Northwood Santa – courtesy of Northwood Huskies Photos
The Northwood Huskies are enjoying some much deserved time off during this holiday season. They celebrated as a school last Monday during Holiday Formal. Santa surprised faculty children with gifts, Serena M. and Cailey H. performed as part of the jazz band, and students took horse drawn sleigh rides.
Santa with Thomas (photo credit Rachel R.)
It’s been a great year for the Northwood team, going into the break their record is 13-12-5, the first time in at least 5 years they’ve had a winning record to start the year off.
Also impressive is that 3 seniors, Julie, Serena, and Hailey were admitted early to their first choice colleges. Every other senior has applied to at least one, if not many, colleges for next year. Nicole G. has even been accepted (with scholarship offers) to two!
Of course, it’s not all about hockey and school for the girls at Northwood. They have also spent their time organizing fundraisers, tutoring in the writing center, and reading to kindergartners.
Below is some of the action from the last Reading Buddies session. Included in the video are:
Young alums came to watch the girls in action: Halle K, Franny P, and Alexa C.
The annual E.G. Watkins tournament held at Cushing Academy this weekend is always an adventure. The tough competition combined with some unusual overtime procedures ensures exciting games for the many college scouts in the stands.
The Northwood Huskies started off the weekend facing league opponent Gilmour. Gilmour got on the board first with a quick shot from the top of the circles and finished the half with two more goals. Northwood hung in and gained some momentum, getting many good chances and dominating the second half. But the scoring drought that started in Cicero, NY had followed the Huskies to Massachusetts, and they could not find the back of the net against a very good Lancer goalie. The game ended with Northwood stunned that they were shut-out 3-0 after a well-played game.
The next morning, the Huskies took on defending tournament champions Winchendon. Again, Winchendon scored first off of a screened shot despite Northwood having more quality chances. They scored again early in the second half and the Huskies were down 2-0. Showing no quit, they clawed their way back into the game, chipping away at rebounds until finally Cailey H. broke the drought with a beautiful rebound goal. With momentum, Northwood kept on, pulling their goalie in the last 2 minutes to get to overtime. The plan worked out and the Huskies were buzzing around the Winchendon net until Nicole M. put a rebound up top with 12 seconds to go. In overtime, the Huskies played 5 minutes of 5v5, and then a minute each of 5v5, 4v4, 3v3, 2v2, 1v1. They then went into a 5 player shoot-out. There were still no goals, so the shoot-out then went to sudden death. Lindsay P. turned away 4 shots, and Northwood shooters tried their best but Winchendon put one in before Northwood, and the long game ended.
Later that day, the Huskies faced Berkshire. After a scoreless first period, Northwood got on the board with a beautiful power play shot by Eva M. that beat the Berkshire goal up top. Berkshire answered back on their own power play a few minutes later. Cailey H. gave the Huskies the lead again with another rebound goal and Nicole M. provided breathing room with a power play goal in the third. Late in the period, with an extra skater, Berkshire was able to put home another goal to get one away, but the Huskies battled the remaining 30 seconds to keep the win.
After the win, the Huskies headed to the Old Mill restaurant to enjoy a delicious meal with special guests, Franny P, Halle K, and Alexa C – all alums from the class of 2012. The girls are all playing college hockey now, and they shared their experiences with the present Huskies.
On Saturday morning, Northwood skated in the consolation game of the tournament, facing Brewster Academy. Brewster had the jump in the first, and their unusual forecheck stopped many Northwood break-outs. Nicole G. held the rope in net and turned away many good chances and rebounds. Brewster scored on a power play shot through a screen to take the lead. Once Northwood figured out how to beat Brewster’s system, it was all Huskies. They scored on their own power play when Hailey S. won the draw to Erin B. and Erin shot from the point and beat the Brewster goalie five hole. The Huskies had more chances, including four 1v0s caused by great forechecking, but they couldn’t convert. With the tight game schedules, the game went to only one overtime period before ending in a tie. Nicole G. won the hard hat for the game and Hailey S. was awarded to the All Tournament Team.
The weekend was successful for the Huskies for many reasons. Despite some injuries and sicknesses, the girls came together after a tough first loss to compete against very good teams. Even more importantly, the many college coaches in the stands were impressed by the team as a whole and individual players in particular. Finally, the weekend served as the last road trip of 201. The girls bonded by watching Elf on the bus, eating a delicious meal at the Old Mill, playing some improv games during down time, and of course, jazzericising for warm-ups!
Food art. Created by Serena M’s table for coaches table.Food Art. Response from coaches table.
Some members of the Huskies team (and their fathers) while visiting Syracuse University
Five games in three days. That’s what the Northwood Huskies faced when they travelled to Cicero, NY for their first full league weekend. The girls were up to the challenge though, coming away from the weekend at .500 with 2 wins, 2 losses, and a tie.
