The Harrington Invitational Tournament is always one of the premier events on the girls prep hockey calendar. This year marks the 42nd season of the tournament.
The slate for this season's Harrington Invitational is absolutely stacked, per usual. Whether it be the two hosts in perennial powerhouse Nobles and up-and-coming Milton, defending NEPSAC champion Williston Northampton or contenders like St. Paul's and BB&N, it is truly a gauntlet.
Williston knocked off Milton for last season's title. It was the furthest the latter had ever made it in the Harrington.
The action kicks off on Friday, Dec. 15, and runs through Sunday, Dec. 17. Friday and Sunday will be at Nobles, while Saturday will be at Milton.
There are two divisions of four teams each.
Nobles Division:
- Nobles
- Lawrence
- St. Mark's
- Westminster
Milton Division:
- Milton
- BB&N
- St. Paul's
- Williston Northampton
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Here is the full schedule:
Friday, Dec. 15 at Nobles
- Lawrence vs. Nobles, 9:30 a.m.
- St. Mark’s vs. Westminster, 11:30 a.m.
- Milton vs. St. Paul’s 1:30 p.m.
- BB&N vs. Williston 3:30 p.m.
- Westminster vs. Nobles, 5:30 p.m.
- St. Mark’s vs. Lawrence 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 16 at Milton
- BB&N vs. Milton, 8:30 a.m.
- Williston vs. St. Paul’s, 10:30 a.m.
- Nobles vs. St. Mark’s, 12:30 p.m.
- Westminster vs. Lawrence, 2:30 p.m.
- Williston vs. Milton, 4:30 p.m.
- St. Paul’s vs. BB&N, 6:30 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 17 at Nobles
- 7th place game – No. 4 Milton vs. No. 4 Nobles, 8 a.m.
- 5th place game – No. 3 Milton vs. No. 3 Nobles, 10 a.m.
- Consolation – No. 2 Milton vs. No. 2 Nobles, 12 p.m.
- Championship – No. 1 Milton vs. No. 1 Nobles, 2 p.m.
All games played at Nobles and Milton
Now that we know the schedule, here’s a full breakdown of every team competing in the Harrington tournament.
BB&N
The Knights are off to a 3-0-1 start on their season. They most recently knocked off Brooks, 1-0, before tying Deerfield, 3-3. Their other two wins include 2-0 shutouts of Dexter Southfield and Pomfret.
Senior goalies Annabelle Najarian (Duxbury, Mass.) and Aleksa Caron (Dracut, Mass.), a Stonehill commit, have been fantastic in the early going for Ed Bourget's squad.
Up front, BB&N boasts Bowdoin commit Meghan Britt (Arlington, Mass.), Yale commit Hannah Weyerhaeuser (Cambridge, Mass.) and Izzy King (Bedford, Mass.). Weyerhaeuser is one of seven skaters from Massachusetts who will compete for Team USA in the U18 Women's World Championship in January.
On the blue line, Emi Biotti (Cambridge, Mass.), who is committed to Harvard, leads the way. Junior Brenna O'Reilly (Burlington, Mass.) and senior Cailey Larouco (Rockland, Mass.) play key roles as well.
Lawrence
The Spartans have had a rocky start to their season amid a tough schedule, going 0-4-0 out of the gates. Back-to-back games against stiff opponents like St. Paul's, a 6-2 loss, and Tabor, a 5-1 loss, certainly didn't help things.
Forward Geena Cookinham (Gilmanton Ironworks, NH) has helped lead the way for Kevin Porter's team, along with forwards Kayla Rice (Walpole, Mass.) and Ava Glab. Cookinham had a hat trick in their 5-4 loss to Choate. On the blue line, Maddie Rivet (Groton, Mass.) plays a key role as well as Mairead Carey (Stow, Mass.).
The Spartans welcome a pair of goaltenders as well in Jocelyn White and Liv Doucette (Marblehead, Mass.).
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Milton
Hopes were high for the Mustangs entering their 40th season. They were coming off their first Elite 8 appearance as well as their best placement in the Harrington Tournament.
Ryan Stone's team stumbled out of the gates with a 4-0 loss to New Hampton but picked up their first win of the season, 5-1 over Exeter, last week. Milton also dropped its scrimmage with Thayer, 3-2.
Nevertheless, the Mustangs have a strong group in place. Junior Libby Cohen (Sudbury, Mass.) had a three-point game against Exeter. Meanwhile, last year's leading scorer Becca White (Orono, Maine) is back in the fold as well as captain Christina Sweeney (Milton, Mass.) and Julia Guden (Waltham, Mass.).
