After playing key roles in the most successful women's hockey season in over a decade, graduating players Nicole MacNeil and Hanna Thibault will both continue their education.
In 2022-23 Thibault and MacNeil were leaders among a young Ravens team that pushed for a playoff spot deep into the season. Reflecting on their time at Carleton, both student-athletes recognize the community has played a key role in shaping their future lives.
"Being a Raven was the best four years of my life," reflected Nicole. "I got to meet so many wonderful people and made tons of memories that I otherwise would not have had the opportunity to."
Despite some difficult early seasons in the program, the two graduating players were able to go out on top, finding on-ice success while seeing the program take great strides forward. "We accomplished so much this year," acknowledges MacNeil. "It required me to take on a different role than I previously had with the team but I learned so much."
MacNeil now hopes to transfer that knowledge to future generations as she pursues a Bachelor of Education. Her passion for teaching was also cultivated at Carleton, where she spent her summers working as a counsellor at Carleton's popular summer camps.
"Outside of hockey my favorite's memory was working the Ravens hockey camps in the summer. Coaching at these hockey camps was extremely rewarding and gave me invaluable experience for my future."
Her teammate, Hanna now finds herself heading much further away from home to continue her studies. Thibault will begin the next step of her journey in July when she moves to Adelaide, Australia to study Viticulture and Oenology - the study of grapes and winemaking.
The trip around the world seems a lot less daunting to Thibault now thanks in no small part to the Carleton community. "The Carleton community has many different types of people that I never thought I would connect with and these people have become some of my closest friends."
Hanna admits she'll take a lot from her time in the program. Beyond the memories of road trips and training sessions with teammates, she focuses on the habits that helped her find success, even when the team struggled in her early years.
"I don't think I have one particular memory that sticks out," she admits. "It's all the small things that seemed like habits at the time that I find myself thinking about the most."
Today, while both players move to focus on themselves and their future careers, they reflect on the community they will forever be a part of. Recognizing what it means when you take the creed and commit for life as a Raven.
"Being a Raven means being part of a community," explains Thibault. "Doing your best to leave that community better off than when you arrived."
