Walpole 3, Dedham 2: Girls hockey ousted from Division 2

When the Walpole and Dedham High School girls hockey teams squared off in front of a packed house at Noble and Greenough’s Flood Rink in an MIAA Division 2 first-round contest last Wednesday, it was a case of the proverbial irresistible force confronting the immovable object.

The immovable object was Dedham goalie and senior captain Sarah Mosca, who has had Walpole’s number so many times before.

The irresistible force was the highest scoring line in the Bay State Conference, center Stephanie Frye and wings Kellie Duffy and Kelsey Cosby, which helped the visitors outshoot the Marauders 32-16.

In the end, the force remained irresistible as Walpole won for the first time ever at Nobles, edging the Marauders 3-2 to advance into the quarterfinals against No. 2 Fontbonne, a game that was slated for last night.

The teams were equal enough heading in that one could not outright predict a favorite. They were each part of a four-way logjam atop the Bay State Herget with nearly identical records, and the two times they met the games were toss-ups with the Marauders winning the season opener at home, 3-1 and the Rebels coming back to tie 2-2 at the Iorio Arena.

“We knew it would be a tight game, we knew it would be a battle,” said Dedham coach Don Parr. “This (Bay State) league is so tough; we knew anyone we’d see from our league would be a good game. I’m proud of our team, and proud of our league.”

While the Frye line remained hot, the difference in this one was the two-way play of Walpole defenseman Lauren Whitmore as the junior had the best game of her career. Along with steadying the defense, especially when Walpole sustained a late penalty that left them a player short the final 1:29 of the game, Whitmore also scored a crucial go-ahead goal in the second period and set up the game-winner in the third.

It was Dedham that got the early jump however, taking advantage of a critical Walpole mistake.

Walpole had the early territorial edge and only strong Dedham defense and Mosca’s goaltending kept the game scoreless the first half of the initial period. The Marauders got their break, however, when Walpole was whistled for having too many men on the ice with 7:38 remaining in the period.

Dedham then scored on the power play at the 8:30 mark when senior captain Kelly Celata batted home the rebound of a Meaghan Dwan shot at the left post.

“Dedham is a very opportunistic team,” said Walpole coach Joe Verderber. “They’ve got a good goalie, and they don’t sit back and wait. (Mosca) allows them to be patient in the defensive zone and to look for their opportunities.”

The lead lasted until 2:57 of the second. Cori Donahue won a faceoff in the right circle for Walpole and kicked the puck out to Jacqui Dolan. Dolan passed it back and Donahue put a shot on net. Mosca made the save but it spurted back out to the wing, where Duffy corralled the puck and put home a backhander.

With that success the Rebels started putting a succession of lift shots on net in the third, and it paid off.

The go-ahead goal came at 6:45 of the third, and it came off a high shot from the top of the left circle by Whitmore, sent out to her by Julia Tosone and Donahue.

Walpole’s lead increased to 3-1 with 5:17 left on a textbook pass play. Cosby flew up left wing with the puck, and when she neared the crease Mosca moved over. Duffy was coming up right wing at the same time, however, and when she neared the crease, Cosby rifled a pass across the crease and Duffy lifted the shot over Mosca’s shoulder. Whitmore got the assist for the outlet pass that started the rush.

The Marauders pulled to within a goal with 3:34 left, with Whitmore in the box for tripping Emily McKenna, Dwan scored on the power play with Celata and Samantha Parr picking up assists.

With 1:29 left the Marauders were back on the power play, and having a 6-on-4 advantage over the final 39 seconds with Mosca pulled for an extra attacker. Whitmore made a critical block of a shot with a minute left, however, and Kristen Morrissey, Emily Cronin, Hannah Feeley and Vitty Petrillo did a masterful job of killing off the final 30 seconds.

Dedham loses a quintet of seniors from the program, including five-year players Mosca, Kelly Celata and Teresa Collins as well as Sarah O’Hanlon and Cara Corcoran.

“I’m just really glad that they managed to get a championship,” said Parr of his seniors. “We are going to lose some players from our lineup, but hoepfully with anotehr year of experience we’ll be right back in the thick of it.”