The Shady Side Academy girls prep hockey team had a historic moment two weeks ago. They won their first-ever Women's Interscholastic Hockey League of the Middle Atlantic title. The league is comprised of eight prep school teams from Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey and Maryland. The championships were held Feb. 14-16 at Shady Side Academy with the title game Feb. 16. The Indians, guided by head coach Kate Binnie and assistants Pam Ciardi Lloyd and Briton Wean, went up against Morristown-Beard for the title and the Indians prevailed 3-2 in overtime. Rachel Khalouf, a senior who will be attending the University of Vermont next year on a hockey scholarship, scored the winning goal. “We've been working toward this for four years,� Binnie said. “We have a group of hard-working seniors who led the way. They've been with us for four years, and the championship is the culmination of the dedication of the entire team.� Binnie has attained great heights in her own hockey career. She graduated from Quaker Valley, where she was talented enough to play on the boys team. She played for St. Lawrence College for four years and helped the team reach the Frozen Four three times. She was a co-captain in her senior year and she's been coaching with the Pittsburgh Elite AAA program since 2008. She had a feeling this year's SSA team could achieve new heights. “We lost in the first round last year, and the team realized what was needed to get to the next level,� Binnie said. “I thought we could compete for the championship, and we showed that we could win when we needed to win.� Aside from the seniors, other team members contributed in a big way. “Our underclassmen stepped up,� she said. “One of our strengths was that we had a very balanced team. Our defense was strong, and we had good forwards. Sam Smith, also a senior, was very solid in goal.� In addition to Khalouf, seniors Olivia Stokes and Andrea Rockey will also play hockey in college. Stokes will attend Williams, and Rockey will head to Hamilton College. The team finished the season with a 13-5-4 overall record and went 8-1-2 in league play. Binnie hopes her team can duplicate this year's achievements next year. “We will lose many valuable players to graduation, but we feel that we have talented players returning, and we're hoping to get some exciting new players on the ice next year. We want to build a program that is strong every year.� Other seniors on the team were Tori Winter, Sarah Small, Kara Pooley and Clyde Munroe. Juniors include Alayna Trice, Connor O'Donnell and Claudia Devorris. Sophomores on the team were Olivia Coyne, Crosby Deliman, Rylee Hickey and Zoe Horne, along with freshmen Shaila Frye, Rebecca Huss and Mary Gialames. Marty Stewart is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Reach him at 412-782-2123 or mstewart@tribweb.com. Email Newsletters TribLIVE's Daily and Weekly email newsletters deliver the news you want and information you need, right to your inbox.