And then there were four.
The favorites all won in the NEPSAC girls Elite 8 quarterfinals on Wednesday night, but that doesn't mean there wasn't drama. No. 8 St. Paul's took an early 1-0 lead over No. 1 Nobles, who came back and held on for a 4-3 win.
Here's how every game shook out:
- No. 1 Nobles 4, No. 8 St. Paul’s 3
- No. 2 Williston 8, No. 7 Tabor 1
- No. 3 Phillips Andover 4, No. 6 Deerfield 0
- No. 4 Loomis Chaffee 1Â No. 5 Kent 0
For those of you keeping score at home, yes, I did go 4-for-4 in my Elite 8 predictions (7-for-8 when you include the Large and Small tournaments, too). I didn't get the scores exactly right, but let me have this victory lap.
Now, all eyes turn to Saturday when Nobles and Loomis will battle it out in a rematch from earlier this season before the marquee matchup between Williston and Andover. That's right, it's a rematch of last year's championship with a trip to this year's title game on the line.
We'll unpack that in the coming days. For now, let's dive into takeaways from the quarterfinals, going game by game.
No. 1 Nobles 4, No. 8 St. Paul's 3
1. What a third period this game had. Being the only matchup without a stream (that I could find), I'm glad I made it to Omni Rink for the third period after seeing Nobles was down 1-0 after the first. The Bulldogs entered the third up 3-1 before SPS cut it to 3-2 on the power play. They traded power-play goals for the 4-3 final, too. It was a back-and-forth period with Anya Zupkofska (Braintree, Mass.) and Ally Martiniello (Salem, NH) making great saves throughout. I only wish I had been there for the first 40 minutes.
2. I had Olivia Maffeo (Canton, Mass.) as my top candidate to win MVP for Nobles if they go all the way, and she came out firing with a hat trick on Wednesday. She tied it in the second before tacking on her second for the 3-1 lead through two. Her power play goal, a shot from the point through traffic, was critical insurance, going down as the eventual game-winner. Maffeo's shown an ability to rise to the occasion when Nobles needs her most down the stretch. She completely took over against BB&N earlier this month, helping the Bulldogs to a tie in that game, and her fingerprints are all over this win in the quarterfinals. I'm expecting that to continue. She's a big-game player.
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3. Cami Bell (Barre, Vt.) nearly willed St. Paul's to an upset. She opened the scoring before cutting it to 4-3 on the power play in the third. She had a penalty shot with a chance at a tie game and a hat trick, but couldn't solve Zupkofska, barely. There were more chances for her to score and set up teammates, too. I wrote earlier this week that Bell would have needed to be one of the main authors of an upset, and she almost was, as she and Maude Niemann helped SPS stay in it until the very end.
4. This was the first time all season that Nobles, let alone Zupkofska, let up more than two goals. Not only is that an insane statistic, but it also says a lot that Zupkofska played well in the face of it. Her penalty-shot save on Bell was sensational, stretching out her right leg to completely stuff it. She also had a great blocker save on Tess Mulkerron's (Concord, Mass.) rip from the left circle. Zupkofska was poised under duress throughout the third period, which is a great sign for Nobles as they look to stay on this run.
No. 2 Williston Northampton 8, No. 7 Tabor 1
1. Monique Lyons (Bedford, Mass.) did what she's been doing all season: dominate. She could have had a hat trick, scoring twice and hitting a post. She also helped set up each of Violet Carroll's (Milton, Mass.) goals as well as Brenna Ziter's (Williston, Vt.) third-period tally. The Brown commit was a factor on each shift between her speed and skill, which was on display on both of her goals.
Lyons fought through pressure from a defender stepping up on her as well as a back-checker, powering through it before ripping a shot short-side to open the scoring. Later on, she won a 50-50 puck in the defensive zone before she was off to the races, cutting to the slot and scoring over the blocker. Wednesday's performance is exactly the type of showing we've come to expect from Lyons, especially at this time of year.
