Knight Skaters Ready for 2011 Puck Drop

Girls Hockey

A dedicated group of North Andover High School girls is gearing up for another winter of hockey.

The girls may not have their own have their own team, but thanks to permission from the MIAA, they are in a cooperative program with four other schools.

Georgetown, Hamilton-Wenham, Masconomet, and Newburyport girls all team up to form the cooperative team. Putting aside their rivalry with Masconomet, as they did last season, was a willing commitemtnt the girls made to be able to competitively play the game that they love.

The girls will open up their season in the Pingree School Holiday Tournament this weekend in South Hamilton.

Their first game will be tomorrow afternoon at 3:30pm.

Other key games this season include tilts with Winthrop on Dec. 14, Medford on Jan. 14 and Westford Academy to close out the regular season on Feb. 21.

The girls’ home ice is the Talbot Rink in Gloucester.

Boys Hockey

The boys team will play its last preseason game on Saturday night against Tewksbury. That game will be at Merrimack College at 8pm.

The regular season will get underway on Thursday, Dec. 15 when the Knights travel to Pentucket for a 7pm game.

Knights head coach Peter Marfione is beginning his second year at the helm after a successful first year behind the North Andover bench.

Last year, the squad finished the season with disappointment after in the MIAA Division II North Tournament.

The Knights finished their 2010-11 campaign 11-7-4 under first year coach Peter Marfione.

This year the Knights will play a key game against Andover on Jan. 16 and another rivalry matchup will be on Feb. 15 against Masconomet.