MALDEN, Mass. — St. Mary's speed was on full display from the start on Wednesday night as the Spartans knocked off Malden Catholic, 3-0, on the road in one of the top girls MIAA matchups.
A pair of freshman forwards helped lead the way for St. Mary's as Alyssa Norden (Peabody, Mass.) had two goals and an assist, and Bella Freitas (Everett, Mass.) also scored. Senior defender Kasey Litwin (Swampscott, Mass.) had a pair of assists, and senior Gianna Tringale (Danvers, Mass.) made 21 saves in the shutout.
Norden opened the scoring when Litwin's shot banked in off her at the goalmouth less than three minutes into the first period. Litwin jumped into the play before pulling up at the half-wall and sending a shot-pass toward the crease, where Norden was parked for a redirect.
The Spartans overwhelmed MC with their skating early on. The Lancers were under siege for a lot of the first period, getting caught flat-footed, puck-watching and getting away from the details as SMH piled on the pressure.
As MC began to settle in and generate chances, especially early in the second, Norden struck again.
She found the loose puck in a power-play scramble in the slot, chipping it in over Taylor Daley (Malden, Mass.). Litwin spurred the sequence with a shot from the point into traffic, and Vanessa Hall (Saugus, Mass.) also had an assist.
Freitas tripled the lead moments later, taking a feed from Norden before making a power move to the slot from the left face-off circle before beating Daley.
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The Lancers continued to gain momentum in the third, but couldn't solve Tringale. She made a terrific stick save on Antonia DiZoglio's (Wilmington, Mass.) grade-A chance in the slot late.
St. Mary's (11-1-1) has won three in a row with shutouts in two of the three wins. Meanwhile, coming off a tie with Archbishop Williams and a loss to Burlington, MC (8-3-2) is now winless in three straight (0-2-1). They were shut out in both losses.
Here are seven standouts from the game.
Alyssa Norden
St. Mary's, freshman, F, right shot
Hometown: Peabody, Mass.
Norden had a huge night, setting the pace for the Spartans with three points. She showed strong hockey sense throughout the game, especially on her goals. She had perfect positioning on her first goal, finding open space away from the defenders and Daley and planting herself right at the edge of the crease. It was almost as if it were a set play between her and Litwin. Her second goal was another result of finding pockets of space in dangerous areas, locating the puck and burying it. She played with a ton of energy all game on the top line, hounding opposing puck carriers. She had a chance for the hat trick late in regulation, powering into the slot for a good chance, but Daley made the save.
Bella Freitas
St. Mary’s, freshman, F, right shot
Hometown: Everett, Mass.
Freitas is such a dominant, dynamic player. Every time she has the puck, you're just waiting to see what she'll do next. As she did when I saw St. Mary's against NDA (Hingham), Freitas was constantly looking to break into grade-A ice. It was best on display in her goal, charging right into the slot for a high-danger look. She has oodles of confidence, always looking for a shot or a mismatch to exploit. She's an explosive skater, too, which allowed her to gain separation quickly and power through defensive pressure. Freitas had a chance to give St. Mary's a 2-0 lead in the first as well. She picked up the puck off a turnover at her blue line, diced through the neutral zone with a burst of speed and nearly had a perfect shot over Daley's left shoulder. But it caught her in the mask.
Kasey Litwin
St. Mary's, senior, D, left shot
Hometown: Swampscott, Mass.
Litwin was a step above all night. She won a 50-50 puck in the neutral zone before gaining the offensive zone with possession, putting on the breaks and looking for her options. It was a perfect, knee-high shot she put toward goal as Norden waited to redirect it in. There was another sequence in the first where MC gave Litwin all sorts of time and space. She was willing to oblige, showing a ton of patience as she scanned behind the net before curling out toward the slot and getting a wide-open look right in front. She's a steady, smooth skater who eats a ton of minutes on the blue line for SMH.
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Taylor Daley
Malden Catholic, senior, G, catches left
Hometown: Malden, Mass.
Daley stood tall for MC, even as St. Mary's piled on the chances at various times. She made a lot of big saves look easy. Her strong positioning and ability to read plays and anticipate stood out the most. She stoned Litwin on her grade-A chance in front in the first. She also came through on a 2-on-1 after Hall busted a play in the neutral zone and broke in with speed. Daley was a huge reason it was only 1-0 for St. Mary's after the first, considering the amount of pressure the Spartans accumulated. Before Freitas' goal, Daley made a strong right-to-left push to deny her on the backdoor off a cross-crease pass from Hall. She also stymied Norden's solid bid for a hat trick late.
Ava Baker
Malden Catholic, junior, D, right shot
Hometown: North Reading, Mass.
Like the rest of the Lancers, Baker got better as the game went on. I thought she made good reads and passes on the breakout. There was one instance in the third where a lot of players might have instinctively rimmed the puck up the boards. But Baker recognized she had more time. She pulled up below the goal line and hit her winger in stride coming through an open seam to exit the zone with possession. There was another play in the third where a bouncing puck by her feet handcuffed her. But the junior captain recovered well with some strong strides to keep pace with the SMH forward on the counter rush, keeping her to the outside and preventing a shot. I also liked Baker's ability to get shots off quickly from the point.
Gianna Tringale
St. Mary's, senior, G, catches left
Hometown: Danvers, Mass.
Tringale wasn't too busy early. But as MC got to its game ahead of a late push, she was at her best. Her shutout-preserving stick save against DiZoglio was really impressive. DiZoglio cut to the right and tried to pick the top left corner as Tringale moved with her. But the latter read it the whole way and made the save. Bella Gillis (Somerville, Mass.) and Brianna Dacey (Medford, Mass.) nearly combined for a goal in tight off a breakdown in coverage in the second, but Tringale stoned them as well. She gave Abbie Poole (Wakefield, Mass.) nothing to shoot at on her second-period breakaway, too. She stayed aggressive at the top of her crease, cutting off Poole's angle and forcing her to mishandle the puck.
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Abbie Poole
Malden Catholic, sophomore, F, left shot
Hometown: Wakefield, Mass.
Poole was one of MC's more dangerous forwards, skating on the top line with DiZoglio and Alyssa Jankowski (Medford, Mass.). She's a shifty skater with quick stops and starts and the ability to change speeds in an instant. Her speed was noticeable all game, thanks to quick, efficient strides. She made some nice plays to gain the offensive blue line with possession before slamming on the breaks and scanning for reinforcements. Even though she didn't get a shot off, Poole made a great read to slip in behind SMH's defense, heading off to the races on a breakaway.
