PEABODY – Entering its basic Northeastern Conference matchup Wednesday evening, the Peabody/Lynnfield/North Reading ladies hockey staff was well-aware of, and pushed by, the truth that Winthrop hadn’t misplaced an everyday season recreation in over two years.
Not anymore.
Catie Kampersal’s go-ahead purpose via contact within the second interval was the decider in a 2-1 win over the No. 16 Vikings (3-1), capping off an exceptionally gritty effort from No. 15 PLNR (4-1) to get the monkey off its again on this matchup.
Scrappy performs in its defensive zone nixed a handful of promising Winthrop probabilities within the last body, including to Alyse Mutti’s 14-save efficiency for a significant win.
“This game is always circled on our calendar because we know that if you want to be competitive in the league, all roads lead through Winthrop at some point,” stated PLNR head coach Michelle Roach. “We knew this was going to be ugly, it was – we were going to need to get gritty. … This is a big one.”
“It’s very exciting, we were all ready,” added defender Leah Buckley. “We all knew it was going to be a tough game.”
Kampersal dropped jaws with 7:30 left within the second interval, following Tegan Pereira’s tying purpose for Winthrop together with her personal rating for a 2-1 lead. A free puck floated behind the Vikings protection into their zone, and she or he cut up two defenders in a race to the puck. Despite contact, she scooped it up and deposited the purpose.
Winthrop was relentless in its pursuit to tie the rating once more from there, however PLNR was decided to win each inch.
A 3-on-1 rush noticed Buckley get a stick on the shot. Later, Mutti stayed house on a rebound by the precise put up, however a defender dove to knock it away proper earlier than Winthrop may get to it. Another sequence noticed Talia Martucci discover area alongside the left wall for a wide-open lane, however PLNR’s Shirley Whitmore hustled again and dove to spoil the possibility.
Add in two earlier saves Mutti wanted to make on Winthrop breakaways, and PLNR thrived in important moments.
“We all knew we had to put the effort in, we had to work hard for everything,” Buckley stated. “We wanted a really defensive mindset. … In our zone, we just needed to make sure the back door was covered. Everything in the middle, we wanted on the sides or out.”
Winthrop put strain on PLNR early, however the Tanners’ first zone entry with possession gave them an early lead. A free puck floated to the Vikings blue line, Abby McInerney scooped it for an odd-man rush, and her shot was completed by Ava Buckley on the rebound.
PLNR created a wealth of probabilities within the first, however Riley Towse (17 saves) settled in to maintain it a one-score recreation for Winthrop. All her teammates wanted was 9 seconds on an influence play to tie issues up within the second, with Pereira sending a heavy shot via visitors.
Towse had an eight-save shutout within the third interval to maintain it shut, however the Vikings couldn’t pot one other one for a rally.
“We had to keep working,” Roach stated. “We knew whoever made less mistakes tonight was going to come out on top. And I’m very thankful it was us for tonight. But we know they are going to reset and going to be ready for the next time we see them.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com