Winthrop/Lynn girls hockey looking for another strong season

Last year, the English High girls hockey team served notice it was a force to be reckoned with when it finished 16-5 and reached the Division 1 North quarterfinals in the state tournament.A few things have changed this season. The team, which is a combination of Winthrop, Classical, English and Revere players, is now called the Winthrop Lady Bulldogs because Winthrop is the host school. Also, five players who were key to the team’s success have either graduated or transferred to other schools. What hasn’t changed, however, is coach Anthony Martucci’s optimism that the team will once again be in the mix when it comes to the postseason.Although the forward lines and the defensive pairings will look a little different this year, the person between the pipes will be the same. Katie Burt, who was in net for all 16 wins, is back and she’s still only a seventh-grader at Pickering Middle School.”I think with Katie in net and the players we have, we’ll have another strong season. Our first hope is getting nine wins and making the tournament,” Martucci said.Winthrop has the largest number of players with eight. That number could go up if the sixth-graders from its middle school are allowed to play. Lynn has seven players and Revere has one.Martucci lost all-conference player Vanessa Caruccio, Ashley Fiandaca, Adriana Russell and Candace Kirk to graduation. Madison Molea, a ninth-grader, transferred to St. Mary’s. Martucci got in several new players and saw the return of sophomore Chelsey Bartlett, who was at St. Mary’s last year, but played as an eighth-grader at Pickering two years ago.Martucci’s returning contingent includes Taylor Brown, who scored 16 goals playing defense. She’s a junior from Winthrop and an assistant captain. Senior captain Lindsay Barker, also from Winthrop, gives the team a lift up front as well. She racked up 22 goals last year.English High sophomore Mackenzie Clark will also provide an offensive spark. She had 16 goals and 36 points last year. Martucci said Bartlett will also be in the first line with Taylor Papsadora and Caroline McKinnon also figuring in the mix. Look for senior Rachel Mailhot to skate wing. Classical’s Kelly Deveney will move from forward to defense, where she’ll be joined by another former forward, Amanda Cordes.Among the other players figuring in the mix on the forward lines will be Annie Mahoney, seventh-grader Anna Fucillo, eighth-grader Ashley Melanson (Pickering), freshman Casey McNulty (Classical), Lindsay Roy (English) and Jess Rogowitz, a junior from Winthrop.