EASTHAM — The Nauset High boys and girls hockey teams both advanced to the Elite 8 quarterfinal rounds of their respective state tournaments following triumphs at Charles Moore Arena in Orleans last weekend.
The top-ranked boys easily defeated no. 33 Diman Regional Vocational Tech 6-0 before edging no. 17 Marlborough 2-1 in the MIAA Division 3 State Tournament on Saturday.
The Warriors and Panthers played a scoreless first period in a fast-paced game that saw both goalies deny breakaway chances. Nauset junior Colin Ward broke the tie when his shot beat the goalie on a power play at the 3:25 mark of the second period. His goal set the stage for a frenetic end to the period: Marlborough tied the game just under two minutes later when senior Cam Ellsworth netted the equalizer. Julian Krivos then restored Nauset’s advantage, 2-1, only 15 seconds later. The senior’s goal would stand as the game-winner.
“We always talk about having that shift-after mentality, and I always try and keep that in the back of my head,” said Krivos. “I love this hockey team, and I just want to keep this train rolling for as long we can. To be the difference maker in that moment feels great.”
Junior Zach Coelho backstopped both of the playoff victories in net, including the Diman shutout in the Round of 32.
Junior Logan Poulin leads the team in scoring with a hat trick and an assist in the first playoff game. He has five points (3 goals, 2 assists) in two games. Sophomore Jake Eldrege has had 2 goals and 1 assist in the same stretch. His helper set up Krivos’s goal against Marlborough.
“Throughout the season, it’s about getting your team identity where you want and to instill playoff hockey,” said Nauset Coach Connor Brickley. “That’s playing aggressive, suffocating, and overwhelming hockey. We played some of our best hockey and it was a great time to showcase that.”
The Warriors’ win sets up a showdown with no. 8 Pembroke on March 7 at Gallo Arena. The Titans have yet to allow a goal this postseason, beating No. 25 Taunton and No. 9 Grafton to reach the Elite 8.
The girls hockey team, meanwhile, beat Cape and Islands rivals no. 29 Dennis-Yarmouth and no. 13 Sandwich to secure its first-ever quarterfinal berth. The Warriors eased by the Dolphins 6-1 and then blanked the Lady Knights 4-0 in the Round of 16 on Sunday.
Sophomore Julia Kipperman, who leads the team with four points (2 goals, 2 assists) in the playoofs, scored 2:40 into the contest with Sandwich. Senior Sienna Reeves then went coast to coast to double the advantage with 4:05 to go in the opening period.
The Warriors controlled the pace of the game after Kipperman’s opening goal and grasped it firmly when junior Sophia Boucher’s shot was tipped into the net by a defender to extend the lead to 3-0 with 10:22 left in the second period. Sophomore Gaby Bassett added an empty net goal late in the game.
“To beat a team twice is hard, and we’ve now had to beat a team a third time in both rounds — a shutout against that team is really good,” said Nauset-Monomoy Coach Zach Wells. “When you have the momentum from the start it makes a huge difference, especially at home when the crowd is bought in.”
The Warriors, with their season on the line, played no. 5 Algonquin in the Division 2 quarterfinals on Wednesday.
Elsewhere, a trio of Warriors competed at the MIAA Meet of Champions for Indoor Track while the duo of senior Paytah Dill and junior Isaiah Robinson participated in the MSTCA Indoor Boys Pentathlon at Boston’s Reggie Lewis Center on Feb. 24 and 27, respectively.
Juniors Madeline Mahoney and Aidan Brown and sophomore Violet Roche each participated in an event at the Meet of Champions after placing high at the Division 4 state finals.
Mahoney placed sixth overall in the girls 100 meters, finishing in a time of 3:00.64, 7 seconds off the winning time posted by sophomore Abigail Hennessy of Westford Academy.
Brown narrowly missed out on a place in the finals of the boys 55-meter hurdles after placing ninth in the preliminaries with a time of 7.82.
Roche was the lone Nauset competitor participating in two events. The sophomore finished 14th in the girls 300-meters dash in a time of 42.15, only 3 seconds off the winning pace set by Framingham senior Abby Desmarais.
Roche then was in a four-way tie for 11th place in the high jump with a height of 5 feet, 2 inches.
Robinson set the Nauset pentathlon school record by placing 12th overall out of 150 athletes with 2,839 points. Dill scored 2,783 points and finished 15th while setting a new school record in the indoor long jump with a jump of 20 feet, 9¼ inches. He placed sixth in the event.
Junior Peter Silvernail represented Nauset at the All-State Wrestling Championship at Salem High School after placing third in the Division 3 State Tournament.
Silvernail lost in the first round of the 285-pound class to Jonny Radzevich of Duxbury. Radzevich lost in the next round to eventual champion Chelmsford junior Thomas Brown.
Silvernail rebounded to beat Tyngsborough-Dracut’s Drew Richardson in the consolation bracket before falling to junior Diego Gutierrez Serrano of Shepherd Hill.
Upcoming games
Thursday, March 7
Boys hockey: No. 1 Nauset takes on no. 8 Pembroke in the Elite 8 of the Division 3 State Tournament at Gallo Arena beginning at 7:15 p.m.
