In a battle of unbeaten Bay State Conference girls hockey teams last Saturday night at the Canton Metropolis Rink, Norwood High claimed sole possession of the top spot in the Herget Division after handing Dedham its first loss of the campaign, 4-2.
Norwood, which fought off a tenacious Marauders club that twice narrowed two-goal deficits to one, improved to 5-0 overall and in the BSC, one point ahead of 4-0-1 Walpole and two ahead of Dedham, which fell to 4-1 in the league and 6-1 overall.
The defending champion Mustangs had four different goal scorers in the game, which is indicative of their approach this year.
“Each player has an individual role but they all seem to embrace the concept of team,” said Norwood coach Bill O’Donnell. “We obviously have some very good players but everyone contributes. There is a lot of team spirit this year.”
The end result could have been far worse for Dedham if not for a stellar performance by senior goaltender Emily Mosca, who turned aside 28 shots and kept her team in range throughout.
“Our goaltending has been the least of our worries,” said Dedham co-coach Joe Huff. “We know we can count on Emily game in and game out. Did you see that stop she made on the breakaway? Unbelievable.”
Huff was referring to freshman Kacie Smith, one of the Mustangs’ best skaters, who broke in alone with Dedham trailing by two with less than two minutes left. Mosca made it look routine, snaring Smith’s bullet earmarked for the low corner with a quick flash of her glove.
But even the talented Mosca was unable to stand up to a relentless Norwood attack as the Mustangs struck for a pair of scores in a 1:01 span during the first period.
Defenseman Sheila Carroll put the Mustangs in front, 1-0, with a rising wrist shot from the high slot that tunneled through a maze of bodies and deflected over the goalie’s shoulder. Kaitlin McCarthy pitched in with an assist, at 5:11.
Dedham netted an equalizer 13 seconds later with a thrilling end-to-end rush by Courtney Sullivan, who finished by beating Mustang netminder Samantha Baturin low to the stick side.
Less than a minute later, however, it was the Mustangs ahead again, 2-1, as Heather Folan one-timed an errant pass that found her standing alone in the slot.
It was tough to find fault with the Norwood effort, but O’Donnell admitted that four penalties resulting in power plays afforded the Marauders ample opportunity to stage a comeback.
“This is a great rivalry and they were playing aggressively and those things will happen,” he said. “It’s something we know we have to work on but at least we managed to successfully kill off all the penalties.”
After being outshot 13-3 in the first, Dedham fared better early in the middle frame, applying steady pressure in the Mustang zone. Several Marauders skaters leveled promising bids on net including Sam Girard, who fired one from the blue line that broke off Baturin’s pad and nearly trickled in.
Norwood withstood the surge and climbed ahead 3-1 on a goal by Karyn Colomey, who lifted a rebound over a prone Mosca. Smith and Emily Kelly provided the helpers at 5:02.
But the Marauders fought back, closing the deficit on Girard’s last-ditch heroics as time ran out in the period. The freshman found the twine with a wicked wrist shot that Baturin never saw with 13 seconds remaining in the second, assisted by Tara Celata and Colleen Downing.
“She was getting a little frustrated because they were double-teaming her tonight,” said Huff of his leading pointer-getter so far this season. “She’s a great player and it was something she had to work through.”
Emily Kelly provided insurance early in the third, tucking in a wraparound that slid between Mosca’s skate and the post, which Mustang shooters hit no less than four times during the course of the game.
Dedham pulled Mosca with about a minute left and had a pair of power-play chances in the third but the Norwood defense clamped down and kept the Marauders at bay.
“The one thing we never have to worry about is this team giving up,” said Huff. “They skate hard on every single shift and never quit. It’s tough to lose a game like this but we’ll learn from it and get stronger as a result.”