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By Michael Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
The Medfield and Dover-Sherborn High School boys varsity hockey teams met for the first time this season on Saturday night in Franklin, with the Warriors prevailing 3-1 in a tightly contested match.
Junior forward Tommy Schofield, who currently leads the team in points (five), got the Warriors on the board first less than three minutes into the game when he wacked home the rebound of a David Corrigan shot, giving Medfield the early 1-0 advantage.
Medfield’s Owen Murphy (14) and Dover-Sherborn’s Joe Paolotto (21) fight for a loose puck in the second period. Photo by Paul Goldberg.
The Warriors entered the second frame still ahead 1-0, but after a flurry of chances, the Raiders were finally able to even the score with 6:47 remaining in the period thanks to sophomore forward Max Tjen. Senior forward Kevin Donoghue outmuscled a Medfield defender in a race for a loose puck at the blue line and fed a pass to a streaking Joe Paolotto down the left wing. Paolotto fired a shot-pass on net that was redirected in front by Tjen and into the back of the net, knotting the game at one.
Just over three minutes later, however, the Warriors responded on the power play with a goal coming from sophomore forward Brian Abely to give Medfield back the lead at 2-1 with 3:34 to play in the second.
With time winding down in the period, the Warriors struck again with Tom Schofield netting his second goal of the night on a tip in front, and the Warriors entered the break up by a pair.
The Warriors did a phenomenal job at containing the DS offensive attack during the final period of play by blocking shot after shot, locking down the slot, and winning the battle for loose pucks in the corners. Medfield held off a furious push by the Raiders during the game’s final minutes, and held on for the 3-1 victory.
At the time of print, both teams are set to return to the ice on December 21 with Medfield squaring off against TVL power Medway, while DS will play host to Newton-South.
