LYNN — The regular season may be winding down for the St. Mary’s girls hockey team, but that doesn’t mean there’s any shortage of quality opponents left on the schedule.
The Spartans are preparing for a gauntlet of tough tests in their last three games before the state tournament and it all starts Saturday when they host Catholic Central League rival Austin Prep.
“Austin Prep, Needham and then Notre Dame (Hingham) are all quality games to play to end the season,” St. Mary’s coach Frank Pagliuca said. “I’m very happy to play them all to end the season. I think it’s going to help us expose things that are going to be important for us going into the tournament. I’m really looking forward to it.
“Obviously Austin Prep has been a very good team and not only that is a CCL opponent so you’re always looking forward to it,” Pagliuca said.
The Spartans and Cougars ended up tied at the end of regulation in their season opener, but with the CCL piloting an overtime period this winter Austin Prep walked away with a 4-3 win. It was the only overtime game the Spartans have played this year.
Since then St. Mary’s has been on a roll, currently boasting a 14-0-3 record while the Cougars (15-1-2) have just one loss this year.
For Pagliuca, this game is less about Austin Prep and more about St. Mary’s coming in ready to play clean hockey.
“We have to take care of our own things,” Pagliuca said. “It’s not about Austin Prep as much as it is ourselves and our responsibilities. We want to be physical but disciplined enough to not cross the line and get penalties. Killing off several penalties in a game, no team wants to be in that situation.”
The Spartans will benefit from an overflow of offensive talent coming in. Just about everybody on the roster has contributed in some way this year.
“At the top we have Jenna Chaplain, Maggie Pierce and Zoe Solomons, who have led our offense this year,” Pagliuca said. “Then there’s girls like Lexie Turner, Samantha Porazinski, Marina DiBiasio, Felicia D’Alessandro and Kate Gray. They have all chipped in and it’s been huge rather than having to rely on those one or two top players.
“Even on defense we have Kelsey Sullivan, who’s a real offensive defender,” Pagluica said. “Aria Kader, Megan Parthum, they’re all offensive types of defensemen who can get pucks to the net and help create some offense.”
Each one of St. Mary’s contributors will have to be sharp in this one against a Cougars team that will jump on any mistake.
“You can’t be giving extra opportunities to them,” Pagliuca said. “That means clearing pucks, catching passes and limiting turnovers. It’s really the benchmarks we set for all of our games. A good team like Austin Prep will capitalize on any chances we give them.”
When St. Mary’s has made mistakes this year, they’ve been fortunate to be backed by some solid goaltending.
Sophomore Rhyan Pitari and freshmen Ang Catino have led the way, splitting time in net for the most part while eighth-grader Gianna Tringale has also been in the mix. Pitari will get the start Saturday.
“They’re all having really good seasons,” Pagliuca said. “They’ve all stepped up. At times we’ve been a little sloppy with the puck in our own zone and they’ve stepped up and made the saves we’ve needed.”
St. Mary’s will also honor its five seniors during its Senior Night Saturday — team captains Sullivan and Parthum along with Turner, Gray and Solomons.
“All five have done a great job pushing this group and keeping the attitudes up,” Pagliuca said. “Being seniors, the younger girls look up to them and they do a good job setting an example. More than playing (Austin Prep), we’re looking forward to celebrating our seniors. We’re excited and it’s going to be a good benchmark for us at this point in the year.”
