Julia Masotta sparks Methuen/Tewksbury girls’ hockey to convincing win

Tewksbury senior Julia Masotta made up for lost time in her high school team debut, tallying four goals and an assist to propel No. 4 Methuen/Tewksbury to a 7-1 home victory over the 19th-ranked Haverhill/Pentucket/North Andover girls’ hockey team in the Red Rangers’season opener.

Masotta, who is committed to Norwich, previously played with the Boston Shamrocks club team but decided to join the Red Rangers for her final year. “It’s something I’ve always kind of wanted to do,” she said.

“They have a great program. Sarah [Oteri’s] a great coach. She brought a team to the [TD] Garden. Watching that made me want to play.”

The Red Rangers tallied five of their seven points in the initial period. M/T junior Lydia Pendleton and senior Megan Forbes scored within 27 seconds of each other to put the Red Raiders on the board in the second minute, and senior Cassidy Gruning added another tally five minutes later.

Masotta registered her first two goals in the final minutes, assisted by returning Globe All-Scholastic Carolyn Curley and Pendelton at 12:26, before scoring unassisted at 13:08.

Masotta earned her hat trick on an unassisted shot late in the second period and wasted no time adding her fourth of the night 13 seconds later to cap the Red Rangers’ scoring.

“We’ve been working really hard with all our forwards to create offense, making sure we’re moving the puck in the offensive zone, crashing the net,” said M/T head coach Sarah Oteri. “It was good to see all of our players really shooting and driving the net and making plays.”

After making a goalie swap to start the second with Pentucket junior Jenny Hubbard in to replace Haverhill sophomore Zoe Martin, the HPNA offense began to challenge Methuen netminder Kaia Hollingsworth, who made 10 of her 14 stops on the night in the second and third periods.

Hollingsworth was pulled early in the third period to give way to freshman Michelle Kusmaul. HPNA (0-2) scored its lone goal of the night in the eighth minute when North Andover freshman Katerina Yelsits flipped a pass from sophomore Morgan Whitlock over Kusmaul’s left shoulder.

“The score didn’t necessarily indicate what they put forth,” said Oteri, the 2017-18 Division 1 Coach of the Year. “I do think it was a good back and forth battle.”

Canton 4, Plymouth 0 — Three-point nights are always fun, but they’re even better when you share it with your sister.

Senior captain Maggie Malloy and her sister, junior Rose Malloy, combined for six points and nine shots to lead the Canton girls’ hockey team to a convincing win over visiting Plymouth on Wednesday.

“It’s the first time we’ve really played together in a sport,” said Maggie Malloy. “To be on the same line and to be getting points back-to-back is a nice thing.”

After a lethargic opening period, the Bulldogs (2-0) sprung to life in the second, firing 14 shots on Plymouth goalie Bryanne Porter. With 10 minutes left in the middle frame, Canton struck, as Maggie tucked home her first goal of the night off a touch pass from Rose.

The duo combined again with 11 minutes remaining in the third, with Rose tapping home a loose puck in front after a net-front drive by Maggie. Just 13 seconds later, Maggie finished off a two-on-one with an assist from Rose.

“I think we’re better on the ice than we’ve ever been before,” said Maggie Malloy. “We have a lot of skill and also a lot of grit and I think that’s what makes us most successful.”

Lizzie Tassinari also scored for Canton on a second-period breakaway off a turnover.

On defense, the Bulldogs made it difficult for Plymouth (0-1) to generate any chances, outshooting the Blue Eagles 30-7. In the faceoff circle, Canton held a 19-10 advantage.

“We knew what we wanted to do, but then for them to execute, everyone played the way we wanted to play,” said Canton coach Dennis Aldrich. “If this is how we’re going to progress, the sky’s the limit.”

Melrose 8, Lexington 3 — Eighth grader McKenzie Cerrato scored four goals to power the Red Raiders (1-0).

Pingree 8, Winsor 3 — Senior Rachel Tammaro had a hat trick for Pingree.

Walpole 4, King Philip 1 — Freshman Olivia Brooks scored two goals to lead the Rebels.

Wilmington 3, Woburn 1 — Senior Lia Kourkoutas had two goals for the Wildcats (1-0).

Boys’ basketball

Lexington Christian 65, Landmark 46 — Freshman Jonathan Guerrier scored 15 points to help the Lions improve to 2-1.

Xaverian 52, Burke 50 — Senior Marckenley Lima (14 points) scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Hawks (1-0).

Girls’ basketball

Blue Hills 42, Mt. Alvernia 20 — The Warriors improved to 3-0 behind 21 points from junior guard Jamillia Ross. Senior Ariel Carter added seven points and eight assists.

Fontbonne 41, Ursuline 36 — Tasha Lima scored 21 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter, for the Ducks.

Proctor 63, Tilton 53 — Angelique Ngalakulondi had 24 points 11 rebounds to propel the Hornets (4-0) past the Rams for the first time in more than a decade.

Wellesley 57, Revere 39 — Senior captain Brooke Giuffre’s 22 points paced the Raiders (2-0). Classmate Gianna Palli added 14.

Winsor 74, Dana Hall 24 — Junior captain Michaela Stanfield scored 31 points and freshman Zas Handrinos chipped in 18 points for the Wildcats.

Boys’ hockey

Burlington 4, Belmont 1 — Four different players scored for the Red Devils (1-0).

Foxborough 6, Tri-County 0 — Ronnie MacLellan notched two goals and two assists for the Warriors (2-0).

Lowell Catholic 3, Saint Joseph Prep 2 — Senior Connor Doherty had a hat-trick to lead the Crusaders.

Waltham 6, Billerica 2 — Senior J.T. Logue scored 4 points on a goal and 3 assists to lead the Hawks in their first game of the season. Junior Justin Moran added two goals.

Watertown 4, O’Bryant 0 — Senior center Brett Sutherland had a goal and two assists for the Raiders (1-0).

Wayland 2, Cambridge 1 — Evan Vassilovski and Joe Tardif each scored for the Warriors. Senior Ryan Nolan made 18 saves in the win.

Wilmington 5, Woburn 2 — Senior Ryan Barrett scored two goals and added an assist for the Wildcats (1-0).

Girls’ swimming

Worcester Academy 51, Pingree 40 — Seniors Fiona Price (200 free, 500 free), Grace Arpin (50 free, 100 free) and Anabel Szydilik (200 IM, 100 butterfly) each won two races for the Hilltoppers (2-1).