ESPN Boston's MIAA Boys' Hockey All-State Team

March, 23, 2012

 

By ESPNBoston.com

First Team:
F – Brendan Collier, Sr., Malden Catholic
The two-time ESPN Boston All-Stater closed out his senior season with a second straight Super 8 title and claimed our Mr. Hockey Award. The Charlestown native and Boston University commit scored 26 goals with assists for 65 points, a figure which led all Division 1 scorers. Collier, who also plays golf and lacrosse at MC, plans on playing a year of juniors next year before joining the Terriers.

F – Ryan Fitzgerald, Jr., Malden Catholic
The Lancers’ top-line pivot makes his second All-State team appearance, his first on the First Team. The North Reading native and Boston College commit again eclipsed the 50-point plateau (31-21-52), despite missing the first couple weeks of the season with a shoulder injury, and helped the Lancers to their second straight Super 8 title.

F – Sam Kurker, Sr., St. John’s Prep
When looking up the term power forward, the Eagles senior winger and captain fit the mold. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound forward finished second in Div. 1 with 27 goals and sixth in scoring with 52 points. The Boston University commit has also seen time with U.S. National Team Development Program and skated with the U-18 select team at the Ivan Hlinka Tournament during the summer.

D – Colin MacGillivray, Jr., Malden Catholic
The Lancers blue-liner is made in the mold of an old school rugged defenseman. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Peabody native played on MC’s top pairing through the season while posting three goals and 10 assists for 10 points for the repeat Super 8 champions.

D – Nikko Markham, Sr., St. Mary’s (Lynn)
The Catholic Central Conference Most Valuable Player and Spartans captain finished a sound career by leading St. Mary’s to a No. 2 seed in the Super 8. The Salem native was among the top point-scoring blue-liners in the state with six goals and 12 assists for 18 points.

G – Peter Cronin, Jr., BC High
For the second straight season, the Eagles went as their netminder went, and Cronin led BC High to its first Super 8 finals appearance since 2007. Playing in each of the Eagles’ 25 games, the Norwell resident posted a 2.00 goals against average and a 91.7 save percentage.

2nd Team:
F – Kevin Emmerling, Sr., St. John’s (Shrewsbury)
Perhaps the most skilled skater in the state, the Pioneers’ center provided a dynamic offensive punch to their Super 8 run. The Whitinsville native finished third in Division 1 scoring with 26 goals and 30 assists for 56 points. Emmerling is exploring his options for next year and hopes to play college hockey.

F – Conal Lynch, Sr., Boston Latin
Lynch also showed that Charlestown is again a hotbed of hockey, carrying the Wolfpack to a DCL/MVC Div. 2 championship. Lynch finished second in Division 2 in scoring with 35 goals and 18 assists for 53 points. The Wolfpack captain is weighing his options in pursuing prep or junior hockey next year.

F – Matt Sullivan, Sr., BC High
The senior captain was a true two-way center with a high hockey IQ. The Duxbury resident anchored the Eagles’ top line, scoring 12 goals and 16 assists for 28 points and lifting BC High to its first Super 8 final appearance since 2007. He is pursuing prep and junior hockey opportunities for next season.

D – Casey Fitzgerald, Fr., Malden Catholic
The younger brother of Ryan, Casey catapulted himself onto the scene in his first year, filling the role of a puck-moving defenseman previously held by former All-Stater Conor Evangelista. The North Reading resident and Boston College commit tallied two goals and 15 assists for 17 points in his first year.

D – Peter Sikalis, Sr., Acton-Boxborough
The Colonials’ captain was the impetus behind their run to the D1 North semifinals. Sikalis had eight goals and 11 assists for 19 points while eating up boatloads of ice time for head coach Bob Lavin. The imposing 6-foot-3 defenseman is exploring his hockey options for next year.

G – David Letarte, Sr., St. John’s Prep
The captain has been the Eagles’ backbone during the last three seasons, leading Prep back to the Super 8 once again. Letarte had a 2.08 goals against average and a 91.3 save percentage in 18 games played. He is currently mulling over college and junior hockey offers for next year.

“Best of the Rest”
Nick Bertoni, F, Franklin
Tom Besinger, F, BC High
Tommy Bishop, F, Chelmsford
Matt Brazel, F, Hingham
Trevor Cimino, F, Burlington
Frank Crinella, F, Springfield Cathedral
Paul Curran, F, Milton
Vin D’Amato, F, St. John’s (Shrewsbury)
Jarrod Fitzpatrick, F, St. Mary’s (Lynn)
James Gordon, F, Hingham
Danny Holland, F, Woburn
Mike Iovanna, F, Malden Catholic
Connor Irving, F, Beverly
Mike Kelleher, F, Central Catholic
Chris Leblanc, F, Winthrop
Bobby Mullins, St. Mary’s (Lynn)
Ara Nazarian, F, Malden Catholic
Andrew Newis, F, Natick
Jack O’Hear, F, Catholic Memorial
Cam O’Neill, F, St. Mary’s (Lynn)
Jake O'Rourke, F, Medway
Cam Owens, F, Wilmington
Brian Pinho, F, St. John’s Prep
Dalton Rolli, F, Wilmington
Joe Strangie, F, Danvers
D.J. Walsh, F, Needham
Bryan Carter, D, Hudson
Connor Fenton, D, Braintree
Brian Furey, D, BC High
Pat Houghton, D, Westford Academy
Steve Mattos, D, Burlington
Nick Pandalena, D, St. John’s Prep
Jake Secatore, D, Woburn
Brendan White, D, Malden Catholic
Joe Cerulo, G, Wakefield
Jordan Davis, G, Norwood
Mike Donadio, G, Franklin
Bailey MacBurnie, G, St. Mary’s (Lynn)
Connor Murray, G, Needham
Connor Roddy, G, Medfield
Shane Starrett, G, Catholic Memorial
Steven Waites, G, Winthrop
Kyle Williams, G, Central Catholic

March 7

Springfield Cathedral's Peter Crinella (4) attempts to score on St. Mary's goalie Bailey MacBurnie (1) during their game at Merrimack College on Wednesday. (Item Photo / Angela Owens)

 

St. Mary's boys hockey tops Springfield Cathedral in shootout By Matthew Roy / For The Item NORTH ANDOVER — With its season on the line Wednesday night, the St. Mary's boys hockey team was in a shootout for the second time in as many games at Lawler Arena. This time, however, the Spartans had to win against Springfield Cathedral to keep any hope of reaching the Division 1A semifinals going.

