BOSTON — Make that two straight for Duxbury.
The No. 1 Dragons (24-3-0) shut out Falmouth (23-3-1), 4-0, to repeat as MIAA Division 2 girls champions. It's Duxbury's sixth title in six tries all time, each of which has come in the last 10 years. The Dragons also beat Falmouth, 1-0, in 2013.
Four different skaters scored for Dan Najarian's squad. Meanwhile, senior goalie Anna McGinty stood tall in net to keep a clean sheet.
Junior forward Maeve Gallagher opened the scoring just 1:53 into the game. She skated down the right wing, deked around a defender and went upstairs with a top-right wrist shot.
Sophomore defender Lucia Rose doubled the lead 1:54 into the second period with a top-shelf wrist shot from the top of the right circle that found a way through traffic.
Senior forward Maddie Greenwood extended it to 3-0 with a strong individual effort with 3:50 left in the second. She took the puck in the neutral zone and weaved through multiple defenders for a 1-on-1 look on Falmouth freshman goalie Aspen Devlin. She made the initial save with her left pad, but Greenwood chipped the rebound in.
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With two minutes left in the regulation, junior forward Meg Carney put an exclamation point on the win, diving to bury a rebound and make it 4-0.
Now, let's dive into some takeaways from the game.
1. In my predictions, I said Duxbury's depth and experience would be the difference-maker, and it was. Whether it was the production from throughout the lineup, the ability to build on a lead or the ability to shut Falmouth down late, it looked like a team that has "been there, done that." Greenwood was the embodiment of that. Her goal on Sunday was her third at TD Garden after she had two in last year's championship.
Once the Dragons took hold of an early lead, you just knew they weren't going to look back. Scoring within the first two minutes of the first and second period went a long way in taking momentum from Falmouth. The Clippers had some chances to get back in it with some power plays in the third, but Duxbury and McGinty dominated on the penalty kill.
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2. McGinty had plenty of run support in front of her, but she was still fantastic for the Dragons. In the first period, she made a sprawling save in tight to maintain a 1-0 lead. She also bailed her team out off a turnover, coming up with a big glove save on Falmouth junior co-leading-scorer Riley Devlin in transition. The senior reacted and tracked pucks well all game, especially on the penalty kill in the third. She made a nice save on a puck that changed direction in front of her before diving to cover a juicy rebound late.
3. Falmouth will be back. The Clippers will graduate just three seniors, and they'll return three juniors, a sophomore, nine freshmen and an eighth-grader. Their leading scorers, Riley Devlin and Casey Roth, are each juniors. Standout freshmen Maeve Turner and Rylin Briggs will have valuable experience, too. Turner generated chances for herself and others throughout the game, but couldn't solve McGinty. Still, it's a great sign for her ability to step up in big moments down the line.
