2024 | Minnesota | GIRLS

Orono High School | Spartans | GIRLS

I have had the pleasure of coaching Grace during my first year as Orono’s Varsity Head Coach, but I have had the privilege of knowing her and her family for many years. Grace’s commitment to her teammates and to the culture that has been built with the Orono Girls Hockey Program is something that is not seen from many young women. She is a leader in the locker room, on the ice, in school, and in the community. She has seen many ups and downs in her high school career, the biggest of which was a season ending injury just before her sophomore year. Committed to fully rehabilitating her injury during her sophomore year, Grace stayed involved as a positive influence with her teammates and as a result, and as a testament what she meant to her teammates was voted as a team Captain in her junior year, even though she never stepped foot on the ice during the prior season. Our game is one of recovery. Coaches look for those players who can bounce back from adversity and be a better version of themselves. Her work ethic, courage and strength of character is shown by her captainship selection, but also by the results she posted during her junior year which has continued during her senior season.

When I took my role with the team in the summer, Grace was all-in to help me understand some of the nuances of the team dynamics, the differences she has recognized in some of her teammates, as well be fully engaged in the leadership development program we instituted with the other captains before the season. Grace has continued to be a positive influence with her teammates as an empathetic leader who deserves to be recognized.