Winchester again in overtime
After assisting Winchester’s previous two overtime winners in this postseason, Luke Sardone took his chance to send the Red & Black to TD Garden in stride.
The sophomore got a pass from senior captain Danny Collins, dropped to a knee, and swept in the No. 11 Red & Black’s third OT goal this tournament with 1:52 to go for a 3-2 semifinal win over No. 18 Arlington Catholic in front of a packed house Saturday night at Loring Arena in Framingham.
“I know that we can beat any team we play if we make it to overtime,” Sardone said. “When you’re out there on the same side the student section’s on and you score a goal, you know that feeling of going to them after is just unreal. It makes it so much better when you score.”
Sardone’s heroics sent the Red & Black (16-9-1) — the last public school remaining in the Division 1 field — to the state final for the first time since 2019.
“The only public school to go to the Final Four, and to actually win in the Final Four and go to the Garden, not a lot of public schools have done that in the last five or so years,” Sardone said. “It’s an awesome feeling.”
Winchester took a 2-0 lead into the locker room after the first period, with Collins and sophomore Caiden Brady scoring the goals. But Arlington Catholic (12-11-1) battled back — sophomore Tyler Heldenbergh scored on a deflected effort near the end of the second, then junior Nico Tashjian scored on the power play in the opening minute of the third.
It took everything Winchester had to halt that momentum and find a way to win, but it’s what the Red & Black have done all tournament. They beat No. 22 Waltham in overtime in the first round, then toppled No. 6 Arlington in double overtime in the second round. In the quarterfinal, they dispatched No. 3 Catholic Memorial, 4-1. And now, they’ve made it to the state final.
“I told them before this whole playoff thing started, we’re writing our own story here, like a Netflix series,” Winchester coach Gino Khachadourian said. “We’re going to keep winning and keep going. Next page we turn, next series is coming out.”
Division 2
Tewksbury 6, Woburn 4 — Senior Peter Civitarese tied the game with the first goal of his career with 9:55 to play and junior Jason Lavoie scored the winner with 6:13 remaining to lift the top-seeded Redmen over the No. 4 Tanners in a thrilling state semifinal at Stoneham Arena.
The Redmen (21-3-0) will face the winner of No. 10 Duxbury (13-8-4) and No. 11 Boston Latin (15-8-0) in the state championship next Sunday at TD Garden. It will be the second appearance in three seasons for the Redmen.
Civitarese buried a wrist shot gloveside. Lavoie charged hard to the net, receiving a pass from senior captain Tyler Barnes in the slot and finishing five-hole.
The Tanners (15-6-1) took the lead courtesy of junior Finn Murphy slotting a low-angle shot 1:03 into the third. From there, it was all Redmen. Sophomore Tyler Bourgea (2 goals, assist) scored an empty-netter to seal it with 23 seconds left.
Division 3 State
Marblehead 2, Shawsheen 1 — Junior Kyle Hart and sophomore London McDonald scored as the No. 6 Magicians (16-9-1) outlasted the No. 3 Rams (22-2-0) in a state semifinal at sold-out Stoneham Arena.
Marblehead advanced to the state final for the first time since 2011, and will face either No. 1 Nauset or No. 12 Somerset Berkley next Sunday at TD Garden. It’s been an incredible turnaround for coach Mark Marfione’s squad, which began the season with six straight defeats.
Hart kicked off the scoring at 9:21 of the first, finding a loose puck in the slot and backhanding it inside the right post for a power-play tally. Assists went to junior James Caeran and senior captain Hogan Sedky.
Shawsheen tied it 23 seconds into the second period, when senior Liam Milne ripped home a one-timer off a pass from classmate Chase Darcey.
Marblehead junior Leo Burdge stopped 23 shots.
Division 4 Dover-Sherborn/Weston 2, Winthrop 1 (SO) — Brayden McKenna and Calvin Roman scored in the five-round shootout as the No. 5 Raiders (20-4-0) won a state semifinal at Gallo Arena in Bourne, while Michael Holgersen scored for No. 1 Winthrop (16-4-2) after regulation and two overtime periods ended with the score deadlocked at 1-1.
Dover-Sherborn/Weston will play the winner of Sunday’s Hanover-Stoneham semifinal next Sunday at TD Garden for a title.
“You dream about it as a kid,” said Dover-Sherborn/Weston goaltender Andrew Goldstein, who made 37 saves, and stopped three more in the shootout.
Goldstein was immense, particularly in the waning moments of periods, in limiting a Vikings offense that had been held to one goal just once during the regular season, and entered Saturday having outscored its three postseason opponents, 22-3.
McKenna scored on a shorthanded breakaway at 6:33 of the second to tie the game, 1-1. Pete Silverman gave Winthrop the lead on the power play at 11:46 of the first, firing home a shot from the left circle.