METHUEN — With a jammed-packed, vociferous crowd hovering over every bounce of the puck, it’s a wonder that Sammy Ryan even heard Ella Duffy.
But she did.
And Duffy’s words, and then her execution of scoring the dramatic double-overtime game winning goal, helped lift No. 6 seed Methuen/Tewksbury past No. 27 Central Catholic, 2-1, in a fantastic MIAA Division 1 state tournament Round of 32 opener played at Methuen High.
“We (as a team) don’t score a lot, so when the goals do happen, it’s just awesome,” said Duffy.
And this one she won’t soon forget.
After Central Catholic’s Lucy Irwin scored with 38 seconds left in regulation, the two teams played a scoreless eight-minute 4-on-4 overtime period. That forced another sudden-death eight minute 3-on-3 format.
Midway through that second frame, Red Rangers’ sophomore Sammy Ryan was tied up with a Central Catholic player along the boards. Duffy was trailing the play, having just entered the Raiders’ zone.
“I was yelling, ‘Sammy get it out to me, Sammy get it out to me’. She got the puck out, and when I got it, it seemed like I was taking too long (to shoot it),” described Duffy. “In my head I was saying ‘five-hole or just pick somewhere’ so I just said ‘go for it’. I went five-hole and it went in.”
That indecision of where to try and place the puck was understandable. Central’s freshman goalie, Sloan Costa, was nothing short of spectacular, turning away 42 shots — including 25 coming in the third period and first overtime.
“(Costa’s) big but she moves really well. She did well getting down low (in the butterfly) and stopping shots and there were a couple on the post that she got to,” said Duffy. “It was just hard to pick a spot on her. She covers a lot of the net and she’s just a real good goalie.”
Duffy’s goal is just her third of the season. Ryan got a nice view of it from down on the ice after being tangled up.
“We kind of both hooked on to each other a little bit because we were both going for the puck. I was trying to get it free and then Ella came in, took it to the net and scored,” said Ryan. “This win means everything. Every game here in the tournament is all about keep winning and moving on.”
The Red Rangers (17-1-3) will move on and play another league rival, No. 22 Boston Latin — a 3-2 winner over No. 11 Billerica/Chelmsford — on Saturday, back at MHS for a noon puck drop.
Methuen/Tewksbury played the Wolfpack twice this season, winning 3-2 before ending in a scoreless tie in the second matchup.
Wednesday’s win marked the tenth one-goal win this season for the Red Rangers, including an earlier 1-0 thriller over Central.
“We have a short bench, so when you go out there, you have to make sure your shift counts for something,” said Duffy. “We don’t have too many girls so you have to be the one who wants to get it done. I think that’s what (my goal) was (about). (Scoring) was better with the big crowd watching. I just knew that we deserved to win this game. You have to give it your all. This win is just amazing and it’s great to be moving on.”
Methuen/Tewksbury 3, Central Catholic 2
First Period: No Scoring.
Second Period: No Scoring.
Third Period: 1, MT, Bree Lawrence (Sarah Marano), 9:52; 2, CC, Lucy Irwin (Sofia Floresquero Llamas), 14:22.
First Overtime: No Scoring.
Second Overtime: 3, MT, Ella Duffy (Sammy Ryan), 4:04.
Saves: CC, Sloan Costa (44 shots, 42 saves); MT, Lydia Barnes (17 shots, 16 saves); Records: Central Catholic (15-6-0); Methuen/Tewksbury (17-1-3).