With the teams tied at 1-1 in the best-of-five shootout, the Spartans called on senior captain Brendan Mageary, and he beat John Liquori stick side to give St. Mary's the 3-2 win over the Panthers.

Click here for a photo gallery.

St. Mary's now has a chance to advance to the semifinals if it can beat St. John's Prep in the final round robin game on Sunday. But for this night, St. Mary's was able to shake off a less than stellar game.

"This is a funny game," St. Mary's coach Mark Lee said after earning his 350th victory. "We played great on Sunday and lose in a shootout. Then (Wednesday) we didn't play well at all and win. But I'm proud of how the guys kept battling."

For Mageary, who has been around the program since being a waterboy at the age of seven, seeing his team come through despite not having its best game was huge.

"We had to come out and play hard," Mageary said. "But everyone in the locker room dug deep and kept fighting."

The Spartans had a 34-26 shots advantage and two power plays in overtime but couldn't seal the deal.

In the shootout, Bobby Mullins gave St. Mary's a 1-0 lead before Panther forward Matt Foley made a sweet stop move to slide the puck through the legs of Bailey MacBurnie.

St. Mary's took the lead back when Jarrod Fitzpatrick tucked a shot past Liquori. But Frank Crinella's water-bottle shot in the fifth round tied it and shifted all the pressure to Mageary.

The senior was deliberate and made a quick fake to the right before snapping a shot stick side to end the drama.

"Brendan has been a part of this program for such a long time and for him to score that goal is such a great story," Lee said.

Things started well for St. Mary's as Cam O'Neill and Mullins scored three minutes apart to give the Spartans a 2-0 lead 5:35 in. But Peter Crinella's goal off a face-off two minutes later cut the lead to 2-1.

Cathedral then survived a 5-on-3 late in the period and used it to change the momentum.

"We didn't have our 'A' or 'B' game and that's a credit to Springfield," Lee said. "They are a really good team and it's always a battle when we play them."

The Panthers tied the game midway through the second when Cullen Geary tipped home Frank Crinella's point shot on a power play at 6:08 as they began to control the play.

Liquori and MacBurnie, however, would shut things down from there as neither team could score over the final 23 minutes of regulation and then through the 12-minute overtime session.

Lynn Item

Spartan boys earn No. 2 spot in Super 8 By Matthew Roy / For The Item
The St. Mary's boys hockey team now can rightfully say it is among the aristocracy of Division 1 hockey in Massachusetts after the Spartans earned the No. 2 seed in the Division 1A tournament that begins on Monday.

"These kids have worked so hard and we're excited about it," St. Mary's coach Mark Lee said. "We know that we can compete with everybody here and this is well earned by this team."

The Spartans go into the tournament with the best record of any team at 18-1-3 and will be in a pool with No. 3 seed St. John's Prep; No. 6 Springfield Cathedral and the winner of tonight's play-in game between No. 7 Burlington and No. 10 Central Catholic.

St. Mary's opens on Sunday (TBA) with a game against the Burlington-Central winner. The Spartans play again the following Wednesday against Springfield, whom the Spartans beat 3-2 earlier this season, and close pool play on March 11 with a long-anticipated meeting with the Prep.

"To be seeded second shows the respect the committee has for us," Lee said. "We played Springfield and it was a battle and now getting to play St. John's on the big stage is even more exciting."

The other side of the bracket is just as loaded as top-seeded Malden Catholic looks to defend its championship. The Lancers will have No. 4 Hingham, a champion in its own right two years ago in the Super 8, and BC High along with either St. John's (Shrewsbury) or Needham.

All eight teams will be in action on Sunday at Merrimack College's Lawlor Arena when the tournament's pool play round kicks off. The finals are on March 18 at TD Garden.
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Analysis: the Super 8 Skinny

ESPN by Scott Barboza: WE ARE SPARTA
We touched on it a bit last year, but Saturday only underscored the fact that St. Mary's of Lynn has become an official Massachusetts hockey powerhouse (the boys' team that is).

The Spartans (18-1-3) took the No. 2 seed, to no surprise, behind Malden Catholic, on Saturday. Last year, St. Mary's made its first Super appearance with a play-in game, which they went on to lose in dramatic fashion.

Now head coach Mark Lee can rest easy until his team opens up pool play.

SUPER 8

Super 8 hockey tournament seedings

February, 25, 2012

By Scott Barboza

FRANKLIN, Mass. -- Saturday morning, the Division 1A (Super 8) hockey tournament committee met and has released the field for this year's tournament.

The teams, in order of power seeding, are listed below. We'll have analysis to follow on the blog:

1. Malden Catholic (15-1-4)
2. St. Mary's of Lynn (18-1-3)
3. St. John's Prep (13-5-2)
4. Hingham (16-4-2)
5. BC High (10-5-5)
6. Springfield Cathedral (10-6-6)
7. Burlington (14-1-6)
8. Needham (16-4-1)
9. St. John's of Shrewsbury (15-4-3)
10. Central Catholic (12-3-5)

PLAY-IN GAMES
No. 8 Needham vs. No. 9 St. John's (Shrewsbury): 5:45 p.m., Lawler Arena, Merrimack College
No. 7 Burlington vs. No. 10 Central Catholic: 8:15 p.m., Lawler

Feb 23

Home > Sports

Bobby Mullins and St. Mary's finished the regular season with a win over Weymouth at Connery Rink on Wednesday. (Item File Photo)

 

St. Mary's boys hockey routs Weymouth By Matthew Roy / For The Item LYNN — The St. Mary's boys hockey team put a bow on the best regular season in program history on Wednesday night at Connery Rink as 15 different Spartans got on the scoresheet en route to a commanding 10-2 win over Weymouth on senior night.

