BURLINGTON — For a fourth straight yr, the Andover subject hockey workforce is again within the Div. 1 state closing.
Chloe Broderick and Ella Sewall every scored for the fourth-seeded Golden Warriors in a Div. 1 state semifinal at Burlington Excessive Faculty on Wednesday night time, pairing with a late stand from the protection to stave off a robust rally bid from No. 9 Wellesley in a 2-1 win.
It’s the primary time well-decorated Andover will seem in 4 straight state finals, and provides it an opportunity to avenge final yr’s loss in it to Walpole after beating it within the two prior title video games.
It’s additionally Bridget Morris’ second likelihood to win her first state title as head coach since taking up for retired coach Maureen Noone final yr, and the fourth look for some seniors that have been in this system since freshman yr.
“My biggest concern when I took over … was that there would be a lull, or not even a lull, that it would nose dive and stay down,” Morris stated. “I’m just happy that what she built is sustaining.”
“It’s just great,” added senior defender Scarlet Glass. “Over the past few years, all the seniors before us have taught us so much. I think we’ve worked our way up from the bottom so far, and it’s been a long season but we’ve worked very hard to get where we are now.”
The energy of the protection was a serious supply of uncertainty for Morris within the preseason, with little-to-no returning expertise. Glass, its spine, was a ahead final yr.
It was that group, although, made up of Glass, Shannon Paul and Molly Ulrich, that proved probably the most clutch in opposition to a tenacious combat from the Raiders.
Sewall’s objective within the opening minute of the third quarter gave Andover a 2-0 lead, however Wellesley closed out the third quarter with momentum after Kayla Bohlin’s reverse chip reduce the deficit in half.
The vast majority of the fourth quarter was then spent on Andover’s facet of the sphere, however that former rag-tag defensive unit didn’t permit a shot on goalie Lucy Baker within the body.
“We really had to work hard with our defense, and they are really the ones that have been holding down the fort the last couple games,” Morris stated. “(They) just had a sense of stability.”
“A big thing we were focusing on in this particular game was staying low because we knew they had a lot of fast girls who could move the ball very well,” Glass added. “Staying low, getting it out, and … with our positive attitude, we were able to succeed.”
