AUBURN — Coming into Tuesday’s North championship, the Yarmouth/Freeport girls’ hockey team knew it would need to have one of its best defensive games of the season against a strong Penobscot squad that defeated it by three goals just two weeks ago.

The top-seeded Clippers got exactly what they needed.

Freshman goalie LexiWiles made 22 saves, and the Clippers defense bottled up the Pioneers most of the game, skating to a 3-1 victory at Norway Savings Bank Arena. It’s the second straight regional title for Yarmouth/Freeport (17-4), who will face the winner of Wednesday’s South final between Cheverus/Windham and the Gorham co-op team in the state championship game on Saturday at Norway Savings Bank Arena.

“They’re a really well-coached team and they came out skating hard. I wish we could’ve matched their intensity in the first couple periods. That set the tone,” Penobscot Coach Jarrod Williams said.

No. 2 Penobscot ends the season 16-5 after falling to the Clippers in the regional championship for the second straight season.

“Penobscot’s got some scorers, got some skaters, but we can work harder,” Yarmouth/Freeport Coach Dave Intraversato said.

Intraversato credited his strong defensive unit, led by senior captain Amanda Panciocco and sophomore Adelaide Strout, for playing a strong game. Intraversato has mixed and matched defensive pairings all season, confident in each. Tuesday, he even began Panciocco as a forward before realizing she was needed more anchoring the back.

“Amanda Panciocco, I can’t say enough about how she played tonight. She was rock solid back there,” Intraversato said.

Panciocco said the Clippers focused on preventing Penobscot from attacking the offensive zone and setting up.

“We talked a lot about trying to meet them at the blue line and getting on them early before they can get into the zone,” Panciocco said. “Lexi, our goalie, is insane. She stood on her head today.”

When the Pioneers did attack, Wiles was up to the challenge. Intraversato said he tried to speak to his young goalie before the game, but was rebuffed.

“She said ‘I’ve got it, Coach. I’m all set.’ She was. She played great tonight,” Intraversato said. “She played high on her crease, really addressed the puck well. Had a lot of confidence coming in as a freshman.”

The Clippers took a 1-0 lead at 8:23 of the first period when Emma White took a feed from Sophie Smith in the left corner and slipped it past Penobscot goalie Abbie Derosier. At 1:54 of the second, Isabel Peters scored on a rebound of Drea Rideout shot for a 2-0 lead.

At 9:04 of the second period, it looked as if the Pioneers had cut the lead in half, when Jordin Williams skated from her own zone and scored on a backhand shot. Officials waved the goal off, ruling the net had come off its moorings before Williams scored. Coach Williams disagreed with the call.

“The thing is, it didn’t go in on that side. It had no effect on the play. It should have been a goal. I’m not saying it cost us the game, because Yarmouth skated their (butts) off and earned it. But it could have possibly changed the momentum… It was a tough call,” he said.

Jordin Williams did get the Pioneers on the board at 11:48 of the third, cutting Yarmouth/Freeport’s lead to 2-1. With Derosier (25 saves) off for an extra attacker, Strout scored on an empty net at 14:24 to cap the scoring.

« Previous

Next »

Related Stories