SOLIHULL Vixens made the most have having a near full compliment of players by thrashing Swindon 7-1 in the Women’s Elite League.
The start was an expected high energy affair with Solihull soon gaining control of the game against a Swindon team which had clearly decided upon a defensive strategy.
Play was predominantly in the Swindon end of the ice but getting through a tightly packed defence proved difficult.
However, determination paid off when at 12.01 Solihull’s Paige Dance passed to her assistant captain Katie Henry who planted a wonderful snap shot into the Swindon net and break the duck.
However, play continued for the rest of the period with Solihull remaining frustrated from adding to that score.
The second period started very similar for all of 43 seconds when Hannah Maurice, returning from her broken wrist, again found Henry who netted her second to double the travelling teams’ advantage.
Less than four minutes later Henry scored her hat-trick goal which was the result of good work from Rebecca Speckman and Dance.
At the half way point of the period, the Vixens were left short-handed following a lively discussion between the bench and the referee when Henry stuck again working well with assistant captain Lucy Lickman to give Solihull a four-goal advantage.
The third period started to show the advantage of the three lines as Swindon gradually tired, which allowed Solihull to play more attractive and fluid Hockey.
Just 1.29 into the period, Speckman fed the puck to captain Saffron Allen who then found Jodie Bloom who slid the puck past the Swindon Netminder to make it five.
Less than a minute later the same three players combined again, this time Speckman finding Bloom who set Allen up for a sixth.
The six-goal advantage lasted only 16 seconds when, completely against the run of play, Swindon’s Rebecca Osman managed to gain control and beat Michelle Franklin in the Solihull net.
Solihull continued their relentless pressure for the remaining minutes and at 47.53, defensive power house Sarah Hutchinson scored an unassisted seventh goal.
Solihull moved level on points to second place Bracknell.
