March 5, 2023 – Story and photos by Joshua Ross
In front of a packed house, the Harbormen convincingly handled the task in front of them and cruised to a 6-1 win over Longmeadow in the Round of 16 MIAA Division 1 State Tournament.
While the score sheet will show a core group of sophomores – Caroline Doherty (4), Pippa Jiranek (1), and Addy Garrity (1), with all the goals, it was a total team effort. Another outstanding performance between the pipes for freshman Izzy McGarr, who’s sporting a .25 goals against average in the last four games. And with everyone paying attention to the flashy goals and rock-steady performance in net, it’s the defense that is giving opponents the most trouble.
The mix of veterans and younger players combined with the different style each defender brings to the ice makes it difficult to play against. The fact that they have only allowed one goal in their last four games bares witness to their toughness. A few will take the puck end to end and create offensive chances and while some will stand fast at the blue line extending offensive zone time that wears down the opponent.
Head coach Courtney Turner believes it’s the team’s chemistry that is a major driving force behind their success.
“I think our whole team, in general, does everything together,” Turner said after the game. “They’re friends off the ice and it translates to their play on the ice. They know where each other is going to be and they really support each other, even after that goal. Everyone on the bench saying ‘we’ve got this,’ and ‘we’re good.'”
It doesn’t hurt though to have a player who can score at the pace like Doherty does.
“You can’t ask much more of her,” Turner said of her leading scorer. “They were all over her all game. So the fact she got four goals is a true testament to how great a player she is.”
Turner’s message to the team as they make it further into the tournament and the competition picks up is to just have fun.
“At the end of the day,” she adds. “we are playing our best when we are having fun and supporting each other. We can’t let the competition get in the way of that because we are putting pucks in the back of the net. It’s fun to win and fun to have fun.”
Next up for the Harborwomen is Shrewsbury, the third seed in the tournament. Details have yet to be determined.
GAME PHOTOS
