Minnesota Selects Hockey

Hockey has been a hugh part of Natalie’s life and it has given her the opportunity to develop not only her hockey skills but her work ethnic and commitment for all aspects of her life. Her love of the game of hockey has made her work hard in order to achieve her dreams.

Natalie started playing hockey at five years old. She credits her dad and her brother, Ryan for teaching her the game and letting her tag along to practices, pickup street hockey and to the outdoor rink. She credits all her coaches and teammates throughout the years for making her a better player.

Natalie played on the Eagan Squirt A and PeeWee A boys teams. She was always accepted by the boys and their families. She even was elected by the PeeWee team as their captain. What an honor to have the team vote “a girl” to be their captain. To this day, those teammates are still some of her closest friends. The friendships and teamwork that was developed then is still important today.

When Natalie was in seventh grade, she tried out for the Eagan High School Girl’s varsity team. It was in the second year of girl’s high school hockey. This was a new experience for Natalie, as she never played on an all girls team before. She had a wonderful experience, as her team made it to the Minnesota State Tournament and received 2nd place honors. She played at the high school level through her sophomore season.

Natalie was then asked to participate in the National Team Development Program in preparation for the 2002 Olympics. She left the comforts of home and friends to live in Lake Placid for two years and train with 25 other women for the upcoming Olympics.

What a dream come true. Natalie made the 2002 Olympic team and won a silver medal. She continues to play and train with the National team in hopes of representing her country in the 2006 Olympics.

After her experiences with the 2002 Olympic team, Natalie chose to play for the University of Minnesota. Again, one of her dreams as a little girl was to be a Golden Gopher (although it was with the men, the women did not have a team yet). She now is playing for the University of Minnesota Women’s hockey team which is one of the best in the country. Again she is working hard on the ice and forming great friendships with her teammates.

All these opportunities have come to Natalie because of her love for the game of hockey, her determination to continually work hard and do her best, her friendships with her teammates and the team goal to succeed.

Natalie has many other interests and goals in life, but hockey has given her the opportunity to see how far she can go.

To all the participants of the Minnesota Selects festival, please take the hockey opportunity to be the best you can be, to meet friends both on your team and on your competitions and to have fun. This experience will be one of your great memories. (2004)