It's almost tournament time in Massachusetts.
In 15 days, the MIAA will unveil its girls hockey playoff brackets. Before we know it, it'll be championship Sunday at TD Garden on March 17.
Most teams have just a handful of games left that could go a long way in determining their standing in the MIAA's power rankings, which determine the tournament fields.
If everything were to get underway as I write this, these would be the top five seeds in each tournament:
Division 1:
- St. Mary's
- Notre Dame (Hingham)
- Malden Catholic
- Lincoln-Sudbury
- Peabody/Lynnfield/North Reading
Division 2:
- Duxbury
- Falmouth
- Burlington
- Nauset/Monomoy
- Longmeadow
With all of that in mind, let's dive into our latest top 10:
1. St. Mary's (16-1-1)
Previous rank: 2
Head coach: Frank Pagliuca
Next game: vs. Newburyport, Feb. 14, 4 p.m.
The Spartans have remained on a tear since our last rankings. They've extended their win streak to eight in a row after picking up wins over Bishop Stang, Central Catholic, Reading, PLNR and Stoneham/Wilmington. Throughout their streak, SMH has three shutouts and hasn't given up more than one goal in any of the other wins. Bella Freitas (Everett, Mass.) had a hat trick against Stoneham/Wilmington. She had a hat trick against Central Catholic, too, as well as a pair against Bishop Stang and a goal against PLNR. The Spartans wrap up their regular season when they host Newburyport and Beverly/Danvers/Ipswich next week.
2. Duxbury (15-2-0)
Previous rank: 1
Head coach: Dan Najarian
Next game: vs. Pope Francis, Feb. 10, 5:40 p.m.
Duxbury's 12-game win streak came to an end in a tight 2-1 loss at Malden Catholic on Wednesday. The Dragons had entered the game fresh off wins over Quincy/North Quincy, Hanover and most impressively, Hingham, since our last rankings. Reese Porter had a hat trick in the 7-1 blowout of Quincy/North Quincy. They ran into a hot goalie and couldn't add to an early lead against MC, though. Duxbury needs to have a short memory with three challenging home games on tap before the playoffs. First up is Pope Francis, followed by NDA and Canton.
3. Malden Catholic (11-3-2)
Previous rank: 8
Head coach: Alexa Hingston
Next game: at Bishop Feehan, Feb. 10, 5:30 p.m.
The Lancers avenged last season's quarterfinal loss to Duxbury. Ava Baker (North Reading, Mass.) came through with the game-winner with 15.7 seconds left, while Taylor Daley (Malden, Mass.) was nails in net with 27 saves. Antonia DiZoglio (Wilmington, Mass.) has goals in three straight as MC has won three in a row since their rocky 1-3-2 stretch to start January. Each win has been absolutely massive, too, knocking off the Dragons, NDA and Canton. Two more tough matchups remain with visits to Bishop Feehan and Pope Francis.
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4. Notre Dame (Hingham) (9-3-2)
Previous rank: 3
Head coach: John Findley
Next game: vs. Arlington Catholic, Feb. 10, 3:50 p.m.
NDA had wins over Archbishop Williams and La Salle (R.I.) bookend their loss to MC. Sarah White (Hanover, Mass.) exploded for a hat trick against Archies. The loss to MC was the first time all season that the Cougars had allowed more than two goals. They'll close their season with games against Arlington Catholic and Natick on both sides of challenges against Duxbury and Haverhill/Pentucket/North Andover.
5. Falmouth (15-1-1)
Previous rank: 5
Head coach: Brian Ferreira
Next game: at Martha's Vineyard, Feb. 10, 5 p.m.
The Clippers remain on a tear. They're unbeaten in 12 straight (11-0-1) and have won five in a row. Falmouth took down Sandwich, Dennis-Yarmouth, Barnstable and Archbishop Williams since our last top 10 on Jan. 26. Junior Casey Roth came through with the game-winner in the third period in the 2-1 win over Archies. Freshman Rylinn Briggs had the game-winner in a back-and-fourth 6-5 shootout over Barnstable, too. Roth is tied with junior Rylie Devlin for the team lead in scoring with 34 points. Three more skaters have at least 20 points. The Clippers have Martha's Vineyard, Canton, Winthrop and La Salle on tap before the postseason.
