WORCESTER - If Hingham fans thought the second-ranked Harbormen could roll over Xaverian, their seventh-seeded opponent, they were quickly proven wrong. An underdog in seeding only, the Hawks scored three first-period goals yesterday and then concentrated on shutting down the Harbormen, leaving the DCU Center with a 3-1 win in the first round of Super 8 play.
"They had the longer layoff, so maybe we caught them a little in the first," said Hawks coach Dave Spinale, whose team maintained the momentum it had from a Monday's play-in victory over Needham. "We played tough. I thought we've been playing tough all year."
Xaverian (12-6-3) will face St. John's Prep in the next round-robin game. Hingham (17-4-2) will take on Malden Catholic.
Harbormen coach Garrett Reagan made no excuses as he quickly summed up his team's afternoon.
"I think we played better in the second period, but if you're down three-nothing, you're down three-nothing," he said.
Xaverian served notice from the start. In the opening minutes, the Hawks came charging at the Hingham goal, and forward Matt Morin's shot from 35 feet sounded like a warning bell as it rang off iron.
A few shifts later, Xaverian cashed in. The Hawks controlled the puck down low, and forward John Sperzel sent it out front to a waiting Chris Wagner, who swatted it past Harbormen goalie Nate Eagan at 5:06.
Less than three minutes later, Wagner made a strong move from the corner and fed Bill Scannell, who sent it home for a 2-0 lead.
"They played tough down low, and that's where they got the three goals," said Reagan.
Scannell was sent off for interference at 12:34 of the first, but Hingham's power play fizzled. As Scannell left the box, Morin intercepted a shot from the blue line and rushed up the ice. He was forced to the outside by defenseman Ryan Driscoll, but Morin used the space he was allowed to throw a backhand feed to the slot. Matt Hennessey batted it home with what appeared to be his glove with 1:53 left in the first.
"Everything went our way," said Spinale. "Theirs was pretty much a gift, too, so we both got lucky."
Spinale was referring to Hingham's third-period marker that made it 3-1. The Harbormen came out with some jump, and pinned the puck in the Xaverian end for a stretch. Hawks goalie Kyle MacDonald made a seemingly safe play by clearing the puck to center ice. But Driscoll stopped it and blasted it back on net, beating a surprised MacDonald at 3:22.
It was the only mistake MacDonald (21 saves) would make.
"I didn't talk to him. It didn't bother him. He played great all day," said Spinale.
