After missing the playoffs in 2016-17, the Biddeford/Thornton Academy/Wells girls hockey team capped off the 2017-18 regular season with a 10-7-1 record, clinching the No. 5 spot in the Southern conference.

Now, with a largely new group of girls, the Tigers are poised to compete in the postseason and take the next step.

“At the beginning of the year they didn’t really know each other as people. They’ve come together as friends … on the ice I remember the first couple of weeks they were kind of like hurting cats but now we have some established systems, they’re passing the puck better, getting along, since the beginning of the season there has been so much growth,” said Biddeford/TA/Wells coach Adam Flynn of the team’s development.

The Tigers are a young team this season, consisting of 16 underclassman including seven freshmen.

Flynn has been pleased with the contributions of the youngsters, and feels that they will need to continue to play a large role moving forward.

“Trinity Atwater from Thornton Academy has been great all year in net for us, Ainsely Wescott has been great, Lily Clough from Wells has been a workhorse for us on our second line. Every girl has stepped up when they had to this year, we certainly wouldn’t be where we are today without them stepping up,” said Flynn.

Flynn has also been proud of his four veteran captains.

“Their leadership has been great … every girl is comfortable going to them and they’ve been comfortable coming to us,” said Flynn.

The postseason opens up today when the Tigers square off against Scarborough at the University of Southern Maine.

The Red Storm, who have advanced to the regional finals in five straight seasons, cruised to a 7-0 win over the Tigers early in the season.

Flynn expects the Red Storm to once again come out firing, and hopes the Tigers defense will weather the attack.

“I’m expecting an aggressive forecheck. I know they’ve had a carousel of goalies and some defensive struggles, but offensively they have a core group of girls that have been to the Southern Maine final the past three or four years. We know our defense is going to get a lot of pressure, our offense needs to get back and assist our D,” said Flynn.

Although this Tigers team is young on paper, it has certainly been battle tested this year both on and off the ice.

Between adjusting to a new roster, adapting to a new coach, and simply taking on some of the top teams in the conference, the Tigers are confident in their ability to handle adversity.

“I think we kind of have a chip on our shoulder — there are so many unknowns … for me, for a lot of people around the Biddeford-Saco area. I think (the players) have seen all year that they can compete with the best teams in the state. It’s just a matter of coming in prepared and doing our job, coming in with the right mindset,” said Flynn.

As for Flynn, who makes his postseason debut as coach, he is excited to get going and to watch his team compete.

“I’m ready, I’m excited for this,” said Flynn. “I knew that this was a possibility coming in but this wasn’t something I was expecting. These girls know they can compete, now it’s just a matter of putting it to work.”

— Associate Sports Editor Alex Sponseller can be reached at asponseller@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 323. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.

Copy the Story Link

Comments are not available on this story.