"It's been a dream season for us," St. Mary's coach Mark Lee said. "But it wasn't by accident. Every one of these kids has given everything they have and it shows that hard work does pay off."

The Spartans will now wait to see their fate at the Super 8 selection meeting on Saturday morning but all indications have placed St. Mary's as a possible No. 2 seed behind Malden Catholic after completing the season on a 21-game unbeaten streak and 18-1-3 overall record.

"I am so proud of all these guys," Lee said. "They couldn't have accomplished this without a total team effort."

Win No. 18 was never in doubt after a dominant first-period effort as Bobby Mullins, Connor Parent, Tommy Braswell and Nikko Markham scored to make it 4-0 Spartans in less than nine minutes.

The second period would be much of the same as St. Mary's held a 15-3 shots on net advantage over the Wildcats and increased their lead to 6-0 on tallies from Brendan Mageary and Cam O'Neill.

The onslaught continued in the third as defenseman Andrew DiMaiti scored the game's prettiest goal with an end-to-end rush with the Spartans shorthanded to make it 7-0 before the Wildcats got on the board.

Mageary answered 31 seconds later before Parent completed a hat trick with two goals in 13 seconds midway through the period. Jack Leehan capped the scoring for Weymouth with 2:38 left as the Spartans finished up with no losses since opening night versus Malden Catholic.

"Playing MC in that first game gave us a lot of confidence. We skated with them for three periods and it showed everyone in that room they could play with the best in the state," Lee said. "And they've built on that from then on."

Boston Herald blog

February 14th, 2012
Boys hockey goaltending leaders
Posted by Jim Clark at 1:25 pm

Statewide boys hockey goaltending leaders, through games of Feb. 11 (min. 7 GP). Stats are compiled from reports by teams and league representatives, with additional information from masshshockey.com:

POS.	NAME	SCHOOL	GAMES	GOALS	GAA
1	Jason Robes	Groton-Dunstable	9.66	6	0.62
2	Connor Murray	Needham	18	17	0.94
3	Jack Niemoller	Groton-Dunstable	8.33	9	1.08
4	Connor Roddy	Medfield	14.7	17	1.16
5	Bailey MacBurnie	St. Mary’s	17.8	24	1.34

ESPNBoston.com's boys hockey Top 25

Updated: February 13, 2012, 6:05 PM ET

ESPNBoston.com Staff

Below is our 2011 top 25 MIAA hockey poll, as selected by our panel of staff writers and correspondents. (Updated 2/13)

Team Name	Last year's record	Last year's ranking	Notes
1. Malden Catholic	(12-1-3)	1	We really thought the Lancers might be in for a fight against Hingham. Well, we were wrong. Still rolling strong.
2. St. Mary's of Lynn	(16-1-2)	2	The Spartans' 3-2 win over No. 6 Cathedral should cease any conversations as to which team should get the second spot at the Super 8 table.
3. St. John's Prep	(11-5-1)	3	We're keeping the Eagles here, but they're not playing their best after a 2-2 tie with St. John's of Shrewsbury and a last-second victory over Catholic Memorial.
4. Hingham	(13-3-1)	4	The streak is over. Still, a 13-game unbeaten streak through the middle of the season is nothing to sneeze at. Given the schedule the Harbormen play, in addition to the fact we thought they were going to be in rebuilding mode this season, the feat is that much more impressive.
5. Central Catholic	(10-2-4)	7	Raiders missed a big opportunity to gain a higher foothold on the DCL/MVC race, splitting a 3-3 tie with Billerica. An equally large matchup looms on Saturday against Andover.
6. Springfield Cathedral	(8-5-5)	8	Don't want to be presumptuous, but we're going to say that the Panthers' victory over BC High on Thursday, repaying an earlier loss to the Eagles, should be the final piece on a winning Super 8 resume.
7. BC High	(9-4-3)	5	The Eagles have yet another matchup with Super 8 implications on Saturday against Hingham, kicking off the Cape Cod Classic.
8. Catholic Memorial	(6-7-2)	6	Knights have played well enough to win many of their games in recent weeks, but rash of recent ties and near misses illustrates the need to play a full 45-minute game. Six points in four games: Can it be done?

Feb 15

St. Mary's boys hockey solves Williams By Steve Krause / The Daily Item LYNN — After one period Wednesday night, St. Mary's had peppered Archbishop Williams goalie Joe Vinay with 11 shots while the Spartans' Bailey MacBurnie faced only three.

But the only puck that went past either goalie came on a power play, with Williams captain Sean LeBlanc doing the honors.

"But," said Spartan coach Mark Lee, "just as (we've) been doing all year, we didn't panic."

St. Mary's scored three unanswered goals in the second period and ended up winning, 4-2, to inch the Spartans closer to pretty much clinching a spot in the Super 8 tournament next month.

"I continue to be proud of these guys," said Lee. "We played a great second period, and fought off a four-minute minor to one of our guys, and that gave us a lot of momentum. It really gave us a spark."

The penalty, on Cam O'Neill, came after Nikko Markham had tied the game at 1-1 5:06 into the second on the power play. St. Mary's patiently rotated the puck until it got to Markham at the left point, and he blasted one home for the goal.

