Girls' Hockey Seniors Have Unfinished Business

They’ve laced up their skates together since they learned how to walk. However, in the next month, the six seniors on the girls’ hockey team will play together for the last time.

All they want: Another shot at St. Mary’s of Lynn in the Division 1 state finals—even though the three-time defending state champion Spartans are considered to be the toughest team around.

Correction.

“We’re the toughest,” Woburn center Colleen Martell was quick to point out after a recent practice.

After losing to St. Mary’s in the last two state finals, the seniors believe this year’s team has what it takes to go all the way—and with good reason.

Woburn fell 7-2 in last year’s state championship game but tied St. Mary’s 1-1 earlier this season on Saturday, Jan. 29. The Tanners were actually leading 1-0 until a late equalizer. St. Mary’s (14-0-3, 4-0) is currently riding a 94-game unbeaten streak.

With four games remaining in the regular season, Woburn (14-1-1, 13-1) has only lost one game, compared to its 9-6-5 record a season ago. The team lost its second game of the season 3-1 to Lexington (12-2-2, 11-1-2) but already avenged the loss, beating the Minutemen 4-0 in the rematch on Saturday, Jan. 22.

For most teams, winning breeds happiness, but for this team, the opposite is also true.

“We love playing together, we’re all friends,” senior forward Siobhan Duran said. “We know it’s our last time together, and we want to enjoy it.”

The girls’ upbeat attitude carries over off the ice, whether it's singing Ke$ha in the locker room before and after games, with Duran leading the way, or threatening coach Bob MacCurtain with water balloons after practice at O’Brien Rink.

“They know how to keep things light,” MacCurtain said understatedly, “but at the same time, there’s a mentality of wanting to win.

“When we need something to get done, when we’ve had a bad practice or game, they know how to get the group together, how to regain focus.”

Martell, the team’s leading scorer, and Duran are both forwards on the team’s first line. Senior Hannah Magee plays first-line defense, while Kelly Duran, Siobhan’s cousin, is an aggressive forward on the second line. Meg Moore backs up freshman Courtney Davis in net, while defenseman Alaina Schiano has missed the entire season thus far with a back injury.

Schiano, who was a significant contributor her first three years and even helped out at games during middle school, said it’s been tough to watch from the bench, but it’s also made her appreciate the game and her teammates.

“I now realize how important hockey was, and I’m grateful I had the other years,” said Schiano, who was recently cleared to skate.

Growing up in a town with hockey fever usually reserved for Canadian provinces, the girls have lost track of the hours, days, months and years they’ve spent at O’Brien Rink.

“It’s like a second home,” Siobhan Duran said.

The winger started out as a figure skater and ice dancer, even though her brother and sister played hockey.

“We’d split our backyard rink, and I’d be twirling around, and they’d start shooting pucks at me,” she said. “So one day I went in and put on my dad’s old hockey skates.”

Most of the girls have never used a toe pick, including Martell, who’s amassed over 150 points in her Woburn career.

Moving forward, the seniors will have to rely on a number of key underclassmen, including Davis, first-line forward Kayla Smith and first-line defenseman Cassandra Connolly.

MacCurtain said his team needs to play complete games and finish scoring chances in order to achieve its ultimate goal.

Woburn travels to Stoneham today for a 6 p.m. game, before concluding league play at home against Winchester at 6 p.m. on Saturday.