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BOSTON -- The Milton High girls hockey team has authored a magical story over the past four seasons. Now all the Wildcats need is a knock-out final chapter.
We'll see if the big stage of TD Garden can inspire Sabrina Stone and company to finally pen a happy ending.
Denied in last year's Division 2 state championship game in the program's first appearance in a final since 2008, the Wildcats have fought all the way back to earn another title shot after beating Duxbury, 2-1, in the semifinals at Boston College's Conte Forum on Sunday, March 8.
"It's been a goal of ours the whole season," Stone said of booking a return trip to Causeway Street. "We would have been disappointed if we didn't get to the same spot as last year."
Stone, the team's leading scorer, broke a scoreless tie late in the second period, freshman winger Maeve Lovett doubled the lead in the third, and sophomore goalie Caera Hart took a shutout into the final minute of regulation as Milton remained unbeaten since a 3-1 loss to Duxbury all the way back on New Year's Eve.
No. 2 Milton (24-1-1) will play No. 5 King Philip (23-2-1) in the Div. 2 championship game at the Garden on Sunday, March 15 (time TBA). Once again, the slate of finals will be a South Shore showcase as the Wildcats will be joined in their title quest by the Archbishop Williams girls (Div. 1), Canton boys (Div. 2) and Hanover boys (Div. 3).
"They had a lot of heavy pressure on themselves this year because they (set) a goal on Day 1," Milton coach Matt Lodi said of his players. "It was unspoken; we didn't allow them to say the word 'Garden' the entire year, until today. It was essentially, for lack of a better term, 'Garden or bust' (this season). ... I'm so proud of them. They definitely deserve this opportunity."
Milton has never won a state title, but the Wildcats have been relentlessly building toward this. After a playoff DNQ in 2022, they've gone a combined 81-12-8 over the past four seasons. Milton lost in the Round of 16 in 2023, in the quarterfinals (to eventual champ Duxbury) in 2024 and in the final (to Medfield) last year.
"The culture in unbelievable," Lodi raved. "What our seniors have built over the last three-four years, it all starts there. If you don't have a culture, you don't win 24 games. If you don't have a culture, you don't get back to the Garden year to year."
If the Wildcats didn't have Stone, they probably wouldn't be on the verge of history, either. The senior center scored the tying and winning goals in last year's double-overtime conquest of Marshfield in the semis, and she stepped up big in this one, cashing in off a turnover below the right-wing circle with 1:38 left in the second period. It was her 23rd goal of the season (she had 27 last winter) and her fourth in this four-game playoff run.
Freshman linemate Mia Cataruzolo, who has 20 goals on the season, started the sequence with a hard forecheck. Stone pounced on a loose puck near the right post and chipped it through Duxbury freshman goalie Brooklyn Metzler, who was outstanding. The puck trickled inside the far post.
"Sabrina's a superstar," Lodi said. "Pound for pound, the best player in the state, in my opinion. There are a lot of really good players, and Duxbury had a lot, but Sabrina's ability to play the 200-foot game and grind goals out and be a greasy player (is unmatched)."
That goal, and Lovett's sixth of the season, gave Milton enough cushion to withstand a late surge by No. 3 Duxbury (17-8-1) that included Liv Gleason's 6-on-5 goal with 43.4 seconds left. Duxbury, which won back-to-back Div. 2 crowns in 2023 and 2024, lost in last year's quarterfinals.
Coach Dan Najarian praised his seniors, who leave with a 15-2 playoff record. "These girls left it all on the line for 45 minutes and battled for 25 games this year," he said. "They never gave up."
Senior Addy Harrington departs as either the No. 2 or No. 3 all-time points-producer in program history. She finished with 22 goals and 27 assists this season after a 13-25--38 scoring line last winter.
"The word I've used to describe her all year long is iconic," Najarian said. "Two-time state champion. State champion in soccer. The ultimate leader and the ultimate definition of what it means to be a Duxbury hockey player."
Duxbury had life after Gleason's goal, but Milton slammed the door defensively after that, pinning the puck along the wall in the Wildcats' defensive zone to Hart's right to bleed off almost the final 20 seconds. Lodi called the response to Gleason's strike "the best 46 seconds of our season."
Now there are at least 45 minutes left in that season, and Milton is hoping to make the most of its second title shot.
"We know how it is going (to the Garden) and we have experience there, so that will be helpful," said senior defenseman Mairin Hart, Caera's older sister. "We're real excited to be able to go play (there) again and hopefully have a different outcome."
Said Stone: "The town's been backing us the last two years. It would be really great to win one for the town."
