SD Prep Sports

SD Prep Sports: Roller Hockey

Barons stand alone at 13-0 in battle of Metro unbeatens

BV's Supergirl comes to rescue with hat trick in 5-0 win against Mar Vista

By Phillip Brents

Photo: Bonita Vista Barons celebrate win No. 13 without a loss

NATIONAL CITY, Jan. 26 – And then there was one: Bonita Vista.

The Barons remained the lone undefeated team in the 18-team Metro Conference after rolling past Mar Vista, 5-0, in a game between the conference’s last two unbeaten squads Wednesday night at Skate San Diego.

A standing room crowd watched as Bonita Vista received a hat trick from the conference’s most amazing player, Kelly Nash, and a solid performance from perhaps its best goaltender, Cody Mazzarrela, in handing the South Bay League champion Mariners their first loss in 13 games.

The Barons’ "Supergirl" struck for two goals in a span of 3:04 in the final period to turn a tenuous 1-0 Bonita Vista lead into a commanding 3-0 edge while Mazzarella took care of the rest between the pipes with clutch saves, particularly in the middle period when Mar Vista exerted most of its pressure in the game.

Both teams entered the high-profile encounter with identical 12-0-0 records.

Thirteen proved to be the lucky number for the Barons.

"We really knew we had to focus on better positioning and working the puck around a little more and staying back on defense," BV coach Keith Quigley said. "Cody played a wonderful game in the net. We knew we were going to have a real tough game against Mar Vista. We knew the team play would have to step up. I’m very happy with the effort out by our team. They skated hard for three periods."

Down 3-0 after Nash scored with 10:01 left in the game, the Mariners seemed to play the final half of the third period with their sails down. Nash completed her natural hat trick with 3:02 to play. The Barons added a final goal off the stick of Nash’s older brother Brent with 1:25 left.

Mar Vista coach Ron Cole offered no excuses, saying his team had little time to dwell on the loss with upcoming games against Eastlake, Westview and Rancho Bernardo in the next week. The Mariners had entered the game with eight shutouts in 12 games as the top-rated defensive team in the conference.

Photo: Blake Tanner maneuvers through Mar Vista defenders

Bonita Vista ranked first in the conference in goals scored and second in goals allowed.

"They just flat out beat us," Cole said in reference to the loss against Bonita Vista.

If there was one play that turned the momentum around in the game it was the Barons’ second goal scored just 1:55 into the final period. Nash intercepted an errant pass at mid-court and swooped in alone on MV goaltender Mike Gisi, beating him to the short side.

"It always goes in on that move," she said.

Nash entered the game with 31 goals and 29 assists as the Mesa League’s second-leading point-scorer. The Mesa League leader, James Arakaki, gave the Barons an early 1-0 lead when he scored his 42nd goal and 65th point in 13 games with 4:25 elapsed in the game. He slid a low shot from just outside the face-off circle past Gisi, who earlier had stopped two bullets fired his way.

Nash picked her spots, scoring both low and high. "Kelly was the complete finisher today," Quigley said.

Mazzarella, meanwhile, frustrated the conference’s top scorer, Mar Vista’s Ian Nicklen, throughout the game. Nicklen, with 44 goals and 70 points in 12 games, was held scoreless while finding normally open shooting lanes closed off by the Baron defense.

With the top record among South County teams, Bonita Vista will now be out to show its 13-0-0 record can stand up against the best the rugged North County League can offer. The Barons engage Scripps Ranch, last year’s Kiwanis Cup champions, in what shapes up to be an exceptional cross-league battle Jan. 31 at 4:30 p.m. at Skate San Diego. A game against Vista follows on Feb. 2 at 7:30 p.m. at the same site.

"It’s going to get exciting starting now … Scripps Ranch, Poway …" Quigley said with a gleam in his eye.