The Next Generation: Liza Ryabkina

You wouldn’t know it from watching her on the ice now, but until her arrival in the United States three years ago, sophomore Liza Ryabkina had never even played for a women’s team. A native of the Ukraine and a graduate of the Berkshire School in Massachusetts, Ryabkina joined the No. 3 Harvard women’s hockey team as a talented individual who had never really been asked to play for the team’s greater good.

“I was an individual player, so last year was more of a transition [to] being a team player,” Ryabkina says. “I really started realizing how amazing it is to have 24 people who are always there for you. When I would go on the ice, every time, I would be playing for the people who were my teammates rather than just playing for my own purposes.”

It was tri-captain Sarah Vaillancourt, a French-speaking native of Quebec, who really helped Ryabkina adjust to both the Crimson game and the Harvard way of life.

“[Vaillancourt] played a huge role not just on the ice, hockey-wise, but in my everyday life too…She understands me in the way that I’m not a regular U.S. person who knows all these things, so we have all those similar frustrations,” Ryabkina says. “Some of the things that she does, you know, I watch how she plays, and I try to pick out certain things that I wouldn’t be able to do. That’s the biggest thing, because she leads by example.”

Ryabkina wound up being an extremely valuable member of the Crimson offense in her rookie season, playing in every game. She finished tied for fourth on the team in points (27, on 10 goals and 17 assists), good enough for 12th in the nation among rookies. She also thrived under the pressure of her first postseason and was named to the ECAC All-Tournament Team.

But this season, with the loss of defensive superstar Caitlin Cahow ’07-’08 to graduation, Ryabkina is being asked to move back to the blue line.

“It’s something new, and it’s so different from playing forward,” she admits. “[The coaches] are going to start involving our defense more in the attack, they want us to jump in and stuff, and I feel like I fit in pretty well being a defensive forward.”

Tri-captain Jenny Brine agrees with Ryabkina’s self-assessment.

“She makes a great fourth attacker when coming down the ice. She’s such a powerful player,” Brine explains. “I think it’s really fun to watch, because she can still be such an offensive threat when she’s at the blue line…I think you’re going to see a lot of great things from her.”

While playing defense is a new challenge for Ryabkina, she’s not a complete stranger to the position, having spent a couple of months there on her club team.

“We’ve had her there, and she’s doing a really good job…It gives her an opportunity to see what’s going on, it gives her a little bit more time. She finds the open man very well,” Harvard coach Katey Stone says.

Currently, veteran junior Cori Bassett is pairing up with Ryabkina on the ice. The pair started against McGill in last Saturday’s exhibition game.

“Cori is really, really supportive, and she’s always there to help me. Simple things like how to position your body so you keep the person on the outside…playing forward, you don’t even think of these things,” Ryabkina says.

But Ryabkina certainly isn’t the only sophomore looking to contribute this year. Last year’s rookies, particularly forwards Kate Buesser and Katharine Chute and defenseman Leanna Coskren, also made an immediate impact in their first season.

“It was pretty impressive how as freshmen last year they were all starting, almost, and I think it’s going to be the same idea,” Vaillancourt says. “They’re all fearless. I’m expecting even more from them—more pucks in the net now that they have even more confidence.”

“We all kind of grew up, and we know what is expected of us, and what our team is functioning on,” Ryabkina adds. “My class is just, I would say, my best friends in general, because they’re a huge support.”

Playing out of her comfort zone with such enthusiasm shows just how far Ryabkina has come in a single year. No longer in it for herself, she has become the epitome of a team player.

“Of course, our goal is to win every game, get to the national championship, [and] win that,” Ryabkina says. “I would say, for me, the most important thing is not even that, but just seeing the joy on my teammates’ faces. After a game, when you know you did everything or when you gave someone a pass to score, seeing their face at that moment…that’s my win.”

—Staff writer Kate Leist can be reached at kleist@fas.harvard.edu.