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Updated: December 31, 2024 @ 2:08 pm
Woburn High played a solid game despite a 2-1 loss earlier this week.
Woburn High played a solid game despite a 2-1 loss earlier this week.
Woburn High played a solid game despite a 2-1 loss earlier this week.
Woburn High played a solid game despite a 2-1 loss earlier this week.
Woburn High played a solid game despite a 2-1 loss earlier this week.
Woburn High played a solid game despite a 2-1 loss earlier this week.
After a 10-day break in competition, the Woburn High girls’ hockey team
jumped straight into the deep end of the pool.
The Tanners turned in a quality effort, but MIAA Div. 1 power Peabody/Lynnfield/North
Reading (PLNR) managed to edge them, 2-1, in a non-league game, Saturday
afternoon at O’Brien Rink.
The Blue Hornets scored early in the opening period, and Woburn tied the game at 1-1,
late in the stanza. PLNR went ahead to stay late in the second period and then killed off
two penalties in the third to hold on for the close win.
“I’m very happy with the effort today,” said Woburn coach Steve Kennedy, whose team
is now 2-1 on the season. “At the end of the season last year we wanted to make our
non-league schedule tougher. This was one of the first teams we wanted to bring in
because you have to measure yourself against the best teams out there. They (PLNR)
are deep, they are talented, they are well-coached.”
The Blue Hornets took a 1-0 lead at 2:41 of the first period. Chloe Gromko took a pass
from
Sydney Zizza and scored on a shot from low in the slot.
Each team was forced to kill off a penalty over the next several minutes and were
successful in doing so.
Woburn struck with the tying goal with 50 seconds left in the first.
Senior captain Kate Sullivan made a strong rush from center ice into the PLNR zone,
taking the puck down the left side and behind the net before spotting assistant captain
Ella Spinazola in front of the net. Spinazola took the pass low in the slot and sent a
perfect shot underneath the crossbar.
Tanners’ goalie Cadence Pearce stopped seven of eight shots in the first period and
had her
best game of the season, thus far, stopping 16 of 18 shots, and keeping Woburn within
striking distance with some big stops.
“Cadie had been outstanding for us the past couple of seasons and I thought she
played very well today,” said Kennedy. “She did just what she had to do, she made all
the saves that she had to make. The first goal was a bit of a tough bounce that went
their way, the second goal we had a defensive lapse. We left somebody too open in
front and they put it away, which is what they are supposed to do. I though Cadie played
really well which is what we have come to expect from her. She’s not a new goalie
anymore. She’s trained really hard, she’s worked really hard to put herself in the
position she is in. We expect her to come out and be the brick wall she is, every game.”
Woburn killed off another penalty in the second period and the Tanners had some
chances to take the lead, but were denied by Blue Hornets’ goalie Alyse Mutti.
PLNR took the lead when Shirley Whitmore sent a pass out front from the right corner.
The puck got caught within some skates out front and Mia Lava took a whack at the
puck and it found its way into the left side of the net for a 2-1 lead at 11:53.
“I thought our kids came out today and they really battled,” said Kennedy. “I think the
effort we put in defensively was significant. We have a theme this year of ‘All Ice
Defense’ and we did a pretty good job defending in all three zones, and making sure
that was a priority.”
As the second period ended, the Blue Hornets took a roughing penalty, which meant
Woburn would start the third period with a full power play. Unfortunately, the Tanners
were not able to cash in on that opportunity, as well as on another PLNR penalty at
4:18. In fact, the Blue Hornet defense held Woburn to just two shots on net in the third.
“Offensively I thought we played pretty well together,” said Kennedy. “I thought in the
first period we had a couple good chances. We got tired as the game went on – that
happens – but I thought our offense, while our production was low, I thought our play
was pretty solid.”
Overall, the Tanners may not have won the game, but they got what they were looking
for in
terms of testing themselves against quality competition.
“There are a lot of positives to take away from a tight, one-goal game,” said Kennedy.
“There’s a lot for us to build on today.”
The Tanners have one more challenging game before they get back to the Middlesex
League
schedule, next weekend. Woburn will host HPNA (Haverhill/Pentucket/North Andover),
Tuesday afternoon (2:30 p.m.), at O’Brien Rink.
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