The Shawsheen Tech/Bedford girls’ varsity hockey team (a cooperative team with students from Shawsheen Valley Technical High School and Bedford High School) raised their record to 3-3 after a 4-1 win over Lexington High School at J.W. Hayden Recreation Center in Lexington on Saturday night.
The Minutemen, 2-2 heading into Saturday, were on the scoreboard first when Lexington sophomore Olive Glenn completed an unassisted breakaway by lifting the puck over the shoulder of Shawsheen/Bedford’s eighth-grade goalie Elise McEachern four minutes into the contest.
A Lexington puck would not hit the back of the net again on Saturday, greatly owing to the unceasing labor of the BucTech defensive line made up of Shawsheen sophomore Macy Savage, Bedford freshman Olivia O’Brien, Shawsheen junior Corrine Foley and Bedford eighth grader Kayah Maloney.
The Shawsheen/Bedford defense was fast tracking down Lexington offensive breakouts, precise stripping the puck or lifting a stick, and had quick reflexes clearing rebounds bouncing dangerously around the crease. The BucTech Rams defense worked together to cover the entire ice and held a strong wall keeping the puck inside the offensive zone regularly for minutes at a time creating scoring opportunities. The defensive line had an assist in each of Shawsheen/Bedford’s four goals.
The first BucTech goal came at the end of the first period. Shawsheen/Bedford gained control of the puck on a Lexington shift change and was able to set up and maintain possession in the offensive end for more than a minute before Savage and Shawsheen senior Alexis Fox earned an assist on a goal from Bedford freshman Sophia Babington.
Four minutes into the second period, when Lexington could not clear their defensive zone, Maloney got the puck to Bedford Senior Captain Anna McEachern, who passed to Bedford freshman Becca Sobel. Sobel out-skated the Lexington pursuers and got the puck to the net, feinted to the inside, moved to the outside, and dropped the puck in the corner of the net around a scrambling Lexington goaltender Renxi Lin, putting Shawsheen/Bedford up 2-1.
Five minutes later, Savage got the puck to Babington, who carried it down the ice to the net forcing Lin to dive for a stick side save. When the puck popped out of the crease to the opposite side of the net, Fox was ready and waiting with plenty of space to bang in the third BucTech goal.
Shawsheen/Bedford scored one more goal two and half minutes into the third period when Bedford eighth grader Lucy Scoville tipped in a rebound from a Savage shot for Scoville’s first varsity goal, making the score 4-1.
Many of the Lexington and Bedford athletes grew up playing hockey as teammates on the Hayden ice through the Lexington Bedford Youth Hockey program. There was some shared background knowledge of talent on both sides of the ice. And while the visitors held on, the Lexington offensive pressure, led by Glenn and Sophomore Madison Dolci, and Lin protecting the net, did not make it an easy victory for the visiting coop team.
Elise McEachern held tight against action in the second period, and Lexington kept up the pressure and energy in the third period. Following a BucTech defensive misstep, Lexington held possession of the puck in the Shawsheen/Bedford defensive end for an offensive onslaught that lasted for over two minutes. But, as the top of the story gave away, the enduring persistence of the defensive lines and Elise McEachern’s agility kept the puck out of the visiting team’s net through the third.
Shawsheen/Bedford next hosts the Marblehead Magicians at 4:05 p.m. on Wednesday at the Edge Sports Center on Hartwell Road. Marblehead is 1-4 this season heading into the game.
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