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Milton girls hockey gets a 2nd title shot by beating Duxbury in semis
Continue reading...
We'll see if the big stage of TD Garden can inspire Sabrina Stone and company to finally pen a happy ending.
Denied in last year's Division 2 state championship game in the program's first appearance in a final since 2008, the Wildcats have fought all the way back to earn another title shot after beating Duxbury, 2-1, in the semifinals at Boston College's Conte Forum on Sunday, March 8.
"It's been a goal of ours the whole season," Stone said of booking a return trip to Causeway Street. "We would have been disappointed if we didn't get to the same spot as last year."
Stone, the team's leading scorer, broke a scoreless tie late in the second period, freshman winger Maeve Lovett doubled the lead in the third, and sophomore goalie Caera Hart took a shutout into the final minute of regulation as Milton remained unbeaten since a 3-1 loss to Duxbury all the way back on New Year's Eve.
No. 2 Milton (24-1-1) will play No. 5 King Philip (23-2-1) in the Div. 2 championship game at the Garden on Sunday, March 15 (time TBA). Once again, the slate of finals will be a South Shore showcase as the Wildcats will be joined in their title quest by the Archbishop Williams girls (Div. 1), Canton boys (Div. 2) and Hanover boys (Div. 3).
"They had a lot of heavy pressure on themselves this year because they (set) a goal on Day 1," Milton coach Matt Lodi said of his players. "It was unspoken; we didn't allow them to say the word 'Garden' the entire year, until today. It was essentially, for lack of a better term, 'Garden or bust' (this season). ... I'm so proud of them. They definitely deserve this opportunity."
Milton has never won a state title, but the Wildcats have been relentlessly building toward this. After a playoff DNQ in 2022, they've gone a combined 81-12-8 over the past four seasons. Milton lost in the Round of 16 in 2023, in the quarterfinals (to eventual champ Duxbury) in 2024 and in the final (to Medfield) last year.
"The culture in unbelievable," Lodi raved. "What our seniors have built over the last three-four years, it all starts there. If you don't have a culture, you don't win 24 games. If you don't have a culture, you don't get back to the Garden year to year."
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If the Wildcats didn't have Stone, they probably wouldn't be on the verge of history, either. The senior center scored the tying and winning goals in last year's double-overtime conquest of Marshfield in the semis, and she stepped up big in this one, cashing in off a turnover below the right-wing circle with 1:38 left in the second period. It was her 23rd goal of the season (she had 27 last winter) and her fourth in this four-game playoff run.
Freshman linemate Mia Cataruzolo, who has 20 goals on the season, started the sequence with a hard forecheck. Stone pounced on a loose puck near the right post and chipped it through Duxbury freshman goalie Brooklyn Metzler, who was outstanding. The puck trickled inside the far post.
"Sabrina's a superstar," Lodi said. "Pound for pound, the best player in the state, in my opinion. There are a lot of really good players, and Duxbury had a lot, but Sabrina's ability to play the 200-foot game and grind goals out and be a greasy player (is unmatched)."
That goal, and Lovett's sixth of the season, gave Milton enough cushion to withstand a late surge by No. 3 Duxbury (17-8-1) that included Liv Gleason's 6-on-5 goal with 43.4 seconds left. Duxbury, which won back-to-back Div. 2 crowns in 2023 and 2024, lost in last year's quarterfinals.
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Coach Dan Najarian praised his seniors, who leave with a 15-2 playoff record. "These girls left it all on the line for 45 minutes and battled for 25 games this year," he said. "They never gave up."
Senior Addy Harrington departs as either the No. 2 or No. 3 all-time points-producer in program history. She finished with 22 goals and 27 assists this season after a 13-25--38 scoring line last winter.
"The word I've used to describe her all year long is iconic," Najarian said. "Two-time state champion. State champion in soccer. The ultimate leader and the ultimate definition of what it means to be a Duxbury hockey player."
Duxbury had life after Gleason's goal, but Milton slammed the door defensively after that, pinning the puck along the wall in the Wildcats' defensive zone to Hart's right to bleed off almost the final 20 seconds. Lodi called the response to Gleason's strike "the best 46 seconds of our season."
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Now there are at least 45 minutes left in that season, and Milton is hoping to make the most of its second title shot.
"We know how it is going (to the Garden) and we have experience there, so that will be helpful," said senior defenseman Mairin Hart, Caera's older sister. "We're real excited to be able to go play (there) again and hopefully have a different outcome."
Said Stone: "The town's been backing us the last two years. It would be really great to win one for the town."
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Milton girls hockey gets a 2nd title shot by beating Duxbury in semis
Continue reading...
