Published January 3, 2019
PEABODY — The Peabody/Lynnfield/North Reading (PLNR) girls’ hockey team won its fourth game a row with a 3-2 triumph over Winthrop on Saturday at the McVann-O’Keefe Rink. With that win, the Tanners took over first place in the Northeastern League.
It was an evenly-matched, fast-paced game from start to finish. Winthrop got the first goal of the game at 3:55 of period one. Jen Flynn would knot things up with a goal at 6:38. North Reading’s Sammie Mirasolo would put PLNR up 2-1 when she scored at 9:09. Mirasolo would score her second goal of the game at 6:35 into the second period. Winthrop scored its second goal at 9:07. There were no goals in the third.
JENY COLLINS picked up another save for the North Reading/Peabody/Lynnfield girls’ hockey team when the Tanners defeated Ursuline 4-3 on Dec. 22. (Mark Grant Photo)
Tame Tigers 5-2
The girls had a convincing 5-2 win against Beverly on Dec. 26. The score at the end of the first period was 4-0, Peabody, courtesy of goals scored by Flynn (2), Kat DiGiulio and North Reading freshman Maria Pierce (short-handed goal). Senior captain Jessica Robert of NRHS added a goal in the second to make it 5-0. Beverly would finally get on the board, sneaking one past Abby Buckley at 10:24. Beverly would add one more goal at 13:29 of the third to finish off the scoring.
Edge Ursuline after strange start
On Dec. 22, the Tanners beat Ursuline 4-3. The game got off to a strange start as the Ursuline goalie was missing her neck guard. Rather than lend one of their own, Peabody head coach Michelle Roach agreed that the Bears would have to skate 6-on-5 with no goalie. The Tanners scored twice in the first period, when Sadie Gearan put one past Ursuline’s “skating” goaltender at 3:18. Flynn would add another at 11:15. It only took Ursuline two seconds into a power play to get a goal at 12:45. Ursuline followed that up in quick fashion, scoring its second goal at 13:15. Ursuline got its regular goaltender back in net for the second, thanks to a Bishop Fenwick boys’ goaltender lending her his helmet. Pierce scored a short-handed goal at 4:25 to put PLNR back ahead, 3-2. Ursuline would tie it up again at 8:19. The second period ended 3-3. Robert would score the final goal of the game by shooting the puck off of an Ursuline defender, deflecting it past their goaltender. North Reading’s Jeny Collins was in goal for PLNR, notching her second win in as as many games.
The team’s current four-game winning streak has caught the attention of “Hockey Night in Boston” which recently named them a team to watch in their weekly HNIB News Massachusetts Girls Division 1 Top 10.
The Tanners travel to Salem State on Saturday to take on Medford/Malden at 4 p.m.
