Boys' Hockey Crushes Young Andover Squad With Five Goals From White

EXETER, NH – In their second game following Winter Break, boys’ hockey faced off against Andover at Exeter’s home ice last Saturday. What began as an evenly-matched contest transformed into a blowout by the end of the second period, with Big Red scoring four goals in that period alone. Postgraduate David White led the attack, racking up an incredible five goals for PEA on the team’s way to a 7-1 rout.The first period started as a somewhat scrappy yet even game, with neither side conceding many easy scoring opportunities. Andover utilized a relatively effective penalty kill to counteract their first two penalties, but they could only hold Exeter off the scoreboard for so long. “In the first period, we were given [a couple] power play opportunities that we weren't able to capitalize on, so it was key for us to score two goals at the end of the first period to jump out to a 2-0 lead in an emotional game,” senior forward Alex Trudeau said.White netted his and the game’s first goal with just over three and a half minutes on the clock. Postgraduate Kevin Neiley then scored the second with just under thirty ticks remaining in the period, intensifying emotions on both sides of the puck. While Andover began to lose their focus, Exeter remained composed, finally taking advantage of a power play stemming from a PA crosscheck early in the second period to take a 3-0 lead. This score opened the floodgates for Big Red, who tacked on two more to their lead in the following four minutes.“This was kind of a statement game for us,” senior goalie Jack Parsons said. “People thought that Andover was going to give us a run for our money, but we proved that we are significantly better.”Parsons was solid between the pipes all night, allowing Andover just one goal in the contest. “[He] played a great game for us,” Trudeau said. “He made big saves, especially in the first period, which allowed our team to gain such a commanding lead.”On offense, the clear leader was White, whose third period goal put him one short of a double hat trick. “David had his best game of the season,” Trudeau said. “He wasn't only noticeable in the offensive zone. David also sprinted back to the defensive zone to help our defensemen fend off Andover's counterattack.” Other notables from the game included Neiley, who finished with a goal and four assists, while postgraduate Henry Hart also added in three assists.While Exeter can celebrate most of the game, they took a painful hit in the second period when an especially vicious check from Andover landed upper forward Ted Hart with a serious concussion. Though he hasn’t felt lasting effects, he is expected to miss around four games.“They played somewhat dirty and beat us up the whole game, but we beat them on the scoreboard,” Parsons said. “I was scared that being up 6-0 on them going into the third period would lead to even dirtier play and that someone else would get injured, considering they had already concussed Teddy Hart. Fortunately no one did, and we won.”After claiming a 6-4 victory against a talented St. Paul’s on Monday night and a 3-3 tie against Tabor yesterday, the boys will travel down to Springfield on Saturday, hoping to improve on their impressive record and advance ahead on the Road to Ingalls.