Freshman goalie Sophia Luoni playing beyond her years for Natick girls hockey

MARLBOROUGH - Algonquin forward Ariya twice dragged the puck around the Natick defender at the blue line, opening a clear line of open ice to Redhawks goalie Sophia Luoni. That situation often favors the attacker with so many options.

Not with Luoni in net. The goalie waited out a toe drag and snatched the wrist shot out of the air comfortably in her glove.

"She always is in the right place. Her demeanor is always very calm and poised," Natick coach Bruce Ihloff said. "It's impressive, actually, as a freshman."

Luoni only looks it when she's standing in or near the goal to rest. The crossbar hangs level with her shoulders, but she covers every corner of the net despite her stature.

Natick's last goalie left big shoes to fill. Ellie Beigel led the Redhawks to the Final Four as a freshman in 2022 and back to the postseason a year ago. Natick coach Bruce Ihloff thought he finally found stability in the crease after converting and developing players for the better part of his decade at the helm.

"We would struggle. Every year I would have to take somebody off of JV and ask if they wanted to play in net," Ihloff said. "And it usually took two to three years for me to develop them into a player that could play at that level."

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Then Beigel transferred to the Rivers School and opened the net. Fortunately Luoni excels at closing down open space. She's played goalie since she was 8 years old, nearly half her life. No one else in Luoni's family played hockey. She decided she wanted to try goalie when switching through the positions and enjoyed it.

"I thought it was fun, and there's a lot of action," Luoni said.

She joined Natick's junior varsity program as an eighth grader and is a part of the Boston Junior Eagles club team.

"She's seen a higher level," Ihloff said. "She plays at a high level when she's not involved with the high school and some of these other teams that she plays with."

All of that experience prepared Luoni to step into the varsity starting role as a freshman. The JV and varsity programs spend a lot of time together, so she familiarized herself with her future teammates.

"I played club hockey my whole life, so I played a at a high level," Luoni said. "It was definitely a big transition, but I think I was ready for it."

So far so good. Natick started the season 7-4 ranked 25th in the latest MIAA Division 1 Power Rankings. The Redhawks have allowed 1.27 goals per game with three shutouts.

"It's a total game changer," Ihloff said. "She's technically very sound, she plays her position well. She understands the angles, and she works incredibly hard, especially in games, but in practice, too. She's been well trained."

As many saves as Luoni makes, it's also the ones she doesn't need. She discourages shots by regularly placing herself in the correct position. Pucks venturing into potentially dangerous areas are swatted aside or disrupted.

Luoni approaches each game with her head before her skates touch the ice.

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"Before every game I need to put myself in the right mindset," she said. "When I’m playing goalie, the mental game is stronger than the physical."

That confidence pours out into her teammates. When facing two-on-one breakaway situations, the Radhawks always play the pass and let Luoni face the shot.

"We can't always depend on her. We have to put her in situation that she can be successful. Our confidence in her is very high. If she can see it, she can stop it," Natick captain Maggie Rogers said. "It motivates us and makes us not have to worry about protecting the goalie the whole game."

The Redhawks then get to focus on generating offense. They know they don't need much of it with Luoni between the pipes.

"She's very confident in her ability, which rightfully so. She's very poised, and it's part of her DNA and just who she is," Ihloff said. "She's very qualified for the spot and just rises to the occasion. The bigger the game, the bigger the moment. She rises."

Contact Kyle Grabowski at kgrabowski@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @kylegrbwsk.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Natick girls hockey goalie Sophia Luoni impressing as a freshman