After defeating Winchester and Matignon, Girls Hockey fell to Wellesley High School, 4-1, in the semi-finals of the 2019 MIAA Division 2 Playoffs. Senior Captain Audra Tosone was the force behind the lone goal for the Rebels that deflected in off a Raider.

“We had a great season and to go 18-4-1 was unreal. This year was the first year where we felt like a real team. We would always have each others back on and off the ice. We would just have fun and work hard no matter what we did and it really paid off,” senior Captain Meghan Hamilton said.

With eight minutes left in the first, the Raiders netted the first goal of the game. Eventually, Tosone answered with her deflected goal with less than a minute left in the second period to tie the game at one a piece. In the third period, Wellesley put away three more goals to secure their victory as Walpole went home with a 4-1 loss to end their season.

“It really did stink to lose [to Wellesley] because we knew we had the potential to win it all and it just came down to who wanted it more,” Hamilton said.

In the first round of the playoffs, the #1 seed Rebels beat the #16 seed Winchester High School Sachems, 2-1 in overtime.

“Playoffs are a whole new season and we were all well aware of that. Just because we were the top seed did not put us at any advantage but placed a huge target on our back,” Tosone said. “We all knew to stay composed and not feel overconfident because every team at that point is very good. We felt strong and confident and the trust we had in each other is what was keeping us going.”

The first two periods against Winchester finished scoreless, as neither team could get their playoff nerves out of the way. However, the Rebels defense proved their talents as they successfully killed two penalties early in the close battle.

“We started pretty slow and were not really playing together as a team. We also did not get many shots to the net, but once we started passing and moving our feet, we got in the groove and got shots through. We got more energy to score hard goals,” Hamilton said.

It took four periods to decide who was to move on and who was to go home, as the Sachems scored with 1:13 left in the third period to force overtime.

“Winchester came ready to play because they were a lower seed, so it was hard for us in the first period to get adjusted, but we stopped playing as individuals and more as a team in the second and third periods,” junior Sophia Pacella said.

The four on four, six minute overtime ended abruptly as senior Captain Madison Ryan scored to advance the Rebels to the next round.

“We were fortunate enough to have a bye week, but I think having that much time threw us off, so it took us a while to get used to playing again,” Ryan said. “Winchester was definitely a good team and better than we expected, but I still think we were the better team and the majority of the game we had puck possession. We just could not cash in on our opportunities, but in the end we never gave up.”

The Lady Rebels went on to face Matignon in round two, winning 4-1, as freshman Liv Brooks netted two goals along with Emily Desimone and Hamilton having one each.

“I think we played a lot better than our first game because we played as a team, moving the puck and taking more shots on net. We knew we had to come out strong and play to win and we did,” senior Captain Olivia Malone said.

Despite the loss to Wellesley in the semi-final, this team left a legacy to be remembered.

“This year we had great seniors that helped lead us to a historic season and we should keep our heads high but there will definitely need to be a lot of work done in the offseason if we want to go as far as we did,” Pacella said.