The Spartans killed off the penalty, and shortly after it expired, Tommy Braswell scored right off a faceoff after Williams was whistled for a penalty. That made the score 2-1.

At 11:14 of the period, Brendan Mageary's goal made it 3-1. Mageary collected a nifty drop pass from Jordan Manthorne, and crept up the left side until he let loose on Vinay.

Things got a little bit dicey in the third period when LeBlanc scored again for Williams after just 1:27 had ticked off the clock, thanks to another Spartan penalty. But Bobby Mullins got that back at 8:57 on a beautiful solo effort. Mullins skated from center ice into the Williams zone, and went around a couple of defenders until he took a bad-angle shot off Vinay's pads and into the net.

St. Mary's, 17-1-2, has a tough windup to the regular season. Saturday, the Spartans play Division 1 champion Marshfield, and they close the season out Wednesday against Weymouth.

Feb 11

Hockey: Spartans squeeze past Springfield Cathedral, 3-2 By Kevin Doyle / For The Item St. Mary's likely squelched any lingering doubt regarding whether it merits Div. 1A tournament status later this month as it turned back Springfield Cathedral Saturday night at Connery Rink, 3-2.

Brendan Mageary's second goal of the game broke a 2-all tie with 2:23 to play as the Spartans (16-1-2) remained unbeaten in 18 games since a season-opening loss to Malden Catholic. It was a damaging loss for Cathedral (8-5-5) as it attempts to build its 1A resume down the stretch.

"This was as good of a game and team effort as we have played all year. From the goaltending to the defensemen to the forwards, every player gave their best effort and it showed," said coach Mark Lee.

The visitors broke a scoreless tie on Frank Crinella's unassisted strike at 12:23 of the second period, but Jarrod Fitzpatrick drew the Spartans even with just three seconds left in the stanza, converting Connor Parent's set-up. Mageary gave St. Mary's its first lead at 3:30 of the final period but the Panthers pulled even on Cullin Geary's goal with 7:51 to play. St. Mary's sophomore goalie Bailey MacBurnie continued to shine with 17 saves and Jordan Manthorne had two assists

Feb 8

Andrew Markham and the St. Mary's boys beat AC on Wednesday. (Item File Photo)

 

Back-to-back CCL championships for St. Mary's boys hockey By Matthew Roy / For The Item LYNN — Since losing 5-1 to Malden Catholic in its season opener, the St. Mary's boys hockey team has been on a tear and on Wednesday at Connery Rink, the Spartans paid off that play with a title.

Tim Aylward had two goals and an assist while Cam O'Neill had a goal and an assist as the Spartans defeated Arlington Catholic, 3-1, to claim their second consecutive Catholic Central League/Large title.

"I am so proud of this team," St. Mary's coach Mark Lee said after his team made it 17 straight games without a loss. "We struggled at times (Wednesday) and didn't have our 'A' game but as they've done all year, they never stopped working and deserve this championship."

Sophomore goalie Bailey MacBurnie came up with one of his best performances of the season, turning aside 23 of 24 shots he faced, including a save on a second-period breakaway after the Spartans (15-1-2, 8-0-1) had just taken the lead.

"Bailey has played so well for us all season," Lee said. "And you can't win at this level without a goaltender like him."

The Spartans got a challenge from a young and talented AC (8-5-3, 5-2-1) team that generated several quality scoring chances but couldn't cash them in.

"I thought that we really came to play (Wednesday)," Cougars coach Dan Shine said. "We had some chances and didn't finish them off. We're such a young team that sometimes you don't finish like you want to."

The Spartans looked early on like they were ready to blow AC right off the ice as it took a little under four minutes for St. Mary's to grab the lead when Aylward one-timed home an O'Neill pass on the power play.

AC, though, steadied itself and began to take the play to the Spartans as the period wore on. MacBurnie came up with a couple of big saves on Brendon O'Connell power play bids late in the period to keep it 1-0 after one.

Early in the second, the Spartans were tagged for two penalties on one shift and the Cougars made them pay almost immediately as freshman Michael Snow fired home O'Connell's pass from the right post and the game was tied less than three minutes in.

"When you play for a championship, you're going to see what you're made of," Lee said. "And when they scored, I didn't see much change on the bench."

Special teams would come to the forefront again when the Cougars put St. Mary's on the power play midway through the game and set the stage for a highlight reel goal.

O'Neill took an Aylward pass in full stride at the Spartan line and proceeded to skate through three defenders before ripping a shot past Shawn Ray for a 2-1 lead.

"The kids didn't panic when they tied it and they stayed the course nicely," Lee said.

In front for the second time on the night, St. Mary's set about protecting its lead with a swarming defense in front of MacBurnie. And the strategy worked as the Cougars would manage only five shots over the final 15 minutes.

Aylward then delivered the knockout punch with 4:16 left when Andrew Markham's shot bounced off an AC stick and found the tape of the junior for his 10th goal of the year.

"St. Mary's has had a tremendous season," Shine said. "They are very well coached and are going to be a force for a while."

Feb rankings

Boys hockey “Super Eight” rankings

DIVISION 1

1. MALDEN CATHOLIC (8-1-2) – Guess we know why Jerry York was spotted at Wednesday night’s game against BC High.

2. ST. MARY’S (11-1-2) – Not going to bump the Spartans down because of a road tie in the league, especially since they still have that big December win against …

3. HINGHAM (11-2-0) – But the Harbormen’s nine-game win streak has them poised to move even higher if either Nos. 1 or 2 slip up. A key matchup looms Saturday at Springfield Cathedral.

4. ST. JOHN’S PREP (9-4-0) – Keep hearing about some “big game” coming up this week. They must be talking about the Eagles’ trip to Malden on Tuesday.

