Evagelia Toffoloni ’15 shot the puck off of the Brooks goalie’s right pad, and Lexi Davidson ’17 picked up the rebound at the bottom of the left circle and fired it home to give Andover Girls Hockey the lead in the first period in their 2-1 victory over Brooks this past Monday. The team played lockdown defense, holding Brooks to one shot in the second period. At the start of the third period, Maggie Walsh ’14 weaved through three Brooks defenders on her way to a backhand goal to give Andover a 2-0 lead. “Beating Brooks was awesome, and the two goals were both beautiful. It was a really good game overall, but especially after the first period the team came together to pull out the win,” said Kasey Welch ’16. “We all wanted to win so badly, and we worked so hard as a team. It was one of the highlights of the season.” Davidson added, “I think that our win against Brooks was awesome. We outskated, outhustled and, most importantly, out-scored them. It was great to not have another tie. I also think it helped the overall attitude of the team.” Brooks got on the scoreboard with just over a minute left in the third period on a shot from the slot, but, besides that goal, Andover’s defense and goaltending by Ashlyn Aiello ’14 kept the goal shut to secure the victory. “It was a tough game with Hannah [Sorkin ’14] and [Co-Captain] Amy [Morin ’14] missing, but everyone stepped up,” said Miranda Nestor ’16. “We pushed each other to keep up the intensity, and we played as a team.” Co-Captain Renée Lamarche ’14 said in an email to The Phillipian, “I’d say the Brooks game was a really important game, and to me it really represented a turning point in our season. It was an even match up, but we capitalized on their mistakes and played a really smart game, which made the difference in the end. I think that getting a clear, definitive win at this point in the season, having just come off a tough loss and a few ties, is going to make a big difference going forward in our confidence level and the mindset we have going into games.” After the win, Andover suffered a 3-0 loss to a strong New Hampton team. The offensive efforts of both teams were closer than the score reflected, as Andover was only outshot 21-24. The somewhat physical game saw 14 total penalties called, including six for checking. “I think we really put everything together and started playing as a team and also putting the puck in the net,” said Morin. “Everyone had a great game, and we really stepped it up from last game!” Andover’s game against Tabor on Wednesday was canceled because the snow. Andover will travel to Governor (8-6-2) and then to Nobles this week.
