HINGHAM, Mass. — Some of the best teams in girls MIAA hockey took to the ice to kick off the annual Hingham Showcase on Monday.
Six top-10 teams were in action, including each of the top four squads. No. 2 Malden Catholic took down Lincoln-Sudbury, 3-1, before No. 7 Archbishop Williams took a 2-1 overtime thriller over Arlington. No. 4 Duxbury took a last-second, 2-1 win over St. Mary's in a meeting of last year's state champions, and No. 1 Hingham handed No. 8 Westwood its first loss in a 4-2 thriller. Meanwhile, No. 3 Notre Dame (Hingham) took care of Braintree, 4-1, before Andover beat Needham, 7-0, in the nightcap.
I made it down to Pilgrim Arena for the first day of the showcase, which will continue on Tuesday and Thursday. I took in Archies' win over Arlington, Duxbury's win over St. Mary's and Hingham's win over Westwood.
Each game featured its fair share of drama and plenty of high-end play.
We got into 16 standout forwards from the day earlier this week. Now, let's dive into 12 standout defenders and goalies.
Cameron Katapodis
Archbishop Williams, Class of 2029, D, left shot, 5-8
Hometown: Halifax, Mass.
Days after scoring her first varsity goal, Katapodis helped author Archies' comeback over Arlington with two unanswered goals, tying it in the third and winning it in overtime. She scored the equalizer to cap off a dominant offensive shift for the Bishops with a quick wrist shot inside the left post from the dot. She completed the win in overtime with another quick release. After finding open space in the high slot, Katapodis got the puck and put one home off the left post.
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Maddie Moscatel
Arlington, Class of 2029, G, catches left
Moscatel was fantastic for Arlington in their loss to Archies, giving them every chance to win. The eighth-grader was the Spy Ponders' best player, especially in the first period, and finished with 35 saves. She was quick and anticipated well. One of her best saves was in the first when she adjusted her angle to rob Caroline Batchelder (Braintree, Mass.) with her right pad. Moscatel had a great sequence to start the second. After saving a tough shot to handle from the point, she scrambled to rob Emily Flemming (Hull, Mass.) with the pad before standing tall with several sticks jamming away at the puck. Later, she made a phenomenal save on a shot from the point through traffic, seeing it at the last second and getting it with her glove.
Izzy Puleo
Hingham, Class of 2027, G, catches left
Puleo came up big in key spots for Hingham, especially in the first to bail them out as Westwood had them on the ropes. She was quick in her crease and recovered well to deny second and third-chance opportunities. One of her best saves in the first came as she flashed the left pad on Bridget Lewis before diving to cover the rebound. In the third, she scrambled to the right post to get her toe on Kate Sullivan's backhand attempt in a scramble in front.
Later, Puleo made a trio of consecutive saves in a frenzy around her crease. She made a good push to her left, tracking Sullivan the whole way on a fast break to deny her backhand. After the puck found Justine Connelly at the right circle, Puleo gloved down her slap shot through traffic before sprawling to kick out the right pad on Abby Pressley's rebound bid.
Alannah Gallagher
Duxbury, Class of 2026, D, left shot
Gallagher was active in all three zones, kept her head up and moved the puck quickly. She knew when to be aggressive in the neutral zone and on pinches. She didn't back off too far and did a good job hemming St. Mary's in. The junior had a good keep-in in the first, jumping into the lane and winning the puck back out high. She had another strong play later on, intercepting a pass out high, dancing around a high forward and getting a shot on net.
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Megan Donato
St. Mary's, Class of 2026, G, catches right, 5-5
Hometown: Stoneham, Mass.
Donato performed admirably, coming on in relief of the injured Avery Sisco (Nahant, Mass.). She made a good glove save on Maeve Murphy in the slot after coming in. Her workload picked up in the second and third periods, and she made some quality saves. She made a big stop pushing to her left to deny a cross-ice look on the penalty kill to start the second. Later, she somehow denied Meg Carney trying to steer it around her on the forehand. Donato made a good save on Carney's dangerous bid late in the second, too. Among her best saves in the third was one on a knuckling slap shot from Sami Norton, staying square and smothering it as it dipped.
Sami Norton
Duxbury, Class of 2025, D, left shot
Like Gallagher, Norton was active from the jump. She excelled at moving the puck and using her legs to kickstart transition. She did it all to set up Murphy's opening goal, leading the rush and weaving into middle ice. Her bid was broken up, but her drive to the net opened things up for Murphy to bury the loose puck.
Abby Malcuit
St. Mary's, Class of 2025, D, right shot
Hometown: Swampscott, Mass.
Malcuit was solid in the defensive zone, keeping things simple and making quick plays with the puck. She had a quick stick and broke up several centering passes, including one dangerous look for Carney in the slot. Malcuit got a piece of it and prevented a Grade-A chance in front. Later, she had a good block in front on Gallagher's shot.
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Camdyn Driscoll
St. Mary's, Class of 2028, D, left shot
Hometown: Peabody, Mass.
Driscoll played heavy minutes and handled herself well in matchups where she was at a size disadvantage against a big Duxbury team. Her mobility moving the puck up ice was impressive, too. She knew when to skate it out herself and used her legs to escape some jams in the defensive zone.
Devin O'Day
Arlington, Class of 2026, D, left shot
O'Day was strong in battles around the net and had a good, active stick in the defensive zone. She had a good shift in the second period where she blocked a shot in front before getting her stick in the lane to prevent Flemming from getting a clean shot in the slot. On the penalty kill, O'Day disrupted puck carriers on the flank and prevented plays to the middle. She did well defending Batchelder in a 1-on-1 in overtime, keeping a good gap and forcing her outside with a poke check.
Mia Culhane
Arlington, Class of 2025, D, left shot
Culhane effectively used her size and did a good job of getting shots on net from distance. She had a good, hard wrister from the point in the first that led to a rebound bid for Libby Corsetti. In the third, she forced McLeish to make a tough glove save on a high wrister from range with Kelsie Partridge providing a moving screen. In overtime, Culhane was strong as a puck carrier, using her reach to protect it and navigating traffic.
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Liz Levering
Westwood, Class of 2029, D, left shot
Levering was mobile and helped drive offense from the blue line for the Wolverines. She led a great rush in the first period, battling through multiple defenders to get into middle ice and nearly had a Grade-A look, but Richardson thwarted it. Down 2-1 in the third, Levering jump-started a dangerous sequence in front. She dangled a high forward at the point and put a quick shot on net, setting up a rebound look for Sullivan.
Shea Richardson
Hingham, 9/5/2008, D, right shot, 5-4
Richardson was Hingham's best player in a first period that was a bit of a fire drill for the Harborwomen against Westwood. She was sharp and had energy from the start. She got her stick on Liz Levering's shot in the slot, preventing a high-danger chance. Later, after getting caught trying to pinch, she tracked back to the defensive zone and broke up Maggie Ash trying to drive to the net. Richardson was at the center of Hingham's surge in the second period, starting with a good shot for a tip in front that forced Jennifer Lin to make a tough save.
In the third, Richardson's end-to-end rush set up Caroline Doherty's second goal of the game. She had plenty of open space in the defensive zone to start the rush, took it and drove through the neutral zone before putting a shot on net. Doherty cashed in on the rebound.