5. BC HIGH (7-3-2) – As far as 1-1-1 weeks go, that was a pretty good one for the boys from Morrissey Blvd.

6. BURLINGTON (9-1-2) – Normally we wouldn’t be looking at a matchup for the Red Devils at Melrose (Saturday), but there is that nasty “1” in the loss column.

The wild cards

7. Needham (11-2-0); 8. Springfield Cathedral (7-3-3); 9. Central Catholic (7-2-3); 10. Westford Academy (8-2-2).

Raffle winners

Feb-1  Paul Butler   $25

Feb-2  Mary DiMaiti $25

Feb-3  Denise Vincerelli  $25

Feb-4  Stacy Butler  $100

 Post

Feb-5  Ken Frankel   $100

Feb-6  Marke O'Toole Sr $25

Feb-7  Steve Poliskey  $25

Feb-8  Bill Borders  $25

Feb-9  Steve Poliskey  $25

Feb-10 Alice Mercer $25

Feb-11 Jim Baker  $100

Post

Feb-12 Brenda Butler $100

Feb-13 Marie Gianci  $25

Feb-14 Karen Foley  $200

Feb-15 Nicole Gatit  $25

Feb-16 Pat Scanlan  $25

Feb-17 Tony Cappola $25 

Feb-18 Karen Scalli  $100

Post

Feb-19 Kris O'Neill  $100

Feb-20 Steve Poliskey $25

Feb-21 Stacey Butler  $25

Feb-22 Jeanne Cardosa $25

Feb-23 Tom Ferrarine  $25

Feb-24 Kris O'Neill $25

Feb-25 Karen Scalli $100

Post

Feb-26 Mary Freeze $100

Feb-27 Jeff MacBurnie $25

Feb-28 Denise Vincerelli $25

Feb-29 Lydia Young $25

ESPN article

Recap: No. 4 St. Mary's 4, No. 20 Austin Prep 1

February, 2, 2012

By Matt Noonan

LYNN, Mass. -- After its one-goal lead was erased early in the second period, No. 4 St. Mary’s of Lynn regrouped and registered three goals during the final 25 minutes to secure a season sweep against No. 20 Austin Prep, as well as a 4-1 win on Wednesday at the Connery Memorial Rink.

The Spartans have now won two of their last three contests, and haven't lost a regular season match since losing to Malden Catholic in December in the first game of the season.

"We needed to win tonight to keep breathing room for the league, and Austin Prep is a very talented, tough team to play," St. Mary's head coach Mark Lee said.

The Spartans (13-1-2, 6-0-1 Catholic Central) earned their first lead of the contest with 52-seconds remaining in the opening period, as juniors Cameron Grenham and Bobby Mullins, (1 G, 1 A) connected with sophomore Jordan Manthorne, which gave St. Mary’s an one-goal advantage prior to the first intermission.

Austin Prep (6-5-3, 5-3-1) answered roughly two minutes into the middle frame when freshman Cam Russo notched the Cougars' only strike of the evening, after he wrapped around sophomore Bailey MacBurnie’s (15 saves) cage for the score.

However, the Cougars goal didn’t exactly provide the necessary spark for their offense, as St. Mary’s responded two minutes later with a goal from Mullins, who rushed the net and slapped the puck past freshman goaltender Elijah Harris (31 saves).

“Once you tie a game up, you want to sustain at least five-six minutes with no goals scored, so you can try to build up some momentum instead of giving them one right back again,” Austin Prep head coach Louis Finocchiaro said.

“I just took a shot on net, and it went in,” said Mullins, who now has seven goals on the season. “I was telling the guys, ‘just get shots on him, they’ll start to go in’.”

The Spartans followed Mullins instructions during the final period and constantly fired shots at Harris’s net before seniors Tim Aylward and Bryan Wilkins found the back of the cage for the teams third and fourth goals.

“I give my guys credit for weathering the storm, and finishing so strong,” said Lee. “We’ve been finding ourselves the last couple of games down, and there’s no panic on the bench, it’s all positive between the teammates. They’re patting each other on the back, keeping it going, and strong.”

Austin Prep finished the final frame with just three shots on net, and no goals.

“We hung in there, we competed, [and] played hard,” Finocchiaro said. “I thought our effort was good tonight.”

ONE-FOR-ALL MENTATLITY
Against the Cougars, Bobby Mullins registered a goal and an assist to give him 23 points on the season, but that particular statistic didn’t get in the way of the Spartans celebrating their 13th victory as a team.

“I’m not really looking at the 23 points,” said a humbled Mullins. “The team’s working well together, we’re having a good time, we’re like a family, [and] we’re all like a ‘band of brothers,’ like we say [because] we’re just having fun out there.”

Mullins has now tallied seven goals, and 16 assists through 16 games, but again, he’s not focused on his individual stat line, yet instead, his team.

“Coach is teaching us to play as a team. He said it a lot this season [that] it’s not all about the points,” he said. “We just want to win. We’ve got a lot of heart in the locker room. The seniors are all stepping up their game. We’ve got new guys all pitching in, everybody’s for the team, everybody’s just out there scoring, having fun, and we all just want to win.”

Besides Mullins, junior Cam O’Neill earned his 15th point of the season when he tallied an assist on Wilkins goal. Although, similar to Mullins, O’Neill didn’t steal the spotlight from his team’s gritty effort.

“We’re pretty happy about the attitude, and like I said, it hasn’t been perfect lately, [but] they’ve stayed with it and stayed with the game plan,” Lee said.

A referee drops the puck between Austin Prep's Ryan Quinn (20) and St. Mary's Bobby Mullins (16) during their game at Connery Rink in Lynn on Wednesday. Mullins had a goal and two assists for St. Mary's. (Item Photo / Angela Owens)

Spartans topple Cougars, take back first

Spartans topple Cougars, take back first in CCL By Matthew Roy / For The Item LYNN — It was probably as fine a third period as the St. Mary's hockey team has put together in a long time and it couldn't have come at a more opportune moment for the Spartans on Wednesday at Connery Rink.

