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Practice makes early birds of North Shore girls

Thursday, January, 03 By Matt Williams
Staff writer

What were you doing at 5:30 this morning?

Perhaps hitting the snooze button, putting on the day's first pot of coffee | or more than likely, you were still snoozing away on Dream Street.

The high school girls hockey players of the North Shore were probably not doing any of the above, however.

While most of their peers are fast asleep or just starting to shake the cobwebs out of a good night's rest, they are on the ice | skating and working hard in the wee hours of the morning, with a full day of schoolwork and studying still ahead.

Of the area's four public school girls hockey squads, Beverly, Marblehead, and Peabody regularly skate before school begins. The fourth such school, Masconomet, also does so on occasion.

It's a circumstance brought about by hard-to-come-by ice time | and one that's worked surprisingly well, considering the ungodly hours involved.

"The kids don't mind the early practices. They really don't," said Peabody coach Larry Minehan, whose Tanners skated at 6 a.m. on New Year's Day.

On the positive side, early ice time gives these student-athletes the afternoons and evenings to rest, study and enjoy their time. They're more than awake for first period of class following a rigorous practice, too.

"It can get tough in the middle of the day, but it is nice to have the afternoon off," said Marblehead co-captain Tori Snow. "You have to make sure if you have any studying or homework that you do it the night before. There's no time to do so in the morning."

The set-up is by no means perfect, though. The a.m. practices can be a detriment to students considering joining teams for the first time. It also interferes with athletes' routines, since games always take place in the afternoon or at night.

"That's the only issue," Minehan explained. "If you practice Tuesday morning for a game Wednesday night, they've gone almost two days without skating."

Beverly High may have the best of both worlds, skating in the morning an average of three or four nights a week | with several nights mixed in. Marblehead is in a similar situation.

"I think the mix of practice times is the best," said Panthers coach Fiona Rice. "Last year we had all morning practices, but this year we've been able to finagle more (practices later in the day), and the boys team has switched with us some, too. Four morning practices in a row can be tough | by the end of the week, we're exhausted."

This season, the Panthers are skating at more rinks | including the McVann-O'Keefe Rink in Peabody, Kasabuski Rink in Saugus and Salem State's Rockett Arena | to try to find more after school ice time.

"The mix is great, but it takes more work (logistically)," said Rice. "We have to keep track of it all, remind the girls where we're going and make sure everyone's at the right rink."

As for the Chieftains, they hold tryouts at the crack of dawn each season. But for the most part, they're able to stay away from the early morning hours as the season progresses.

"In the year's past we've had as many as eight (before school practices), but now we do two and we're done," said Masco coach Bill Haines. "They're good character builders and the kids seem to have lots of energy, but by 2:30 (p.m.) their heads are bobbing."

The transition can be tough for two and three-season athletes who are accustomed to practicing for fall and spring sports after school. Going beforehand can be a radical schedule change in the middle of the school year. "Personally, I don't like the mornings," said Snow, who also stars in field hockey and lacrosse for Marblehead High. "It's hard to catch up on sleep | I end up taking naps whenever I can."

Still, the prevailing opinion seems to be that the teams will take ice time whenever they can get it. Being at the rink at or before sunrise simply comes with the territory of taking up hockey.

"Sometimes the girls do prefer the mornings," said Rice. "When practice is at 8 p.m., they feel like they're waiting around for it all day."

The practices aren't unique to girls hockey, as both varsity and junior varsity area boys teams also skate in the early hours from time to time. But it is something that sets up apart from other sports | a sure sign of dedication to the game.

"Their classmates know when they're had an early practice," said Marblehead coach Emily Hudak. "It kind of sets them apart | makes it special to be on the team."