Elizabeth Muirhead ‘20
Assistant Sports Editor
Elizabeth Muirhead ’20 is a member of the Smith College Ice Hockey team and ice hockey correspondent for The Sophian.
This past weekend, the Smith College Ice Hockey (SCIH) team suited up for what could possibly be the last two games of the season. One game was against Dartmouth College, whom they lost to two weeks prior, and their other game was against Colby-Sawyer, whom they beat 7-2 back in early November.
Smith needed two back-to-back wins to clinch a spot in playoffs the following weekend. In their league, the IWCHL, only the top two teams from each division go to the playoffs. Norwich University was seated first with only one loss, which happened to be against Smith. Dartmouth College and Smith were competing for the number two spot; each team had only lost twice this season.
Smith’s first game of the weekend was against Dartmouth, and many of the players were feeling anxious about facing a team they had played so poorly against two weeks ago. At that game, Smith lost 10-2, which was by far their worst loss of the season. The Dartmouth team plays an extremely active game, with lots of cycling and motion on their offensive end.
Dartmouth wasn’t the fastest or most aggressive team Smith had faced this season, but their constant cycling and thoughtful positioning made them more difficult to defend against. Dartmouth is a team with a lot of skill and depth, and it translated in the score. SCIH was clearly stunned by the style and played a slower game.
Trying to put that game behind them, SCIH spend two hard weeks practicing more complex skills like cycling and forcing skaters to the boards on the back check. Coach Erin Bernard took the time to find new drills to expand their skills and prepare them for their rematch. The game began at noon on Saturday, and Smith came in hot with the first goal.
Unfortunately, it would be one of their only two goals. Smith lost to Dartmouth again, this time 7-2. While the outcome wasn’t they had hoped for, there was a sense of accomplishment and pride after the game.
Dartmouth is a team of experienced players. Smith’s game looked faster and more calculated; they did a much better job putting pressure on Dartmouth. Smith’s defensemen were doing a better job picking up sticks in front of the net and watching Dartmouth’s offense cycle. Smith’s performance wasn’t enough to get them to the playoffs, but anyone who watched it could tell that they had improved.
The following day, Smith still had one final game for the season against Colby-Sawyer. After making the two-and-a-half-hour drive down to Smith with only four skaters and a goalie, Colby-Sawyer didn’t have enough people to compete, which means that they automatically forfeited the game.
Not wanting to waste their last opportunity of the season to play hockey, Smith offered to have some of their players play with Colby-Sawyer in a scrimmage. The outcome would have no bearings on their position in the league, but that didn’t matter to anybody. Two groups of students just wanted to play hockey one more time this season. Eleanor Donaher ’20 and Elizabeth Muirhead ’20 played with Colby-Sawyer for the scrimmage. Afterward, Donaher remarked, “It was great getting to play a competitive game and we all pitched in to try to make our senior’s game memorable.”
After a long, tough, freezing season, SCIH paved their way as a serious up and coming competitor in their league. With the addition of extremely skilled new players like Kate Ginder ’21 and Cece Giaimo ’21, SCIH built a bigger, stronger, faster team. Smith crushed some teams who had beat them last year, including their impressive, upset win against Norwich in December.
But at the core of the club is camaraderie and sportsmanship. It’s a team that accepts new and experienced players alike, even if the team looks a little too big. According to league rules, only 20 players can be rostered for each game. Even though it put them slightly overcapacity, SCIH took on a team of 22 players and took turns sitting players for different games. The team’s president of three years, Emily Jackson ’18, was willing to take on the logistical and administrative challenges of carrying such a large team. Jackson set the tone for a kind, inclusive team that focuses on developing skills for players at all levels. SCIH is an extraordinary club, and there’s a sense of optimism and bitterness as they head toward the future. We’ll find out what the next season holds in November.