6. Burlington (13-1-2)
Previous rank: 4
Head coach: Rick Sheehan
Next game: vs. Melrose, Feb. 10, 4:15 p.m.
The Red Devils are still red-hot, too, going unbeaten in 11 straight (9-0-2). Their dip to No. 7 is less about their performance compared to the shuffling at the top of the rankings. Since our last top 10, they shut out Woburn, Winchester and Belmont/Watertown, on top of a win over Stoneham/Wilmington and a tie with Arlington. Isa Fischer has been fantastic in net of late. Caitlyn Tremblay (2g, 3a) and Shea McDonald (2g, 1a) had huge games against Woburn as well. Burlington had a chance to stay on a roll with games against Melrose, Wakefield and Wellesley (twice) to finish the regular season.
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7. Lincoln-Sudbury (15-2-1)
Previous rank: 6
Head coach: Paul Hardy
Next game: at Andover, Feb. 10, 3 p.m.
LS is in a similar boat as Burlington in terms of dropping a spot from our last rankings. They've won six in a row, including some big-time wins over Shrewsbury, Algonquin/Hudson and Tewksbury/Methuen. Harper Friedholm scored in the 3-0 shutout of Tewksbury/Methuen. Tatum Friedholm has been strong of late, too, with goals in the win over Tewksbury/Methuen as well as Arlington. LS will visit Andover this weekend before wrapping up their regular season at Waltham next week.
8. Peabody/Lynnfield/North Reading (13-2-0)
Previous rank: 7
Head coach: Michelle Roach
Next game: at Newburyport, Feb. 10, 6:30 p.m.
PLNR had solid wins over Beverly/Danvers/Ipswich as well as Winthrop, but couldn't overcome a tough draw against St. Mary's, falling 3-1 last time out. The Tanners also picked up a win against Shawsheen/Bedford since our last top 10. Penalty trouble hurt them against SMH, who scored power-play goals in the first and third. Catie Kempersal (Peabody, Mass.; 2g) and Ava Buckley (Peabody, Mass.; 1g, 2a) had strong nights in the 6-3 win over Shawsheen/Bedford. The Tanners still have a busy slate before the tournament. They'll battle Newburyport, Marblehead and Medford/Malden in the next week on top of tilts with Bishop Fenwick and HPNA the week after.
9. Canton (15-3-1)
Previous rank: 9
Head coach: Nikki Petrich
Next game: vs. Falmouth, Feb. 12, 8 p.m.
The Bulldogs' seven-game heater came to an end at the hands of MC, but they've responded with four straight wins. All have been shutouts, knocking off Franklin, 1-0, Stoughton/Brockton, 8-0, Norwood, 2-0 and Mansfield/OA/Foxboro, 6-0. Anna Lehan scored the lone goal against Franklin, while six different skaters scored against Mansfield/OA/Foxboro amid Kate Budway's shutout. Canton has a challenging week ahead, hosting Falmouth before visiting Westwood and Duxbury.
10. Nauset/Monomoy (14-1-1)
Previous rank: NR
Head coach: Zach Wells
Next game: vs. Sandwich, Feb. 10, 5:10 p.m.
Nauset/Monomoy debuts in our top 10 for the first time this season. The Warriors have not lost since Dec. 13, a 5-2 loss to Falmouth, going 13-0-1 since. They have some impressive wins so far, including victories over Pope Francis, HPNA and Bishop Feehan. They also tied Falmouth, 2-2, on Jan. 20. In the time since our last top 10, the Warriors shut out Nantucket, 14-0, before taking down Martha's Vineyard, 5-3, and Bishop Stang, 5-3. Sophomores Julia Kipperman and Gabby Bassett have been productive all season for Nauset. They were among five different goal-scorers against MV. Â The Warriors face Sandwich and Pope Francis this weekend before MV again next week.
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Dropped out: Pembroke (13-4-0)
Pembroke struggled a bit since the last top 10. The Titans fell to Plymouth, 4-1, before Hingham, 6-3. They bounced back with a 7-2 win over Quincy/North Quincy last time out, though. They're 2-3-0 in their last five games. Pembroke has some downtime before getting a chance to string wins together against Whitman-Hanson/Silver Lake next weekend before facing Hanover and Algonquin/Hudson before the playoffs.
In the hunt: Pembroke, Hingham (12-5-1), Tewksbury/Methuen (11-3-1), Milton (14-3-0)
