Avalanche easily Advances to Section One Finals

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On Wednesday January 28, the Avalanche laced up their skates and faced the Rockland Rockies for the semi final round of the sectionals. At the Brewster Ice Arena, the Avalanche didn’t wait long to start. They were on the board after only 18 seconds, and the tone set, Marcela Maurice was left beaming all the camaraderie that paved the way for an easy 8-0 victory.

“I love my teammates,” the John Jay freshman gushed.

The first rush obviously began the affection. Carmel’s River Salisbury took the shot and gave her team a 1-0 lead at 14:42.

Three minutes later, the pressure remained, and the Avalanche went on the power play. No clears in sight for the Rockies, Sascha Brightman of Pawling was the next to tally for the home team.

In at 10:50, there again was no out for the Rockies. Not much ability to ice or clear, the inevitable came due again at 8:48. Salisbury had her second goal, and the Avalanche would take a commanding 3-0 lead into the second.

Back from break, Maurice came out and showed her wrinkle. A stickhandle weave through the defense, she didn’t win the one v one with the goalie, but her acumen didn’t go unnoticed by the coach. “She brings the next level of talent and is incredibly versatile,” boasted Stacey Wierl. “Marcela can help protect the puck. But we can also put her at the forward, and she can score.”

The forward wasn’t quite on thin ice to develop the proficiency either. “When I was younger, I was always out stickhandling in my driveway,” said the Wolf.

The goal denial didn’t diminish the Avalanche onslaught, though. Lucy Yoon of Byram Hills scored at 5:35, and two minutes later, Maurice was on the receiving end of a Addison Pinnow assist. “I crashed the net and was able to get it in,” said Maurice.

Once again, Maurice’s stick work didn’t take place in a vacuum. “Marcela is a great asset for us,” said Kathryn Becker of John Jay. “She’s skilled and kind of shifty. So you can always count on her to skate it out and have your back.”

Becker would have her say too. She assisted the Avalanche goal that took place at the second period buzzer, and aptly so since her job is to always be in the vicinity. “I’m out there to screen in front of the net and get some dirty rebounds,” said the junior.

Wierl likes the way her Wolf gets in the way too. “We really like her presence in front of the net. She has the ability to take the goaltender’s eyes away from the play and can also put in the rebounds,” said the coach.

Back the other way, Grayce Peters didn’t see much action through the first two periods but did finish with six saves. Her second year playing hockey, the ninth grader didn’t dither when first lacing up. “I really got into it, and said to myself, I want to skate and I want to be a goalie,” revealed the Lakeland Hornet.

Of course, all alone in goal, Peters is still glad she’s not a solo. “When the other team scores, I look around, and see, my teammates all say, it’s not your fault. It’s ours,” said Peters.

Family in short, she does have a favorite sister in a crunch. “Sascha, she’s super fast and gets to the puck,” clarified the goalie.

Quick on the stick, Wierl says the same of her goalie. “She has grown in the last three months by leaps and bounds,” said Wierl.

All resulting in a late 8-0 lead, the Avalanche was able to get their bench players on the ice and Violet Fishlin really appreciated the reaction. “Although I might not be on the ice all the time, I know the second I’m out there, they will support me and cheer me on,” said the Fox Lane skater. “So I put my best foot forward, because I want to make them proud.”

The same goes for the rest of the team and they will need it after losing twice to the East Green Wave previously. “There’s a couple of players we really got to watch out for,” said Becker.

Even so, Wierl remains confident, and she points to resolve this team has shown after a number of tight losses. “I’m really proud of the culture that they’ve built as a team. So when those losses came, we bounce right back and don’t let down,” said Wierl.

That doesn’t sound like good news for The East Green Wave because the girls will be ready on Monday, February 2.

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