On Saturday, January 12 the girls’ varsity hockey team hosted the undefeated Governor’s Academy. Middlesex came out of the gates strong and played three consistent periods of hockey but struggled to get the puck past the Governor’s outstanding goaltender Maggie Salmon. The Red Dog’s jumped out to an early lead and were able to score three goals before the Zebras responded with one of their own. Down by three with 13:06 left in regulation, Middlesex went on a three- goal scoring spree to tie the game at 4-4.
Although Middlesex outshot Governor’s seven to two in the first period, the Red Dogs were the first team to strike after they picked off a pass at the Zebras’ offensive blue line and raced down the ice on a breakaway to open the scoring for the afternoon. Minutes later, the visiting team caught their hosts back on their heels again as they found the puck off the right post and lofted it to the top right corner of the net. For the next several minutes, Middlesex controlled the game but could not capitalize on any of their efforts.
Down by two entering the second, the Zebras rallied together and took to the ice determined to take control of the game. Governor’s scored their third goal of the afternoon 7:48 into the period but Middlesex wasted no time hanging their heads. With 3:11 left on the clock, Eleanor Knutzen ’13 found Leah Olson ’15 at the point who blasted her shot into traffic in front of the net. Maddie Winslow ’14 then skillfully tipped the puck over the left shoulder of the Governor’s goaltender to open the scoring campaign for the Zebras.
With 15:00 left in the game, Middlesex knew they would need to play together as a cohesive unit in order to have a fighting chance at a victory. Governor’s however, had the exact same mentality and scored what would be their fourth and final goal of the game just 1:54 into the period. Junior Cici Frattasio opened the floodgates for Middlesex less than a minute later as Eleanor Knutzen found her off the left post for the Zebras’ second goal of the game. Both teams continued to battle in the neutral zone, but Middlesex refused to back down. At the 9:41 mark, Eleanor Knutzen scored her seventh goal of the season to cut the deficit to 4-3. After a Governor’s timeout, Middlesex took a moment to regroup and lined up at center ice with even more determination than they had had before. Leah Olson was the hero of the afternoon when she once again fired a shot from the point off a pass from Maddie Winslow to tie the game at 4-4.
With 5:00 of overtime to play, both teams battled through fatigue but were unable to put the game away. Christina Cleroux ’13 was a wall between the pipes and turned away five shots to protect the tie.
The entire team played an outstanding game of hockey and demonstrated tremendous character with their come from behind performance. Maddie Miller ’13, Isabel Krietler ’13, Sarah Tabeek ’14 and Hailey Porter ’14 were relentless in their pursuit of victory; they skated tirelessly up and down the ice and kept the Red Dog’s scoring opportunities at bay. Arushi Ray ’14, Brooke Gary ’14, Leah Olson ’15 and Jeanie Dwinell ’13 backstopped the forward line and played with poise and grit.
The Zebras (5-3-1) will look to continue their strong play when they travel to St. Marks on Wednesday, January 16 for a 2:00pm ISL showdown.
