By Mike Gurnis
Alexa Degan made sure the Prep championship trophy would stay with Morristown-Beard for at least one more year.
The freshman defenseman scored the game-winner in overtime on Tuesday afternoon, to lift top seed Morristown-Beard to a dramatic 4-3 win over second seed Pingry in the Prep Tournament final at Twin Oaks Ice Rink in Morristown.
It marked the fifth straight Prep title for the Crimson, who started their title streak in 2006- which was followed by a 10-year hiatus in the tournament- and picked up where it left on when the tournament resumed with wins in 2017, 2018, and 2019, prior to this year’s title.
Degan finished with two goals for Morristown-Beard, which improved its record to 14-5-1 with the win. Things got off to a very strong start, as it scored twice in the first period to build a 2-0 lead. Abigail Russell and Faith Facchini also scored, as Morristown-Beard took a 3-2 lead going into the third before Pingry tied it up in the third to send the game to overtime.
Cece Korn scored twice for Pingry. Allie Moss added a goal and an assist for the Big Blue in the loss.
Sasha Berniker made nine saves for Morristown-Beard, which out-shot Pingry 32-12.
The Morris-Sussex Hockey Report 