PEABODY — The Peabody-Lynnfield-North Reading girls hockey team may have lost 12 seniors to graduation and the most successful coach in program history to another school, but new head coach Guy Angiuoni is optimistic about the upcoming season.
Angiuoni comes to PLNR on the heels of a one-year stint as coach of last year’s St. Mary’s junior varsity team. Prior to that, he served as head coach of Malden Catholic’s girls varsity team for two years, a program he started in 2019-2020.
Angiuoni succeeds Michelle Roach, the 2025 Daily Item Coach of the Year, who is now coaching at Arlington Catholic.
So far, he likes what he sees.
“The girls are hustling and they have great attitudes. Those are the only two things one can control and we’ve gotten that from all 23 players on the ice,” Angiuoni said. “I don’t know how many games we’re going to win this season, but it won’t be for a lack of effort. The players really want to be here giving their very best, so we’ll see what happens. It’s been a great start so far.”
The No. 12 seed in the 2025 Division 1 tournament with a record of 15-3-2, PLNR defeated No. 21 Waltham, 2-0, in the Round of 32 only to be eliminated by No. 5 Archbishop Williams, 7-1, in the Sweet 16.
The team’s four seniors — Eleni Spack (Peabody), forwards Julia Guzzo (North Reading) and Ella Donovan (Reading), as well as defenseman Mikaela O’Driscoll (North Reading) — will serve as captains. Angiuoni said all four stepped up in a big way when the team needed a middle school waiver to fill out the roster.
“Losing 12 seniors meant they had a huge challenge in front of them as we tasked them to bring on the seventh and eighth graders in our three communities,” Angiuoni said. “We knew we had one of the top goaltenders (Alyssa Mutti) in the state, but she graduated. We didn’t have a goalie in the system, so we needed the waiver to be able to have a goalie.”
Rounding out the returners are juniors Ava Louanis (NR), Maura Flaws (Lynnfield), Stephanie Lane (Lynnfield), Lilli McSweeney (Lynnfield), and Sarah Mitchell (Lynnfield), as well as sophomores Sydney Zizza (Peabody), Grace Allen (Lynnfield), Elise Fallica (Lynnfield), and Lorna Murray (Lynnfield).
The newcomers’ group is led by seventh-grade goalie Sophia Downing (Peabody).
“She takes it on like a champ,” Guzzo said. “She gets in that net and nobody would ever know that she is a seventh grader. She’s small, but she’s very strong. She knows what she’s doing.”
Other first-year players include include sophomore Gabby Cassano (Lynnfield); freshmen Ana Atsalis (NR), Liv Adams (Lynnfield), Kayleigh Allen (Lynnfield) and Audrey Curley (Lynnfield); as well as eighth graders Avery Trippe (Lynnfield), Melania DiVirgilio (Lynnfield), Ava D’Agostino (Lynnfield), and Lexi Prifti (Peabody).
The captains believe the pieces are in place for another winning season.
“I’m really excited for new management,” Spack said. “We’ll miss Michelle, but we’re very happy for her. I’m proud of the new players coming in and the middle-schoolers have looked really good. I’m really excited to be a captain this year. This is an amazing team.”
“I feel like everyone is really excited to be here and really getting along,” Donovan said. “Everyone is really focused and paying attention.
“With the eighth graders, and losing so many seniors, this is a completely different team — especially with the new coaches. It’s going to be a good season.”
O’Driscoll stressed a need to stay positive.
“We’re just going to make sure they try their best every time,” she said. “We have to make them feel comfortable and keep them thinking positively. If we put in all of our effort and work outside of practice, I feel like we can go far.”
Guzzo said the team’s primary goal is to win a third consecutive NHL (Northeastern Hockey League) title.
“We want to three-peat. We definitely want to check that off our bucket list,” she said. “Everyone has high energy and is ready to go. The team atmosphere is great. Even though we have seventh graders and seniors, we all get along great and I’m really excited for this year.”
Angiuoni said that while the team graduated 12 seniors, he doesn’t see this as a rebuilding project.
“We see this as a year of opportunity for all the players,” he said. “Our goals are set very high this season. Many kids have a chance to step into key roles and we want all 23 players to contribute. We take a team-first mentality.”
PLNR opens the season Dec. 17 against Medford-Malden at LaConte Rink with puck-drop set for 7 p.m.
Angiuoni said he expects Winthrop to be the cream of the crop in the NHL. St. Mary’s will be a formidable non-league opponent, too.
“Winthrop is always tough and it will be great to play against coach Frank (Pagliuca),” he said. “That game will be a highlight of the season. We want to have a very robust schedule, so we try to have a strong non-league schedule for the power rankings and to get the team ready for the tournament. You have to play those stronger teams to be ready.”
