New team members face high expectations for club hockey

Despite some tough games the Norwich club hockey team has faced, this young team is taking the challenge of training an interesting new group of players head on, according to one of the sophomores on the team.

The team is currently sporting a losing record of 6-10 as it plays in the Division II American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA).

"Hockey season has been productive so far and it's a rebuilding year for us," explained Nathan Holtgrewe, 19, a sophomore computer science major from Webster, N.H.

With 17 new faces on the team it was inevitable that there was going to be some bumps in the road throughout the season.

One of the new faces is freshman goalie Sophie Mundell, who is the only girl on the club hockey team.

"It's my first time playing with guys and it's a different game and (experience)," said Mundell, 19, a freshmen majoring in psychology from Eagle River, Alaska.

"Overall I think we play well together," she said. "I feel more like a part of this team than any other [team] I've played for."

Having a female player on the team has not been difficult for the team – they all act like a typical team. Instead, the biggest issue the team is faced with is training all of the new players.

"We're so young because of all the freshmen on the team," said Benjamin Cohen, 19, a sophomore majoring in criminal justice from Barnstable, Mass.

"We expect a lot out of them," Cohen said.

If there is one thing the older and more experienced players can agree on, it's that the future is bright for these freshmen. In the big scheme of things, getting experience and time on the ice should help make the future bright for these club Cadets.

According to Robert Whitbeck, 21, a senior majoring in criminal justice from Quakertown, Pa., the freshmen are pretty much the difference between this season and last season.

For freshmen Conor Murphy, he had no idea what he was going to face in his first year of club college hockey.

"I didn't know what to expect, but so far the season's been good," said Murphy, 19, a criminal justice from Westwood, Mass.

Despite their record, the team agrees its performance and efforts on the ice isn't reflected in its record.

"A couple of things didn't go our way, but that's hockey," Murphy added. But he still has high hopes of finishing the season strong.

Norwich wraps up its season against Saint Anselm College at home, in Kreitzberg Arena. According to Whitbeck, going into the end of the season games, the team looks at every game as an important game especially this late in the winter.