“I have to try something new.”These were the words of 13-year-old Nicole Arnold after she played a soccer game. She felt as if she was not into the game because there was not enough intensity.
“I decided to switch to hockey after some of my friends telling me about how much fun I could have,” Arnold said.
Three years later, Arnold, freshman, competes with her girls’ hockey team, Reebok National, in the USA International Cup in Minneapolis, Minn. Although she gets to spend time with her hockey friends, Arnold knows she is missing out on something else; KHS’s hockey tryouts.
“I was sad to not be able to try out,” Arnold said. “The tournament was great though. I got to play, so that made me very happy.”
However, Arnold’s choice to play in Minnesota instead of participating in tryouts did not eliminate her from the KHS team. She plays defense for the JV development team and plays forward for JV.
“As long as I’m skating, I don’t care where [the coaches] play me,” Arnold said.
Arnold is the only girl on the KHS team. The boys welcome her as if she is just another teammate. Corbin Oliver, freshman, who plays on both high school teams with Arnold, thinks she has been a real contribution to KHS hockey.
“I think it is great she is playing with all guys,” Oliver said. “She is highly respected, too. If she got hit hard, our team hits hard back.”
Oliver believes Arnold brings both talent and personality to the hockey team, which he thinks is needed.
Arnold is very appreciative that Oliver and the boys have supporting her from the beginning.
“The guys have been really nice to me,” Arnold said. “When I get smashed, they will do their best to smash them back.”
According to Arnold, the atmosphere with the boys is not much different than playing with her Reebok National team, whom she plays with during the spring and summer. She plays with her other team, the St. Louis Lady Blues, during the fall and winter. The only difference is the intensity.
“With the guys, it’s a lot faster, and there’s more smashing into each other,” Arnold said. “It has made me tougher and has prepared me for girls’ hockey.”
However, the quickness is why she switched from soccer to hockey. Arnold played in fall soccer leagues before she started playing for Reebok National at 12 years old. She continued to play fall leagues for soccer but decided to take hockey more seriously.
“Soccer was too slow for me,” Arnold said. “I wanted to move quicker, and hockey was my only option. Since I love skating, it worked out great.”
Arnold practices hockey almost daily. She practices right after school and usually on the weekends. She believes practicing with the boys has really prepared her for upcoming seasons with her girls’ teams, including reaching past regional championships with her St. Louis Lady Blues team.
“The loss was disappointing, but I hope we get farther next year,” Arnold said.
Arnold plans to continue her hockey career with both of her girls’ hockey teams and the KHS team. Even though she is only a freshman, Arnold plans to play in college.
