Everything has come down to this.
On Sunday, three champions will stake their claims to New England girls prep hockey glory. Nobles will battle Williston for the NEPSAC Elite 8 title game. Dexter Southfield will face BB&N in the Large School championship, while Groton and New Hampton will duke it out for the Small School crown.
Here's the schedule. All games will be at Noble & Greenough School:
- Small School: No. 1 Groton vs. No. 2 New Hampton, 11 a.m.
- Large School: No. 3 Dexter Southfield vs. No. 4 BB&N, 1:30 p.m.
- Elite 8: No. 1 Nobles vs. No. 2 Williston, 4 p.m.
Each tournament has featured its share of drama, and there's sure to be more to come on Sunday.
Let's dive into five of the biggest storylines to watch.
1. Can Nobles complete a storybook season?
The Bulldogs enter the Elite 8 title game undefeated at 26-0-4. Not only that, but it's Tom Resor's final season behind the bench. The legendary coach has helped lead Nobles to 10 NEPSAC titles.
They've been a team on a mission, suffocating teams with a dominant forecheck, a deep defensive group and terrific goaltending from Brown commit Anya Zupkofska (Braintree, Mass.). Just see for yourself in Nobles' plus-118 (138-21) differential. Their 4-3 quarterfinal win over St. Paul's was the first time all season that they've given up more than two goals.
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Olivia Maffeo (Canton, Mass.) has been on a mission in the second half, putting up huge numbers from the blue line, while Sophia Levering (Westwood, Mass.) and Jaime Griswold (Concord, Mass.) are two of the best shutdown defenders in the region. Calleigh Brown (Foxboro, Mass.), Molly MacCurtain (Reading, Mass.), Maddie Krepelka (Arlington, Mass.) and Gretta Hulbig (Foxboro, Mass.) are all having career seasons, too.
Nobles has gotten it done all season. Can they do it one more time for Resor?
2. Williston's chase for a three-peat
From one dynasty to another, the Wildcats have broken through the last two years to win back-to-back titles.
Christa Talbot Syfu's team boasts one of the most explosive offenses in the NEPSAC, putting up 116 goals this season. They have a plus-91 differential, overall.
At the forefront of the attack is Monique Lyons (Bedford, Mass.), the NEPSAC's leading point-getter. She scored two goals in both the quarterfinals and semifinals, and had chances at a hat trick in both. Her fingerprints are all over Williston's success this season. Linemates Nora Curtis and Violet Carroll (Milton, Mass.) are dangerous threats in their own right, too. The trio combined for over 130 points last season and were only recently reunited. Carroll spent most of this season on defense due to injuries elsewhere in the lineup.
Speaking of defense, do-it-all captain Caroline Aufiero (Belmont, Mass.) returned at a perfect time down the stretch for the Wildcats. She also scored in the semifinals. In net, Olivia Ferebee hasn't given up more than a single goal in four straight, replicating her form down the stretch last season.
Williston has been right there with Nobles all season in the very top tier of teams in girls prep. Can they make it three in a row?
3. Who's hot streak prevails? Dexter's or BB&N's?
Talk about getting hot at the right time for both of these teams.
Few have been as good as Dexter or BB&N since January. Since starting the season 3-6-0, Dexter is 12-3-1. Meanwhile, the Knights are 11-4-1 since going 4-6-2 out of the gates. The former is 8-1-1 in its last 10, while the latter is 6-3-1 in its last 10.
Each team has gotten it done in different ways this season. Dexter has a plus-40 (81-41) scoring differential this season, averaging 3.12 goals per game and 1.58 against. In their last 10, Dexter is averaging 3.9 goals per game and allowing one per game with five shutouts. Freshman Annabelle Aitken (Winchester, Mass.) has been tremendous in net of late. Maggie Taverna's group is also extremely young with just one senior and five juniors. The roster features eight sophomores, four freshmen, two eighth-graders and a seventh-grader.
GIRLS BRACKETS: Elite 8 Tournament | Large School Tournament | Small School Tournament
On the other hand, BB&N is the more experienced squad. Ed Bourget can lean on four seniors and 11 juniors with four sophomores and six freshmen rounding out the roster. From a production standpoint, the Knights have a plus-three (57-54) differential this season, scoring 1.97 goals per game and allowing 1.86. But they've picked it up in their last 10, averaging 2.3 goals per game and giving up 1.6. Junior Hannah Weyerhaeuser's (Cambridge, Mass.) return from injury has provided a massive boost.
Can Dexter's offensive depth shine through again? Or will BB&N's experience win the day?
4. Can Groton get revenge on New Hampton?
The No. 1 Zebras fell to the No. 2 Huskies, 3-1, in last year's Small School title game. Groton bounced back with a 3-0 win in their only head-to-head meeting this season on Dec. 15, but a win on Sunday would truly settle the score.
Both teams have dynamic offensive talent. There's the Zebras' dynamic duo of Tina Scalese (West Boylston, Mass.) and Maddie Cronan (Ashland, Mass.), who have combined for over 85 points this season. Scalese is a top-three scorer in the NEPSAC. Meanwhile, True Thompson, Julia Loughlin (Scituate, Mass.) and Kennedy Walker each have over 25 points this season.
Groton netminder Veronika Hadamovsky (Groton, Mass.) and New Hampton's Vera Lee have each been strong as well.
It's about as even as it gets. The Zebras have scored 3.44 goals per game and allowed 1.2 goals per game this season to the Huskies' 3.17 and 1.66.
Can Hadamovsky and their elite playmakers lift Groton over the hump? Or will New Hampton's depth bring them to a repeat?
5. Which players will rise to the occasion?
No matter what, there's always a player, or a few, who have signature moments when it matters most. Who might be able to do that for their teams?
Maffeo has been a total game-breaker for Nobles of late, and if anyone can take it upon themselves to lead the charge for their team it's her. She had a hat trick against SPS in the quarterfinals. But if the Bulldogs want to silence Williston's offense, Levering, Griswold and Zupkofska will need to be at their best.
There's no doubt that the Wildcats will turn to Lyons and the first line once again. Just like Maffeo, Lyons is a true game-breaker. But Williston also had six different skaters find the back of the net in the quarterfinals. Perhaps an unsung hero like Zola Piekarski (Concord, Mass.) or Brenna Ziter (Williston, Vt.) will step up.
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For BB&N, Emi Biotti (Cambridge, Mass.) and Meg Britt (Arlington, Mass.) were the offensive heroes against Choate, while Alexsa Caron (Dracut, Mass.) came up big in net. In the quarterfinals, it was Weyerhaeuser's show as she scored twice. It's safe to expect one or more of those four to be the authors of a win if the Knights pull it off.
Looking at Dexter, Aitken has been fantastic in net, as has Maddie Murphy (Dorchester, Mass.) on the blue line in the playoffs. She had a goal and an assist in the semifinals, plus another goal in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Alex Mitsakis (Winchester, Mass.) came through with a goal and an assist.
Scalese has been Groton's most consistent producer this season. She's going to be a coveted recruit heading into her junior season, and a signature performance on Sunday will only help her stock. Cronan also had a massive showing in the semifinals with a goal and two assists, and Jaelyn Trudell had a pair against Millbrook, too. Hadamovsky has been Groton's bedrock throughout her career, too. The senior entered the season uncommitted, and Sunday could be a huge boost for her stock.
New Hampton will surely turn to Loughlin, Walker and Thompson to lead the offense. But Reese Luber (Norwood, Mass.) also scored twice in the semis, while junior defender Drew Hayhurst scored her first two career goals. Perhaps another clutch performance from someone else under the radar is in store.
