BRUNSWICK — Despite one team having more wins than the other when Mt. Ararat and Brunswick high schools square off on the athletic fields, or in this case the ice, it typically doesn’t matter as the two teams play a tight contest.

With the Brunswick High School Band playing during warmups and breaks, the two girls hockey teams played a clean, close first period, with the Eagles leading 3-1. But five goals over the next two iced the game for Mt. Ararat as the squad came away with an 8-1 victory over “Battle of the Bridge” opponent Brunswick in Watson Arena at Bowdoin College on Wednesday night.

“It’s great for us to keep this momentum and adding to our wins,” Junior Ema Hawkes said as the Eagles extended their school record in wins in a season to seven. “It’s really important that we all want to be part of the team that gets the most wins in team history. The coaches put in so much time teaching us the little things to help us be where we are. We always know Brunswick can be tough and we haven’t had many games like these over the years.”

Hawkes netted four goals including a pair in the opening period as Mt. Ararat/Lisbon improved to 7-5-1 on the season. Junior forward Maddie Young added a hat trick tallying three scores, while Bre Hunter had the other goal.

“Typically our scoring has been pretty spread around this year so I was a little surprised to see most of it come from two scorers,” Mt. Ararat/Lisbon coach Jeremy Saxton said. “Ema’s been great for us all year and it was great to see Maddie find the net tonight. We’re a pretty even squad playing some great defense and have received good goaltending this year.”

Mt. Ararat/Lisbon opened the scoring two-and-a-half minutes into the contest when Hawkes broke free at center ice and raced down the middle, beating Brunswick keeper Alamea McCarthy for the score. Less than a minute later, Young registered her first score with an unassisted tally of her own after she charged the net and pushed one past McCarthy.

“We’re still learning, we gave up ta lot of odd man rushes tonight,” Brunswick coach Mike Routhier said. “The hard work is there, the effort is there, we are just making young, inexperienced mistakes. We just need to keep going out there and gain that experience.”

Midway through the frame, the Dragons found the back of the net and cut the score to 2-1 when Elena Palmer scored off an Olivia Doughty helper.

Hawkes recorded her second goal of the period after she intercepted a pass and skated through defenders and after a Dragon lost her footing, Hawkes took the shot that hit the back of the net for a 3-1 Eagles lead that held after one period of play. Mt. Ararat outshot Brunswick, 9-1, in the first 15 minutes of action.

The Eagles opened the second continuing to possess the puck, frustrating the Dragons offensive rhythm.

“We had trouble getting things going tonight,” Routhier said. “They’re a good team and handle the puck well.”

“We’ve been working on our back checking and making sure we’re getting back and underneath their sticks,” Young said about the tight Eagles defense.

Young notched her second goal a little over six minutes into the frame. Another unassisted tally, pushing the Eagles lead to 4-1.

Hawkes had another goal with five minutes left in the period, beating McCathy for the third time, earning the hat trick and Bre Hunter scored a late goal with 23 seconds left off a rebound from an Abbie Lucas shot for a 6-1 lead after two periods.

Both Hawkes and Young added to their totals in the third period with unassisted goals bringing the final to 8-1. Young netted her first hat trick, a goal from behind the net, prompting Mt. Ararat fans to toss their hats onto the ice.

“It hit the back of the goalies pads and went in, but yeah, it’s the first time I have ever scored a hat-trick,” said Young, smiling about the hats being tossed.

And Young was happy about all of the Eagles goals, and credits the “vibe” on the team and her teammates all playing for one another for their success.

“It’s really good we don’t normally do that to anyone,” Young said about the offensive outburst. “We’re a totally different team this year. We have a great vibe and we hope to go far. We’re doing it for each other, our team.”

Mt. Ararat/Lisbon ended with 30 shots on goal as McCarthy finished with 22 saves. Brunswick had five third-period shots bringing its total to seven shots on goal with Eagles

keeper Greta Marchildon making six stops between the pipes.

“Everyone feels pretty good. We have five more games left, we’re still climbing the mountain, but it’s such a positive vibe in the locker room,” Saxton said.
“They come out and work hard for us and give 110%. They’re cheering and rooting for each other. We’re getting some good leadership with our older girls and we’re looking forward to continuing to play well and make it in the playoffs.”

Mt. Ararat/Lisbon hosts Greely on Saturday at Watson Arena with a 6:30 p.m. start time.

For Brunswick, it’s back to the ice on Saturday when they travel to Travis Roy Ice Arena to take on Yarmouth/Freeport, also at 6:30 p.m.