Arlington Wins MIAA Super 8 Championship

Boston, Mass. — The MIAA Super 8 Championship at the TD Garden has become a party for the Catholic Conference over the years.

Catholic Memorial, BC High and Malden Catholic have dominated the event since the beginning. However, on Sunday, Arlington crashed the party and became just the third public school to ever win the Super 8.

Senior Mic Curran scored twice, including the game-winner 15 seconds into overtime as the Spy Ponders won Massachusetts high school hockey’s premier tournament, 2-1, over Central Catholic.

Junior Jack Pinard stopped all of the Raiders’ shots except a laser beam from defenseman Joe Biddle early in the third period when he picked off an errant clearing pass.

Central Catholic goaltender Matthew Pasquale was terrific, keeping his team in the game throughout the proceedings. He’d like to have the overtime goal back, but if it wasn’t for him, there likely would have been no overtime. He’s the best goaltending prospect in Massachusetts high school hockey — and it’s not even close.

Both teams were well-coached. Arlington was led by former Princeton hockey player John Messuri while the Raiders were guided by first year bench boss and former UMass Lowell River Hawk Kim Brandvold.

Arlington Line Chart

Dara Coneelly - Cam Ryan - Kevin Ouellette
Sean Tomaszewski - Mic Curran - Peter Scheschareg
Drew Malatesta/Brendan Jones - Anthony Messuri - Cully Curran

Jeff MacDonald - John Pigott
Matt Hart - Jack Simon
Shane Healion

Jack Pinard

Central Catholic Line Chart

William Winship - Eric Lester - Sean Brown
Charles Stahley - Noah Jankowski - Thomas Maty
Matthew O’Rourke - Evan DiGiovanni - Cam Staniewski

Joe Biddle - Nick Foderaro
Landon Krekorian - Matthew Poulin
Steven Birch - Raymond Galasso

Matt Pasquale

Prospect Notes

Central Catholic has a few good ‘00s, including Will Winship, who had a good game despite not finding the score sheet. A big right-shot, playing his off wing, he used his size to his advantage to protect pucks and play physical down low while creating pressure on the forecheck.

Classmate Sean Brown is quick and drew a penalty on a shorthanded chance he had with his speed through the neutral zone. He has above average hockey IQ for this level.

The last two viewings of Matt Pasquale were the best this observer has seen him play. He’s athletic, moves well and is in position. He squares up to shooters and challenges on top of the crease. He made a really nice sliding save on an odd-man rush to show his athleticism and quickness.

All three of the above-mentioned players skated for Kent Hughes’ Junior Eagles 16U squad during the fall midget hockey split-season.

‘00 defenseman Joe Biddle scored the Raiders’ only goal on a nice play where he stepped up after reading the play on an errant clearing attempt. His laser from just inside the blue line went right under the bar and in. In addition to his goal, he skates well and made several other nice plays with his stick. He’s a player to keep an eye on.

‘99 sophomore Cam Ryan is Arlington’s top prospect, but it’s a team that wasn’t built around stars. It was a great team effort of kids who had been playing together their whole lives for the most part. He’s a little undersized, but he’s quick and crafty. A few prep schools are interested in him.

Spartans Victorious in Division 1

Longtime St. Mary’s of Lynn head coach Mark Lee finally captured the elusive state championship he had been missing. The Spartans defeated Framingham, 4-2, on two goals each from seniors Dante Maribito and Mike Zampanti.

Maribito, who missed much of January after a serious health issue suffered on the ice, will be heading to Phillips Andover for a PG year in the fall. He centered a line with his brother Damon Maribito on the left wing and Nicholas Napolitano on the right wing.

Zampanti centered the other big line for the Spartans with left wing Anthony Bono and right wing Colin Reddy.

Andrew LoRusso was the winning goaltender for the Spartans, who have become one of the most consistent teams in Division 1 North over the past decade or so since moving up from Division 2.

Senior captain Scott Swennes scored both goals for Framingham, coached by former UMass forward Will Ortiz. Sophomore Mike Tersoni is a player to keep an eye on over the next few years.

Lowell Catholic Finishes on Top in Division 2

The Crusaders picked up their first state championship on Sunday with a back-and-forth 5-4 victory over Scituate. Sophomore Alex Graves scored twice, including the game-winning goal late in the third period. Classmate Connor Doherty and juniors Nathan Donaldson and Mitchell Andrea scored the other goals for LC.

Junior Liam Walsh had two goals and an assist for the Sailors. Cam Francis and Ben Smith also scored for Scituate in its bid to win a state title for the first time since 1985.

Colonials Continue Dominance of Division 3

Shrewsbury won its fourth state championship at the Division 3 level on Sunday with a 3-1 win over Old Rochester/Fairhaven. The Colonials were able to largely keep the state’s leading scorer, senior Noah Strawn, at bay.