ROCKY RIVER, Ohio -- The Pirates closed out their regular-season home slate with a 14-4 victory over Ottawa Hills Thursday.
Junior attacker Olivia Konopka scored a season-high six goals to lead a Rocky River in the wire-to-wire non-conference conquest. The Pirates (13-2) dominated early, rattling off the first 11 shots of the game and eventually building a 10-1 lead by halftime.
The win marked Rocky River's third straight since suffering a 7-6 loss at Chagrin Falls April 27. The Striped Buccaneers have yielded just 12 goals over those three victories.
Green Bears goalkeeper Colleen Kelley was sharp early, but River caught fire with four goals -- three by Konopka -- over a five-minute stretch beginning at the 21:45-mark of the first half. Kelley would go on to register 14 saves in the contest.
A ball-hawking Pirate squad forced turnovers up and down the property, in set plays and in transition, and did not allow an Ottawa Hills shot until the game was nearly 11 minutes old. For the game, the Maroon & White would hold the Bears to four goals on 10 shots while forcing them into 28 turnovers. River opponents have now committed 54 turnovers over the team's last two games.
Behind the turnover churn and the production by Konopka, Kaitlyn Byrne, Ella Nejad, and Alexis Tisler, the Pirates worked their way to a running-clock 10-0 lead by 6:35 of the first. The visitors landed their only marker of the first on a well-placed free-position shot by Caroline Durfee at the 3:47-mark.
The second half was mostly an endgame march to an inevitable destination, but the Bears displayed some grit and determination in their effort. Ottawa Hills scored three late goals and played out the rainy-night road tilt with admirable hustle. And, despite the eventual 10-goal margin of victory, River's game film likely won't be without some coaching moments. The Pirates were tagged with 22 turnovers, their most in a single game since the March 19 season opener.
The home side finished with a 33-10 edge in shots. Rocky River put 28 shots on frame to the Bears' six. Hannah Burgess (two saves) and Acadia Hover split the night guarding Pirate twine.
Nejad kept the Pirates in possession of the pellet early with an impressive performance on draws. River finished with a 12-7 advantage in that department. The Striped Buccaneers were a plus-6 in turnovers (22-28) and a plus-4 in ground balls (23-19).
Madeline Lundin (three ground balls, one caused turnover), Kalyn Scalabrino (3 GB, 3 CT), and Tisler (3 GB, 1 CT) led the spill-and-scoop brigade for the Pirates. Eleven different players logged caused turnovers for the Maroon & White.
Olivia Konopka finished the night with six goals and an assist, and she has now posted 17 points over rocky River's last four games. Kaitlyn Byrne clocked three goals and two assists; the first of those five points marked the 50th point of her career. Byrne has scored a goal in every game this season and has now filed 12 multi-goal efforts. Nejad (goal, assist), Tisler (1G, 1A), and Mackenzie Russell (1G, 1A) added two points each.
Ottawa Hills (7-6) was led by Caroline Durfee, who scored two goals, and Emerson DeMilt, who scored once and was solid on clears and on defense.
The Pirates are slated to close out their regular season Wednesday at Hawken.
by Skip Snow
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