Page 12 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – Friday, February 28, 2020 Saugus hockey completes tough season By Greg Phipps I t looks as if the Saugus High School hockey team will be seeking to rebuild for next season after experiencing a tough two-win campaign this winter. The Sachems went down to defeat against Winthrop in their season finale last week and now set their sights on the future. Head coach Jeff Natalucci saw his young team fi nish 2-171 and play well in spurts, but it wasn’t enough to produce wins. The Sachems’ two victories came against the equalSaugus’s all-star forward, Lorenzo Keegan, led the team in scoring this season. With about half of this year’s ance for the Sachems came in Senior Northeastern Conference all-star goalie Jack Devereaux will be missed, as he faced an average of 45 shots per game and kept the Sachems in a lot of contests. (Advocate Photos by Greg Phipps) 2017 when they fi nished with 11 victories and advanced to the semifinal round. In both 2018 and 2019, Saugus was competitive, managing six wins and fi ve ties, but still placed out of the playoff picture. team made up of tenth-graders or younger, the Sachems hope the development of these players will benefi t the team down the road. Among the graduating seniors are forward Lorenzo Keegan, who was one of the team’s leading scorers this winter, wings Richie Mauro and Nick Alba, Zack Falasca and Tommy Jarosz. Senior goalie Jack Devereaux may be missed the most, as he was stellar in net ly struggling Lynn Jets. It was the seventh time in the past eight seasons that Saugus, with a proud hockey tradition, has missed qualifying for the playoff s. The last postseason appearall season, facing an estimated 45 shots per game. Devereaux and Keegan made the Northeastern Conference allstar team, and junior center Jason Caron was also one of the team’s off ensive stalwarts this year. Natalucci told the press just before the Sachems’ fi nal game against Winthrop that he is proud of his players despite the lack of wins, and that they worked hard and kept a positive attitude. Saugus boys eliminated by Watertown in opening round By Greg Phipps t was a strong fi nish to the season for the Saugus High School boys’ basketball team. I The Sachems emerged victorious in six of their last nine games. Unfortunately, the fi rst round of the Div. 3 North playoff s was one of the three defeats, as Saugus was eliminated by Watertown, 56-45, on Tuesday. The setback left the 13thseeded Sachems with an overall 9-12 record for 2019-20. At one point in the season, Saugus held a 3-9 mark and looked to be struggling despite having received a postseason bid due to a state rule regarding regular-season wins against higher division opponents. The Sachems gave their season much more legitimacy by producing several key Northeastern Conference wins (particularly against Danvers, Marblehead and Lynn Classical) down the stretch and fi nishing with nine overall victories. In the loss at No. 4 Watertown, Saugus couldn’t quite match up with the hosts. Senior Christian Correia was again the leader offensively with 14 points. He also hauled down eight rebounds. Myles Manalaysay, as the season wore on, proved to be a valuable transfer pickup for the program from Lynn English. He netted 13 points on Tuesday. Mason Nickolas, who was coming back from a football injury and came on strong as the season advanced, fi nished in double fi gures with 12 points.
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