Melissa Piacentini doesn’t look like a force on the ice at first glance. Piacentini is only 5 feet 3 inches, but she brings a dominant presence to the Syracuse offense.

“I think sometimes people think the size might fool you,” assistant coach Alison Domenico said. “She’s contributed for us a lot which is great. She kind of stepped into a big role.”

The freshman forward from South Weymouth, Mass., has played in every game this season for Syracuse (5-5, 2-0 College Hockey America), scoring two goals and recording four assists. She’s on the team’s second line alongside Shiann Darkangelo and Laurie Kingsbury, who stand at 5 feet 9 inches and 5 feet 10 inches, respectively.

“We call her ‘tiny,’” forward Holly Carrie-Mattimoe said. “Her linemates are usually (Darkangelo) and (Kingsbury) and they’re humungous.”

The trio has combined to score 12 of the team’s 29 goals while registering 10 assists this season. Mattimoe said the size difference between the players makes the unit more effective.

“Having that little one on that line, she can get out of any situation, is great,” Carrie-Mattimoe said. “It’s a totally different dynamic to have on that line.”

Kingsbury has missed the past four games due to injury, but in the line’s last game as a group, the three accounted for three goals and two assists.

While Piacentini had made a difference on the ice, her teammates said she could be more vocal in the locker room.

“She works hard, everyone can see that,” Mattimoe said. “But she can work hard on maybe being a vocal leader, which in a freshman position would be really great.”

Amy Hollstein, Piacentini’s head coach at Thayer (Mass.) Academy, said both her height and quiet nature in the locker room are deceiving.

“Melissa is very quiet,” Hollstein said. “But she leads by example. She’s not all that vocal on the ice in telling people what to do. But when she does, she can back it up.”

During her senior year at Thayer, Piacentini was named the co-MVP of the Independent School League. She also was Thayer’s MVP and earned all-league honors.

Besides her high school accomplishments, Piacentini was named to the 2012 All-New England Team for Division II. She also saw time on the ice while playing for Assabet Valley in the U19 Tier-I National Championships where her team won the gold.

Piacentini said that ice hockey has been a big part of a her life and that once she got to high school, she knew she wanted to play in college.

“I’ve played since I was like, 3. My brothers played, my dad played, it’s just a family thing,” Piacentini said. “Growing up, it was a dream of mine to play college hockey.”

Defender Jacquie Greco said she is impressed by Piacentini’s play so far. She also said that having Piacentini on the team has helped SU play well against tough opponents.

“At first when you look at her, she’s like 5 (feet) 2 (inches), so you think, ‘How is that girl at hockey?’” Greco said. “She’s actually really good, she’s fast, she’s quick.”

Greco also said that when the puck gets stuck in the corner, Piacentini always manages to get out of the corner with the puck.

While being 5 feet 2 inches might provide some challenges, Piacentini believes being small ultimately helps the team.

Said Piacentini: “I think I can definitely use my size to my advantage.”

Published on November 7, 2012 at 1:32 am

Contact David: dlauterb@syr.edu