The Andover Girls Hockey team went into the winter break 2-0-1, with victories coming over BB&N and the Winchendon School and a tie with the Rivers School. The team started off the season strong thanks to a high-powered offense heavily influenced by newcomers, while still maintaining a lock-down defense. The squad’s first game of break came against New England Womens Hockey League Pre-Prep players, in which Andover prevailed 3-0. Goalies Alissa Fromkin ’09, Kaitlin Gaiss ’09 and Catherine McLaughlin ’10 played fantastically in shutout efforts. Following this victory, Andover participated in an annual tournament at Taft. In the first game of the tournament, Andover faced off against a very strong Loomis Chaffee team. Loomis prevailed 4-1, with the lone Andover goal scored by Lauren Glynn ’10 on a breakaway. Andover was slightly outmatched by the physical Loomis players. Looking to rebound from the tough loss, Andover came out strong from the face-off against Lawrenceville. Both the offense and defense did their respective jobs very well, scoring seven goals and holding Lawrenceville to one. Forward Avery Stone ’10 was the driving force behind the offense, scoring three goals. In a more humble role, Glynn assisted four of the Big Blue’s seven goals. In addition to her fantastic defensive play, defenseman Jordan Hampton ’12 scored her first goal of the year, capping off Andover’s glorious win. “The team came out strong and rebounded well from the loss to Loomis and scored some early goals,” said Kellie Walsh ’11. Andover finished off the tournament with a victory over the host school, Taft. The Andover defense played an inspiring game, helping goalie Fromkin complete the shutout victory, 2-0. Glynn and Stone finished off their incredible tournament-long scoring runs with a goal each in the final game. Overall, the crew was happy with their performance at Taft. Gaiss said, “It was my first time going to the tournament, and I loved it. It was awesome to watch the girls play, and most importantly, we formed great bonds. The team is much more of a cohesive unit after this.” Captain Lindsey Newman ’09 weighed in on the tournament and the play of the defense. “The defense has been working well together, especially since we have only four defensemen. Overall, we have come together well as a team over the last couple of games.” Andover was set to take on Brewster on Wednesday, but the game was called off because of poor travel weather. Their next game will be Saturday, against a well-coached team from Choate.
