Girls’ hockey team splits a pair at home
By Jay Turner
Sophomore Katie Kelleher scored two goals in the Bulldogs' 10-4 rout of KP last week. (Mike Barucci photo)
Senior forward Haley Gaughan continued her torrid start to the season with back-to-back hat tricks, but the Canton High girls’ hockey team could only muster one win in two tries last week as the Bulldogs once again slid below .500 with a disappointing loss to Franklin Saturday at Metropolis Rink.
Sitting at 1-2 and coming off a full week of practices, the Bulldogs saw last week as a chance to right the ship with a pair of winnable games against division opponents at home. However, after exploding for six third-period goals on Tuesday in a blowout win over King Philip, they struggled to contain the Panthers and came up on the wrong side of a 7-5 final score.
Head coach Kelly Rider said there were a few bright spots in the loss — most notably Gaughan, who now has a team-leading 11 goals after scoring six more last week. Junior Meghan Lennon, the team’s second leading scorer, also had a strong game with three assists, and Stephanie Rizzitano chipped in with a goal and two assists.
“However, we never could keep momentum,” Rider said. “We definitely missed having two of our players in the lineup, but it was no excuse. We didn’t execute or play the full 45 minutes as a team. We are a great hockey team, but when we don’t work together we give other teams opportunities to be successful against us.”
Rider said the loss was especially disappointing because it came after what she thought had been a “great week of practice.” At the same time, she was pleased with the team’s effort against KP, particularly the final period, when the girls caught fire and turned a 4-4 tie into a 10-4 rout.
Gaughan wasn’t the only player with a hat trick in the win; Lennon also scored three, and she added a pair of assists to finish with a team-high five points.
Senior captain Michelle McNeil and sophomore Katie Kelleher both had two goals to round out the scoring for the Bulldogs. Several players also registered assists, including Caitlyn Feeney (3), Mary McNeil (2), and defenseman Abbey Mitcheroney, who collected her first varsity point.
Canton ended the week at 2-1 in the SEMGHL West Division, but the team is just 2-3 overall with a number of tough matchups coming up, including road games against 5-2 Sandwich on Saturday and 5-0 Norwood on Monday, January 16.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=10822
Posted by Jay Turner
on Jan 11 2012. Filed under High School, Sports.
Both comments and pings are currently closed.
