RallyNorth.net

North Andover works OT thriller to advance

Saturday, May, 31 By Steve Palladino
Staff writer

NORTH ANDOVER | With 10 minutes remaining and North Andover on the verge of being upset last night, Emily Vento dismissed the notion that her team was about to take an earlier-than-expected summer vacation.

"It runs through your mind, but you have to ignore it," said Vento who, along with the rest of the No. 1 Knights stared in the face of a three goal deficit in yesterday's Division 2 quarterfinal meeting against No. 8 Weston.

Weston dominated most of the second half but, with her team's composure regained, Vento scored with 1:37 in regulation to cap a late three-goal rally and force overtime. From there, Jenn Pino punched in the game-winner for a thrilling 10-9 North Andover win at Joe Walsh Stadium.

The win moves North Andover (20-1-1) into Tuesday's Division 2 North semifinals, where it will host No. 4 Winchester at 7 p.m.

"We knew this game would not be over until the final whistle blew," said Pino, who scored with 2:30 to play to pull the Knights to within one, at 9-8. "We couldn't get down | we just had to keep fighting."

North Andover was trying to fight back from seven consecutive unanswered goals from Weston, which spent most of the second half peppering the North Andover side of the field and firing shot after shot at keeper Stephanie Taylor (15 saves).

North Andover led by a comfortable 6-2 margin late in the first half before Weston put two goals in before the half and then five straight to open the second half.

"We got a little too comfortable," said Pino. "They were getting the draw control and controlling the midfield."
North Andover started its comeback with 7:14 to play when Kaitlyn Klienendorst spun through the Weston defense and bounced in North Andover's first goal in 23 minutes.

Weston tightened up on defense and appeared to have North Andover stifled until Pino snuck through and scored with just over two minutes to play.

"'After every goal, we became more positive," said Vento. "During our timeout (with 10 minutes remaining) we made sure that everyone was on the same page and we got intense."

In the overtime (two three-minute frames), North Andover controlled the play and Pino walked in and beat Weston keeper Cyana Chilton with a low shot to the far side.

"Jenn is a very physical player who wants the ball and handles pressure well," said North Andover head coach Karen Lahey. "She makes senior decisions as a junior."

The Knights jumped out to an early 4-0 lead on a pair of goals by Caroline Barclay and one each from Kleindorst and Pino. That lead was quickly cut in half before the Knights tacked on two more to regain their four-goal lead.

"We push the four "P" | poise, power, placement and patience," said Lahey. "We knew it would come down to that."