A few weeks ago, Massachusetts crowned its Tier 1 and Tier 2 Boys champions for the 15U, 16U and 18U age groups, with the title winners also earning berths in the USA Hockey National Championship to be held next April. This past weekend, Massachusetts 16U and 19U Girls Tier 1 and Tier 2 teams got their chance.

Game play took place Friday, Nov. 24, through Sunday at the New England Sports Center in Marlboro, Mass., with 44 teams competing for state/district titles and Nationals berths.

Many states and districts around the U.S. wait until spring to determine their champions and Nationals qualifiers, but with high school and prep hockey being so popular in Massachusetts and Minnesota, most of the club programs in those areas play a fall “half” or “split” season and compete for the state and district titles in late October or November just prior to the start of the various school seasons.

We highlighted Massachusetts Girls Championship for our Week 10 MHR Games of the Week feature. Here is a look at how the games and tournaments played out:

 

MHR WEEK 10 GAMES OF THE WEEK

Massachusetts State/District Tier 1 & Tier 2 Girls Championship

New England Sports Center – Marlboro, Mass.

Streamed on LiveBarn

Last weekend, 44 Massachusetts-based Girls Tier 1 and Tier 2 hockey teams invaded the New England Sports Center in hopes of capturing championships and advancing to the USA Hockey National Championship in April. Tier 1 and Tier 2 Girls champions were crowed for the 19U and 16U age groups.

Each tournament had American and National pools with either four or six teams competing in each pool to determine who advances to the playoff rounds.

The 19U Tier 2, 16U Tier 1 and 16U Tier 2 tournaments each had two six-team pools, with teams playing three games in pool play to determine the quarterfinalists. The 19U Tier 1 tourney had two four-team pools, with the top-two finishers in each pool advancing to the semifinals.

 

Massachusetts Girls 19U Tier 1 Championship

The 19U Tier 1 Girls championship tournament included eight of the nation’s top-66 USA Girls teams, according to the most recent MHR rankings. 

Competing teams included:

 

#3 East Coast Wizards

#8 Boston Jr. Eagles

#10 North American Hockey Academy

#17 Assabet Valley

#24 Islanders Hockey Club

#33 Bay State Breakers

#37 Massachusetts Spitfires

#49 Boston Advantage

 

CLICK HERE for the Massachusetts 19U Youth Tier 1 tournament schedule and results.

The tournament started with pool-play matchups Friday at 1:10 p.m.

Semifinals took place at 7:50 p.m. Saturday, and the championship game was played at 10:20 a.m. Sunday.

 

Massachusetts Girls 19U Tier 1 Game of the Week

#8 Boston Jr. Eagles (1), #10 North American Hockey Academy (0)

Saturday, November 25 at 1:20 p.m.

New England Sports Center – Marlboro, Mass.

Streamed on LiveBarn

The top pool-play game of the 19U Tier 1 Girls tournament pitted the No. 8 Jr. Eagles against the No. 10 Winterhawks in a showdown that determined American Pool’s top seed for the semifinals. Boston needed an Ayla Abban goal with just 2:50 left in the third period to secure the 1-0 victory and finish pool play undefeated. Anya Zupkofska was perfect in net to record the shutout win. The Jr. Eagles went on to knock off No. 49 Boston Advantage, 4-0 in the semis before recording yet another shutout, 3-0, vs. the No. 3 East Coast Wizards in the championship game. Veronika Shadamovsky recorded the clean sheet in the semifinals, with Zupkofska getting the job done in the finals. Boston also finished strong in the semifinal win, breaking open a 1-0 game with three third-period goals. Camryn Bell, Olivia Maffeo and Calleigh Brown tallied in the final frame to tack on insurance after Brown’s second-period game-winner. The Jr. Eagles concluded the tournament and their fall season 15-2-1 and having outscored their opponents, 62-15, after a perfect 5-0-0 weekend showing. NAHA went on to fall to the Wizards, 6-2, in the semifinals to finish the fall at 16-1-11. East Coast went 4-1-0 and ended its season at 17-3-2 and having outscored its opponents, 85-27. The Wizards will have to wait and see if they receive an at-large berth to USA Hockey Nationals.

 

Championship Game

#8 Boston Jr. Eagles (3), #3 East Coast Wizards (0)

Another strong third period secured yet another shutout victory for goalie Anya Zupkofska along with the Massachusetts championship and a trip to USA Hockey Nationals in April. Camryn Bell scored twice in a 3:05 span of the final frame to turn Elizabeth Stirling’s second-period marker into the championship-winning goal. After opening the tournament with a 4-3 win over the No. 33 Bay State Breakers, Boston rolled to four-straight shutout wins, outscoring its opponents, 13-0, in the process. 

 

 

Massachusetts Girls 16U Tier 1 Championship

The 16U Tier 1 Girls championship tournament included 12 of the nation’s top-56 USA Girls teams, according to the most recent MHR rankings.

