Girls’ hockey: Concord hangs on for third win in a row after late push from Kingswood-Prospect Mountain
Published: 02-01-2024 12:04 AM
Modified: 02-01-2024 9:19 AM |
CONCORD – Crimson Tide head coach Kate Billings could exhale. She’d just watched her team nearly blow a 4-1 third period lead but hang on for a 4-3 win over Kingswood-Prospect Mountain (4-8) on Wednesday night for Concord’s third consecutive victory.
Freshman forward Gracen Arndt scored two goals and tallied two assists; junior forward Evianna Raimo added the other two goals, while sophomore forward Elliana Wing had two assists. But it was the play of junior goalie Kaylee DelloIacono that stood out most notably, allowing Concord (5-4) to walk away victorious.
“She made huge saves, especially at the end,” Billings said of DelloIacono. “She’s come a really long way from the beginning of the season to now to where she’s moving well across the crease and able to take their shots square. It’s been huge for us. She’s kept us in many games.”
DelloIacono stopped 18 of the 21 shots she faced, including several saves in the final five minutes when Kingswood-Prospect Mountain had sustained offensive pressure. Billings credited her assistant coach, Andrew Proulx, for his work helping DelloIacono grow throughout the season.
Wednesday marked the Tide’s third straight win, the first winning streak the team’s put together all season after starting 2-4. Even with freshman defenseman Caroline Fortin and sophomore forward Hailey Pinette having missed the last couple games, Billings noted how other players have stepped up in their absence.
“They’re working hard,” she said. “They stepped up for each other and were able to get the job done. It’s great to see.”
In particular, the line featuring Arndt, Raimo and Wing consistently had the Knightwolves on their heels.
“That line was working so well together that they were able to pin Kingswood into the zone and able to work the puck around very quickly, and they just kind of found some magic and got the puck in the net,” Billings said. “Proud of Evianna because she doesn’t score many goals, but she got two tonight which was huge for us.”
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As the calendar flips to February, the Tide still have half of its regular season schedule remaining. After a rough patch to start the year, Concord seems to have found more consistency that Billings hopes continues as the younger team gains more experience and returns players from injury.
“Once we get them back and we can get everyone back together on a normal rhythm, then we’ll hopefully just settle in and play some of the top teams really well,” she said.
The Tide (5-4-0) return to action on Saturday when it takes on Hanover (7-3-1) on the road.