Girls’ Hockey Grinds Out Two Wins
As the time ticks down, lower Ally DeCoste scoops up the puck at her own blue line and dumps the puck down the ice. It lands in the clear with no defenders in sight and slides cleanly into Northfield Mount Hermon’s empty net. Everyone in the building leaps to their feet and Jess Glynne’s “Kill the Lights” blasts through the speakers in celebration. The scoreboard reads Exeter: 5, NMH: 2. DeCoste’s goal is the icing on the cake in a pair of back to back wins for girls’ varsity hockey.
The team’s adventure began on Friday night with a trip down to Dexter School in Brookline, Massachusetts. The last time these two teams faced off it was an ugly battle in which Exeter faced defeat. Lower Keaghan Tierney discussed the importance of Friday’s game, saying, “Bragging rights were on the line.”
The match against Dexter opened slowly, with both teams missing many chances to put the puck in the net. The first period ended with a tie of 0-0. In the second, Big Red stepped it up. They dominated Dexter, thanks to loose pucks and more shots on net, but girls’ varsity hockey was unable to capitalize. It was only late in the third period that Tierney came up with a clutch goal to put the nail in the coffin. Exeter departed the premises and rode the bus back to Exeter triumphantly with a 1-0 win.
The team faced off, against NMH on Saturday afternoon in a revenge match after losing to them 5-4 earlier this season. Upper Michaela O’Brien expressed the team’s goal of redemption, saying, “It was a huge game for us, and we definitely rose to the occasion. NMH beat us in a chippy game at the beginning of the season, but this time we came out ready to play.”
Exeter led the whole game and topped off the weekend with an empty net goal to take down NMH. Senior and co-captain, Kaleigh Conte, congratulated the team’s work against Northfield. “We had some really nice goals, especially on our power play. Every aspect of our game is getting better, our passing, accuracy and intensity,” she said.
“In the beginning of the season it was hard for us to play three full periods. But I think as a team we’ve been able to find that inner strength recently and pull together those clutch wins.”
O’Brien praised lower Jill Cloonan’s skill after the first goal. “One of the highlights of the game was definitely Jill’s goal. It was nice to see the power play go to work and score just as it’s set up to work,” she commented.
Cloonan highlighted senior Layne Erickson’s performance in the game against NMH. “She adapted really well to wherever she was playing and did the best she could when she was told to. She was a true team player in that game,” Cloonan said.
The weekend was also very special because it was senior night, where the team celebrated all graduating players and their contributions. “We love our seniors, and it was really nice to honor them,” Cloonan said. “They will definitely be missed.”
The three seniors graduating this year are Conte, Erickson and Johna Vandergraaf. In the reflection of how far the seniors have brought the team this year, Tierney said that “In the beginning of the season it was hard for us to play three full periods. But I think as a team we’ve been able to find that inner strength recently and pull together those clutch wins.”
As the team heads on to face Andover on Sunday, the plan for the final few days is clear. According to lower Jenna Brooks, the team “rested Monday with no practice and came back ready on Tuesday. We had to keep our heads focused and took good care of our bodies one day at a time. We must keep our legs fresh, and our minds engaged this last week before E/a.”