As it continues to battle its way through an extremely tough schedule, the St. John’s Prep hockey team has answered the bell at almost every turn. The Eagles have been rewarded for their winning ways, as the 12-2-0 Prep squad is currently ranked No. 1 in the latest edition of the MIAA Division 1 boys hockey power rankings.
The Eagles have gotten by behind a high-flying offense that’s been led by the likes of Lynnfield native Tommy Sarni, who leads the team with 10 goals on the year. Fellow Lynnfield natives Will Van Sicklin (seven goals, six assists) and Christian Rosa (five goals, five assists) have also contributed heavily to the offense.
Also ranked in the top 20 in Division 1 is St. Mary’s, which comes in at No. 20 in the latest rankings after posting a 6-6-3 record to this point in the year.
Two other local teams make up the bottom half of the rankings, as Bishop Fenwick comes in at No. 31 and Lynn comes in at No. 49. While the Crusaders will technically still need to get their record back to .500 before being officially eligible for the tournament, they still have seven more games to get to that mark.
The only local team in Division 2 is Marblehead, and the Magicians come in at No. 14 with a 5-6-1 record. After getting off to a slow start to the season, Marblehead is 5-2-1 in its last eight games.
The only local team in Division 3 is the Lynnfield Pioneers, who are also riding a high-powered offense to a 12-2-0 record. Lynnfield is ranked No. 4 in the latest rankings and has been in the top 10 of every ranking list that has been released so far this season.
Three local teams populate the Division 4 rankings, with Winthrop coming in highest at No. 4 with a 5-5-1 record. Saugus comes in at No. 25 overall with a 5-7-1 record, while Swampscott sits at 3-9-1 and is ranked No. 31.
Over on the girls side of things, four local teams rank in the top 20 of the Division 1 rankings, with three of those teams coming in the top 15.
St. Mary’s is currently the leader among local teams, ranking No. 3 overall with a 7-2-2 record. The Spartans also still have a number of difficult games left on the schedule, including matchups against the No. 1 team in Division 1 (Austin Prep) and the No. 1 team in Division 2 (Duxbury) as well as games against other top-20 teams like Bishop Fenwick, Notre Dame Academy Hingham and Pope Francis.
Despite having just dropped a tough 1-0 game to Winthrop in what may end up having been a battle for the Northeastern Hockey League title on Wednesday, the Peabody/Lynnfield Tanners come in at No. 12 in the latest rankings — two spots ahead of Winthrop. The Tanners have gotten contributions from all over the ice so far this season, including from the likes of Jenna DiNapoli, Catie Kampersal, Penelope Spack, Hannah Gromko, Sarah Powers, Catherine Sweeney and more.
Winthrop, which is still unbeaten on the year at 8-0-1 and currently has a hold on the top spot in the NEHL, ranks at No. 14 overall. Senior goalie Summer Tallent recorded her 50th career win with the shutout victory over Peabody/Lynnfield, and a host of scorers pace a strong offensive unit. The Vikings still have several tough matchups against top-25 teams the rest of the way.
Bishop Fenwick, recently back from a COVID break, ranks at No. 17 with a 4-5-1 record. The Crusaders still look ahead to matchups against St. Mary’s, Austin Prep and Peabody/Lynnfield over the next two weeks.
Rounding out the local teams in the Division 1 rankings is Marblehead, which sits at No. 31. The Magicians have worked their way back to .500 on the year at 6-6-0 and still have a host of tough games left on their schedule.
