ANDOVER, Mass. — It wasn't without its share of close calls, but Williston Northampton's undefeated run lives on.
The No. 1 Wildcats outlasted No. 5 Phillips Andover, 1-0, in a thrilling overtime win in which both goaltenders were at the top of their games.
Junior forward Zola Piekarski (Concord, Mass.) scored the game-winner for Williston, burying the rebound off sophomore Mia Daley's (Lynnfield, Mass.) initial bid off the rush. Senior goalie Olivia Ferebee was sensational in the win. The Wildcats improved to 18-0-1 on the season, strengthening their hold on the No. 1 seed in the Elite 8.
Despite the loss, freshman goalie Marie Lee (Southboro, Mass.) was equally good for Andover as Ferebee was for Williston. The Big Blue took just their second loss of the season, dropping to 14-3-2. If the Elite 8 were to start right now, they'd be the fifth seed, which is where they're projected to finish, according to USHR.
Williston senior forward Nora Curtis had a golden opportunity to open the scoring on a first-period power play with a loose-puck one-timer at the left circle. Lee made perhaps the save of the game when she dove to deny it after Curtis appeared to have an open net.
The Big Blue had chances of their own toward the end of the period, ringing a post and missing an open look in a scramble in front.
In the second, both goalies stood their ground once again. In the third, Curtis rang the post twice, and Williston killed a pair of late power plays for Andover to force overtime, where Piekarski was the hero.
Let's dive into three takeaways before getting into 10 standouts from the top-five girls prep matchup.
Takeaways
1. I'll take another dose of that in the playoffs, please and thanks. What a game in front of a packed, raucous crowd. Both teams played extremely high-level hockey, and it was a fast-paced, physical game between two experienced teams. There's history between the two sides — Williston took the 2023 Elite 8 championship over Andover and knocked them out in last year's semifinals — and it showed. It was absolutely one of the top games of the year, if not the best.
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2. Williston's ability to weather the storm was perhaps the next-biggest factor in the win aside from Ferebee's play in net. Things opened up in the second period, leading to a lot of run-and-gun play and plenty of looks for Andover. Not only did the Wildcats survive, but they also got back to their game toward the end of the period and especially to start the third. Their forwards were excellent forechecking Andover's late power plays in the third, speeding up puck carriers and making things difficult. It killed a lot of momentum and prevented the Big Blue from generating a lot of clean exits and entries.
3. Andover dictated the pace toward the end of the first and for most of the second. In the second, they overwhelmed Williston with their speed and layers in transition, preventing the Wildcats from setting up any sustained pressure. They forced Williston into several icings and created a ton of offense in transition. The Big Blue's top-two lines were their usual, effective selves, but Caroline Averill's (Wayland, Mass.) line with Emily Mara (Winchester, Mass.) and Sarah Powers (Lynnfield, Mass.) was especially potent. They consistently set up shop for extended periods in the offensive zone, worked well in the cycle and created chances in high-danger areas. Powers was at the center of a lot of it, setting up Mara and Averill for excellent looks in middle ice.
Now, let's get into the standouts.
Olivia Ferebee
Williston Northampton, 1/31/2006, G, catches left, 5-5
Hometown: Lake Placid, NY
NCAA: Cornell
Ferebee was the best player on the ice. It was the busiest I've ever seen her in a game, and it was the best I've seen her play. Her reactions were excellent. She was quick, and she was clutch. She reacted quickly in the second to make a fantastic blocker save on Caroline Averill's one-timer in the slot that was labeled for the top corner. Later, Ferebee stoned Boyle trying to dangle into the slot before giving Mara absolutely nothing after she got in alone a few moments after. She robbed Mara again with a big lunge to her right to smother a one-timer on a 2-on-1. Moments later on the penalty kill, Ferebee made one of her best saves when she reacted to reach out and snag the puck with her glove after Boyle's one-timer changed directions at the hash.
In the third, Ferebee made a big stop on Lilly McInerney (North Reading, Mass.) in the slot off the rush before denying another one-timer for Caroline Averill late in the frame. Averill had a wide-open lane at the left post, and Ferebee lunged to her right again to turn it aside.
Marie Lee
Phillips Andover, 3/6/2010, G, catches left, 5-7
Hometown: Southboro, Mass.
Lee was fantastic, and what made her performance that much more impressive is that she's only a 2010. The freshman was poised and calm throughout the game, even during some hectic moments around her net. She moved quickly and recovered well. Her diving save on Curtis' one-timer in the first was unbelievable. In the second, she made a big push to her left to deny Daley off the rush. Later, she stopped Daley again and recovered quickly to stone the rebound in front. Toward the end of the frame, she stared down Piekarski on a breakaway and made it look easy with the glove. Lee did a good job in the third of sealing the post and holding her ground on Piekarski's 1-on-1 backhand bid.
