MIDDLETON — For the first time in a long time, Saturday night was hockey night.
At hustle-and-bustle Essex Sports Center, traditional rivals St. Mary’s and Bishop Fenwick squared off in the latter’s first game under coach Kylie Currier.
The Spartans, of course, fell to Shrewsbury in the state championship last winter – all before graduating top talent such as Jenna Chaplain, Ang Catino, and Maggie Pierce among others.
Some programs rebuild, but don’t tell that to St. Mary’s coach Frank Pagliuca. His Spartans defeated Fenwick, 8-0, to start the season.
“We lost a lot of great players who went on to do bigger and better things,” said Pagliuca, who began coaching the Spartans in 2005. “We have a lot of new players working their way in.”
It’s true. Four Spartans netted their first career goals, starting with Naomi Evangelista just three minutes into the action. She dangled past Fenwick’s final defender before roofing one into the top-left corner (1-0).
“She’s really improved a lot and she had that big first goal to get us going,” Pagliuca said. “She’s really impressed me.”
St. Mary’s took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission after Swampscott’s Kasey Litwin sniped one from inside the face-off dot, but the story was Fenwick’s Ella Tucker, who saved 18 shots in the frame.
“Great goaltending. She stood on her head,” Currier said. “She kept us in the game and we’re really lucky.”
But, ultimately, Tucker couldn’t steal this one.
Litwin, Alessandra Palmer, and Isabella Freitas scored in the second period, while Freitas completed her hat trick with two goals in four minutes to start the third.
“She’s a dynamic player. She had a hat trick tonight in her first career game,” Pagliuca said. “She plays with a pace that’s very high…. If you give her open space, good things are going to happen.”
Freshman Alyssa Norden capped the scoring on a partial breakaway (8-0) with 10:01 to go.
“It’s fun. Every year, it’s like a new chapter,” Pagliuca said. “New players, new experiences, and it’s enjoyable. It really is.”
Offensive explosion aside, St. Mary’s goalie Gianna Tringale made six saves, including a positional stop on a Fenwick three-on-one in the first.
“She’s been on the team for four years and hasn’t really had an opportunity to play,” said Pagliuca, who also praised Tringale’s leadership. “She didn’t see many shots tonight, but I thought she was composed with the shots she did see.”
Other than a few odd-man rushes, St. Mary’s defense was on point with its poke checks and board play.
“We returned four of our six starting defenders from last year, so that’s been huge to have that calming presence back there,” Pagliuca said.
As for Fenwick, an optimistic Currier said her group “got the first one out of the way.”
“It was really awesome. The girls are working very hard,” Currier said. “It’s a long season.”
When asked who caught her attention, Currier pointed to Penny Levine-Stein, Maddie Faragi, and Brynn Lally.
“We have a lot of potential I think,” Currier said. “We just have some things to work on.”
Looking forward, Fenwick has to wait for Saturday against Bishop Feehan, while St. Mary’s welcomes Arlington Catholic on Wednesday (8 p.m.).
“We have a long way to go and, hopefully, we keep improving,” Pagliuca said. “It was a good start.”
