POWERPLAY KEY FOR COMETS IN WIN OVER CRIMSON TIDE
The BFA-St. Albans girls hockey team had plenty of chances throughout the first two periods of Saturday’s game against Spaulding, but were still down 1-0.
The Comets’ powerplay led the charge in the third period tallying three goals with the advantage. Jodie Gratton scored the game-winning goal with under a minute to play, as BFA came away with a 3-2 victory.
“The girls played three solid periods of hockey today,” said BFA coach Luke Cioffi. “I thought the tempo and demeanor of the game was excellent with lots of positive energy throughout the team.
“We had many good scoring chances that didn’t go in the first two periods,” he added. “The girls kept the pressure on and stuck to our plan.”
The Comets’ powerplay went 3-for-5 in the game, while the penalty kill was 3-for-4. After Spaulding tied the game 2-2 on the powerplay, Gratton found the winning goal with 46 seconds to play on assists from Sophie Zemianek and Molly Smith (two assists).
“Both our powerplay groups moved the puck and shot with traffic going to the net,” said Cioffi. “They were keeping it simple and making the easy plays that benefitted us. And our penalty kill was very good putting pucks in safe spots and taking away shooting opportunities.”
Chelsea Bell put the Crimson Tide on the board late in the first period with that scoring holding until the third period even with the Comets tallying 11 shots in the second period.
The Spaulding lead didn’t last long in the third period. Caroline Bliss scored less than a minute into the third period ono an assist by Molly Smith. Reese Clayton put the Comets ahead with just over five minutes to play with assists going to Rachel Needleman and Rowan Howrigan.
Spaulding wouldn’t go away quietly as it found the tying goal with two minutes to play when Portia Berard scored on the powerplay with the assist going to Lilly Tewksbury.
The game wasn’t tied for very long before Gratton’s deciding goal in the final seconds. It was the second game this week the Comets came from behind in the third period. They came back from a one-goal deficit in the third period of Wednesday’s game against Essex, which they ended up winning 5-2.
“Playing a quality team like Spaulding is the type of game we needed in a game which could have gone either way,” said Cioffi. “The team has shown themselves this past week that they can play through different types of adversity by staying the course throughout the entire game and being adaptable has helped grow the team’s self-confidence.”
Makenna Montgomery came away with 16 saves for the Comets.
The Comets improved to 15-0 on the season with the win, as they continue to find ways to win games whether they are close or blowouts.
“Every player has continued to work on various skills that makes the team stronger, but the biggest growth has been the emotional and mental aspects of the game,” said Cioffi. “Understanding we all make mistakes and how we react to those mistakes has greatly improved. Having so many amazing people on this team, we have all had to learn to take on different roles at various times. They all continue to learn what it means to be a team and how to best support each other on and off the ice.”
