Knights' Championship Hopes Dashed by Celtics' Strong Performance
Posted on 02/23/2024
By Larry Moko
The visitors spoiled a possible 25th anniversary celebration for the St. Thomas More Knights.
It was 1999 that St. Thomas More won its first Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic girls’ high school hockey championship.
On Wednesday, after finishing the 2023-24 regular season in first place and advancing in the playoffs, More was vying for the title again.
But the second-place Bishop Ryan Celtics got a pair of goals by Aly Pescetti along with shutout goaltending from Kylee Boehmer en route to a 4-0 victory over the Knights at Morgan Firestone Arena. It was the second consecutive year the Celtics have hoisted the H-W Catholic girls’ hockey trophy in celebration.
“It’s been a while since we’ve won the championship,” More coach Trevor Young said. “I was actually a student at the school back then.”
Young, who has been coaching for 19 years, praised the performance of the Celtics who built a 3-0 first-period lead.
“They came out strong,” he said. “They played a good game from start to finish, scoring goals early and then playing well defensively.”
Boehmer agreed: “We really brought it to STM, especially in the first period with three goals,” she said. “They (her teammates) were all incredible. They all showed up to play. We knew what was at stake.”
Just 56 seconds after the opening faceoff, centre Pescetti skated past four defenders in the middle of the ice and raced in alone to out-guess More netminder Angelina Berardi with a deke.
A feed through by Mya Tolstoshei then set up teammate Evalina Veysey for the second BR marker.
Caitlyn Pottinger accounted for the third Celtic goal when her shot on the rush deflected in off the crossbar. The ice officials briefly huddled together to discuss whether or not the puck had actually entered the net before making their ruling.
Pescetti’s power-play goal capped the scoring in the second period. On the play, she carried the puck down the wing before cutting in and firing a perfectly-place shot.
“A lot of people just love watching her (Pescetti) play,” the three-year veteran BR goaltender said. “She’s special.”
Although BR enjoyed a territorial edge, More had a handful of in-alone opportunities from close range that Boehmer blocked.
“She answered the bell every time,” Celtics coach Paul Altobelli said.
One More forward who missed an open net while standing at the edge of the crease, put her hands on her helmet in disbelief.
“Their goalie made some big saves,” Young said, “but we had good chances and just couldn’t find the back of the net.”
More was undefeated during the regular schedule (9-0-1). Their only tie was against Bishop Ryan. Bishop Ryan’s record was 7-1-2. The Knights edged the Bishop Tonnos Titans, 4-3, in one semifinal while the Celtics downed the St. John Henry Newman Cardinals, 3-2, in the other.
“The talk in the change room today was that we couldn’t let up for the whole game,” Altobelli said. “More is a strong team. We just had to keep working and things would happen.”
Other members of the Celtics are Mary Monaghan, Dannika Lima, Julia Sayej, Maya Valeri, Alyssa Hargot, Sofia Van Dalen, Taelyn Bell, captain Keira Savin, Cali Richmond, Kailee Trowbridge, Bianca Della Maestra, Jade Perger, Ella Xamin and Lilly Polak.
Next up for Bishop Ryan is a Golden Horseshoe Athletic Conference semifinal on March 4 against the Halton public board champions. The Celtics failed to qualify for the OFSAA tournament last year when they lost a third-period lead at GHAC against the Oakville Trafalgar Red Devils.
Photos by Richard Andoga
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