Heart, grit and determination were on full display from the Vineyard boys hockey and basketball teams Sunday with both posting dominant home wins. Each will advance in tournament play and have off-Island playoff games later this week.
On the ice, the Vineyarders blanked the Stoneham Spartans 4-0 as Zach Mathias’ shutout performance in net propelled purple into the elite eight. On the hardwood, the Norton Lancers were no match for the Vineyard’s stifling defense and plethora of scorers as MV triumphed 69-51 to move into the sweet 16.
After the win, Vineyard hockey coach Matt Mincone said his boys played with the contagious effort needed to go toe-to-toe with a Spartan team that plays in a division one league.
“They came out hard and we equaled it,” coach Mincone said. “They stood in there … we were disciplined and I liked the way we played.”
The Vineyarders’ first three goals came on the power play. The first from Hunter Johnson assisted by Nate Averill. Then Nick Rego scored with another assist from Averill, who followed with a goal of his own assisted by Johnson. The finisher came from Trevor Gullotta assisted by Frankie Paciello.
“We knew it was going to be a dog fight so we went out and played our game and we trusted one another and I think that's what led us to win,” Averill said after the game.
With three points on the night, the sophomore forward was pivotal in the Vineyard win. His goal came with Johnson taking the puck across the net and tossing a pass off the boards that careened back to Averill for a tap-in score.
Defensively the Vineyarders were stout on the penalty kill and inspired by the play of their goalie.
“We needed that,” Averill said of Mathias’ effort. "He showed out and performed today.”
For Mathias, he said his team’s verve was fueling his fire in net and when the clock hit zero he threw his arms up as his teammates mobbed him for a party in the crease.
“I was just thinking win,” the junior goalie said of his mindset going into the game. “Since we found out we’re playing Stoneham last week, just win. Go out, play, win and celebrate.”
Coach Mincone said there’s time now to enjoy the victory but they’ll also need to focus with top-seeded Norwell awaiting.
“We know what’s ahead, we’re going to enjoy this for probably half an hour and then the reality after that is you’ve got the number one team waiting for you,” said the head coach. “It’s all uncharted waters for us but we’re willing to sail them.”
The boys travel to Kingston to take on Norwell at The Bog Thursday at 6:20 p.m. A live stream of the game can be seen on the Martha’s Vineyard Hockey Facebook page.
Back across the street in the high school gymnasium, the boys basketball team got off to a hot start in their playoff opener and never looked back. Norton did all they could to contain Matheus Rodrigues but with how deep the Vineyarders are it didn’t take long for Josh Lake and Nate Story to step up and start draining buckets.
Lake led the Vineyarders with 20 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists. Rodrigues put up 19 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks. Story was money from mid-range with 12 points and also had 4 steals. Tysean Thomas was key off the bench, contributing 7 points with 5 rebounds.
“Our defense is what we’ve worked the hardest on all year and today they played such good defense against two good shooters and scorers,” said Vineyard head coach Mike Joyce.
“The kids were linked up, they had them covered and I think that was the whole game, our defensive strength really pushed us. Matheus and Josh both had good games scoring but it was our defensive side of the ball that really held them down until the end,” coach Joyce continued.
The contagious effort coach Mincone talked about his boys having was also evident on the basketball court from the Vineyard hoopers. From diving for loose balls to a lockdown full-court press that produced multiple turnovers, it was clear the Vineyarders were rested and hungry, and their grind paid off.
“I was very happy. After 14 days off I wasn’t sure what kind of energy we were going to have so I was very excited about how hard we came out and played, energy was all there, it was good to see.” coach Joyce said.
The boys will take on third-seeded Old Rochester Wednesday in Mattapoisett. Tipoff time is to be determined.
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