2020 | Minnesota | GIRLS

Marshall | Hilltoppers | GIRLS

As a goalie, there are many challenges an athlete faces that others may not, including excessive pressure and having to cheer and encourage teammates from the bench over and over and over if they are not the starting goaltender. This season our team was fortunate enough to have two great goaltenders. However, this meant one of them would have to sit out a lot of the time. There are two specific instances that stand out to me, as a coach, for why Maureen was chosen for this award. After losing a tough section rival game in which she played, she came to coaches after the game and said, Please do whatever it takes to help me get better. Push me. Challenge me. Make me keep going even when I’m tired at practice. It showed us how dedicated she was to helping the team, as she had played a great game, despite the loss.
Toward the very end of our regular season, coaching staff had to decide which goaltender to play in our playoff games. Given the evenness of the two, this was extremely difficult for coaches. In the end, we decided Maureen was going to be the backup goaltender, even though she had stepped up huge for our team several times this season when our starting starting goaltender was out for several weeks. When sharing the news of being the backup goaltender for playoffs, Maureen handled it with maturity, humbleness, positivity, and class. Truly, she handed it in a way I would not expect from a teenage, female, senior goaltender. She said to me verbatim, Coach, I totally trust your decision and trust [other goaltender]. I want our team to get to State more than anything else, and if that means I do not start, I can accept that. She went on to mention that she would be ready to go at any moment if needed.
Along with these two specific moments, Maureen’s excellent character has shined throughout the season in many instances. She is very coachable, always willing to accept constructive feedback and work hard at each practice and game. Playing anywhere (JV and V) and anytime (letting her know in advance and at the drop of a hat) we needed her displays her team-first mindedness.
I could easily continue to write about other encounters, but I will end with the fact that Maureen joined our team this year, as a senior (having to leave her past team as starting goaltender), and showed high moral character from the start, despite facing unknown challenges. I wish I could coach her for more than a single season; she is a gem.