AUBURN — Scoring quickly worked for the visiting team Thursday.

When the Greely/Gray-New Gloucester and St. Dominic Academy girls met on the ice for the second night in a row Friday, that held true.

The Rangers scored two goals in the first two-plus minutes and held on for a 4-1 victory over the Saints at Norway Savings Bank Arena, avenging a two-goal loss the previous evening.

St. Dom’s soured the Rangers’ senior night Thursday, so the Rangers returned the favor Friday, which also saw the Saints unveil their updated state championship banner after last season’s win.

“I think that we were just so fired up,” Rangers senior captain Bridget Roberts said. “We just saw them before the game unveiling their state championship banner, and they’ve kicked us out of playoffs my last two years, and we have a huge rivalry with them, and we have never been so fired up for a game.”

A night after giving up a goal eight seconds in on their home ice, the Rangers (15-3) took a little bit longer to do the same to the Saints (15-3) on Friday. Courtney Sullivan — who had a hat trick in the loss Thursday — found the back of the net 57 seconds in on the game’s first shot on goal.

Madison Pelletier added another goal 2:04 in, with both goals coming on counter attacks. Pelletier scored on a rebound of Leah Walker’s initial shot that was saved by Saints goalie Payton Winslow, who made 17 saves Friday after totaling 30 Thursday.

“It was huge. That was everything in the first period,” Rangers coach Nate Guerin said. “It deflated them a little bit. I felt like our girls were really amped up and pretty excited to return the favor on (their) senior night.”

Addie Suckow, who scored two goals in the win Thursday, hit the crossbar just over six minutes in on the Saints’ first good scoring chance. Avery Lutrzykowski put the first shot on net for St. Dom’s two minutes later.

“Four games in five nights. It showed,” Saints coach Paul Gosselin said. “I think we were physically and mentally tired, and it just didn’t feel like it was working. And we could tell. We were kind of scared of that going in, and it’s just a long week. These aren’t pros, these are high-school kids, and they were just tired.”

It wasn’t until more than six minutes into the second period that the Saints — who scored seven goals Thursday — finally broke onto the scoreboard. Just after running out of time on a power play, Lutrzykowski’s shot from the left circle was re-directed in by Callie Samson.

The Rangers answered back less than four minutes later, and in similar fashion. Jayme Morrison’s shot from the top of the right circle glanced off Bridget Roberts and past Winslow with 5:26 left in the second.

“I thought that was the biggest goal of the game, outside of just leading off early with the score,” Guerin said. “That goal I think settled the girls down. We knew that we were still bringing it at that point. Rather than get down on ourselves we bounced right back, so that was a good sign for us.”

The Saints had chances to answer on the power play, first late in the second and again early in the third, but put just one shot on goal combined between the two.

“Power play is more of a, I think, a thinking thing, and I think that’s kind of what kind of signaled to me that they were mentally tired because they were making a lot of mental mistakes on the power play that doesn’t usually happen,” Gosselin said.

The Rangers put the nail in the coffin with less than five minutes to go. Roberts’ intended pass from the left circle toward the slot instead went past Winslow, who was sliding away from the open post heading to where she thought the puck was going to go.

“Honestly I was trying to pass to my teammate, and it just hit off of (a defender’s) skate and went it,” Roberts said. “So it was kind of fluke, but it worked out well.”

Jordyn Owens stopped 13 of 14 shots for the Rangers, and Gosselin noted that the Rangers defenders did a good job blocking shots as well.

The win didn’t help the Rangers’ playoff seeding any  — they are locked into the No. 3 spot in the North region. The Saints are clinging to the No. 1 seed for now, but if Lewiston/Monmouth/Oak Hill defeats Falmouth on Saturday, the Devils will leap past St. Dom’s and relegate the Saints to the second spot. If that happens, St. Dom’s and Greely/Gray-NG could meet for a third time this season in a regional semifinal.

wkramlich@sunjournal.com

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