Medfield High Engages in Holiday Hockey Today

The Medfield High School girls' and boys' hockey teams take the ice on Martin Luther King day for some afternoon action. 

Girls' Hockey:

The Medfield High School girls' hockey team continued its impressive stretch of success with a 4-3 victory over Franklin this past Saturday at the Iorio Arena in Walpole. 

The win was the Warriors' eighth in a row to start the season and tightened their lead on the Southeastern North division, leading second-place Franklin by two games after the victory. 

"[Saturday] was a great game to watch, it was very competitive and end to end action," said Medfield High head coach Molly Norton. "We came out on fire and we were ready to play 'Warrior Hockey.'"

Medfield got on the board first when Meara Stack put in a rebound after Nicole Reardon's shot ricocheted off the crossbar and bounced in front of the net for a perfectly positioned Stack. The goal was assisted by Reardon and Alli Ockerbloom. 

"After the first goal, it brought the team's excitement to whole other level," Norton said. "It was so loud on the bench and great to see all the girls so enthusiastic."

Medfield hit a lull in the second period, finding itself scrambling and out of position in the defensive zone coverage but still managed to hold off Franklin. Late in the period (1:56) Warriors' captain Amanda Cronin beat Franklin goalie Kailyn Burke to increase the MHS lead, 2-0. The goal was assisted by Olivia O'Connell and was Cronin's 13th goal of the season. 

"In the locker room between the second and third period the girls were still very much excited but I continued to stress to them that a two-goal lead is one of the hardest leads to hold on to," Norton said. 

The reminder paid off as Cronin responded with her second goal of the night (14th of the season) at the 10:45 mark to stretch the lead to 3-0. The goal was assisted by Ally Slowe. 

Despite the 3-0 hole, Franklin capitalized on two defensive breakdown for two goals in 22 seconds and stole Medfield's momentum. But a Franklin penalty gave the Warriors a chance to regain the momentum and the team turned to its best player to do so. 

Reardon won a huge face-off in the Franklin zone to begin the power play and got it back to Tori Brown who then passed over to Cronin, who knew exactly what to do with it.

"[Cronin] took a beautiful shot that flew past everyone into the top right corner of the net," Norton said.

It was Cronin's third of the game and for those keeping track at home, an impressive 15th of the season. 

"I couldn't stress enough to the girls to relax and play 'Warrior Hockey' and not to scramble in our zone," Norton said. 

Franklin narrowed the Warriors' lead to one again at the 1:01 mark, netting their third goal of the game but MHS Mimi Borkan made sure that would be all they would get.

"Mimi is consistently making saves when we need her to," Norton said. "She has been solid in net and kept us in [Saturday] night's game. When we had a breakdown that cost us two goals, Mimi got even stronger in net. The girls feed off her timely saves and tremendous determination to win."

Borkan turned away 32 of 35 Franklin shots. 

The Warriors play Dover-Sherborn this afternoon (1 p.m.) before a big divisional game against Canton on Saturday.

Medfield (8-0, 6-0) at Dover-Sherborn (3-5-2, 3-4-1)
Boch Ice Center, Dedham, 1 p.m. 

The Warriors have been playing on a different level than their opponents all season and it is hard to imagine that type of play will stop Monday afternoon against Dover-Sherborn. The Raiders take the ice Monday one game under .500, losing three of its last five games. D-S is, however, coming off a 4-3 victory over North Quincy this past Saturday. 

Prediction: The Raiders have struggled mightily against the top teams in the division - the same teams that Medfield has beaten. Look for Cronin to continue her stellar play, creating scoring chances for herself and her teammates and for Borkan to turn in another solid effort in net. Medfield to win handedly and go to 9-0 heading into Saturday's showdown with Canton. Medfield to win.

Boys' Hockey:

Medfield (6-1-2, 5-0-1) at Bishop Feehan (6-0-2, 1-0-1)
Aleixo Arena,  Taunton 3 p.m.

Medfield is coming off a 4-1 victory over Dover-Sherborn this past Saturday, improving to 5-0-1 in the Tri-Valley League and 6-1-2. The Warriors' will face a tough Bishop Feehan team in Taunton today (6-0-2). Bishop Feehan has netted 39 goals through eight games, while Medfield has scored 33 through nine. 

Prediction: Look for a close game between the two clubs as the Warriors play exceptional defense and the playmaking ability of Jim Magrath gives Medfield an advantage every time the team takes the ice. However, going against an unbeaten, non-conference foe can be challenging, especially on the road. Bishop Feehan to win a close one. 

Smith's season prediction record: 15-1.