LEWISTON — The goals finally came for Gorham/Bonny Eagle/Massabesic/Fryeburg/Lake Region/Westbrook girls hockey team in its game against Lewiston on Monday.
Three goals in the third period helped the Rams to a 5-2 win over the Blue Devils at The Colisee.
Gorham co-op coach Mary Vaughan said that it was important for the Rams to shoot pucks toward Lewiston goalie Kim McLaughlin.
“We knew we would have to get a lot of shots on Kim and get stuff through,” Vaughan said. “I kind of impressed upon them the need for that, and they worked well together. It was nice to see.”
The Rams (10-6) had 32 shots on goal, of which McLaughlin stopped 27. Lewiston (10-6), meanwhile, had only 12 shots on goal.
Emerson Homa scored two of Gorham/Bonny Eagle/Massabesic/Fryeburg/Lake Region/Westbrook’s goals. She also had an assist. Greta Grant and Marisa Payne each recorded a goal and an assist.
The Rams peppered McLaughlin early in the first period, but the senior netminder was up to the task.
Gorham took a 1-0 lead when Greta Grant’s shot from the point sneaked past bodies in front of the net and past McLaughlin with about two minutes to play in the first period. Assists went to Annie Cunningham and Cadance Howard.
“That was our plan: Shots from the point and traffic in front of the net,” Vaughan said. “We worked on that.”
Homa had breakaways late in the first period and early in the second, but both times was denied by McLaughlin.
Homa said learned some of McLaughlin’s tendencies on those chances.
“She goes down a lot and you have to shoot high,” Homa said.
It’s something Lewiston coach Scott Laberge spoke to McLaughlin after the game. But, he added that he expects that she will bounce back in her next outing.
“I think they figured out Kimberly a little bit, and they scored a couple of goals up high,” Laberge said. “She was dropping a little early, but we talked about it. She will clean that up. I am never going to blame anything on her because she’s been carrying us all year.”
The Blue Devils’ defense limited the Rams’ opportunities in the second period.
Homa did find the back of the net off a turnover in the Lewiston zone. She skated into the slot and roofed the puck into the net with under two minutes in the second period.
Lewiston’s Avaya Desjardins skated into the offensive zone and her wrist shot found an opening between the left post and Gorham goalie Elizabeth Keil 20 seconds into the third period.
“We go into the intermission between the second and third and we are down by two,” Laberge said. “I said they are probably out-playing us for most of the second period, but they are letting us hang around. Let’s make them play. We scored that first goal, and I was like, all right, let’s see what happens. We couldn’t keep the momentum after that.”
Homa scored her second goal of the game six minutes into the third period for a 3-1 lead.
“We knew they were going to come back strong, and they did — they came back really strong,” Homa said. “But we came back even stronger.”
Katelyn Cyr skated into Gorham’s offensive zone and slid the puck past McLaughlin 8:43 into the third stanza. Riley Maynard and Alison Smith had the assists.
Lewiston capitalized on the game’s only power play, when Fiona Landry scored to get the Blue Devils within 4-2 about two minutes after Cyr’s tally. Crew Langley and Alyssa Marcoux set up Landry’s goal.
Marisa Payne’s slap shot in the final minute capped the scoring. Graham Emerson Homa had the assists.
Kiel finished with 10 saves.
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