On Saturday evening, the Huskies faced Trinity College School from Port Hope, ON. Despite getting an early jump in the game, Northwood found themselves behind in the game going into the second period. Some time to regroup paid off, as they scored early in the second when Serena M. put home a rebound. Nicole M. found another rebound and buried it, not quite bar down, but over the sprawling Trinity goalie. The lead held throughout, and Northwood had chances to extend it, but couldn’t find another goal in their bag of hockey tricks. Lindsay P. played well in net for the win.
On Sunday morning, the girls faced the Ridley Tigers from St. Catherines, ON. Ridley has always been a strong and disciplined team, and the Huskies knew it would be a good battle. The game was quick and rough. Both teams had chances in the first, but both goalies were up for the task. Ridley put home a rebound to go ahead, but still Northwood felt like they were in the game. The Huskies had some very good power play opportunities and a few that went off the post; they just did not have the scoring touch. The girls really dug deep in the last period of play, but their sweat was all they had to show for it as they could not find the back of the net.
The weekend was a great one for the Huskies, despite not sweeping in the games: They were able to spend time with family and friends there to support them. They had the chance to attend a great Northwood alumni event and watch an AHL game (complete with a few fights). They got to see former Northwood faculty member Jeff Matthews in action as his Amherst team took on SUNY Oswego. They were able to see two very different college campuses and arenas. And, they ate A LOT of Panera.
Erin K, Nicki C, Cailey H, and Brennan B. at the SUNY Oswego vs. Amherst Women’s Hockey Game. (Yes, that’s Mr. Hutch trying to pretend he doesn’t know those crazy girls!)
Alumni Reception before the Syracuse Crunch gameNorthwood checks out the Syracuse Crunch
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Nicki C. in the stands with the turtle mascot
The huskies traveled to Cicero, NY for a NAPHA crossover weekend of league play. The weekend consists of five games Friday-Sunday. Northwood is 1-1-1 in the first three games played with two to go.
The first game was against Wyoming Seminary; the game was back and forth with very little penalties called. The first and third periods were good, but the second period was great! The huskies were able to find their offensive groove and generated seventeen shots in the second period alone. The game ended in a 2-2 tie; goals were scored by Cailey H. assisted by Cassie K. and Cassie K. assisted by Cailey H. Serena M. was also a key part of the scoring effort.
The second game was against Gilmour Academy. Gilmour is a team the Huskies have struggled in the past to beat cleanly. It has been known to be a game of grit with a lucky bounce either for or against. This time Northwood dominated; They were in an offensive state of mind after the morning game against Wyoming Seminary and continued to push hard to the net. Northwood won 2-0. Goals were scored by Jess B. assisted by Eva M. and Nicole M. scored with assists from Olga R. and Julie D.
After Friday’s day of games, the team took the short drive to watch the Syracuse Crunch AHL game and have a Northwood Alumni reception. Fun was had by all and it was great to see some of our Northwood Alum, young and old alike!
Saturday morning the huskies played Nichols. The score was 5-0 to give the huskies their first loss of the weekend. Everyone played hard and Nicole G. stood strong in net making the first, second, and sometimes third save for her team.
The Huskies are off to a good start and are looking forward to tallying “W”s for the last two games of the weekend. Good work, Ladies!
With almost two weeks off for Thanksgiving vacation, Northwood returned to the classroom and to the ice on Tuesday. They had three practices to tune up before games started on the weekend. The time off showed though as they struggled to compete with rivals, Rice and Stanstead.
On Saturday night in front of a boisterous home crowd, the Rice Knights came out strong and sharp against the sluggish and sloppy Huskies. Rice scored first, and although Northwood had spurts of momentum, they couldn’t put together a continuous attack. Olga R buried a rebound by sheer grit to tie it up, but the tie didn’t last long as Rice scored again for the lead and eventual win. Lindsay P and Nicole G both allowed one goal against.
On Sunday, the Huskies travelled to Castleton State College for brunch in the dining hall, a meeting with the coaches, and a campus tour by Castleton players including Allie H. ’10. They then headed to Spartan Arena to face off against league opponent, Stanstead Spartan. The Spartans took control off the opening draw and set the Huskies back on their heels. They scored early on a power play, but then the Huskies picked up their game and started to compete. They had finally gained some momentum, when the Spartans shot from the top of the circle to take a 2-0 lead. Northwood was down, but not out. Eva M scored on the rebound late in the first to narrow the gap. The rest of the game was back and forth, with Northwood out-shooting their opponent, but only Spartan players could find the back of the net.
Next weekend, the Huskies have the chance to gain some league points as they head to Syracuse for a full league weekend.
Northwood School Girls Hockey 