MIAA boys: Reading upends St. John’s Prep

Reading appears to be on the outside of the Super 8 Tournament bubble. (Dave Arnold/NEHJ)

READING, Mass. -- The atmosphere inside the Burbank Ice Arena was electric as the partisan crowd of Rocket faithful watched Reading High School upend St. John’s Prep, 2-1, in a hotly contested game between two teams with MIAA Super 8 aspirations.

Junior forwards Shawn Golden and Shawn Barbera were the goal scorers for Mark Doherty’s team that improved to 4-1-0 on the young season. Golden’s shorthanded goal in the first period staked the Rockets out to a 1-0 lead.

A St. John’s Prep power play goal later in the opening period evened the score, 1-1. After a scoreless second period, Barbera scored the game-winning goal at the 3:00 mark of the third period. The right-shot left wing came barreling into the attacking zone before unleashing a wrist shot that was initially saved, but trickled past the goal line.

For large stretches of the game, Reading dominated play territorially. The Rockets certainly showed they’re a top 10 team in the state with Wednesday’s impressive result over St. John’s Prep. The Eagles fell to 2-2-2, but Kristian Hanson’s team has played a challenging schedule.