With their first ever game scheduled for Friday evening, Curry College’s inaugural varsity women's ice hockey team is ready to hit the ice.

Head coach Kelly Rider, along with assistant coaches Kaylee Harnen and Moe Bradley, have been working diligently to build a team from scratch, and they are ready for it all to finally come together.

“We have players from all over North America, and some of them had never even been to Curry before Move-In Day,” said Rider. “It's been really cool to see people who probably wouldn't have met each other outside of Curry come together and make lifelong friends.”

For Rider, Friday’s inaugural game will mark 500 days since she accepted the offer to become Curry’s first women’s ice hockey head coach. She spent the 2020-2021 academic year putting the team together, even walking around campus giving recruits tours on FaceTime when they were unable to attend in person. Rider made sure to maintain the relationship with her players, even after they committed, but before they arrived on campus. “It almost feels like we're going into our third season at this point,” she said.

Rider successfully recruited a full team of women’s ice hockey student-athletes to Curry College from as far away as Saskatchewan, Colorado, and Nevada, and from as close as Foxboro and Weymouth, Massachusetts. Every player on the team’s opening night roster is a first-year student. “We were excited that so many incoming first-years were excited to come to Curry and to play women’s ice hockey,” said Curry Director of Athletics Vinnie Eruzione. “Engaging new student-athletes with the sports that they love is a major goal in our recruitment strategies, and in this case, it was very successful for the College and for the new students on the team.”

Watching the team come together has been a great opportunity for the student-athletes as well. They recognize that as members of the inaugural team, they are a part of Curry history, and that knowledge has bonded them closely.

Paige Rodriguez ’25, hailing from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, is a forward for the Colonels. She finds that the culture her team has built is different from other programs. “We're not just a team on the ice, that shows up to practice, goes through the motions, and then goes our separate ways,” she said. “We do homework together, we eat meals together, and we support each other in everything, not just hockey. The energy on the ice and in the weight room is encouraging and we always push each other to be the best we can be.”

Rowan Nasty ’25, a forward from Louisville, Colorado, enjoys how they have worked together to kick off the season. “My favorite part about this team is how much everybody cares about being better,” she said. “We all push each other to work hard on and off the ice and are able to hold each other accountable which is a very vital skill to have as a first-year program.”

The motivation and work ethic that each of the players has shown has gotten them ready to hit the ice and compete in their inaugural season. The team motto of the “Three P’s” (Passion, Pride, and Purpose) serves as a foundation and daily reminder.

“I think one of the things that kind of surprised me is the resiliency, but also the joy that they bring; the gratitude, gratefulness and just pure happiness,” Rider said. “They've always dreamed of playing college hockey. For many people to have school or hockey taken away because of the pandemic, I think they realize how much they appreciate it.”

Curry will play its inaugural game on Friday, October 29 at Johnson & Wales University at 7:30 p.m. Their first ever home game at the Canton Ice House is scheduled for the following evening (October 30) at 7 p.m. For the full schedule of games, please visit CurryAthletics.com.

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