Mt. Hope High School winter sports athletes continue their pursuits of local and regional titles this week, including skaters for the two area hockey co-operatives involving Huskies.

The Hurricanes boys' squad — composed of players from Mt. Hope, Rogers, Middletown, Tiverton and East Providence — saw its 2024-25 season come to a close with a 3-0 loss to North Kingstown Monday night, Feb. 24, in the preliminary round of the Division III championship tourney.

The ninth-seeded 'Canes traveled the Boss Arena on the campus of the University of Rhode Island in Kingstown to take on the eighth-seeded Skippers for the right to advance into the main draw of the event and a quarterfinal round contest against top-seeded East Greenwich Thursday, Feb. 27.

Unfortunately for the locals, it was N.K. that prevailed, the hosts holding a 1-0 lead after two periods, then potting a second goal at the start of the third to gain a bit of breathing room. According to 'Canes' assistant and Mt. Hope representative on the coaching staff Cam Rancourt, the Skippers "had a very good game plan against us. We had our chances (to score) in the second, but we just didn't convert. Then they scored early in the third and kind of sucked the life out of us."

The Hurricanes ended the first year for the regional co-op with a 5-10-2 overall record in league games, including a pair of shoot-out wins — 4-3 victory over Lincoln High and a 6-5 over the Coventry-Johnston co-op — sandwiched around a 5-1 defeat to the Blackstone Valley Schools co-op during the final week of the regular season.

Among the positives results for the locals was the win over Coventry-Johnston. The 'Canes took penalty shots, 3-2, courtesy of goals by Colton Kerrison, Evan Agren and Ben Browne. The locals recovered for the victory after coughing up a 5-1 lead in regulation. Agren notched his then team-best 13th goal of the year. Kerrison netted his sixth, Browne and Brayden Swanycamp their fifth, respectively, and David Silvia his third. Agren also had two assists, lifting his total to 10 at the time.

Browne also scored the lone tally in the loss to Lincoln. Browne, who finished his winter with seven goals, actually scored in the 'Canes final three games, including their regular season finale at home in Newport at St. George's against Lincoln.

Silvia and Kerrison accounted for the other goals in regulation, which saw the locals let a 3-0 lead evaporate. Agren, Kerrison and Mt. Hope's Nathan Carpenter, whose only shot on net in the game came during the shoot-out.

East Bay girls' hockey
On the girls' side, three Mt. Hope players (starting goalie Nadia Albritton along with forwards Rachael Thurston and Elia Bahan) and their mates from Barrington, Portsmouth and E.P. on the East Bay Eagles co-op enter the state championship playoffs as the fifth seed and will face fourth-seeded Northern Rhode Island Yeti co-op in a best-of-three quarterfinal round series.

Games begin Friday night, Feb. 28, at Burrillville's Levy Rink at 7:30. The second contest is set for Saturday, March 1, at the Portsmouth Abbey Rink at 2 p.m. The day, site and time of a third game, if necessary is to be determined.

The Eagles finished their regular season with a 5-9-0 overall record. The Yeti (Ponaganset, Burrillville, North Smithfield, Bay View, Woonsocket, Cumberland, Lincoln and St. Raphael) completed their slate with a 8-12-0 overall mark and 8-9-0 in the league, including a pair of victories over East Bay, 5-1 and 6-0. NRI earned the higher seed over East Bay due to its better score under the Interscholastic League's new power ranking system.

Swimming
Mt. Hope High swimmers ready to vie in the 2025 Rhode Island State Championship Meets Saturday, March 1, at Brown University.

The boys' begins the action at 9 a.m. Three Huskies qualified to swim individually including Finn Pansa, who met the mark in seven events, but who will compete in the 200 and 100-yard freestyles. Sam Coles qualified for four events, deciding to swim the 50 free and 100-yard backstroke. Cohen Ferreira will swim the 100-yard breaststroke. Each is also eligible to swims relays. In addition, the following Huskies will swim only relays: Liam Gagner (medley), Kieran Riedl (medley), Ben Coles (medley, 200 free, 400 free).

The girls' competition follows at 2:30 p.m. when a pair of Huskies who also qualified in multiple events will swim a pair. Jessica Deal is entered in the 200 and 500 frees while Olivia Taylor swims the 100-yard butterfly and 100 back. again, both will also swim relays. And as with the boys, the following girls will compete in just relays: Bridget Courtney (medley), Vivian Goodman (medley), Hazel Bradley (medley, 200 and 400 free), Emma Quigley (medley, 200 and 400 free).

Indoor track
One of the Mt. Hope athletes who earned the right to compete in the 2025 New England High School Indoor Track and Field Championships Saturday, March 1, at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Boston will attend the meet.

Senior Lola Silva will represent the Huskies in the girls' long jump competition. Silva enters the competition as the seventh-seed the event.

Thea Jackson, however, will miss the meet. The junior, who qualified to run the girls' 55-meter dash and hurdles and vie in the long jump, has a conflict with a travel team soccer tournament. Most will know, Jackson is an All-State player on the pitch.

The aforementioned Deal also was on the fringes of getting a spot in the girls' 3,000-meters, but will compete in the state swim meet instead.