By Paul Vozzella
Hometown Weekly Sports Reporter
It was a tale of two halves for the Rockets on Thursday evening, as they lost 7-6 against Hingham.
Needham struggled out of the gate, surrendering five goals in the first quarter of action. Spending the vast majority of time on defense, Hingham was able to wear down the Rockets to get off to the big lead.
“They broke us down really well,” said head coach David Wainwright. “They did a great job staying patient on their offense… They broke us down with these long possessions and we couldn't win a face off.”
The second quarter saw Needham get more time on the attacking end of the turf. It gained a two-man advantage 4:12 into the quarter, however, the Rockets were unable to score off the opportunity. Hingham returned to full strength and netted another goal shortly after.
With 3:58 left in the second frame, sophomore Emi Costa Farre put Needham on the board with an assist from freshman Finn Noon, making it a 6-1 game. Following the score, the Rockets started to get aggressive with their patented 10-man rush. A turnover with senior Tommy Peabdy out of the net led to near disaster on a full turf heave from Hingham but junior Tyler Skully was able to snag the ball out of the air.
The Rockets held another two-man advantage at the tail end of the second quarter but were unable to put more points on the board before halftime.
Then the tides started to turn. Needham came out of the second half noticeably more energized after a long motivational speech from Wainwright.
Sophomore Matthew Ledbury jump-started the offense with a goal just 51 seconds into the third quarter. A few minutes later, senior Michael Roach made it a 6-3 game with a goal of his own. Goalie Tommy Peabody also stepped up big time for the Rockets, stopping every shot sent his way in the quarter.
Hingham was able to score first in the final frame, but Ledbury answered with his second goal of the game shortly after by squeezing through three defenders and slinging the ball from directly in front of the net.
Following an injury to Hingham’s starting goalie, the Rockets executed against the backup. Goals from senior Reis Conway and Roach brought the team within one point. Unfortunately, that’s all Needham was able to do.
Even with the loss, Needham now has a great idea of where they stack up against the rest of the competition: “Hingham is one of the most consistent top rated programs year after year,” said Wainwright. “When we get a chance to play them, it gives us a lay of the land about where we're at compared to some of the top ranked programs in the state.”
Needham has proven it can compete with the best of the state and will look to build off its second half efforts as it continues to navigate a long regular season.
