Sports
Sports Brief: JNP Completes D-III Finals Sweep of Mt. Hope With 4-0 Win
The Cougars surrendered six goals in a loss to Mt. Hope on New Year's Eve, but JNP blanked the Huskies twice to win the best-of-three championship series.
Second-seeded Mt. Hope was the only team to defeat the -North Providence Cougars during the regular season, but No. 1 JNP took two straight from the Huskies at Schneider Arena, including a 4-0 victory on March 19 to capture the Division III championship.
The Cougars shut down the high-scoring Huskies to take Game 1 by a 3-0 score, and junior goaltender Matthew Domaingue posted a second consecutive shut-out to complete the best-of-three sweep. Domaingue turned aside 17 shots Thursday and 32 more Saturday, repeatedly denying two of the league’s top three scorers.
Mt. Hope’s Ed Botelho led Division III with 60 points during the regular season, and Gian DiMezza netted 50 points—including 25 goals—to finish third. Mt. Hope scored a league-high 113 goals in league play, and the Huskies outscored third-seeded East Providence, 13-6, to secure a semifinal series victory and move on to Providence College for a third consecutive year.
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The Huskies celebrated their first Division III championship in 2010 after finishing second to The Prout School in 2009, but they could not defend their title in 2011.
M.V.P. Damon Ascenzi led the Cougars past Mt. Hope with three points in two games, including a goal and an assist in Game Two. He and linemate Mackenzie Olink helped David Delgizzo score the game-winning goal during the second period Saturday.
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Delgizzo was also given credit for another goal during the third period, but the senior and his coaches said after the game that recognition for the short-handed strike should have gone to defender Nico Manzotti.
The Cougars penalty-killers scored again during the latter stanza when Delgizzo and Andrew Delicio hooked up with Daniel Evans for his second goal of the series. Ascenzi scored the fourth and final goal, with help from Olink and Ryan Rotondi, to clinch the win.
The Cougars finished the regular season with Division III’s best record (14-1-1-0), falling only to Mt. Hope, 6-1, December 31. JNP did defeat the Huskies December 10, 5-1, and the Cougars moved past fourth-seeded Cranston East to earn the first Finals bid for either Johnston or North Providence in more than a decade.
Watch JohnstonPatch for Jared Sugerman's full re-cap of the game, including additional photos and videos, tomorrow at 2 p.m. on JohnstonPatch
