BOSTON — Alyssa Norden didn't want to go to a fourth overtime.
St. Mary's was starting its fourth power play since the end of regulation with time winding down in triple overtime.
Off the face-off, freshman Keira Twomey (Melrose, Mass.) dished to Bella Freitas (Everett, Mass.) in front. Freitas deked to her backhand and slipped the puck toward the left post, where Norden (Peabody, Mass.) came crashing in to bury the rebound and lift No. 2 St. Mary's to the MIAA girls Division 1 state title over No. 1 Notre Dame Hingham, 5-4.
Norden's game-winner and second of the game provided redemption for the Spartans, who fell in an upset to Shrewsbury in last year's championship. It's SMH's first title since 2013.
Freitas also scored twice for St. Mary's (23-3-1). Junior Audrey Zinck (Melrose, Mass.) also scored for the Spartans, and Vanessa Hall (Saugus, Mass.) had two assists. Senior goalie Gianna Tringale (Danvers, Mass.) made 39 saves.
Senior forward Sarah White (Hanover, Mass.) scored twice for the Cougars (18-5-2). Sophomore forward Devon Moore (Milton, Mass.) and eighth-grade defender Emma Burke (Braintree, Mass.) each scored as well. Senior goalie Ava Larkin (Canton, Mass.) made 32 saves.
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Moore opened the scoring just 2:05 into the game with a shot from distance. Tringale hardly saw it as it found a way through traffic in front.
Zinck tied it 1-1 for St. Mary's with 9:15 to go in the first. Larkin saved Hall's initial shot from the point, but the Spartans crashed the net, where Zinck poked it in.
The Cougars struck again early in the second to retake the lead, 2-1, with White's first of the game. She stole the puck in the neutral zone, skated in down the right wing and scored with a hard wrist shot inside the left post from the right circle just 2:13 into the period. White came through again nearly five minutes later on a similar play. She motored down the right wing in the offensive zone and ripped a quick shot perfectly to the top left corner to make it 3-1 for NDA.
St. Mary's answered, though. Norden was in a perfect spot to bury a rebound in front and cut it to 3-2 with 2:38 left in the second after NDA blocked Abby Malcuit's shot from the point.
Less than a minute later, Freitas did what she's done all season: make highlight-reel plays. She took the puck in the defensive zone and skated end-to-end, deking through multiple defenders before getting in alone on Larkin and scoring to tie it 3-3 with 1:52 left in the frame.
Freitas came through again midway through the third with her second of the game for a 4-3 lead. Larkin denied Norden's initial bid from the bottom of the left circle. But the puck found Freitas amidst the chaos in front, and she made no mistake on the rebound.
The Spartans thought they had it wrapped up with time winding down after a dominant penalty kill. NDA had one last gasp, though, with an offensive zone face-off with the goalie pulled. White shoveled a backhand toward Tringale off the draw, and the rebound went right to Burke at the right post, who tied it, 4-4, with 7.3 seconds left in regulation.
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Now, let's get into some takeaways from the game.
1. It might not be indicative of the 5-4 final score, but this was an incredible goaltending duel between Tringale and Larkin. Tringale was sensational for the Spartans in the first period and throughout the overtimes. NDA was the better team in the first, especially early, and she made 12 saves in the frame. Tringale made 14 saves after regulation ended, too, robbing the Cougars of a couple potential game-winners from close range. As good as she was for SMH, Larkin was equally great for NDA. I had her for 13 saves across the overtimes, and she flat-out robbed Freitas of a sure goal with a last-ditch poke check at the end of the second overtime. There wasn't anything she could do on the game-winner. Both goalies were absolutely nails when it mattered most.
2. Major, major props to Hall, who never left the ice in any of the overtimes. Seriously. She was out there for all of them. The Spartans were without senior defenders Kasey Litwin (Swampscott, Mass.), who has been out with injury, and Regan Sullivan (Melrose, Mass.), who left the game. Hall was clearly gassed, but she still made plays defensively and with the puck. She frequently led the rush, setting up Freitas for a great look at a game-winner in the dying seconds of double-overtime. Hall blocked shots all game, and I had her for at least four on a late sequence in the third overtime, including one that hobbled her. She still powered through. What an impressive showing by the eighth-grader.
3. Of course it was St. Mary's top line, made up completely of freshmen, coming through when it mattered most in this one. Freitas, Norden and Twomey drove the Spartans' offense all season long, and that remained the case. As the second period wore on, you just knew it was a matter of time until they factored in on the scoresheet. Naturally, it was their line that authored the comeback for SMH before doing their thing again in triple OT. Credit to Norden for returning to the game after briefly leaving following a scary collision in the second. Freitas was once again sensational, as she has been each time I've seen St. Mary's this season. The freshman finishes her season with 48 goals.
