Austin Prep girls finally catch St. Mary’s SCHOOLS

For most of the 2019-20 girls hockey campaign, Austin Prep had been in pursuit of a longtime rival, as the Cougars battled St. Mary’s (Lynn) for supremacy in the state rankings.

After Saturday night, looks like they now have a case for the top overall spot.

In what was being dubbed the game of the season to this point, sophomore goaltender Lauryn Hanafin made some impeccable saves down the stretch, while Francesca Frelick and Isabel Hulse potted the game-clinching goals in the final minutes, as Austin Prep dealt St. Mary’s its first official loss of the season, 3-0, at Connery Skating Rink.

While Austin Prep’s opening tilt with St. Mary’s back on Dec. 14 officially went into the standings as a tie, the Cougars felt the final result (a 4-3 overtime victory, as part of the MIAA’s new pilot program for playoff tiebreakers) was the true indication of where they stood in the Catholic Central League ranks. With an extraordinary performance, it appears they’re now justified in thinking so.

The Cougars (16-1-2) can now clinch another Catholic Central League title with a victory Monday over Arlington Catholic.

St. Mary’s is now 14-1-3. In other girls hockey ... Mikayla Brightman recorded two goals and an assist while Destiny Arruda added another two goals to lead Bishop Stang (9-6-3) to a 6-1 victory over Scituate in nonleague action . ... Maggie Lynch notched five goals and an assist as Quincy/North Quincy (4-11-2) defeated Fontbonne/Latin Academy, 12-4.

In MVC/DCL Small play, Caitlyn Burke made 35 saves for her seventh shutout of the season as Waltham (9-2-5) blanked Boston Latin ,1-0.

Boys Basketball

Quinton Champagne scored 18 points as Bridgewater-Raynham (9-10) dropped Somerville, 68-55, in a nonleague tilt.

Girls Basketball

Ali Brigham recorded a double-double with 19 points and 15 rebounds, while adding five assists, as No. 1 Franklin (19-0) rolled past No. 2 Bridgewater-Raynham, 58-41, in the opening round of the IAABO Board 27 Division 1 tournament. Megan O’Connell scored 14 points, while Olivia Quinn added 12 for the Panthers.

In the other IAABO Board 27 Division 1 semifinal, Ciana Gibson hit two free throws in the waning moments and finished with a team high 20 points as No. 4 Cathedral (13-1) edged No. 3 Central Catholic, 59-55

Sophomore Megan Olbrys scored 20 points as No. 12 Norwood (18-1) extended its winning streak to 17 with a 66-31 win over Concord-Carlisle in the opening round of the IAABO Board 27 Division 2 tournament.

Norwood will face Braintree (10-9), which stamped its way into the state tournament with a 54-48 win over No. 14 Hingham. Hailey Sherlock scored 11, while Adrianna Casanova added 10. Grace Bennis tallied a game-high 23 for the Harbormen.

McKalah Gaine netted 23 points and 12 rebounds while Clare Connolly added 10 points and 12 rebounds, giving Hanover (11-9) a 60-50 victory over nonleague foe East Bridgewater. … Amber

Crayton had 21 points as Lynn Classical (9-10) took down Somerville, 48-42.

Boys Hockey

Freshman Vincent Wolff scored fourteen seconds into the game and Mason Andrade added a second as Watertown

(12-5-2) defeated Essex Tech,

2-0, in nonleague play.

Will Ham scored the game-winner for Hingham

(11-6-3), as they defeated Archbishop Williams, 3-2, in the first round of the Buddy Ferreira Classic.

Collin Hart and Zach Piersol each tallied two goals as Marblehead (13-3-3) topped Swampscott, 5-3, in a Northeastern Conference meeting.