Girls Hockey: Pioneer skates back from four-goal deficit to earn a tie

On Saturday, the Pioneer girls’ hockey team played one of those wild games where a never give up attitude paid off with a well-earned point in the standings. It’s also a game you can point to as motivation later on in the season if you fall behind.

Visiting Northville scored four goals in the first period, outshooting their hosts 14-2, to take a commanding 4-0 lead into the second period. Lissie Patterson scored twice and Avery Peters and Reese Heaton netted solo goals for the Mustangs.

The Pioneers didn’t help themselves with three penalties in the period.

The second period was a completely different story. Pioneer scored three times to cut the deficit to 4-3.

Piper Campbell (from Gabriella Prince) scored at 7:21; Olivia Andrianopoulos (from Abby Cheng) scored at 11:18; and Nadia Tuzinsky (unassisted) scored at 14:58. And just like that, it was a one-goal game.

The Mustangs pushed the lead to 5-3 on a goal by Patterson at 6:40.

But Tuzinsky (from Campbell) scored at 9:59 and then she completed her hat trick with an unassisted goal at 12:32 to tie the game at 5-5.

Neither team could break the tie in overtime, where Northville held an 8-2 advantage in shots. And the game, held at Veteran’s Memorial Ice Arena, ended in a 5-5 draw.