Playing for first place in the CCL Large, the Spartans uncorked a 19-shot barrage on Austin Prep in the third period, as Tim Aylward and Bryan Wilkins scored to ensure a 4-1 Spartans win. St. Mary's now controls its own destiny for a second straight league title.

Click here for a photo gallery.

"That really was a solid third period," St. Mary's coach Mark Lee said. "We needed to come out of here with a win (Wednesday) and the kids answered the call in the third."

The Cougars (6-5-3, 5-3-1 CCL) were right there with the hottest team in Division 1 hockey for most of the game, but had no answer when the Spartans (13-1-2, 6-0-1) turned up the wick in the third.

"I thought that we played good for the most part," Austin coach Lou Finocchiaro said. "But we can't put things together for 45 minutes. We've played a good 40 minutes most of the season."

The Spartans easily could have blown Austin right out of the rink on Wednesday if not for the play of freshman goaltender Elijah Harris, who stood tall between the pipes in the face of the constant pressure.

St. Mary's controlled much of the play in the first period but neither team could score until the final minute when Jordan Manthorne one-timed home Bobby Mullins' pass from behind the goal for a 1-0 lead.

"That was a huge goal by Jordan," Lee said. "We had played a pretty good period there and it was nice to get that one late."

The Cougars picked up their game early in the second and got the equalizer when Cam Russo banked a shot off Bailey MacBurnie's stick at 2:11.

True to its nature this season, St. Mary's shrugged off the Cougars goal and came back with one of its own two and a half minutes later as Chris Butler made a perfect pass to Mullins in the slot for the go-ahead marker.

"It's been that way for us all season," Lee said of his team's depth. "It's not been just one player carrying the load."

Both teams had chances as the period wound down but MacBurnie and Harris kept it 2-1 through two.

The third period would be a different story as the Cougars were hemmed in their own zone for long stretches.

Harris did a superhuman job of keeping it a one-goal game but the law of averages finally bit the Cougars with 4:59 left when Aylward went to the goal and poked a rebound between Harris' legs for a 3-1 lead.

Wilkins capped the domination 1:45 later when his flutterball got past a startled Harris

St.Mary’s 2, Williams 2

In Braintree, Tommy Braswell’s goal with 3:58 remaining in the third period secured a point for the Spartans (11-1-2, 5-0-1), who twice came back from one-goal deficits to stretch their unbeaten streak to 13 games.

Jarrod Fitzpatrick scored in the second period and sophomore goalie Bailey MacBurnie finished with 15 saves.

It was the first league point surrendered by the Spartans, who remain firmly in control of their own destiny with two games in hand on co-leader Austin Prep.

“Bailey played another great game, stopping several quality shots.

“We lacked energy and left our work ethic on the bus. We need to play with more discipline and intensity,” said coach Mark Lee.

1/17/12 rankings

Below is our 2011 top 25 MIAA hockey poll, as selected by our panel of staff writers and correspondents. (Updated 1/17)

Team Name	Last year's record	Last year's ranking	Notes
1. Malden Catholic	(6-1-1)	1	It was close, but the Blue Blades shifted into another gear in the third period of the 7-4 win over Prep. Sophomore winger Pat Wrenn has scored some awfully big goals in the last two weeks.
2. St. Mary's of Lynn	(9-1-1)	2	Junior Bobby Mullins (5-12-17) is very quietly leading the Spartans in scoring again.
3. BC High	(6-1-0)	3	The Eagles looked rather efficient and rather flashy (with those gold jerseys) in a 4-0 win over Catholic Memorial at Frozen Fenway.
4. Hingham	(9-2-0)	5	The Harbormen keep chugging along despite sweating out a 2-1 win over No. 22 Reading. Another Top 25 test against St. John's of Shrewsbury comes on Wednesday.
5. St. John's Prep	(5-4-0)	7	The Eagles find themselves in much the same situation they did around this time last year, and it looks as though they've hit their stride again with a fairly good showing against MC and a 5-1 win over CM.
6. Woburn	(7-2-1)	4	Once again showing how small the difference is between the Top 5 and the rest of field, the Tanners fall 3-0 to No. 11 Burlington, just when we thought they'd found some consistency.
7. Central Catholic	(4-2-2)	9	The Raiders gained a little bit of leverage in the DCL/MVC Div. 1 race with a quality 5-3 win over No. 13 Chelmsford.
8. Needham	(6-2-0)	8	Nothing lost, but certainly nothing gained by the Rockets last week with a tough Bay State League loss to Braintree (3-2) and an uninspired 3-1 win over Coyle-Cassidy.
9. Springfield Cathedral	(6-3-1)	15	Panthers vault into the Top 10 for the first time this season on the heels of a 3-1 win over CM on Thursday.
10. Catholic Memorial	(4-5-0)	6	Are the Knights headed for a repeat of last season? We'll find out in the coming weeks, but the message is clear, it's gut-check time for this group.

Boston Globe

The Globe Top 20

The boys hockey poll as of Jan. 15, 2012. The teams were selected by the Globe sports staff.

No.	Team	Record	Previous
1.	Malden Catholic	6-1-1	1
2.	Woburn	7-1-1	2
3.	BC High	6-1	3
4.	St. Mary's	9-1-1	5
5.	Hingham	8-2	6
6.	Marshfield	7-1-1	9
7.	Cathedral (Springfield)	6-3-1	11
8.	St. John's Prep	4-4	4
9.	Central Catholic	4-2-2	10
10.	Catholic Memorial	4-4	8
11.	Needham	5-2	7
12.	St. John's (Shrewsbury)	7-3-1	12
13.	Franklin	8-0-1	15
14.	Burlington	5-1-2	18
15.	Austin Prep	5-2-2	16
16.	Reading	5-2-2	20
17.	Wakefield	5-3-1	13
18.	Falmouth	8-1-2	—
19.	Westford	5-2-1	—
20.	Andover	4-3-1	19

Updated: Sunday, Jan. 15, 2012, 7:13 p.m.

