Beat Plymouth, fall to Boston Latin in tournament

Published March 5, 2020

THE SENIOR CAPTAINS of the Peabody/Lynnfield/North Reading girls’ co-op hockey team helped build a foundation of success. The three played in the program’s first ever tournament game, led the team to four straight playoff appearances and helped the team win the first three postseason games in program history. Pictured from left to right is Jeny Collins, Carolyn Garofoli and Sammie Mirasolo. (Courtesy Photo)

WATERTOWN — The Peabody/Lynnfield/North Reading girls’ hockey season came to an end on Saturday at the John Ryan Arena in Watertown after a hard fought 3-0 loss in the first round of the Div. 1 tournament.

The Tanners won a preliminary round game on Feb. 26 at McVann Arena, 4-0 over Plymouth.

After a 0-0 first period with little scoring opportunities by both teams, PLNR scored their first goal just three minutes into the 2nd period when Sammie Mirasolo scored her first of the game from the center slot after the Plymouth goalie lost her stick in a shuffle and was stuck in the line of fire with shots from Jenna DiNapoli, Lynnfield’s Carolyn Garofoli and finally Mirasolo who poked the rebound past the goalie to give the team a lead that would remain throughout the game.

A few minutes later, Lynnfield’s Hannah Gromko skated her way into the offensive zone to take a breakaway shot, followed up by a rebound and finally slammed into the net by Lynnfield’s Jen Flynn, giving the girls a 2-0 lead.

Plymouth came out strong in the third, but the unbeatable Jeny Collins made over 28 saves (the 4th shutout of her season) denying Plymouth a single digit on the scoreboard.

“Jeny’s been tremendous for four years. We’ve always had great goaltending and she’s carrying on that tradition,” said PLNR coach Michelle Roach. “She was waiting for her senior year to get that net in the playoffs and she came up huge in this game. I’m so proud of her for the way she’s played.”

SAMMIE MIRASOLO (8) scored a hat trick to help lead PLNR past Plymouth 4-0 on Feb. 26. The NRHS senior won her second NEC MVP this season with a new school record of 46 points. Mirasolo will graduate as the team’s all-time leader in points with 144 (90 goals and 54 assists).  (Mark Grant Photo)

With 1:54 remaining in the game, Plymouth pulled their goalie and Mirasolo took advantage of the vacancy between the pipes, scoring her second of the night with assists from Flynn and DiNapoli. But it was not over. With 4.3 seconds left on the clock, Mirasolo completed her fourth hat trick of her season, sliding another backhander by Plymouth’s goalie, this time set up by senior and fellow captain, Carolyn Garofoli giving the team a 4-0 win opening the gate to round 1 of the D1 playoffs.

“Plymouth came to battle. They did a good job of dumping pucks deep and trying to tire us out,” Roach said. “We recognized that, reset and for the most part got down to playing our game.”

Ella McTeague had a very strong defensive game, helping her team achieve the shutout.

Topped by Boston Latin

Last Saturday afternoon, PLNR faced-off against a well-known defensive powerhouse in the Boston Latin Wolfpack.

Boston Latin scored in the first period after a bad clear from a rebound shot which landed on a Wolfpack player’s stick.

The Tanners made some line changes and got some momentum going in the second period, where Mirasolo’s breakaway backhand deke beat the Wolfpack goalie, but the puck spun over the top of the crossbar leaving PLNR scoreless for yet another period.

Coach Michelle Roach played her power play line for most of the 3rd period hoping to break the shutout, but even with former Middlesex Islander’s linemates, Flynn and Mirasolo, a couple of very close chances, including a drop pass shot was denied by Boston Latin’s goalie.

JENY COLLINS deflects a puck away against Boston Latin at John Ryan Arena. The NRHS senior tallied 28 saves and recorded her fourth shutout of the season during PLNR’s 4-0 tournament victory over Plymouth on Feb. 26. (Mark Grant Photo)

“We tried a few different looks to straighten things out,” said PLNR coach Roach, who even implemented a three-D powerplay to help prevent exhausting her top forwards who played back-to-back shifts during the three consecutive Boston Latin penalties.

“We never quit – we kept battling and I’m proud of them for that.”

This was the second lowest shots-on-net total of the season, yet misleading as most shots were blocked by Boston Latin’s defensemen.

“Jeny played tremendously. She’s been our backbone all year and she kept us in it when we were having trouble handling the puck,” said Roach, whose team graduates three seniors (Collins, Garofoli and Mirasolo). The three led the squad to four straight playoff appearances and the first three postseason wins in program history.

“They played in our first ever tournament game. They set the bar and they helped build the program into what it is,” said Roach.

Mirasolo, a two-time Northeastern League MVP, graduates as the team’s all-time leader in points with 144 (90 goals and 54 assists). She set a new school record of 46 points this winter.

“There was a lot of pressure on Sammie this year. Everyone played her tough, played to stop her and she had to fight through and be a tone-setter,” said Roach. “She did that beautifully. She found ways to come through and she was a leader on and off the ice.”