Varsity ice hockey's Gillian Farland '20 has been selected by the Holton Athletic Association (HAA) as "Panther of the Week" for the poise, focus and character she has shown throughout the start of the season.
After a successful fall on the varsity soccer team, Gillian Farland decided to go out for ice hockey. Unlike soccer, where Farland has played for years, ice hockey would be an opportunity for her to try a new sport. She wasn't alone, as there were a handful of girls who hadn't played, but Farland's experience was still a little different because she was going to be a goalie.
Farland was going to be on the receiving end of shot after shot from Holton's finest players and their competition. After the first week in practice one teammate admitted she "had no idea Farland was a new goalie. I felt bad, I didn't know and I just kept ripping shots at her. I guess I didn't feel too bad, she was saving most of them after all."
Farland was thankful no one took it easy on her. After an injury to the team's returning goalie, Farland quickly found herself in the starting role for their second MAGHL game. Since then she has continued to impress her coaches and teammates in the goal. They started the season with a strong 4-1 record in the MAGHL division. An overall record of 5-4, only losing to teams in the highly competitive WIHLMA league. The team recently competed in their first WIHLMA tournament weekend where they competed in four games. Over the weekend, Gillian received well over 100 shots and saved nearly 80% of them, an impressive statistic for a brand new goalie in such a high level league.
Farland's coaches comment that, "Gillian has good poise, focus, and is learning the goalie position very fast due to her desire to help the team." Gillian has made an impressive leap from beginner goalie to a powerful force in the net.
You can check out Gillian and the varsity ice hockey team as they take on Holy Cross, at 4:40 p.m. at the Lauren Ice Rink on Tuesday, January 10. Click here for the most up-to-date schedule and results.