January 14

Hockey: Spartans wear down Billerica, 5-1 By Kevin Doyle / For The Item The St. Mary's hockey team continued to follow its blueprint for success Saturday night, shutting down Billerica, 5-1, at Hallenborg Arena. The Spartans ran their Division 1-best record to 9-1-1 and have outscored opponents, 52-17.

"This is a fairly young team, one that graduated nine seniors from a year ago, so we weren't sure what to expect. To have the type of year we've had is a pleasant surprise. I think the key is the fact that this team has meshed very well in a short period and they like each other on and off the ice. We preach hard work and discipline and we've been getting that every night, something we're very proud of," said coach Mark Lee.

Jordan Manthorne broke a scoreless tie at 48 seconds of the second period, the first of five Spartans to find the net. Ryan Madden and Tim Aylward (goal, assist) added second-period tallies while Jared Fitzpatrick and Cam O'Neil (goal, assist) scored in the third. Billerica spoiled sophomore goalie Bailey MacBurnie's (18 saves) shutout bid with 1:37 remaining.

"It all starts with goaltending and Bailey has done a great job in his first varsity year. And the offense comes from our defense -- it's never the same guys and everyone is contributing," said Lee.

Number 2!

Below is our 2011 top 25 MIAA hockey poll, as selected by our panel of staff writers and correspondents. (Updated 1/12)

Team Name	Last year's record	Last year's ranking	Notes
1. Malden Catholic	(5-1-1)	1	Showed they're still the top squad in the Catholic Conference, and by extension, the state with a handy 7-4 win over BC High.
2. St. Mary's of Lynn	(8-1-1)	2	Spartans widened the margin atop the leaderboard in their quest for back-to-back Catholic Central titles with a 4-0 blanking of AC. Bailey MacBurnie collected his first career shutout.
3. BC High	(5-1-0)	3	Eagles were flying high before Saturday's loss to MC. We'll see how the group bounces back from their first dose of adversity in Saturday's Frozen Fenway matchup against Catholic Memorial.
4. Woburn	(6-1-1)	5	After a slow start, the Tanners have gotten themsevles untracked. And they've still yet to play their best hockey game of the season with Casey Shea just getting back into the lineup after battling sickness.
5. Hingham	(7-2-0)	7	Six straight win for the Harbormen, following their Dec. 21 loss to St. Mary's. John Grenier's settled in nicely between the pipes and we have a feeling this is the team nobody's going to want to play come Super 8 time.
6. Catholic Memorial	(4-2-0)	4	It hasn't helped that Liam Coughlin's been out of the lineup, but the Knights' 13 goals through six games has to be a bit of a concern.
7. St. John's Prep	(4-3-0)	6	Real head-scratcher seeing the Eagles go down to Xaverian on Tuesday night. They'd better bring the A-game to Friday night's tilt with No. 1 MC.
8. Needham	(5-1-0)	8	The Rockets may have found their stride against BSC rival Weymouth, striking seven times in Wednesday night's victory over the Wildcats.
9. Central Catholic	(3-2-2)	10	Kyle Williams had been fighting the puck a little early in the season, but he looked like his usual self in a 27-save performance against Austin Prep Wednesday night.
10. Austin Prep	(4-2-2)	13	Cougars move up despite a couple of ties in their last two times out. But there's this encouraging sign: Louis Finocchiaro believes his team played their most complete effort Wednesday in a 1-1 tie, and that was without top offensive threat Ryan

ESPN recap

Recap: St. Mary's 4, Arlington Catholic 0

January, 11, 2012

By Matt Noonan

ARLINGTON, Mass. -- Although it took roughly 18 minutes, once St. Mary’s cracked a scoreless tie, the Spartans kept on running from there.

Adding a couple more goals to their tally sheet and with sophomore goaltender Bailey MacBurnie's first career shutout, the No. 2 Spartans claimed a key Catholic Central Large victory over Arlington Catholic, 4-0, at Ed Burns Arena Wednesday night.

“I have to give St. Mary’s credit, they came out in the second period, and they took it to us," AC head coach Dan Shine said. "And I thought they picked up the tempo, they got to loose pucks, they capitalized on opportunities, [and] they did a real good job of getting the puck to the front of the net."

After a back-and-forth first period where neither team was able to gain any momentum, St. Mary’s (8-1-1, 4-0-0) registered their first strike when freshman forward Eric MacAdams wrapped the puck around the cage to beat AC senior goaltender Alexander Caouette (24 saves) for the goal.

The Spartans tallied two more scores in the middle frame, as senior forward Brendan Magaery recorded a goal before assisting junior forward Bobby Mullins, who floated the puck behind Caouette with 35 seconds remaining in the period.

“[Brendan’s] not known for [scoring goals], he’s one of our defensive specialty guys,” St. Mary’s head coach Mark Lee said. “When he scores a goal, and gets involved in the offense that’s when you know we’re working pretty good, and to have him do that, that’s almost like a bonus for us."

“I’m more like a get in the zone, dump it in quick in quick, first man in, take the body, so whenever I get a goal or assist, it’s always a good accomplishment, but my game is more the dirty work,” said Magaery. “I give it to [my offense], and they get the points.”

St. Mary’s notched their final goal midway through the third period, as senior forward Tim Aylward and junior forward Cam O’Neill set up senior forward Frank Moreschi, who lifted the puck past the right shoulder of Caouette to secure the Spartans' eighth win of the season, as well as fourth road victory, too.

“Our guys stuck with the game plan, and by the second and third periods, we started to get some momentum going, and they were moving their feet and working hard, and good things happen when you do that,” said Lee.

