SPECIALTY PROTECTION
WOMEN'S PROTECTIVE
One a hell of a beautiful day down in Charlottesville set the stage for the first battle of the day. The first quarter started with Carolina’s Kevin Frew setting the tone for the face-off circle as he won the first draw and gave the first possession to Carolina. Although this was a good sign for the Tar Heels, it would be Hopkins that strikes first. Kyle Harrison started the scoring with a split dodge from up top and without getting touched ripped a shot high to high to make it 1-0 Blue Jays. About 20 seconds later Tar Heel middie Andrew McElduff was left wide open on the sub. Kevin Frew saw the opening and fed McElduff on the run and after a low-to-low rip the score was tied 1-1. With the Heels 3-0 on face-offs it only seemed fair that they take the lead. After playing solid defense Andrew McElduff found himself on a fast break and fed backpedaling Jed Prossner on the right wing, Prossner didn’t think twice and unloaded a low bounce shot that beat Hopkins’ goalie offside hip to make it 2-1. This would be the last lead of the game for Carolina, as Hopkins would take over from then on. The Blue Jays tied it back up as Kevin Boland found Matt Rewkowski on the crease to make it 2-2. Both goalies came up with big stops and kept the game close to end the quarter ended 2-2.
The second quarter started where the first quarter left off. Hopkins Matt Rewkowski beat his man from up top and scored with an off hip high to low shot to make it 3-2. A timeout from the Blue Jays proved worthy as Joe McDermott took his man from up top and with a lefty laser beat Carolina’s Paul Spellman to make it 4-2. Another face-off won by the Tar Heels gave them the opportunity to strike back. A timeout by UNC would also prove worthy, as attackman Ryan Blair took his man from behind and his shot trickled in after a great kick save by Scott Smith to make it 4-3.With 11:51 left on the clock the action turned up a notch in-between the lines. Great saves on both ends of the fields and textbook defense forced period where neither team could find the cage. Hopkins would break the silence when Kyle Harrison fed Conor Ford who ripped a low to high cannon from the lefty wing made it 5-3. It was a gallery of goals after that. Hopkins middie Greg Peyser fed Coner Ford again on a set play to make it 6-3. Carolina found the net one more time in the half as Dave Duffy made a good move inside and whiffed on a shot that took 3 weird bounces and put the Tar Heels with in 2, 6-4. Ford found the net again for his 3rd goal of the game on a fast break fed by Benson Erwin to make it 7-4 Hopkins. Before the half could end Matt Rewkowski finds Conor Ford Again to make it 8-4 and gave Ford his 4th goal of the half. The half ended 8-4.
Carolina came out gunning in the 3rd quarter but some great stops and big groundballs gave the Hopkins the ball again. Frustration set in and an offensive penalty on Carolina set up Hopkins’ 9th goal of the game. Hopkins moved the ball with precision passing and when the opening arrived to finish Conor Ford was the man for the job. He made it 9-4 and gave himself 5 goals on the day. Carolina answered back as Jed Prossner fed Lance Zimmerman to make it 9-5. Another big face off for Carolina would help close the gap when Dave Duffy fed Jed Prossner on a give an go to make it 9-6. With the Tar Heels on a roll, Carolina’s Andrew Lucas came alive and took his man up the left wing from behind and pinned the upper corner to make it 9-7. Kyle Harrison put an end to the run, as he dodged from up top to his right hand and finished low and away to make it 10-7 Hopkins. The Blue Jays went at it again as Benson Erwin scored unassisted to make it 11-7. Scott Smith stepped up huge and kept the Tar Heels off the scoreboard for the rest of the quarter.
With the score still in reach for Carolina one would think it would be Hopkins fending off the Tar Heels offense. It was anything but that, as Hopkins went right at them. Kevin Boland started off the scoring with a dodge down the right wing and high to high shot that beat Spellman off stick side to make it 12-7. A questionable call from the refs gave Carolina the man up and with little time to spare, Ryan Blaire found Mike McCall on the crease to make it 12-8. The ensuing face off gave the Tar Heels another man up, but this time Hopkins took advantage and on a fast break Benson Erwin found Kyle Harrison on the wing. Harrison absolutely ripped the ball high to high to give the Blue Jays a 13-8 advantage. Kevin Boland took his man again from behind and with some nifty maneuvers got top side on his man and finished with a cannon of a shot low to high. Another man up situation for Hopkins would be the nail in the coffin, as Kevin Boland found Matt Rewkowski to make it 15-8. With one more goal from the Heels it would be too little too late, as Hopkins finds themselves in the Final Four once again.
| Scoring | |
|---|---|
| Conor Ford | (5, 0) |
| Kevin Boland | (2, 2) |
| Kyle Harrison | (3, 1) |
| Matt Rewkowski | (3, 1) |
| Benson Erwin | (1, 2) |
| Greg Peyser | (0, 1) |
| Jake Byrne | (0, 1) |
| Joe Mcdermott | (1, 0) |
| Saves | |
|---|---|
| Scott Smith | 13 (0.591) |
| Current Record | |
|---|---|
| Johns Hopkins | 13-1 |
