Four girl hockey players from Cambria and Somerset Counties are competing next week with hopes of a national title.
Three of the girls are in the 19U division. They are making the trip to Irvine, California to represent the Armstrong Arrows in the Girls Hockey National Tournament.
Armstrong Arrows goalie Kassidy Newman said, “Going to nationals is something you always dream about and hope. You see other teams going and you're like I want my team to be able to go. And then this year to finally be able to go is really exciting and something you always hope you get to do but you don't know if you ever will.”
Armstrong Arrows goalie Jorja Stancombe said a championship “would mean everything.”
Armstrong Arrows center Taylor Plunkard said she has been on the team for three seasons, and they have taken close loses in the district championship game each year. This year the Arrows received an at-large bid to the national tournament.
“If I wouldn't have joined the arrows, I would have never gotten a chance to go to nationals so I’m very grateful,” Plunkard said.
Stancombe came back to a team that had one goal.
“I missed most of the season out on ankle surgery,” Stancombe said. “From the start when I could play everyone was working hard and that was a goal that we've wanted for so long. To go to nationals.”
South Pittsburgh Rebellion goalie Megan Harbaugh is making the trip playing in the 14U division after her team won the Mid-Atlantic District Playoff Tournament at the beginning of March.
“The road was kind of hard because we played a ton of good teams,” Harbaugh said. “Going to nationals is one of the biggest steps that we will ever have.”
There's one other goal these girls want to score.
“Girls’ hockey is growing so I encourage a lot more girls to play,” Plunkard said. “it's challenging being a girl so just stick with it, keep pushing through because eventually you'll find that team that you just have a connection with, and they feel like family.”
“I think girls' hockey is amazing,” Stancombe said. “Getting the same opportunities as boys is always a dream and just spending time with my teammates is the most fun I ever have. Even if you don't think you'll be good at it just give it a try because it's the best thing that ever happened to me.”
The tournament begins Thursday, March 30, and championship games are April 3. The teams are guaranteed to have at least three games, and winning those games would give them the opportunity to continue playing.
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