“St. Mary’s is a very good hockey team, and I think they brought their A-game tonight,” Shine said.

MACBURNIE SHINES
Sophomore goaltender Bailey MacBurnie, who recorded 18 saves between the pipes, was quite content once the final horn sounded, especially since he earned his first career shutout.

“It was a great win. We really worked hard,” said MacBurnie. “ My team [deserves all the credit] for the shutout, but I thought it was a good win.”

Lee commended his young goaltender by saying, “He’s doing a great job for us.”

The Spartans return to the ice on Saturday when they travel to Billerica, and according to MacBurnie, this particular win should certainly help his team continue their quest toward more wins, and a Super 8 tournament berth, too.

“We need these wins to get to the Super 8, [which is] where we want to be,” he said.

January 11

Hockey Roundup: St. Mary's beats Arlington Catholic By Matt Fraser / For The Item St. Mary's sophomore goalie Bailey MacBurnie chose a great time to post his first shutout as the visiting Spartans defeated rival Arlington Catholic 4-0 on Wednesday night at Ed Burns Arena.

"Bailey was great tonight," said St. Mary's coach Mark Lee. "This was a big game and he stepped up when we needed him."

In what Lee called a "total team effort," the Spartans got what turned out to be the game winner at 11:33 of the second period. Eric McAdams netted the goal with an assist going to Nikko Markham.

With MacBurnie standing tall behind them and the lead, the Spartans got to work. Brandon Mageary scored not even a minute after McAdams, with an assist going to Frank Moreschi. Bobby Mullins added another goal with :35 seconds to play in the period.

With the game out of reach, Moreschi scored the fourth Spartans goal at 7:35. Cam O'Neil and Tim Aylward had assists.

"It was a big rivalry game and an even bigger win," said Lee of his team's victory. "We're always in a battle with Arlington for the league championship, and this victory puts us in a great spot to win it."

December 7

St. Mary's 9, Coyle-Cassidy 1

At Connery Rink, the Spartans dedicated the game to the late Patrick Reddy, who died in an auto accident five years ago Sunday. Then they came out and scored four first-period goals en route to the rout.

Cam O'Neill and Jarad Fitzpatrick scored two goals each for St. Mary's (7-1-1 overall and 3-0 in the Catholic Central League/Large). Other scorers were Eric McAdams, Brendan Mageary, Bobby Mullins, Tommy Braswell, and Jordan Manthorne.

Bailey MacBurnie played the first two periods in net before coach Mark Lee put Nick Holt into his first-ever varsity game.

Hockey: St. Mary's ices Matignon Originally Published on Thursday, January 05, 2012 By Joyce Erekson / The Daily Item The St. Mary's boys hockey team got the jump on Matignon with three first period goals and never looked back in a 5-2 win Wednesday at Connery Rink.

The Spartans (6-1-1), 3-0 Catholic Central League) didn't waste any time getting on the board. Tim Aylward scored 1:38 into the game with Cam O'Neil and Frank Moreschi getting the assists. Five minutes later, Jarrod Fitzpatrick made it 2-0 with Tom Braswell and Nikko Markham providing the assists. Jordan Manthorne staked the Spartans to a 3-0 lead 12:14 into the period with Bobby Mullins assisting.

The lead ballooned to 4-0 thanks to an Andrew Markham goal 6:46 into the second period (Mullins and Brendan Mageary assisted). Matignon (2-4) finally made a little headway when Ricky Canales scored late in the second. Matignon cut the lead to 4-2 on another Canales goal early in the final period, but the Spartans pulled away for good on a goal by O'Neill (Ryan Madden assist) with 4:07 remaining in the game. Bailey MacBurnie and Steve Poliskey split the game in net.

ESPN rankings (top 8)

High School

 December 31, 2011, 4:00 PM ET

ESPNBoston.com's boys hockey Top 25

ESPNBoston.com Staff

Below is our 2011 top 25 MIAA hockey poll, as selected by our panel of staff writers and correspondents. (Updated 12/31)

Team Name	Last year's record	Last year's ranking	Notes
1. Malden Catholic	(3-1-1)	1	Oh, boy the Lancers were lucky to escape with a point against St. Mary's (and a tournament OT win). We're keeping the Blue Blades in the top spot until they lose in-state. The return of Ryan Fitzgerald certainly makes an already deep team that much deeper.
2. St. Mary's of Lynn	(5-1-1)	13	OK, now we're sure that we started the Spartans too low in the preseason poll. This team is for real, particularly with the addition of Jarrod Fitzpatrick (5-2-7) to the top line along proven scorers like Tommy Braswell and Bobby Mullins.
3. BC High	(2-0-0)	3	After a quiet start to the season, the Eagles get a big back-to-back against St. John's of Shrewsbury and Winchester on New Year's eve.
4. Needham	(3-0-0)	7	The Rockets' unforgettable 2-1 last-minute triumph over CM showed that this team has some serious moxie. Not only was a it a marquee win, it sets the tone for the season to come.
5. Catholic Memorial	(2-1-0)	4	The Knights have been on the upside (St. Seb's) and downside (Needham) of some instant classics in the early season. One thing's for certain, however, Shane Starrett can lead this team far, far into the postseason.
6. Woburn	(2-1-1)	6	The Tanners hope they've found some momentum with the 3-2 victory over St. John's Prep after struggling a bit in the first week. Best news might be that Casey Shea popped in his first goal of the season against Prep.
7. St. John's Prep	(3-1-0)	2	The Eagles might not have Colin Blackwell, but damn, Sam Kurker (8 G in 4 games) isn't that far off.
8. Hingham	(3-2-0)	9	Coming off back-to-back losses, the Harbormen have rebounded nicely with a 6-2 win over Marshfield and 8-4 romp over rival Weymouth to claim the Ed Taylor Tournament championship.