Hockey has played an enormous role in Sophia Hausberger’s ’27 life since she was 8 years old. With help from Merrimack College, she hopes to keep it that way after graduation.
Hausberger has been a goalie on Merrimack’s women’s ice hockey team for the past two years.
“I knew I wanted to play Division 1 hockey,” she said. “When I was looking at schools, something that stood out about Merrimack was how it felt like a community. As soon as I stepped on campus, I could just feel how close-knit the community was. It really felt like a family even just on my visits.”
Hausberger got into hockey by complete chance. When she was 8 years old, she won a role as a Boston Bruins’ “captain for a day” through a charity raffle. One major problem – Hausberger had no idea how to play hockey or even skate.
“(A Bruins rep) was asking my dad on the phone, ‘What position does she play?,’ ‘What team does she play for?,’” she recalled. “My dad made all the answers up. He said I played goalie because he played goalie once for the club team in college. I had to learn to skate in a week.”
Hausberger hasn’t gotten off the ice since. Her random run-in with ice hockey completely changed the trajectory of her life, and she hopes to pass down that passion to the next generation.
As a member of the women’s hockey team, Hausberger helps with Girls on Ice, a student-run hockey clinic for girls in the area. In addition to teaching the fundamentals of skating, local female athletes offer the girls talks on confidence, mindset and body image.
And, as a business major, Girls on Ice has given Hausberger some ideas for her future. Perhaps one day, she said, she and her sister, another hockey enthusiast, can start their own hockey clinic for girls.
“The reason why I have a health science minor is because I would really like to become a sports nutritionist,” she explained. “These clinics would not only include on-ice training but off-ice nutrition and mindset.”
Hausberger describes herself as a naturally outgoing person, so caring for others is second nature to her. She currently serves as a representative in the Women in Business Club, is a campus ambassador, a resident advisor and represents athletics on the Student Advisory Council and Honors Student Council.
“I’ve gotten to where I am because of the people around me and I want to make sure I’m doing everything to give back. And, selfishly, it’s also a creative outlet for me. Because I’m so extroverted and social, it fills my cup to connect with so many people.”
Right now, however, Hausberger’s main focus is on the current hockey season.
“We have a lot of potential this year,” she said. “As a team, we have the skill. We’ve also done a lot of work on our identity and mission. I think we’re going to have a lot of success this season.”
