Six different players scored this week for Andover Boys Hockey, as the team lost to Governor’s 6-1 on Friday and beat Cushing 6-2 on Wednesday. Trevor Braun ’10 was the leading scorer this week with two goals. On Wednesday, Andover took on Cushing at home. The team stepped on to the ice firing on all cylinders. The team held a 2-1 lead by the end of the first period with the help of great goals from Charlie Digiulian ’10 and Garnet Hathaway ’10. “On Wednesday, we really got the puck towards the net well and created scoring opportunities, which we haven’t been able to do in a while,” said Coach Dean Boylan. Captain Brian Safstrom ’10 scored in the beginning of the second period to extend the lead to 3-1. With six minutes left in the period, Braun scored his first goal of the game by snapping a one-timer past the Cushing goalie. Seven minutes into the third period, Braun scored another goal on a quick rebound. Cushing roared back and scored its second goal of the game on an intercepted pass. However, Cushing’s last minute effort was to no avail, as with two minutes left, Eddie Ellis ’13 capped off the victory by putting a shot just inside the post to make the score 6-2. Coach Boylan said, “Unlike the game on Friday, we limited our turnovers and competed well for the puck. The defense played much better by blocking shots and keeping Cushing on the perimeter.” On Friday, Andover was faced with a much tougher challenge when it faced off against Governor’s Academy. Governor’s scored two goals in the first period and another two minutes into the second to take a 3-0 lead. All three goals were on the power play. “We lost the game right off the bat with those three straight penalties and our inability to kill off all three. Many players were out of position and overall just didn’t desire the puck enough,” said Bennett Carroccio ’10. Will Gray ’10 said, “It’s really tough to come back from that kind of deficit when you’re playing a hot goaltender.” Gray supplied the only highlight of the day for Andover. One minute after the opposition’s third goal, Gray sniped a top shelf goal from the point. “I was lucky to have a great scoring opportunity against Governor’s, but as a team we need to finish those opportunities. Myself included, we had too many opportunities and only got one by their goalie,” said Gray Governor’s scored a goal in the beginning of the third on a top shelf shot, and added another goal with two minutes left in the game to make the score a 6-1. “We didn’t play nearly physical enough on Friday and made poor choices with the puck,” said Redmond Colson ’10. Braun said, “The real problem we had with defense were the penalties that killed our momentum and gave Governors a jump on us.” Next week, Andover has three consecutive away games. The team will face Tabor Academy (11-7-3), Brooks (5-14-2), and NMH (17-7-1).
