New England Hockey Journal - December 2015 - 44

2015-16 PREP SCHOOL SEASON PREVIEw

By Craig Forde

fter capturing their 16th
consecutive ISL championship last season, the
ladies of Noble and Greenough feel that have much
more in store for this year, and with one
of the best one-two punches in the nation,
they are poised to back that up.
While there is always a wealth of talent at the ready for coach Tom Resor, this
year's squad might be the most talented
in years, with the proficient duo of Caitrin
Lonergan (Roslindale, Mass.) and Becca
Gilmore (Wayland, Mass.) standing at the
forefront of the Bulldogs' potent attack.
Though the two top-line forwards have
been playing together for only two years
now, they have done so at the highest
level possible, quickly forming a bond on
and off the ice and in turn developing a
formidable offensive force that strikes
fear in defenses across the prep world.
"We definitely over the years have
developed this chemistry together, on
and off the ice," said Gilmore. "It helps to
kind of train on what someone is thinking all the day and it translates on the
ice. We're able to see the ice pretty well

Caitrin Lonergan

Dave Arnold/New England Hockey Journal

Becca Gilmore

Girls

dOUbLE
TROUbLE
n Offensive dynamos Lonergan, Gilmore give Noble

and Greenough a sincere shot at 17 straight ISL crowns
and know where each other are without
looking, and that brings a tremendous
asset to hockey. We click really well."
"It didn't take them long," said Resor
of their ability to click. "They both have
great vision. They see the ice really well.
They have a sense where each other is
going to be."
They were both very aware of each
other, having endless run-ins, usually in
final games of state and national tournaments. The desire to play together was
always evident, but it did not happen until both were part of the Team USA U-18
squad that won the silver medal in Buda-

44 NEw ENGLAND HOCKEY JOURNAL December 2015

pest at the World Championships in 2014.
It was there that the on-ice bond finally
sparked, and when Lonergan transferred
from St. Paul's School to Nobles, it ensured that they would get an even greater
opportunity to team up on the ice, though
it would take nearly half the season for
that to become a consistent reality.
Short on defense, Resor asked newcomer Lonergan to help out on the blue
line to start last season, and the unselfish
junior did not hesitate.
"I think that speaks a lot about the
kind of kid she is," said Resor. "She's a
real team-first player."

That was something that the Nobles
coach found out about his new talent the
moment his team started prepping for the
season. "I realized we needed some help
back there and we had some good depth
at forward," he said. "It was clear with just
a few practices that with her skating ability, she could be an instant breakout. She
still contributed a lot offensively."
After securing things on defense for
the first 14 games of the season, Lonergan was moved to her natural center position, with Gilmore on her left.
Admittedly, both carry a different skill
set on the ice, with Lonergan the playmaker and Gilmore the sniper, but those
roles are interchangeable, as each carries
a hockey IQ unmatched at this level.
"Caitrin's more of an explosive player
who has tremendous speed, and we use
that to put pressure on the defense," said
Resor. "Becca is a little more of a cerebral
player in that she's very good at finding
where the weaknesses are and exploiting
them by her positioning.
"Caitrin might pass up a shot to look
for a perfect pass, and Becca has this
sense of when to release a shot."
While their offensive abilities are
measurable, their intangibles are some-

Free digital subscription at hockeyjournal.com/free

New England Hockey Journal - December 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of New England Hockey Journal - December 2015