ITEM FILE PHOTO
Mike Zampanti scored a pair of goals for St. Mary’s Saturday.
By GORDON VINCENT
WOBURN — After a scoreless first period, St. Mary’s boys hockey coach Mark Lee gave his team a pep talk in the locker room.
The speech had the intended effect.
The Spartans scored three times in the second period and rolled to a 5-1 win over Triton, in a Division 1 North quarterfinal round tournament game Saturday at the Ned O’Brien Ice Rink.
Mike Zampanti had a pair of goals for the No. 6 Spartans (15-7-2), while Dante Maribito, Colin Reddy and 8th-grader Jaiden Moriello added one goal each. Reddy added a pair of assists, while Anthony Bono had three assists before leaving the game late with an apparent shoulder injury.
John D’Arcy scored for third-seeded Triton (13-5-3).
The Spartans face No. 10 Arlington Catholic (12-6-4), a Catholic Central League rival, in the sectional semifinals Wednesday (5:30) at Tsongas Arena in Lowell.
Dante Maribito and Reddy scored 16 seconds apart midway through the second period. Nick Napolitano flipped a pass from the corner to Maribito in the high slot, and his low shot beat Triton goaltender Ben Fougere. Reddy scored on a rebound of a shot from the right point by Kyle Ouellette.
Less than three minutes later, Bono sent a backhand pass from behind the net to a streaking Zampanti, whose shot from the slot went over Fougere’s right shoulder.
“We didn’t feel we played that well in the first period,” said Lee. “We didn’t really make any adjustments, we just told the kids to go out and play the kind of hockey we’re capable of playing.”
Triton scored its only goal with just under two minutes left in the second period, on a power play. Barrett Towns fired a shot from the left point that was saved by St. Mary’s goalie Anthony LoRusso, but the rebound went right to D’Arcy, who flipped the puck into the net.
The Vikings nearly added another goal in the final minute of the second period, but defenseman Kory Ouellette, another 8th-grader, broke up a 2-on-1 rush.
Zampanti essentially put the game away with his second goal 32 seconds into the third period. Reddy kept the puck alive for Bono, who fired a shot from the right circle that Zampanti tipped past Fougere. Moriello scored the Spartans’ fifth and final goal with just under 10 minutes left, on a rebound.
“That fourth goal we got early in the third period was big for us,” Lee said. “We had given up a goal late in the second period and that goal (by Zampanti) gave us back some momentum.
LoRusso stopped 14 of 15 shots before giving way to Kevin McMullin with 3:48 left. McMullin stopped all four shots he faced.
