Girls’ hockey has a chance at bringing home the gold…
As the top eleven teams in the Division II (DII) girls’ hockey league prepare for their competitive playoff games, the Oyster River Portsmouth (ORP) ClipperCats are currently in third place and have high hopes entering the 2026 playoffs.
The team is familiar with playoffs, as they have been the DII New Hampshire runners-up for three consecutive years. So far, ORP has had a successful regular season, going 13 and 5. The young team has a new coach this year, Sadie Wright-Ward, and have gained eight new freshmen after losing twelve seniors.
This season, the ClipperCats have five seniors, and are hoping to bring home a first-place plaque for the graduating five. Eliza Farwell (‘26), one of four captains for ORP says, “we don’t want to fall any shorter than we have in past years. We do want to make it to that championship, and this year with our bracket it’s super possible.”
The New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association (NHIAA) bracket shows old and new rivals Hanover and Lebanon-Kearsarge-Mascoma teams to be playing against each other on the opposite side of the bracket, allowing the losing team to be knocked out early.
With a new coach, the whole team is adjusting. Katy Sahr (‘29) says it can be difficult because lines are different in every practice and game, and there can be a lot of pressure on the freshmen to be playing at the competitive varsity level.
Iris Skoglund (‘29) says the teamwork on the ice is the biggest thing to be worked on. Trusting and making smart passes is a team goal. Off the ice, the team chemistry has progressed as the season has gone on. Skoglund says, “we’re all pretty close, especially since we’ve all dyed our hair and had a bunch of spags.” ORP’s pink hair dye has been a tradition for the past two years, a fun team bonding event representing the fact that they made it to playoffs.
As the last Oyster River High School (ORHS) team to have a chance at bringing home a title, and after three years of competing in the championship game, ORP plans on keeping the streak of making it this far and are hopeful to take home the win this year. Farwell says, “If we got to finals, I would feel a lot less pressure than I have in the past years. It’s such a show of how good we are. Winning or not, I’d be proud of the group.”
The teams’ first playoff game will take place at the Whittemore Center on March 6th, 7pm against Keene.
-Bel Ejarque
Photo Courtesy of Maggie Callahan
Mouth of the River 
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