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Division 1 state girls hockey final

Duxbury wins title in first season in Division 1

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Duxbury senior goalie Rachel Myette’s only mistake in this Division 1 tournament was almost costly.

Just over 8 minutes into the third period Sunday at TD Garden, Arlington Catholic senior Danielle Kelley beat Myette stickside from the slot, knotting the championship game at 1 and ending Myette’s tournament shutout streak.

But the Dragons did not stay tied for long. Off the ensuing faceoff, sophomore Julia Nolan found junior Marissa Fichter, who snuck a shot past Arlington Catholic goalie Katherine Crane to give Duxbury a 2-1 lead just 10 seconds after Kelley’s tally.

After the score, Myette did the rest, stopping four more Cougar attempts to secure the Dragons’ first Division 1 championship, 2-1, after winning three straight titles in Div. 2.

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“We’ve had trouble scoring all season long,” Duxbury coach Friend Weiler said, “But we got them when we needed them. After they tied it up, most teams would fold up a little, but we got stronger.”

When Duxbury (17-1-6) moved to Division 1 before this season, the team heard doubters predict that the Dragons would meet their match in the premier division.

“When we were in Division 2, everyone was saying. ‘Hey, let’s see how they do in D1,’ and I think we answered all of our doubters tonight,” Weiler said. “The more people said we couldn’t do it, the more that energized us.”

In the regular season, Duxbury looked beatable — or at least tie-able — as it went 14-1-6. But come playoff time, the Dragons returned to championship form, and junior Jane Dudley said those close contests along the way helped Duxbury Sunday.

“We had the hardest schedule in the state,” Dudley said. “That keyed us up for tournament play and it’s worth it. “

Dudley and the Dragons spent the first two periods Sunday in another defensive battle. Duxbury tallied just two shots in the second period while Arlington Catholic put up only three before entering the locker room in a scoreless tie.

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In the bowels of TD Garden, Weiler felt his team was tired and possibly a little down on itself. After making a few technical adjustments, he left the locker room to let his players cool off. Then he went back in to light a fire under them.

“Coach gave a great speech,” Dudley said. “We knew we had to re-energize and we did.”

Weiler also reminded Dudley and Fichter that they had more speed than their opposing defensemen did. Get a step on them, he said, and you will get scoring opportunities.

Forty seconds into the final period, it played out exactly like that.

Dudley collected the puck as she entered the offensive zone, kept a Cougar defender on her back, and beat Crane with a low drive for the first goal of the game.

Still, it was unclear if Duxbury had another goal in it after Kelley and the Cougars (19-3-2) tied the game with seven minutes to go. But Myette said she never lost confidence.

“My team is a third-period team and we’ve shown . . . that we have the heart in us to dig down deep and get that goal back,” she said.