WA Girls’ Hockey battled Haverhill-Pentucket-North Andover (HPNA) on Saturday, Feb. 8 putting up a fight against the fourth ranked team in the state, but coming up short and losing 3-0.
WA’s starting lineup included freshman Briana Tucker, sophomores Emily Boneck and Jakie Chace, sophomore captain Kiley Carmichael, junior goalie Kiera Tucker, and senior captain Dorothy Galvin out on the ice.
HPNA came out strong offensively, but Tucker was blocking everything that came her way. WA reciprocated the aggression with Chace and Galvin taking shots on goal, but nothing sunk in.
WA struggled to keep the puck in the Ghosts’ possession, but as the back and forth continued and with 10:32 remaining in the first period, HVNA scored.
Freshman Charlotte Wazel came out firing and trying to get WA going offensively, but HPNA continued to put up a fight. The first period came to a close with WA down 1-0.
“As a team our mindset was that we know we can play highly ranked teams and keep up if we perform our best,” sophomore Lexi Mcdonough said.
As the second period began, HPNA did not let up, but neither did WA. Tucker was a complete wall in the net while Galvin and Boneck did everything they could to stop their opponents.
WA stayed very consistent throughout the entirety of the second period, not letting HPNA’s aggression affect them. The second period came to a close with WA still trailing 1-0.
As the third period began, HPNA did not let up, as they continued to give Tucker a run for her money all the way until the very last second. WA’s defense stayed strong for the first half of the last period while Galvin even had a shot on goal, but with 6:28 remaining in the game HPNA scored.
Shortly after, with 4:55 remaining, HPNA scored again increasing their lead 3-0. Tucker and the WA defense stayed dominant until the very last second with multiple clutch saves from Tucker holding HPNA until the end.
After a hard fought game, HPNA beat WA 3-0 making WA’s current season record 2-15-1.
“I think we worked very well as a team and played with a lot of intensity and physicality,” Mcdonough said. “I think as a team we can work on setting up better scoring opportunities.”
WA’s next game is on Saturday, Feb. 15 against Waltham at Nashoba Valley Olympia at 3 p.m.
