Shattuck-St. Mary’s Hockey Captures Four More Titles at USA Hockey National Championships

The Boys and Girls Prep teams repeated as champions in the Tier I 18U Boys and Tier I 19U Girls divisions, respectfully. The Boys U18 team continued its dominance at the High School National Championships taking home its third consecutive title and second in the prep division. Meanwhile, the Girls U16 team won the Tier I Girls 16U championship for the first time since 2016.

Following a thrilling come-from-behind overtime victory in the national semifinal, the Boys Prep team once again found itself in a hole as it trailed the Yale Jr. Bulldogs 1-0 after the first period. A timely goal by Kaeden Hawkins off an assist by Drew Waterfield halfway through the game evened the score, before Waterfield netted a goal of his own with 5:34 remaining in the second period to give the Sabres the lead. SSM outshot the Jr. Bulldogs 11-2 in the final frame to ensure the victory.

The Girls Prep team faced a familiar foe in its Girls U19 title game as it took on the top-seeded BK Selects, a team that handed SSM one of its five losses earlier in the season. The Sabres wasted little time getting on the board as Jordyn Petrie capitalized on a turnover and found the back of the net just eight seconds into the contest. BK responded with a goal with just under two minutes remaining in the first to send the teams into the locker room tied 1-1.

The Selects buried a rebound at 12:02 of the second to take a 2-1 lead, but sophomore Kylie Amelkovich scored the equalizer with 4:31 left in the period. Despite the teams trading chances in the third, neither was able to score the go-ahead, forcing overtime. Just 1:21 into the extra frame, Lauren Glaser redirected a shot by Ella Muralt that made its way into the net and sent the Sabres into a celebration. The win clinched back-to-back championships for the first time in six years and secured coach Gordie Stafford’s tenth national title at the helm of the program.

The Boys U18 team avenged a loss to the Springfield Thunderbirds earlier in the tournament to successfully defend their High School Prep national title from one year ago. The Thunderbirds got things started with a tally at 9:42 of the opening frame, but SSM used one goal each period to put the game away. Marc-Alan Araujo, Hank Garrett, and Michael Kotora were the goal scorers for SSM while Lukas Bergman stopped 29-of-30 shots he faced.

Fresh off the high of an overtime victory in the semifinal, the Girls U16 team cruised to a 3-0 victory over the BK Selects to claim the championship. Jilian Klein, the overtime hero from the day prior, put the Sabres on the board with a redirect off a shot by Lexie Lonask at 9:58 of the second period. Just 1:16 later, Nina Rossi buried a top shelf on the penalty kill to give the Sabres a two-goal cushion. Tess Martin iced the game with an empty-netter with just under a minute remaining.

This year was particularly special as it marked the tenth national titles for both Tom Ward and Gordie Stafford. Additionally, for the first time in Shattuck-St. Mary’s history, a team coached by two women won a national championship with Ellie Williams ’11 and Melissa Boik behind the bench for the Girls U16 title.

SSM Director of Hockey, Ben Umhoefer ’05, reflected on the year, “The 2023-2024 hockey season was filled with many special moments, a long list of accomplishments, and tremendous leadership from our senior class,” said Umhoefer. “To finish the year with four more national championships is another unforgettable chapter in our program’s history. Eight national titles and three runner-up finishes in two years is unprecedented, and a testament to the strength of Shattuck-St. Mary’s School and our entire community.”

SSM has now won a total of 36 national championships within the hockey program.