Randolph Girls Ice Hockey defeated Princeton 5-4 on Senior Night, securing the Rams’ first win of the season in front of a home crowd on Friday, Jan. 9.  

In a pre-game ceremony, Randolph honored its seven seniors: co-captains Amelia Kolbik and Lily Zepp; assistant captain Daniella Gizienski: Bowie Manning, Brooke Rodell and Ava Shadwell; and stat girl Keira Miliaresis.  

During the ceremony, family members greeted each senior skater on the ice for a photo and presentation of flowers, a wooden hockey stick engraved with the skater’s name and a gift bag in celebration of her time with the program. 

After the ceremony, it was puck drop time, and the Rams set the tone early by putting consistent pressure on Princeton’s goalie, firing multiple shots in the opening minutes.  

The Rams struck first when sophomore Avery Vlcko tapped in the puck, marking her first varsity goal and giving Randolph an early lead.  

Princeton answered right back after the opening goal to tie the game at 1-1. From that point on, the game turned into a back-and-forth battle, with neither team keeping the lead for long as each goal was met with an immediate response. 

“I was super excited to be able to play alongside my other senior teammates,” Zepp said. “We went into the game super pumped knowing we could compete with this team and get a win.”

Randolph continued to find the net as Kolbik added a goal, freshman Angie Feravolo contributed one of her own and sophomore Charna Torres led with two goals to help keep the Rams in the fight throughout the game.  

“Playing and winning on senior night was so special,” Shadwell said. “I got to celebrate with the people who are not only my teammates, but who are also some of my best friends.”

“It felt great to get our first win,” Torres said. “It felt even more special that it happened on senior night. I am really going to miss the seniors next year because I am very close with a lot of them and I am glad we got to celebrate them.”

The girls defense limited Princeton’s chances for most of the game, and Gizienski finished with 20 saves in the win.  

In the end, Randolph held on to secure a 5-4 victory over Princeton. The Rams face Newark East Side next, on Teacher Appreciation night, on Friday, Jan. 16.