Goalie lifts Woburn to title fight

Tanners fall short against St. Mary's

Woburn goalie Rebecca Papa, reaching for a shot off the stick of Courtney White of St. Mary's, made 21 saves in a 1-0 loss Saturday in the Division 1 state final. (photos by David Kamerman/Globe Staff)

The St. Mary's of Lynn girls' hockey team, winner of its last 51 games and the last two state titles, can draw some parallels with the 2003-05 Woburn team, which won 57 consecutive games. Unexpectedly, the powerful Spartans were almost taken down by a less-heralded group of Tanners in Saturday's Division 1 state final.

In the first girls' high school hockey championship at the TD Banknorth Garden, Woburn almost earned the right to wear the state crown. And it was the goaltender who got them there.

Senior Rebecca Papa took down Hingham (3-2, overtime) in last Tuesday's semifinal, stopped four of five shots in a 2-1 shootout win over Lynn English/Classical in the quarters, and pitched a shutout against Reading/Lynnfield in the first round. Against St. Mary's, she made 21 saves in a 1-0 loss.

"I couldn't even stop it because I was all tied up," said Papa of the game's only goal, which was scored when she was bowled over by a teammate and a Spartans player. It was about all that could stop her.

"We almost had it. . . . But it was a lot of fun to play there [at the Garden]. I enjoyed it. And I know my teammates did as well."

Seniors Katie Davis (26 goals, 15 assists, and 41 points in the regular season) and Colleen Callahan and sophomore Colleen Martell (13-23-36) carried the scoring load this year, but Papa was the difference.

"I never single people out, but Rebecca was just phenomenal for us," said Tanners coach Bob MacCurtain.

Papa began her hockey career at age 6, playing forward. With two senior goalies graduating after her freshman year at Woburn, she volunteered to don the pads. She steadily improved on the way to a stellar senior year in which she played all but one period for the Tanners (20-3-1), posting a 1.50 goals-against average. "She's a testament to how far you can go if you really put your mind to doing something. From where she started to where she finished, she was at her best in the tournament for sure," said MacCurtain.

Papa won't play varsity hockey in college. As the granddaughter of Mike and Annette Mercogliano, owners of Mike's Pastry, the famed North End institution, Papa aims to learn the family trade in a culinary arts program at Johnson & Wales University in Providence.

And yes, she sometimes brought baked goods to practice to share with her teammates.

"They enjoyed the cannolis a lot," said Papa.

As for her hockey career, boy, did she have a sweet run.

The Sachems ended the year at 9-8-2, and opened the Division 2 playoffs with a 2-1 upset of third-seeded Wellesley on Feb. 25. Then, suddenly, the good times halted.

Assistant coach Ed O'Donnell passed away three days after the win, leaving the Winchester community in shock and grief. O'Donnell, 49, served under head coach Tom Johnson for seven years.

The Sachems were to face Walpole in the quarterfinals last Thursday, the same day services were held for O'Donnell. The MIAA originally postponed the game to Monday, but because the Rebels' boys basketball team had a game that night, the game was moved to Sunday. Walpole agreed to play the game in Stoneham, instead of the original location in Canton.

Winchester was set to play with the heaviest of hearts. But then their opponent performed the classiest of acts.

After the national anthem, and a moment of silence for O'Donnell, the Sachems returned to their bench to get some last-minute direction from Johnson.

Calling the Sachems back out to the blue line, Walpole players presented each Winchester player with a rose, each member of the coaching staff with a bouquet of flowers, and all with words of sympathy.

"The entire arena was choked up. I can't even describe it. I've been coaching for 15 years, and it's by far the best display of sportsmanship I've ever seen," said Winchester athletic director Brian Carroll. "The players, the coaching staff - those guys were unbelievable. What a classy, classy group of people."

The roller-coaster of emotions climbed closer to the summit that night. Helped by the efforts of sophomore defenseman Mary O'Donnell, Ed's daughter, the Sachems secured a 2-0 win over the Rebels, earning a spot in tonight's Division 2 semifinal against Whitman-Hanson/Pembroke at Harvard (6 p.m.).

The Rams carried that punched-in-the-gut feeling with them through the start of this season. Things looked bleak. But they changed with the changing of the calendar.

"We looked at Jan. 1 as a new year, new season," said coach Chuck Baker.

After a 1-3-1 start in December, the Rams flipped a switch. They've gone 16-2-1 in their last 19 games and haven't lost since Jan. 22. One of those losses was to Marblehead, which Shawsheen beat, 2-1, in last Tuesday's Division 3 North semifinal. Sunday, they captured the Division 3 North crown with a 3-1 win over Concord-Carlisle. Shawsheen (15-5-3) will play South champion Norwell (16-4-4) in a state semifinal tonight at Harvard (8 p.m.).

"Our seniors have a refuse-to-lose attitude," said Baker. "I guess you can't ask for much more."

Forwards Ryan Arensbach (20 goals, 12 assists, 32 points) and Mike DeRosa (17-19-36) led the way, while goalie Evan Walsh has lowered his goals against average to 1.92 after some early struggles. "He's turned it on at the end," said Baker. Which could be said for all the Rams.