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Yasmine McKenzie
Williston Northampton, 7/11/2007, D, right shot, 5-3
Hometown: Holden, Mass.
McKenzie defended well in 1-on-1's and played well above her size, bringing physicality to the table in transition. She made a strong play on the penalty kill in the first to close out the puck carrier along the boards and break up the play with her stick. In the second, she did a good job sticking with Molly Driscoll (Watertown, Mass.) curling around the net before knocking her off the puck and starting transition. McKenzie came through again in overtime, playing physical against Mara along the boards and taking her down to break up the rush.
Nora Curtis
Williston Northampton, 1/9/2006, F, right shot, 5-10
Hometown: Skaneateles, NY
NCAA: Cornell
Curtis couldn't buy a goal for Williston, but it certainly wasn't for a lack of trying. She should have opened the scoring early in the first when she had Lee dead to rights on a wide-open one-timer. A minute into the third, she nailed the crossbar, driving into the slot all alone and picking her spot over the glove. She had Lee beat again. Curtis rang the iron again a shift later off a jailbreak rush for Williston, putting a shot almost perfectly into the top corner.
Curtis made an impact defensively, too. She made a great play early in the second to win the puck, outmuscling Powers as she tried to dangle to the slot. She used her size to her advantage again, giving Mara a hard bump down low to knock her off the puck. It prevented a play to the middle and killed the closing seconds of the period after that line had Williston hemmed in.
Malaya Anabe
Williston Northampton, 6/28/2006, D, right shot, 5-10
Hometown: Fishers, IN
NCAA: Amherst
Anabe played a smart, simple game and used her size to her advantage. She had a great 1-on-1 against Mara in the second, forcing her to the outside at the left dot and killing the rush with a good poke check as she stopped along the boards. From there, she got the puck up ice quickly. On a penalty kill in the third, Anabe smartly jumped into a lane and intercepted a sloppy lead pass by Andover before sending the puck right back into the zone.
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Molly Boyle
Phillips Andover, 1/5/2006, D, right shot, 5-8
Hometown: Scituate, Mass.
NCAA: Yale
Boyle was everywhere once again for the Big Blue. She drove play all game and was effective in all three zones. Early on, she made a nice recovery to break up Nina Coffee (Old Lyme, Conn.) trying to dangle into the slot in transition. Boyle had a couple bids dancing in alone that Ferebee denied, and in the second, she had three excellent looks at the left dot that Ferebee denied. Two were rifled one-timers, and the other was a good wrist shot through a screen.
Caroline Averill
Phillips Andover, 1/14/2007, F, right shot, 5-7
Hometown: Wayland, Mass.
NCAA: Princeton
Averill made an impact, both defensively and offensively, for the Big Blue. She got into shooting lanes and made two critical blocks on Violet Carroll (Milton, Mass.) at the top of the umbrella on Williston's power play. Offensively, her high hockey IQ was on display when she found open space and lanes to get chances. There was one in the second where she found soft space in the slot for a golden one-timer look that Ferebee robbed. On a late third-period power play, Averill recognized an open late to the net and drove to the left post for a one-timer from Boyle. Ferebee denied her again.
Mia Daley
Williston Northampton, 2009, F, right shot
Hometown: Lynnfield, Mass.
Daley had a couple of strong looks earlier in the game that Lee denied, and she did it all in the run-up to the overtime winner. Daley led the rush with a head of steam before driving wide around the defense and shoveling a backhand on net. Lee made the initial save, but Daley made a tremendous play to bat the puck out of mid-air back to the front of the net, where Piekarski was in a perfect spot to put it home.
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Sarah Powers
Phillips Andover, 8/30/2007, F, left shot, 5-5
Hometown: Lynnfield, Mass.
NCAA: Boston College
Powers played with a ton of speed and energy, and she was pivotal in creating a lot of the chances for her line. She made a sweet pass to Caroline Averill for a one-timer in the slot to start the second. A few shifts later, Powers got the puck just outside the zone and knew she had Mara coming as a trailer with speed. She left it in space for Mara to fly in alone for a chance that wouldn't go. She set up Mara again later in the period with another slick feed to the slot for a one-timer.
Zola Piekarski
Williston Northampton, 11/3/2006, F, right shot, 5-3
Hometown: Concord, Mass.
Piekarski used her speed to her advantage to create chances for herself before her overtime winner. In the second, she got a step on Andover's defense for a breakaway, but Lee robbed her with the glove. In the third, she set her edges and drove to the net on a 1-on-1, putting a backhand on goal that Lee stoned. On her game-winner, Piekarski smartly followed the play and drove hard to the net, setting herself up perfectly to bury the follow-up bid after Daley.
Here's a look at her game-winner. Video courtesy of Walt Piekarski:
