For the second straight season, the Frontier Regional field hockey team played its way into the MIAA Division 4 tournament Final Four over the weekend. The fifth-seeded Red Hawks defeated No. 4 Sutton, 2-1, at Auburn High School last Saturday.
Next up is a trip to Whitcomb Middle School in Marlborough to face the top-seeded Monomoy Regional Sharks on Thursday at 5 p.m. Monomoy is located in Harwich on Cape Cod. The Sharks (15-5-1) have not let an opponent score yet in their tournament run, all while scoring 25 goals in three games.
Monomoy makes its fifth-straight appearance in the Final Four. Monomoy has a special ability to score a ton of goals with multiple weapons at its disposal. The Sharks lost in last year’s Division 4 final to Uxbridge at Worcester State Stadium.
“Their ability to execute corners and really take advantage of possessions in the offensive end,” Frontier coach Missy Mahar said. “It appears that they are able to finish and create opportunities.”
Monomoy plays an extremely difficult out-of-division schedule during the regular season in an effort to be battle-tested heading into its state tournament run. During the season, both squads shared one common opponent in Longmeadow. The Sharks defeated the Lancers, 5-0, on Oct. 5 at the Monomoy Athletic Complex. The Red Hawks lost to Longmeadow, 4-0, in the Western Mass. Class A finals at West Springfield High School.
Monomoy’s Sam Clarke went over 100 points for her career this season. Emery Cappallo, a junior, also went over 100 points for the Sharks this season. In goal, Maddy Swett has over 200 career saves. Sophomore Sophie Larivee is another player to watch for Monomoy. Instead of focusing on the Sharks, the Red Hawks will focus on their own game.
“We are going to focus on what we can control,” Mahar said. “We can’t control how talented they are, how skillful, how many goals they’ve had in three state games. The effort we can bring to the game, the intensity, minimizing turnovers, working hard for 60 minutes which is what we have been really driving home all season, especially in the postseason. They are ready to represent the West.”
The PVIAC added Addie Harrington, Macy DeMaio, Amelia Bouchard and Ashlie Galenski to its Suburban League All-Stars on Monday. Coaches and athletic directors voted on the honors.
“I was excited to hear that they were chosen,” Mahar said. “I think each of them brings such an important piece to the game and to this season’s success. It was nice to see them get that honor. I am very proud of each of them.”