Competing teams included:

 

#4 Assabet Valley

#5 Massachusetts Spitfires

#14 North American Hockey Academy

#15 Valley Jr. Warriors

#16 East Coast Wizards

#17 Boston Jr. Eagles

#27 Bay State Breakers

#34 Boston Americans

#43 North Shore Vipers

#47 Minuteman Lady Flames

#50 Weymouth

#56 Boston Shamrocks

 

CLICK HERE for the Massachusetts 16U Girls Tier 1 tournament schedule at results. 

The tournament started with pool-play matchups Friday at 11:20 a.m.

Quarterfinals were played 7:30 and 7:50 p.m. Saturday.

Semifinals took place at 8:20 a.m. Sunday, with the championship game facing off at 3:00 p.m. Sunday.

 

Massachusetts Girls 16U Tier 1 Game of the Week

#4 Assabet Valley (4), #15 Valley Jr. Warriors (0)

Saturday, November 25 at 11:20 a.m.

New England Sports Center – Marlboro, Mass.

Streamed on LiveBarn

This was one of two pool-play games in the Tier 1 16U Girls Championship that featured a pair of top-15 teams. The other top-15 matchup had the No. 5 Massachusetts Spitfires taking on No. 14 North American Hockey Academy in an American Pool showdown. The Spitfires won that contest, 5-0, with five different players scoring goals and goalie Jacqueline Wright recording the shutout. Assabet rolled to a 2-0 first-period lead against the Jr. Warriors on goals by Marion Legge and Caroline Averill and sealed the win with third-period tallies from Sarah Powers and Christina Scalese. Elizabeth Luong and Ines Khamis split time in goal for Assabet, which went on to shut out No. 50 Weymouth, 7-0, in the quarterfinals before advancing to the championship game with a 4-1 semifinal win vs. the No. 16 East Coast Wizards. Averill scored twice in the semifinals, setting up a 2-1 championship-game victory over the No. 5 Massachusetts Spitfires. The Spitfires finished the tournament with a 5-1-0 record and their fall season at 15-3-2. They will have to wait and see if they receive an at-large bid to Nationals. Assabet Valley went 6-0-0 on the weekend to conclude the season with a 20-2-1 record and having outscored its opponents by an astounding 111-21. NAHA went 2-2-0 at the tournament, falling to the Wizards, 2-1, in the quarterfinals, to finish up at 16-9-2.

 

Championship Game

#4 Assabet Valley (2), #5 Massachusetts Spitfires (1)

Assabet led, 2-1, through two periods and held off the Spitfires in the third with netminder Ines Khamis earing the win. Massachusetts got on the board first with 7:00 left in the opening frame on a goal by Abigail Deanzeris, but Margaret Averill would tie it 2:55 later to set up the game-winning goal by Nuala Gibbs with less than a minute to play in the second period. Assabet did have to kill off one penalty in the third, but the Spitfires were unable to tie it up.

 

 

Massachusetts Girls 19U Tier 2 Championship

The 19U Tier 2 Girls championship tournament included 12 of the nation’s top-66 USA Girls teams, according to the most recent MHR rankings.

Competing teams included:

 

#2 East Coast Wizards

#3 Boston Jr. Eagles

#4 North Suburban Wings

#15 Valley Jr. Warriors

#16 Charles River Blazers

#23 Boston Americans

#24 Bay State Breakers

#29 Islanders Hockey Club

#44 Massachusetts Spitfires

#57 MassConn United

#65 North Shore Vipers

#66 Minuteman Lady Flames

 

CLICK HERE for the Massachusetts 19U Girls Tier 2 tournament schedule at results. 

The tournament started with pool-play matchups Friday at 9:30 a.m.

Quarterfinals were played at 5:40 p.m. and 7:20 p.m. Saturday.

Semifinals were played at 8:00 a.m. Sunday, and the championship game faced off at 3:20 p.m. Sunday.

 

Massachusetts Girls 19U Tier 2 Game of the Week

#2 East Coast Wizards (7), #4 North Suburban Wings (1)

Saturday, November 25 at 9:30 a.m.

New England Sports Center – Marlboro, Mass.

Streamed on LiveBarn

The Wizards and Wings met for the third time this season, but this time with more on the line at the Massachusetts Championship. ECW won the first two meetings by scores of 3-2 and 3-1, but this time the game never was close. The Wizards netted a pair of goals in each of the first two periods and closed the win out with three markers in the final frame to make a winner out of goalie Lily Pendergast. Grace Lynch scored twice in the third period to finish as the team’s only multiple-goal scorer. Amne Khamis also scored in the third and assisted on Lynch’s second goal. Lynch added an assist on Caitlyn McCarthy’s second-period marker, with Kiersten Pinky Rasmussen, Faith Steiner and Margaret Miller also scoring. Kasey Litwin and Gabrielle Oakes scored for the Wings. East Coast also rolled to an 8-1 quarterfinal win vs. the No. 24 Bay State Breakers before knocking off the No. 44 Massachusetts Spitfires, 1-0, and capturing the title with a 3-2 overtime victory against the No. 3 Boston Jr. Eagles. McCarthy buried the lone semifinal Wizard goal. East Coast was 6-0-0 during the weekend to finish the fall season at 17-2-1 and having outscored its opponents, 77-24. The Wings went 0-3 with an overtime loss to finish at 11-7-3. Boston posted a 5-1-0 record to wind up the fall at 12-6-3.

