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Flanagan, Andover bounce back

Monday, January, 19 By David Willis
Staff writer

LAWRENCE — Without practice Sunday, Andover was force to sit for 24 hours and think about its one-goal loss to archrival Central Catholic the previous day. So when the Golden Warriors hit the ice yesterday, they were ready take out their frustration.

“That loss definitely put us down,” said Andover co-captain Cam Smith. “So it was nice to get back out there. We did what we wanted to do, and put the season back on track.”

The Golden Warriors jumped out to a two-goal lead in the first period and did not look back on their way to downing Lincoln-Sudbury 4-1 at the Valley Forum.

The win was the fourth in five games for Andover (7-3, 5-2 MVC/DCL Division 1), which dominated the pace of play against the MVC/DCL Division 2-leading Warriors (7-2-1).

“It is so important to get a win after a tough loss,” said Golden Warriors co-captain Riki Retelle. “And we have another big conference game against Billerica on Wednesday, so this built up our confidence. That loss gave us some extra drive to come back, and we got it going early today.”

Senior George Flanagan continued his outstanding season, scoring Andover’s first and last goal of the game. He now has 15 for the season, one more than his season total from a year ago, his first with Andover. He is also the area’s top local goal scorer, trailing only Phillips’ Chris Kreider (16). Flanagan added an assist, upping his team-best point totals to 21.

The center opening the scoring with 5:30 left in the first quarter with a shot off an assist from defensman Joe Kuta. Sophomore Paul Russell added to that advantage 4:21 later with his seventh goal of the season, and third in the last two games.

The Golden Warriors were held scoreless in the second, despite holding the puck in the opponent’s zone nearly the entire period, thanks to a few stellar saves by LS goalie Liam McInerney.

But Andover did add to their lead just 1:06 into the third when Alex Patti picked up a puck in the neutral zone and broke away for a goal to make it 3-0. After Lincoln-Sudbury ended the shutout, Flanagan closed out the scoring with an empty net goal from the opposite blue line.

Golden Warriors sophomore goalie Kyle Berthuaume stood out, making 25 saves. He turned in a few key stops late after the Warriors had pulled their goalie.

“Kyle really stood tall in net against a few late flurries,” said Andover coach Mario Martiniello. “After a loss like (Saturday’s) you worry how a team is going to come out. But Joe Kuta really turned a corner today. He has been struggling a little, but today he was very solid and made some very key plays. And if Riki isn’t the best defensman in the league, he is certainly right at the top of the list. He did very well.”

Andover now sits in third place in MVC/DCL Division 1, trailing Central (7-0-3) and Waltham (8-0-3). The Golden Warriors will travel to face league rival Billerica (4-2-3) tomorrow at 8 p.m.

“We got two important points (in the standings) and we played our best in the third,” said Smith. “Now we have to focus on the big game on Wednesday.”