The girls’ varsity hockey team picked up a big ISL win on the road on Saturday, February 11 against Milton Academy. Middlesex, who outshot the Mustangs 35-22 improves their record to 16-2 on the season. The ISL showdown proved to be an exciting display of athletic talent that left fans on the edge of their seats until the final buzzer sounded.
Milton dominated the first period and opened the scoring just 2:07 into the game with a three on one rush to goal. Shortly later at the 6:02 mark, the Mustangs struck again when # 5 tallied her second goal of the period to increase the lead. With 39 seconds left on the clock however, junior Ashley fired a shot from the point into the net off of a feed from Maddie ’14 and Jordan ’12 to give Middlesex the momentum they needed entering the locker room.
The Zebras were all about business in the second; they were able to generate great opportunities with their strong puck movement in the offensive zone and improved their communication with one another. 3:02 into the period, Jordan scored what would be her first of two goals for the afternoon as defenseman Brooke ’14 collected a pass from Maddie who found Jordan’s stick to tie the game at 2-2. The Mustangs continued to challenge Katie ’12 with numerous drives to goal but could not capitalize on their efforts. With 46 seconds on the clock, Cici ’14 found classmate Maddie at the goal line who timed a beautiful pass to Jordan at the far post. Jordan quickly collected the puck and snapped her shot into the upper right corner of the net to put the Zebras on top by one.
The puck spent an equal amount of time in both teams’ defensive zones in the third. As the clock ticked down, Milton became increasingly more determined to even the score. Katie ’12 was solid and poised in net, shutting down a breakaway with 4:00 remaining. Isabel ’13, Eleanor ’13, Eliza ’12 and Sarah ’14 played strong defensive hockey on the forward line and continued to prevent Milton’s defenseman from taking shots from the point. Arushi ’14, Leah ’15, Brooke ’14, Ashley ’13 and Jeanie ’13 stood their ground on the blue line and tirelessly pressured the puck into the Mustang’s offensive end. With 1:03 left to play, Milton pulled their goaltender for the six on five advantage but Middlesex stayed strong to take home the 3-2 win.
The Zebras will continue on the road with a game against Lawrence Academy on Wednesday, February 15 in Groton, MA at 2:30pm.
