GP North Norsemen

Grosse Pointe North Girls got back on the winning track against the Ann Arbor Pioneers with a 3-0 victory. North out shot the Pioneers 27-17 but Ann Arbor played a strong third period almost equaling their shot totals from the first two periods. 

Scoring in the first period for North was Emily N. assisted by Rachel L., also scoring was Alexa L. assisted by Kate Z..

In the Second period Christy S. earned the final tally with an unassisted goal at 10:46. The remainder of the game was a puck possession game which saw the Norsemen pretty much control the play. Ann Arbor mounted a charge in the third period and their efforts were rewards with some good opportunities. North’s Jackie Z. was up the task however, turning away all 8 of the Pioneers third period shots.

“I was happy with most of our play. The power play needs some work and I would have liked to have been more in the third period.” (said Coach Van Eckoute).” I was really pleased by the play of two of our young kids who showed they are improving and becoming more confident at this level. Katie L. and Christy L. each had a really nice game.”

North is off this weekend and will host Plymouth Canton next Wednesday at 7:30pm. This should be a great match up as PCS is currently undefeated and leading the western division the league.

The last two seasons North and South have had two one goal games traded the lead several times in their meetings. Last Saturday was just like the last several meetings but with one huge difference, the winning team. After years of being oh so close the Norsemen finally got over the hump to beat South 6-5.

The first period was tight with both teams having opportunities but only one goal. North opened the scoring on Emily N. unassisted goal at 14:11.

The second period was quite different with five goals worth of action. North went up 2-0 at 4:26 of the second when Kate Z. earned an unassisted goal. G.P. South answered back twice in the next three minutes. Amanda Marsh, assisted by Hillary Inger, put South on the board. A short time later Amanda Marsh scored again to tie the game at 2-2. The Norsemen rebounded with two more goals before the period ended. Alexa Q. drove the net and pushed a Marissa L. rebound through the legs of Souths goaltender Caroline Sweeney. Three minutes later Alexa Q. and Marissa L. teamed up again as LaValley scored on a one-timer that Quinlan fed to her from behind the net. The second period ended with North leading 4-2.

In the third period South came out ready to make a move. Alli Morowski took control and showed why she was at the top of the league in scoring last year. Morowski went end to end beating three North defenders and scored sliding on her back. North was not shaken however, they scored twice in the first ten minutes to take a commanding 6-3 lead. Kate Z. got her second of the day assisted by Emily N. and Christy S.. Emily N. scored the eventual game winner at 6:09 of third assisted by Freshmen Lauren W.. South wasn’t about to go away quietly however. In the final five minutes of play South mounted another charge. Hilary Inger got her first of the day assisted by Marsh and Katie Dosch. Amanda Marsh brought South within one goal a minute later scoring her third of the day. With just over four minutes left and the game within one goal North took their timeout and refocused. Following the timeout North shut down the Blue Devils to take the win.

“It was a great day for our kids they finally got over the last hurdle. We play each other three times this year so I’m sure we’ll have two more big contests. Now we need to prepare for the next two games leading onto the Christmas break.” (Coach Van Eckoute)

Notable North Performances
Emily N.: 2 goals 1 assist
Kate Z.: 2 goals
Alexa Q.: 1goal 1 assist
Marissa L.: 1 goal 1 assist
Angela L.: earned the win in goal