Hardly anyone has been better than Williston Northampton over the last decade.
The Wildcats have reached the Elite 8 in nine straight seasons, and they came oh-so-close to three consecutive titles last season, falling to Nobles in the championship.
Despite graduating key seniors, Williston is poised to remind the region why it's such a strong contender year after year under coach Christa Talbot Syfu.
"I think our kids are not satisfied with that last game, and our returning kids are eager to get back to it," Talbot Syfu said. "We graduated a really strong class, and I think our seniors are ready to lead and excited to tackle the season."
Getting back is never easy, but the Wildcats have crucial experience under their belts.
"It's a new year, a new team," Talbot Syfu said. "There's lots of different experiences, and we'll take it one day at a time."
Replacing Monique Lyons
Of the four seniors Williston graduated, three were productive forwards who played significant roles. Camille Armaganian (Concord, N.H.) is a freshman on Northeastern's field hockey team, Emily Hamaan (Marlboro, Mass.) is a freshman forward at Harvard and, most notably, Monique Lyons (Bedford, Mass.) is now a freshman forward at Brown.
GIRLS PREP PREVIEWS: Groton | Loomis Chaffee | Dexter Southfield | BB&N | Cushing | Nobles
Lyons finished as the NEPSAC's leading scorer last season with 30 goals and 59 points, the most in a season since Princeton's Emmy O'Leary had 64 at Nobles in 2022. Lyons put up 151 points (77 goals) in 79 career prep games.
Needless to say, it's a significant loss.
But Williston still has its fair share of firepower coming back, including its next four leading scorers behind Lyons.
Seniors Nora Curtis and Violet Carroll (Milton, Mass.) helped form an explosive trio with Lyons for most of the last two seasons.
Curtis, who recently committed to Cornell, finished tied for fifth in NEPSAC scoring with 42 points (17 goals), building off a 36-point (12-goal) season the year prior. Her 25 assists were the fifth-most in New England last winter. Meanwhile, Carroll, a Holy Cross commit, also posted another point-per-game season. What made her 29 points (21 assists) even more impressive was she moved back to defense at the beginning of the year before sliding back up to forward by season's end. It came after a breakout 19-goal, 32-point season in 2023.
"Monique was clearly a very special player. She had good, good players around her," Talbot Syfu said. "I think our team plays a good team game, and I know that our seniors want this to be the best year yet. Everybody has another year of experience, and the expectations will be high. I have no doubt that our kids will rise to the occasion."
Also among the returners is sophomore Mia Daley (Lynnfield, Mass.), who stepped right into a premier role with top minutes at even strength and on the power play as a freshman. She finished with 24 points (eight goals).
"She's spent a lot of time this summer training and getting herself ready, and I think she'll want and can make a bigger impact," Talbot Syfu said.
Junior Zola Piekarski (Concord, Mass.) has put up crucial production as well with back-to-back 20-point seasons. She finished with 23 points (nine goals) last season, playing in all situations for the Wildcats. Sophomores Riley Stocker (18 points) and Brooke Schlutter (11 points) made key contributions as rookies, too. Talbot Syfu is eager to see their improvements as well.
CPC HALLOWEEN SHOWCASE: 8 standout forwards | 6 standout defenders and goalies
"All of our returners, they're ready to step into bigger shoes, bigger responsibilities," Talbot Syfu said. "That's sort of the way that the program has been built, you know, in ninth and 10th grade, you have a role, and your role just keeps getting bigger and bigger."
Keirstyn Camiolo will re-enter the fold for Williston, too. The senior missed last season with a torn ACL after improving to seven goals and nine points as a sophomore.
"She was out, but she's back in the lineup, and we're looking forward to her contributions," Talbot Syfu said. "She's been making steady progress this summer and fall, so we'll look forward to having her back and joining our group."
Stability in net
One of the biggest keys for Williston this season lies in the crease.
The Wildcats return one of the top goaltenders in prep in senior Liv Ferebee, who put up a .939 save percentage last season. It followed a sophomore season that saw her take hold of the starting job and go on a championship run.
"It's tremendous [having her back]," Talbot Syfu said. "I would say halfway through her sophomore year, she took a big step and hasn't looked back. So we're grateful to have her presence in the net and excited for her to perform at the highest level in her senior year."
Between Ferebee, a Cornell commit, and sophomore River Grady (Bedford, Mass.), a highly-regarded prospect in her own right, Williston is set up well in the crease both now and in the coming years.
Grady saw limited action in her freshman season, but performed well, posting a .911 save percentage.
"I think that's the way that you would hope things work," Talbot Syfu said. "You have a senior who's very good that's mentoring and taking care of the younger kid, and the younger kid is being pushed and challenged. The goal would be to get River some more time, but Liv has demonstrated just a consistent level of strong play. So it is nice.
JUST THE BEGINNING: Why Phillips Exeter’s Maria Gray is only scratching the surface
"Liv had that in Natalie Stott [Franklin, Mass.], who is now at Amherst College, and doing very well. So the hope would be moving forward, that's the mentorship that you would want between an upperclassman and an underclassman goalie."
Experience on defense
Williston brings a lot back on defense as well after graduating just one senior, Caroline Aufiero (Belmont, Mass.), now a freshman blue-liner at Clarkson.
"I think that we returned five and they have all worked extremely hard in the offseason to be better and stronger and more consistent," Talbot Syfu said. "So I feel really comfortable with our defensive group."
There's plenty of experience between two seniors and three juniors.
Seniors Malaya Anabe, an Amherst commit, and Alyssa Frazier (Berlin, Vt.), a Middlebury, commit, will lead the way. Each provides a steady presence on the back end.
Meanwhile, juniors Nina Coffee (Old Lyme, Conn.), Yasmine McKenzie (Holden, Mass.) and Catie Putt (Norfolk, Mass.) should continue to come into their own. Coffee, a 6-foot left-hander with a long reach and a heavy shot, committed to Holy Cross this offseason. Putt committed to New Hampshire after jumping from two points as a freshman to seven last season.
WOMEN’S COLLEGE HOCKEY: 2006-born commits | 2007-born commits | 2008-born commits
All told, it makes for a great defensive recipe for the Wildcats.
"To have five upperclassmen on the blue line is terrific, and our goalie returns as well. So we've got a great defensive core," Talbot Syfu said. "I think they all have a little bit different styles and things that they bring, and I think they'll complement each other well."
