HOLLAND, Mich. — Hope College's women's hockey program held its first-ever hockey camp at the Holland Ice Arena this summer, a milestone for a team that has only existed since 2023 — and one that comes as the Professional Women's Hockey League announced an expansion to Detroit.
WATCH: Hope College women's hockey team grows alongside the PWHL's expansion to Detroit
The program, which competes in the ACHA Division II, was built largely through the efforts of students like Hope College graduate Kennedy Clark, who has been playing hockey since the 6th grade.
"A girl named Kate Buys and I, we started the program together. It was before I even went to Hope," Clark said. "We're technically a club sport, we do a lot of student run work, and so I did a lot of the grunt work for a while."
The team has grown steadily since its launch.
"It's definitely been a work in progress for sure. It was like, every year we were trying to get more girls, so some girls had experience and some didn't," Clark said. "We're kind of accepting more experienced players, which is cool because it's like okay, well now we're working towards winning games."
The program has drawn athletes from outside Michigan, including sophomore Madeline Jones, who grew up figure skating in New York and Indiana before transitioning to hockey.
"There's not a lot of women's hockey colleges in the area in general, so Hope College was like the only one that fit the bill of hockey and Christian," Jones said. "I ended up working with a skills coach for a year of my senior year, and then now I'm here."
Jones said the move has opened doors she did not expect.
"I've been so blessed to end up in such a great place in the Michigan area where I've gotten a lot of opportunities, like being in this area, that I wouldn't have really gotten anywhere else because there's so much hockey around here," Jones said. "Ultimately, I do eventually want to get into coaching or management. I think would be really fun."
For others on the roster, hockey has been a lifelong pursuit. Junior Mandee Cassis said the sport is something she plans to play as long as she is able.
"Hockey is such a sport that you fall in love with that. Once you're a hockey player, you're always a hockey player, and I will always play this as long as I physically can," Cassis said. "We're all at different levels of learning hockey, and I feel like, though that does look like a downfall, I think it's kind of beautiful."
With the PWHL adding Detroit as its 9th team, players like Cassis said the dream of playing professionally feels more within reach.
"I don't know that I am at that point yet, but I don't think that that's impossible," Cassis said. "The more teams that they do produce for that professional league, absolutely, the more hope it gives me that oh, maybe I could be on that someday."
Junior Marti Obry said what started as a casual interest in the sport has grown into something deeper.
"It did just start off as like something, haha fun to do, but now just the passion being coming to practice every day. My goal is to like be the best version myself, so I can help better these girls," Obry said.
For Obry, the program's impact extends beyond the rink.
"To be kind of one of the first of my friends and things like that to play, and seeing their interest grow with it as well, and like our family, friends, and things like that just make me so happy," Obry said. "I think it's so great to have this new team, and it provides so many more opportunities for all these amazing women."
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