Vineyard girls skate to 6-0 win as Nan Rheault tourney beckons

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Lily Gazaille turned on the jets to skate past Cohasset/Hanover's Whitney Joy in Saturday's varsity win at the MV Arena. — Photo by Ralph Stewart

With the 11th annual Nan Rheault Invitational Ice Hockey Tournament to be held January 14-15 at the MV Arena, the Vineyard varsity girls come into this years’ event sporting a 4-2 record and perfect 3-0 mark in the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Mass. Girls Hockey League.

The Vineyarders blanked visiting division rivals Coshasset/Hanover 6-0 Saturday, their second win over the Indians in as many weeks.

Celia Mercier got the puck rolling in the first period, assisted by Emily Cimeno.

Cimeno scored twice in period two, first with help from Sydney Davies and Lizzy Kelleher, then from Mercier and Lily Gazaille. Celia Mercier closed out the period by scoring her second goal of the afternoon, unassisted.

The Islanders added two more in the final frame by Kassidy Bettencourt from Mercier and by Maggie Johnson assisted by Mercier and Tayla Kuehne.

Goalie Texe Craig applied the whitewash.

The 11th annual Nan Rheault

The Wilmington Wildcats and Peabody Tanners face off Saturday at 5 pm to get this year’s tournament under way. The Vineyard will take on Scituate at 7 pm.

Final games will be played on Sunday. The Consolation game is at 11 am. The Championship game will be at 1 pm.

The tourney is named for the late Nan Rheault of Oak Bluffs, a generous benefactor of the Arena and the founder of the tournament which bears her name.

Ave Sam

Before the tournament, former girls hockey coach Sam Sherman will be honored at a ceremony attended by former MVRHS students who were coached by Sam during his lengthy career as coach of the girls hockey team while Russ MacDonald, Paul Harrison, Glen Field, and Sandy Mincone were Athletic Directors. Parents of the former players and members of the current team will also be on hand.

Actually, Sam coached the boys hockey team for five years before taking on the challenge of developing a girls hockey program.

The Times joins the players, their parents, present girls coach John Fiorito and Sam’s many friends in congratulating him and thanking him for all of his efforts.

Jayvees girls split

On Saturday, at the Arena, the Vineyard girls junior varsity team, playing before and after last Saturday’s varsity game, lost to BMW (Bourne/ Mashpee/ Wareham), 0-6.

In the later game, the JVs beat Cohasset/Hanover, 5-1 on goals by Olivia Ogden, Erin Hagerty, Alice Keenan, and two by Alex Clark.