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It was a nice way to end the season for the Woodstock Academy girls’ ice hockey team.
The Centaurs finished up with a 7-0 win over an Auburn, Mass. combined varsity-junior varsity team Feb. 24.
“It was really nice to win. It may have been against their JV team, but we all played really well and came out with the win, so it’s good,” said senior Ellie Jellison.
The Centaurs are the only girls’ ice hockey program in eastern Connecticut and, as such, found it hard to find games this season.
The Centaurs traveled often, including trips to Portland, Maine, and a couple of stops in Boston to get contests and finished with a 5-13 record.
The Centaurs are hopeful to get involved in a league next season.
“We’ve been working with Connecticut (teams) and could end up in a league. We made a lot of contacts in Rhode Island, close games with Warwick, Cranston and Burrillville, but we would love to be in a league. I think it would be a big step forward if we can get into that (Connecticut) league and I think the girls would like that to,” said Woodstock Academy co-head coach Sean Farrell.
The Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference does not sponsor girls ice hockey as of yet and since the Centaurs are not associated with any league, there is no postseason play.
But the season, as a whole, went well.
“I’m happy,” Farrell said. “We had a tough schedule, a lot of teams that had a lot more experience than us. We had a few games where we lost 10-1, 12-1, 13-1, but in those games, the girls skated every shift hard right to the last minute. One of the goals was just to improve player’s play, understanding of the game, and how to play on the ice. Playing through that, giving it all you got and playing 100 percent, we improved every single game. We got a little quicker, were able to handle the puck a little better, looked for plays. It forced them to do that.”
Jellison, who will go on to play college hockey at Assumption College in Worcester next season, was one of six seniors on the squad. All of them were honored prior to the Auburn game which served as Senior Day for the Centaurs.
“We only had three seasons, but it went by really fast,” Jellison said.
Regan Stuyniski, Irene Askitis, Emma Ciquera, Emma Strandson, and Ashleigh Angle were the other seniors who were honored.
“All six of them show up on time, ready to play. They listened, they learned. They came from all different experiences from playing since they were young to picking it up when they came to high school. Each one of them got better,” Farrell said.
Jellison added that everyone on the team got better.
“We’ve improved,” Jellison said. “At the beginning of the season, we only had three or four girls who really knew how to play. We had a couple of girls from the year before who learned how to play, but only three girls who had played their whole life. Now, we have four full lines that we play. They can go in there and give us breaks. It was good.”
Jellison scored two goals against Auburn and added two goals and an assist in a 6-3 loss to the Northwest Catholic-Mercy cooperative program on Friday to give her a team-best nine goals (12 points) for the season.
Askitis scored her first two goals of the season against the Rockets Feb. 24 while Stuyniski and Ciquera (3 goals, 7 assists on the season) each had a pair of assists. Chelsea Willis, Sydney Haskins (four goals, five assists on the year) and Hannah Clark also scored in the win
Eliza Dutson led the Centaurs in scoring for the season with seven goals and six assists for 13 points.
“Wins and losses didn’t matter much; we’re not in a league. We did have some competitive games; we won some games, won some close games, so we learned how to win a little as well. In spite of the record, I think the season went very well,” Farrell said.
Marc Allard
Sports Information Director
The Woodstock Academy
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