MIDDLETON, Mass. — This weekend's nor'easter may have caused disruptions all across the region, but the fall hockey slate forged ahead.
I made it out to catch NEGHL action on Sunday, taking in the 19U Massachusetts Spitfires' narrow 2-1 win over the NS Wings.
Brooke Marston (Portsmouth, R.I.) and Georgia Murray (North Attleboro, Mass.) each scored for the Spitfires. Courtney Shifrin (Southboro, Mass.) scored for the Wings.
Marston opened the scoring when she jammed in a rebound in the crease late in the first period.
Shifrin answered with six minutes to go in the second to make it 1-1, but Murray came through with the deciding goal with 34 seconds to go in the period for the 2-1 final.
Let's dive into eight standouts from the NEGHL clash.
Georgia Murray
Massachusetts Spitfires/Tabor, 2009, F, right shot
Hometown: North Attleboro, Mass.
Murray played a powerful game and was difficult to handle in 1-on-1 matchups, consistently generating quality looks. She had it going early, speeding into the attacking zone, dangling around a defender and setting up a bang-bang chance in the slot. Later, with a defender giving her plenty of space off the rush, Murray took advantage and drove wide before powering to the net for a chance in tight. She got rewarded moments later when she won a footrace for a loose puck in the right corner, powered past the defender trying to wrap her up, taking it to the right post and going to her backhand for the five-hole score.
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Gracie Penney
NS Wings/Brewster Academy, 4/27/2009, D, left shot, 5-5
Hometown: Paradise, NL
NCAA: SUNY Plattsburgh
Penney's quick and agile skating helped her win footraces in the defensive zone and take away space from puck carriers. She did a good job of stepping up against the rush. She had a great chance late in the third, picking up a loose puck at the left circle, cutting to her right to open a shooting lane and putting a good shot on net.
Charlotte Matusovich
Mass. Spitfires/Groton, 05/2009, F, left shot, 5-7
Hometown: New Gloucester, Maine
Matusovich drove offense for the Spitfires all game. She nearly set up a goal for Annie Flippo less than a minute into the second, putting it on the money to the slot as she curled from the corner, but the net was off. Matusovich had another close call in the third, powering past a defender down the left wing on the rush, cutting to the dot and rifling a wrister off the right post. It was perfectly placed between the glove and the pad.
Clara Ryan
Mass. Spitfires/Milton Academy, 2009, D, left shot, 5-8
Hometown: Chestnut Hill, Mass.
Ryan was everywhere all game. She was physical in the attacking zone, stepping up on puck carriers as she defended the rush and cutting off plays in the neutral zone to kill entries. Ryan wasn't afraid to activate into the offense, too, taking advantage of opportunities to lead the rush and generating shots from the point.
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Courtney Shifrin
NS Wings/Millbrook, 2008, F, right shot, 5-6
Hometown: Southboro, Mass.
NCAA: Assumption
Shifrin was hard on pucks and played with high compete, disrupting puck carriers on the back check with her active stick. She got rewarded with her goal in the second period on a 2-on-1 with Kiera Dowd. You couldn't have drawn it up any better, as Dowd drove wide down the left wing with Shifrin driving in the slot with her stick on the ice. Dowd's pass was perfectly timed, and Shifrin did the rest, redirecting it inside the right post.
Olivia Bissell
NS Wings/Pomfret, 1/9/2009, D, right shot, 5-7
Hometown: South Glastonbury, Conn.
Bissell made plays at the point, getting her shots through and finding passing lanes. She made a great play in the first period to fake a shot and send a feed to the slot as the lane opened. It was nearly a Grade-A look. She also did a good job of stepping up at both the attacking and defensive blue lines. In the first, Bissell stepped up in the neutral zone, intercepted an outlet pass and drove back into the zone for a shot. Later, she stepped up at her blue line to cut off a home run pass for Sammi Ruzzo and prevent a breakaway.
Sammi Ruzzo
Massachusetts Spitfires/St. Mark’s, 2009, F, right shot
Hometown: North Smithfield, R.I.
Ruzzo had stretches where she flat-out dominated alongside linemates Marston and Lily Curtis. She was strong in the net-front battle ahead of Marston's goal. Ruzzo was explosive in the attacking zone, too. She was quick to take open lanes, and she won pucks and kept plays alive around the net and in the corners before finding plays to the slot and the point. Ruzzo had a terrific look in the second when she made a beeline into the slot off a high cycle and got a quality backhand on net.
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Brooke Marston
Mass. Spitfires/Portsmouth Abbey, 2009, F, left shot, 5-5
Hometown: Portsmouth, R.I.
Marston got it all started for the Spitfires with her strong instincts off an attacking zone draw, going right to the front of the net for the shot from the point. She dug away for the loose puck in the scramble and jammed it home. Later, Marston had a hell of a feed for Curtis in the slot. Marston motored down the right wall, toe-dragged a defender and slipped a perfect backhand feed to Curtis for a one-timer.