A new-look defense after last season's departures is led by Susannah Ward (Dedham, Mass.) as well as sophomore Mary Quatrale (Pembroke, Mass.). Both goalies, Laure Deguire, who was an All-NEPSAC honorable mention last year, and Ava Scanell (Arlington, Mass.) are back as well. Both had save percentages over .950 and goals-against averages below 1.50 last season.
Nobles
Nobles is once again among the favorites in the NEPSAC, hoping to deliver legendary coach Tom Resor one final title run in his last season behind the bench. They fell in the Elite 8 semis last season.
The Bulldogs have jumped out to a 3-0-1 start to their season, most recently taking down St. Mark's, 4-2, and shutting out Choate, 3-0.
Calleigh Brown (Foxboro, Mass.) has had a terrific start for Nobles with three goals on the season. Northeastern commit Molly MacCurtain (Reading, Mass.) and Boston University commit Maddie Krepelka (Arlington, Mass.) have also had strong starts.
On defense, Harvard commit Olivia Maffeo (Canton, Mass.) leads the way as a do-it-all blue-liner. She led the Bulldogs in scoring as a forward last season. Fellow defender Sophia Levering (Westwood, Mass.) combined for three goals in the wins against St. Mark's and Choate.
Between the pipes, Anya Zupkofska is poised for another big season after she had a .950 save percentage, a 0.94 goals-against average and 10 shutouts last season.
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St. Mark's
The Lions have struggled in the early going, starting 0-4-0. They're coming off losses to Portsmouth Abbey, 4-1, and Nobles, 4-2. They also fell to tournament foe Westminster, 4-2.
Kerstin Matthews' team has seen contributions from a number of juniors, including Hadley Gibbons (Needham, Mass.), Meghan MacLean (Sudbury, Mass.), Amne Khamis and Ella Lafebvre (Grafton, Mass.) so far this season. Freshman Katie Barrett (Sandwich, Mass.) has also gotten on the board in the early going.
They have a chance to build momentum against Newton Country Day ahead of the Harrington Tournament.
St. Paul's
The reigning Large School champions have had a tough schedule to start, going 3-2-0 with wins over Lawrence, Holderness and Brewster. The Pelicans' losses came against Williston and New Hampton. The latter has been an early surprise, off to a 3-0-2 start despite a strong schedule.
Kelli Mackey's team has a 14-3 scoring margin in its three wins. The Big Red's stars are producing in the early going, especially Cami Bell (Barre, Vt.) with nine goals and an assist in five games. St. Paul's has also gotten key production from Maude Niemann (Weston, Conn.) and Ava Hunter (Southampton, Mass.), a transfer out of Williston. Freshman Erin Flaherty (Boston, Mass.) also has made an impact as a playmaker.
On defense, Colby commit Kate Pura leads the way along with senior Georgia Bussey. Ally Martiniello (Salem, N.H.) has been the Big Red's rock in goal.
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Westminster
The Martlets have started well, jumping out to a 3-1-0 record. They opened their season with a 4-2 win over St. Mark's before downing Hill School, 4-3, in overtime. Sara Uglade's squad bounced back from a 3-1 loss to Kent with a 2-1 win over Loomis Chaffee last week.
Junior Adrienne Hall (Simsbury, Conn.) has been on fire to start with four goals in four games. Senior Olivia Gordon (Avon, Conn.), junior Talia Ondy (Newtown, Conn.) and freshman Bella Zapata have each chipped in a pair of goals, too.
On the back end, Alex Whalen (Ridgefield, Conn.) and Sydney Courtmanche (Madison, Conn.) have held things goal. The Martlets have leaned on Sacred Heart commit Julia Matyas in net.
Williston Northampton
The reigning Elite 8 and Harrington Tournament champions have been a buzzsaw so far this season. Christa Talbot Syfu's squad is 3-0-0 with wins over St. Paul's, 4-1, Cushing, 6-1, and Hoosac, 10-0. They've outscored their opponents, 20-2.
Monique Lyons (Bedford, Mass.), a Brown commit, Nora Curtis and Violet Carroll (Milton, Mass.) combined for 132 points as a line last season, and they've picked up right where they left off. Each are coming off a goal and an assist against Cushing, and Curtis tacked on another goal against Hoosac. Freshman forward Mia Daley has also made an impact early on as well.
Clarkson commit Caroline Aufiero (Belmont, Mass.) has been dominant once again on the blue line.
In net, Olivia Ferebee has stepped right in as the full-time starter after staking her claim to the crease down the stretch last season.
