Last season, it was all about St. John's Prep and Catholic Memorial — at least during the boys MIAA regular season.
The trend of there being a definitive top two has continued this winter. St. John's Prep has established itself inside the top tier, while Xaverian has ascended into the other spot.
This week proved it.
St. John's Shrewsbury, our No. 3 team last week, took both teams on over the last seven days and fell each time, isolating SJP and Xaverian at the top.
Between those two, there's a clear No. 1. The past week also proved that.
Let's dive into the top 10.
1. St. John's Prep (9-1-0)
Previous ranking: 2
Head coach: Kristian Hanson
Next game: vs. BC High, Jan. 21, 1:30 p.m.Â
There's making a statement, and then there's what St. John's Prep did over the last week. On Jan. 10, SJP marched into Canton Ice House and dominated Xaverian on its own ice, beating the Hawks, 5-2. Hanson's team went back there for the Catholic Conference Showcase on Sunday and trounced rival Catholic Memorial, 4-1, before going on the road again and taking down another rival in St. John's Shrewsbury, 6-1.
On second thought, it was only a matter of time until St. John's Prep found its way back to the No. 1 spot.
2. Xaverian (7-3-0)
Previous ranking: 1
Head coach: Dave Spinale
Next game: vs. Catholic Memorial, Jan. 20, 6:30 p.m.Â
While Xaverian fell to St. John's Prep and uncharacteristically lost to Central Catholic, 2-0, on Monday, it's hard to drop the Hawks lower than No. 2. Spinale's team took down St. John's Shrewsbury, 7-4, which solidifies itself as the No. 2 team in the state. Xaverian has a top six that can be counted on to score whenever, as well as a veteran defensive core and Cole Pouliot-Porter (Wrentham, Mass.) in net.
3. St. John's Shrewsbury (9-3-0)
Previous ranking: 3
Head coach: Michael Mead
Next game: vs. Malden Catholic, Jan. 20, 3:50 p.m.Â
In most circumstances, if a team loses two of three games in a week, it falls in the rankings. But after beating BC High, 2-1, SJS lost to the two teams above, solidifying it as a just-outside-the-top-tier team. SJS has one of the best top lines in the state in senior Luke Gerardi (Shrewsbury, Mass.), junior Daniel Menyalkin (Shrewsbury, Mass.) and freshman Chase Warsofsky (Northboro, Mass.).
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4. Catholic Memorial (6-4-2)
Previous ranking: 5
Head coach: Larry Rooney
Next game: vs. Xaverian, Jan. 20, 6:30 p.m.Â
Right outside the top three is the perfect spot for Catholic Memorial. This past week was more evidence of that. Fresh off taking down Pope Francis, 8-3, Rooney's team disposed of Malden Catholic, 4-0, but fell to SJP, 4-1. On Thursday, CM ousted BC High, 4-1, off the back of sophomore forward Nick D'Olympio's (Rockland, Mass.) hat trick. The Knights are still trying to figure out what they are. Once they do, they have the potential to be dangerous.Â
5. Reading (7-2-0)
Previous ranking: 8
Head coach: Mark Doherty
Next game: vs. Winchester, Jan. 20, 6 p.m.Â
Reading sees the biggest jump in this week's rankings because of its two wins over top-10 teams. First, the Rockets took down Arlington, 4-0, with senior Cam Fahey potting two goals, senior Matt Fichera notching a goal and an assist, and senior Chris Hanifan getting the shutout. Then, Reading took down Pope Francis, 3-1, with Fahey scoring another goal.
6. Arlington (7-2-1)
Previous ranking: 4
Head coach: John Messuri
Next game: vs. Woburn, Jan. 20, 12 p.m.Â
A week after Arlington shot up to No. 4 with wins over Hingham and Winchester, the Spy Ponders fall a bit after losing to Reading, 4-0. Messuri's squad did, however, edge Belmont, 4-3. Teams like Arlington, Hingham, Reading and Marshfield will battle all year for the title of "best public school." With Arlington being a young team, that title won't be known until the end of the season.
7. Pope Francis (7-5-0)
Previous ranking: 6
Interim head coach: Daniel Fenton
Next game: vs. St. Mary's Lynn, Jan. 20, 6:40 p.m.Â
Pope Francis won two of three after falling to Catholic Memorial, 8-3, last week. The Cardinals narrowly snuck past Braintree, 1-0, before losing to Reading, which is why the Rockets passed them. But Fenton's team responded in a big way on Thursday, taking down Malden Catholic, 8-2.
8. Hingham (7-4-1)
Previous ranking: 7
Head coach: Tony Messina
Next game: vs. Duxbury, Jan. 29, 6 p.m.Â
Hingham only falls one spot because of how teams did around it. It's not because of how the past week went for the Harbormen, as they won all three of their games. Messina's team took down Winchester (4-2), St. Mary's Lynn (4-1) and Central Catholic (7-1). Messina's top line of seniors Travis Rugg and Paul Dzavik and sophomore Conal Mulkerrin continue to pay massive dividends. While Mulkerrin, an '08, has four goals and two assists, Dzavik has 11 goals and 14 points in 12 games and Rugg, who started the season late due to injury, has an incredible five goals and 10 points in five games.
9. Archbishop Williams (9-1-0)
Previous ranking: NR
Head coach: Chris Cunningham
Next game: vs. Bishop Feehan, Jan. 20, 6:30 p.m.Â
Welcome to the top 10, Archbishop Williams. The Bishops have been sensational to open the season, with its only loss coming to Xaverian in late December. Cunningham's team scored a 7-3 win over Needham before needing overtime to take down both Milton and Canton. Junior forward Finn Kelly (Dorchester, Mass.) leads the way in scoring with six goals and 13 points, while seniors Ben Sylvester (Carver, Mass.) and Casey Kelly (Dorchester, Mass.) have 10 points each.
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10. Marshfield (8-2-1)
Previous ranking: 10
Head coach: Dan Connolly
Next game: vs. Plymouth North, Jan. 20, 7:40 p.m.Â
The Rams went 2-0-1 over the last week, staying at No. 10. First, they got a big, 8-0, win over Hanover, before tying Duxbury, 2-2. Marshfield followed that up with a 5-2 win over North Quincy on Wednesday. It's been all about the seniors for Marshfield, with Teddy Devoe, Cam McGettrick and Will Arnone leading the team in scoring.
Dropped out: BC High (4-6-0; 9)