2. With Mia Daley (Lynnfield, Mass.) unavailable, Carroll was back on the first line with Lyons and Nora Curtis. The trio combined for over 150 points last season, and it's no wonder why. They haven't missed a beat. On Carroll's first goal, Lyons helped spring her for a breakaway before Carroll buried it five-hole, getting Avery Olson (Rockport, Mass.) to open up as she moved right to left. The three have such strong chemistry. It overwhelmed Tabor each time they were on the ice.
GIRLS BRACKETS: Elite 8 Tournament | Large School Tournament | Small School Tournament
3. Williston was shorthanded, dressing 15 skaters by my count via the livestream, but it was no problem for the Wildcats. They finished with six different goal-scorers, each line contributed, and each power play unit was effective. Lyons and the first line put on a show as well as Zola Piekarski (Concord, Mass.) and Ziter cash in. It's a sign of a team that knows how to win and expects to get the job done, no matter who is or isn't available. They badly want a three-peat.
No. 3 Phillips Andover 4, No. 6 Deerfield 0
1. Earlier this week I wrote that Sarah Powers' (Lynnfield, Mass.) game was built for big moments, and it was true on Wednesday with her multi-goal effort. Peyton Kennedy (Sudbury, Mass.) made a great effort to find her for her first goal after Powers disrupted a Deerfield breakout pass at the blue line. When she got it in the slot, she fought through a defender before finding the puck in her feet and scoring with a forehand-backhand finish. She appeared to get a fortunate bounce on her second goal, settling for a slap shot in transition before peeling off for a change after a long shift. It looked like the puck redirected off the defender's stick and in. But hey, they don't ask how.
2. Put Kennedy in the same category as Powers, too. She opened the scoring in the first, burying a shot from range off the rush. In the second, she made a great play to set up Powers' first goal. Kennedy was in a perfect spot to pounce on the turnover at the blue line after Powers disrupted the pass. She made a nice curl to keep the play onside before driving down the left wing and making a sweet pass to Powers in the slot. Their line constantly makes a massive impact for Andover, frequently through making hustle plays. That goes a long way this time of year.
3. Everything is going Andover's way right now. The Big Blue stifled Deerfield for much of the game, limiting their chances in the middle of the ice, especially on some penalty kills they made look easy in the second period. Those were chances for Deerfield to seize some momentum, and Andover was having none of it. The Big Blue are the embodiment of "getting hot at the right time" right now, unbeaten in 15 straight, and I can't wait for their rematch with Williston on Saturday. So, what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object?
GIRLS PREVIEWS: Elite 8 Tournament | Large School Tournament | Small School Tournament
No. 4 Loomis Chaffee 1, No. 5 Kent 0
1. Loomis went up, 1-0, when Louisa Thomsen (Waterbury Center, Vt.) jammed home a feed in the slot. The first period had been pretty even to that point with both teams sort of feeling each other out. But the Pelicans got to their game from there, especially through the end of the first. Their tempo picked up and they had effective layers on the forecheck, giving Kent fits coming out of its zone. It was an important run of strong shifts for Loomis after the goal, refusing to give the Lions any chance to regain momentum.
They followed a similar script in the closing moments of regulation. It was a textbook display for that situation, winning a late face-off, closing quickly on pucks and going to work on the forecheck to keep Kent from exiting the zone with possession. The Lions never got a chance to pull Lauren Ferrari for the extra attacker after the last face-off.
2. Ferrari and Loomis' Leila Fournier (West Kingston, R.I.) had a great battle in net. Ferrari came up big in a scramble around her crease after Loomis' goal, keeping it 1-0. She also made a great save to deny Carly Dann (Hanover, NH) on a 2-on-1 win the second. Meanwhile, Kent had some chances to take the lead early, including a slot shot for Megan Duplantie, and had Fournier not stood tall, the game could have gone completely differently. She made a massive stick save on Caitlin Pierce in the third, too. Fournier's had a great season, and it's continued through the quarterfinals, which is great news for Loomis.
3. Kent had a solid second period, but for the game overall, the Lions' first line of Duplantie, Mia Montanari (East Hampton, Conn.) and Renee Bishop was the only unit that consistently generated pressure. Loomis' depth, especially with its middle-six and defense, showed through all game. Thomsen's line was effective each time it was on the ice, and on balance, each defense pair for the Pelicans did a good job of keeping the Lions to the perimeter.
