North Eastern, a girls high school age ice hockey team, won a Maryland Student Hockey League championship last Friday, a year after losing in the title game a year ago.
Team North Eastern captured the 2021 championship by defeating Eastern 2-1, in a sudden death, overtime thriller played at The Gardens Ice House in Laurel.
North Eastern is comprised of girls who attend high school in either Harford County or in the Baltimore area. Twelve of the rostered players and three coaches of the team are residents of Harford County. The team is based out of Ice World in Abingdon.
In the title game, there was tremendous goaltending play by both goalies, end-to-end nonstop action and even some physical play that led to the unfortunate ejection of one player from team Eastern, according to coach Brian Reider. The teams played to a scoreless tie in the first period with each goaltender stopping everything shot their way.
North Eastern opened the scoring early in the second period, with an ‘upper ninety, top shelf’ goal by Charlotte Labre, just 18 seconds into the period.
Labre is the granddaughter of former NHL player and Washington Capitals Hall of Fame player, Yvon Labre.
From that point on, Eastern turned up the pressure and put up 21 shots on goal during the remainder of the game. Eastern was finally able to sneak one past North Eastern goalie Alex Erdman in the third period.
A mad scramble for a rebound and a diving play by Cady Melvin, to tip the puck across the goal line, tied the game. This was the only puck to make it past goalkeeper Alex Erdman, who stopped 30 of the 31 shots she faced during the game.
North Eastern had a tremendous opportunity to win the game in regulation. They had a two-man advantage at the end of the third period, but the Eastern goalie was up to the task and stopped every puck thrown her way, forcing the overtime.
Before the overtime began and while the Zamboni cleaned the ice, North Eastern calmed their nerves and was focused more than ever. North Eastern gained control of the puck after the drop and immediately took the puck deep into the offensive zone.
Labre won a very important board battle on the half boards and gave a subsequent pass to her teammate Addie Erdman at the blue line. Erdman walked the puck along the blue line before feeding teammate Tori Hayes on the hash marks, who unleashed a wicked shot through traffic that hit the Eastern goalie high in the chest pads.
The shot caused the puck to flutter up in the air and behind the goalie where North Eastern players Monica Mumma and Guin Donovan were fighting through the defensive players to get a stick on that puck.
To this date, it is still up for debate whose stick actually made contact with the puck in the air and directed the puck into the back of the net for the game winner. But, 28 seconds into the overtime session, the official pointed to the back of the net signaling a ‘Good Goal’ and a ‘GAME WINNER’.
COVID severely impacted high school ice hockey and the MSHL season started much later than normal and under very strict COVID regulations. Mask wearing was mandatory and only one parent per player was able to enter the ice rink to watch the games.
The team had a reduced schedule and was only able to secure ice on two occasions to conduct practices. The team welcomed six new players to the team this season and ended the season with an overall record of 8-3-1.
North Eastern won the regular season league title with a record of 4-1-1. The team scored 45 goals, while allowing 22 goals. The team has a two-year record of 21-6-1, scoring 120 goals, while giving up 52.
This was the team’s second straight year participating in the MSHL Championship. In 2020, North Eastern fell short, losing to Montgomery 3-0.
Members of the team include, Sydney Armstrong, Emmie Caulfield, Claire Cook, Guin Donovan, Addie Erdman, Alex Erdman, Payton Greaver, Tori Hayes, Jade Kendall, Morgan Kovacic, Charlotte Labre, Kipper Ledford, Monica Mumma, Ava Pierro, Michelle Radov, Heather Reider, Michelle Reynoso, Olivia Rissling, Rylan Sachs, Eva Schisler and Anna Stamatos.
The team is coached by Brian Hayes, Ron Pierro, Brian Reider and Jay Rissling.
The North Eastern girls hockey team would like to give a big thank you to Dick’s Sporting Goods of Bel Air and store manager Matt Murray for their generous donation toward the team.