Crimson Gets A Re-Freshmen-t

When they first walk into the Yard, many Harvard freshmen are expecting their college experience to be a stepping stone to the future. But for most athletes, these four years can represent the culmination of everything they’ve been working towards. The women’s hockey players are no exception.

“Apart from the Olympic team...this is our NHL,” freshman Lyndsey Fry says. “For most of us, this is as far as it’s going to go. And walking into that locker room, it’s like, ‘This is it. This is why we’ve been playing so long, and this is what we’ve been working for.’”

The seven freshmen of the women’s hockey team—Fry, Jackie Young, Marissa Gedman, Lauren Joarnt, Kalley Armstrong, Gina McDonald, and Elizabeth Parker—are, on paper, a hodgepodge of individuals. Some come from traditional hockey hotbeds like Minnesota and Ontario, while others grew up off the beaten hockey path. Two were high school teammates, while several hadn’t crossed paths before college.

But even after less than two months in crimson, the septet has already found two things it has in common: the seven women love playing hockey, and they love spending time together.

“We just have a lot of strong personalities that are a lot of fun, and they mesh very well,” Fry says. “So it’s just kind of crazy a lot of times. We’re always laughing.”

The freshman class comes in with one of the most impressive collective resumes of any recruiting class over the last few years. Three of the seven—Fry, Young, and Gedman—have played for the U.S. U-18 national team.

“You go to the development camps that so many girls go to...but you never think that you’ll be the one,” Young says. “And so to get that opportunity and be able to put that jersey on was amazing, something you’ll never forget.”

Young and Fry won gold at the 2009 world championships, and Fry and Gedman earned silver at the 2010 event. Though Young and Gedman were never teammates on the national team, the defensemen are no strangers—in fact, they were teammates at the Noble and Greenough School in Dedham, Mass. for the last three seasons.

The three national team veterans bring an added level of experience to the team in their first collegiate season. That familiarity with high-level hockey paid dividends in Harvard’s exhibition match with McGill last weekend, when Fry and Young each assisted on one of senior Katharine Chute’s goals.

“It helps,” Crimson coach Katey Stone says of the U-18 experience. “It’s just one more transition step that they have that makes it a little bit easier for them to get here, and you’ll see it. They’ll step into roles pretty quickly, because they can handle the pressure and they can handle the intensity.”

Fry and Young both agree that playing with the U-18 team has given them an early advantage as they learn Harvard’s hockey system.

“It was a level that is the same as the DI level, because you can tell that everyone’s there for the same goal,” Young says. “You want to be the best, you want to practice like you’re the best, and the coaches push you to that level, and everyone’s on the same page. And that really helped me prepare for college.”

But all seven of the Crimson freshmen are looking to make an impact this season—and all seven got a chance to skate in the 2-2 tie with the Martlets last Saturday.

“In general, I think it’s an extremely talented class,” tri-captain Leanna Coskren says. “They’re going to be given some responsibilities right away, and I think they can handle them.”

Gedman and Young will help anchor the young defense, while goaltender Joarnt is learning the ropes between the pipes as the backup to sophomore Laura Bellamy.

“There’s a lot of skill in that group,” Bellamy says. “They’re dangerous players, especially Gedman with her shot from the point. Jackie has done a good job with her size and strength.”

Meanwhile, Fry is joined by McDonald, Armstrong, and Parker on the offensive unit, where they are learning from some talented veterans.

“For the most part, all of the freshmen are thrown in with the upperclassmen—it’s not like we’re all on one line together,” Fry explains. “And I love it. Every practice, every play, they’re always trying to get us better.”

But so far, the biggest contribution the freshmen have made to Harvard hockey is the fresh energy they bring to the team.

“They’re characters,” Stone admits. “Trust me—they’re characters. We’ve had a lot of fun off the ice already.”

Fry and Young can’t help but laugh when asked about their off-ice antics, recalling a recent team dinner at Coskren’s house when Fry began playing the piano as her classmates sang Christmas carols—in the middle of October.

“There were literally times at that dinner when I was laughing to the point where I couldn’t breathe,” Fry says. “It’s just the silliest stuff, but we never have a dull moment.”

“And I think the main reason we have so much fun is because we know we can feel comfortable with the team,” Young adds. “If we didn’t feel so comfortable, I don’t think we would be as much of ourselves.”

Stone hopes that the evident off-ice chemistry will translate into on-ice results for her youngest players.

“They’re great kids,” she says. “First things first, we recruit great kids and people that are going to be a fine addition to the locker room. I mean, everybody’s different, and we want kids who love the diversity. But the number one thing is, they’ve got to be a great teammate first.”

As the seven rookies look to find their role on the team, the chance to be a part of Harvard hockey is already a dream come true in itself.

“Just seeing the jersey in the locker with the ‘Harvard’ on it, and your name on the back...it’s similar to the feeling you get when you play for the USA team,” Young says. “It’s something you dream of as a kid, and like I said, you look up to those girls that do it, and then you’re finally there, and the jersey has your name on it.”

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