 

Championship Game

#2 East Coast Wizards (3), #3 Boston Jr. Eagles (2) - OT

Kiersten Pinky Rasmussen scored a power-play goal in overtime to lift the Wizards to a thrilling 3-2 victory, the Massachusetts championship and a Nationals berth. Jodie Gratton and Grace Lynch also scored for the victors, with Lynch adding a helper on the OT championship-winner. Lily Pendergast earned the win in goal for the Wizards, who tied the game with just 3:27 left on Gratton’s tally after Madeline Krepelka had given the Jr. Eagles a 2-1 lead just 1:37 earlier. Krepelka had both Boston goals.

 

 

Massachusetts Girls 16U Tier 2 Championship

The 16U Tier 2 Girls championship tournament included 12 of the nation’s top-55 USA Girls teams, according to the most recent MHR rankings. 

Competing teams included:

 

#1 Massachusetts Spitfires

#13 East Coast Wizards

#15 MassConn United

#17 Assabet Valley

#22 Valley Jr. Warriors

#23 Bay State Breakers

#26 North Suburban Wings

#28 Boston Jr. Eagles

#39 Boston Americans

#47 Boston Advantage

#51 Minuteman Lady Flames

#55 Boston Jr. Terriers

 

CLICK HERE for the Massachusetts 16U Girls Tier 2 tournament schedule at results.

The tournament started with pool-play matchups Friday at 9:00 a.m.

Quarterfinals were played at 5:20 p.m. Saturday.

Semifinals took place at 7:40 and 8:00 a.m. Sunday, and the championship game faced off at 3:00 p.m.

 

Massachusetts Girls 16U Tier 2 Game of the Week

#13 East Coast Wizards (5), #15 MassConn United (2)

Saturday, November 25 at 9:10 a.m.

New England Sports Center – Marlboro, Mass.

Streamed on LiveBarn

In what looked to be one of the most evenly matched games between top-15 teams in any division, the No. 13 Wizards and No. 15 MassConn United faced off in an American Pool contest with East Coast recording a 5-2 victory. Marina Bassett and Ella McDonald scored to push the Wizards in front, 2-0, in the opening frame only to see Leah Martineau and Rhaya Manning to respond and tie it up. For there it was all Wizards, though, as Brianna Dacey, Mia Ryder and Corinne Spade scored unanswered goals to make a winner out of goalie Tess Bassett. Dacey finished with three points and Ryder added two. Unfortunately for the Wizards, however, they went on to fall to the No. 47 Boston Advantage, 3-2, in overtime in the quarterfinals to conclude their season 9-7-2 after posting 1-3-0 record, including three overtime or shootout losses, during the weekend. MassConn also lost a heartbreaker, falling by a 1-0 score vs. the No. 28 Boston Jr. Eagles in the semifinals. United went 3-2-0 and concluded the fall with a record of 20-9-0. The top-ranked Massachusetts Spitfires beat the Jr. Eagles, 4-1, in the championship game after shutting out the Advantage, 5-0, in the semis.

 

Championship Game

#1 Massachusetts Spitfires (4), #28 Boston Jr. Eagles (1)

After a scoreless opening period, the Spitfires exploded for three goals in less than four minutes of the second period to take control before cruising to the Massachusetts championship and earning a USA Hockey nationals berth. Jamie Noonan scored twice in the second frame, both goals assisted by Madelyn Lahah, sandwiched around a tally by Onna McCarty. Jacqueline Chace cut the lead to 3-1 midway through the third before Isabel Cusack netted the insurance goal to make a winner out of goalie Addison Sutherland. The Spitfires went 6-0-0 for the weekend and will take a 15-5-2 record to Nationals in April. They have outscored their opponents, 85-32. Boston finished its season at 10-7-4.

 

About Games of the Week

Games of the Week previews will be posted every Thursday, Friday or Saturday through the end of the regular season. Game summaries, along with occasional video highlights, will be posted no later than Tuesday of the following week. 

With more than 20,000 teams in our database by season’s end, it’s impossible to be aware of all the great games that are scheduled throughout North America each week, so if you know of any upcoming games between highly ranked teams please feel free to email the details a week in advance if possible to scott@myhockeyrankings.com.

Include in your email:

• Team names, location, league affiliations and age group
• Current team rankings (national, state, provincial, etc.)
• Day, time and location of the game or games
• Any other details – past history, statistical info/team leaders, college commitments playing or other interesting information
• Quotes from players or coaches are great, too, but not required
• If the game or games are available on LiveBarn or via another streaming service, please send the link

We will be partnering with Clanko Media throughout the season to bring our readers and followers video highlights of selected Games of the Week, and we also are open to posting highlights of any other games we feature if someone can provide them for us.