Thursday, May 4, 2017

Duxbury Tops Hingham in Patriot League Thriller


By Marisa Ingemi (@Marisa_Ingemi)

HINGHAM - A three-goal fourth quarter pushed Duxbury past its rival Hingham on the road on Thursday night. The Dragons (8-2) came back from down two goals early to upend the Harbormen (10-3) in one of their milestone victories on the season.

Bobby Maimaron had three points and Riley Bergstrom emerged in the fourth quarter to help the Dragons capture victory.

“We came out with good energy,” Duxbury coach Chris Sweet said. “Our defense played really well, our goalie was outstanding and our offense was patient with the ball. If we have the ball, Hingham can’t score.”

The win comes after Duxbury fell to the rival Harbormen last season 14-6 in what was a down year for the Dragons. Now, with only two losses, Duxbury has proven its place in the Patriot League, and in the state.

“We’re a really different team than we were last year,” said Maimaron. “We have guys who are going to really come on here and work hard. There’s a lot of games circled, but this is the most meaningful one.”

Devin Irvin scored twice for Hingham, while Marc O’Rourke and Jake Quilty were each held to one goal. Goalie Perry Harris made five saves while Dragons goalie Henry Weld held off 13 shots from the Harbormen.

Joe Gooley also scored twice while Matt Gill had a goal and Charlie Gans had an assist. Hingham’s Jack Hennessey was held off the board as a goal scorer, and dished out just one assist.

Duxbury was able to take advantage of two extra man opportunities, but also allowed goals on two man-downs to Hingham.

The game had a slow pace, and despite Hingham winning most of the faceoffs, it was Duxbury that controlled the possession game, especially late, and could set the tone.

It was only the second time all season that the Harbormen were held to less than 10 goals, with seven goals in their loss to top-ranked Lincoln-Sudbury. It is the team’s first conference loss of the season and only their second loss to an in-state opponent.

Duxbury is in the midst of a tough stretch that will see the Dragons battle some of the state’s top teams. Showdowns with Medfield and Lincoln-Sudbury in the next two weeks will certainly show us what this team is made of. The Dragons are undefeated in conference play, but even going forward with the likes of Cohasset and Billerica remaining, it doesn’t get any easier.

The Dragons already surprised this season with a win over Seton Hall this past Sunday, and knocked off a tough Xaverian team. In what’s a cluttered top of the D1 landscape, Duxbury is starting to emerge as a true contender.

Even with the daunting task ahead, Duxbury can feel good about its signature win this season.

“They were simply better than us last year and they outplayed us in that game,” Sweet said. “This is a different year, different team. We certainly had to bring our A-game to beat Hingham, because they’re an outstanding team with a lot of weapons.”

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