Holliston 8, Dover-Sherborn 1: Panthers Punch Tourney Ticket

What a difference a day makes.

Faced with a "win-and-in" scenario in terms of its state tournament aspirations, the Holliston hockey team responded early and often in an 8-1 win over Tri-Valley League host Dover-Sherborn Tuesday night.

Behind two goals each from seniors John Georgallas and Brody Mankus and sophomore Max Turcotte, the Panthers finished the season at 8-8-4, securing a berth in the Division 3 South sectional for the first time in six seasons.

Holliston will learn its seed on Saturday and will likely begin postseason play Monday.

"Amazing, we haven't made it in six years," said senior goaltender Chris Lamont. "I can't wait. We did a great job and I am so excited right now."

The scoring barrage came only 24 hours after , setting up the must-win game for the Panthers. Senior forward Eric Witunski netted his team's first goal 90 seconds into the game on a nice feed from Georgallas.

Though Holliston had scored only two goals in it previous 90 minutes of hockey (both in ), the tourney-bound Panthers equaled that scoring output midway through the opening period when senior Connor Dupont wristed the puck in from the slot for the early 2-0 advantage.

"We knew our goalie was hot but our fear coming in was not really knowing how the rest of the team was going to finish," said first-year Holliston coach Rick LeBlanc.

Mankus scored his first goal of the evening with four minutes remaining in the first period on a terrific assist from Georgallas and all the momentum in the rink belonged to the Panthers.

Dover-Sherborn, which had already been eliminated from tournament contention, was flat from the opening face-off. And as is the case most times when one team simply needs it more than the other, the team that plays with more urgency wins.

"A lot of us have been on the team since sophomore year when we had one win," said Panther senior defensman John Powers. "We came a long way, a lot of hard work and to make States before we graduate feels amazing."

Georgallas extended the Holliston lead to 5-0 with two goals in the second period. The first came on a breakaway while the second came during a two-man advantage.

"It feels phenomenal," said Georgallas. "We came into this game and everyone wanted it, wanted to make States. No one in that locker room has ever made it and I like our chances."

Dover-Sherborn finally got on the board with 2:25 left in the second on a power-play goal from senior captain P.J. Copponi with an assist from junior Jared Spence.

But it was too little, too late for the Raiders on their home ice. The third period was all Holliston as the team (along with their visiting fans) could sense that their accomplishment of making the state tournament was drawing near. Turcotte scored twice and Mankus scored again in the final period for the lopsided final score.

"Before the first period we had a great 10-minute talk in pre-game," said LeBlanc. "I talked about 31 years ago, the Americans beat the Russians on this very day (February 22, 1980) so I told them anything can happen. It's a great feeling getting in."