Despite losing two games in the Christmas Tournament, Andover emerged from the tournament with a narrow win in a nail-biting shootout against a previously undefeated Lawrenceville team.
Lawrenceville earned one goal early in the game, but Andover fought back, pushing to even out the score. Shortly afterwards, Caroline Garrity ’15 slapped the puck into Lawrenceville’s goal to tie the game. Andover kept itself in the game with a strong penalty kill and a relentless power play. Another newcomer to Andover’s team, Anna Fucillo ’15, put one away to bring Andover ahead 2-1. With about a minute left in the game, Lawrenceville managed to score one final shot to tie the game and send it into overtime.
The score remained deadlocked during overtime, forcing the game into a shootout. After four shots each, neither team had scored. Sending the puck sailing right over the goalie’s glove hand, Amy Morin ’14 earned Andover’s only goal in the shootout. Lawrenceville then had one more shot, but post graduate goaltender Corinne Rivard ’12 blocked the shot just above her right shoulder to secure the game and end Lawrenceville’s winning streak.
Andover lost its next game 4-1 despite a great effort against Hotchkiss. The team attributes the loss to mental lapses and fatigue in its defensive zone. Hannah Sorkin ’14 said, “Most of their goals happened when we were stuck in our zone, chasing the puck around.”
In the third period, Andover won a face-off in its neutral zone and sent the puck back to Sorkin, who carried it up the ice and took a wrist shot from the top of the zone to make the score 3 to 1. Andover then pulled Rivard, but Hotchkiss scored an empty netter to secure its 4-1 win.
Andover’s final game of the tournament was against a strong and experienced Choate team. Both teams fought hard in the first period, but neither scored. In the second period, Choate’s best player took a low and hard slap shot from the point on the power play that went into the back of the net. Choate cycled the puck well, tiring out Andover. Despite Andover’s best efforts, Choate maintained its momentum to earn 2-0 lead going into the third period.
Halfway through the third, Sorkin recognized a space left open for her by a Choate defender and skated around to the back of the net. She then played the puck back up to the top of the crease to Marianne Brunet ’12. Andover pulled Rivard once again to see if they could send the game into overtime, but Choate found the back of the net once more to win the game 4 to 1.
Co-Captain Brooke Van Valkenburg ’12 said, “I think staying that extra week at school helped us come together and develop a really strong team dynamic. We did a lot of bonding together, and I’m really looking forward to the rest of the season.”
Hoping to avenge its loss, Andover hosts Choate tomorrow at 1:15 p.m.
