and seized the momentum. The dazed BC High team saw its deficit stretch to 3-1 early in the third period before it began to pick up the pace.

BC High cut the lead to 3-2 on a nifty goal by Scituate's Luke Heller with 3:05 left in the game, but weren't able to get many quality chances the rest of the way.

The Eagles were outshot, 23-15, which left BC High coach Jim McCabe fuming afterward.

''The Prep played a better game than we did, all aspects," the Dedham resident said. ''They were hungrier, they wanted it more, they played a better game than we did.

''You're not going to win too many games in this tournament when you get 15 shots on net. They just beat us to all the loose pucks at both end of the ice."

In bracket 2 play, fifth-seed Arlington Catholic beat Waltham 4-3 in overtime. Top seed and two-time defending champion Catholic Memorial escaped an upset bid by Austin Prep in overtime, 3-2, and thus became the only one of the top four seeds to win on the day.

Bracket 1 play continued on Tuesday night, as Hingham played the Prep and BC High took on Reading Memorial. The final matchup of the round robin, to be played on Monday, will pit the Harbormen against BC High; the winner is likely to advance and the loser probably will go home.

The single-elimination semifinal round, in which the winner of each bracket plays the second-place team in the other, is scheduled for next Thursday, and the finals are slated for March 20, with all the games at Boston's FleetCenter.