Mansfield OKs High School Girls Ice Hockey Team

Director of Athletics Joe Russo was given permission last week from the School Committee to start the process to create a girls ice hockey team.

Russo emphasized that there has never been any discriminition in the high school level, and anyone is welcome to join the boys team.

"Ever since we've had boys hockey, we've always had women playing on the boys team," he said. "Our coaches never turn [girls] away."

Russo said that the main problem with starting a girls hockey team is the cost. There is little funds available for the team from the school budget at this time, but Russo said he may be able to make the team a parent-funded organization; at least for the first five years.

Russo went on to say that he has been in contact with the Athletic Director James Von Euw in Easton. He said that there was also interest for a girls ice hockey team, and that they may combine efforts to make the funding of the team possible.

"King Philip has had their program for four or five years," Russo said. "And this will be the first year they do some sort of funding, not full funding, but some sort of funding. So when I sat down with [Von Euw], we looked at it and we kind of put together a thing for the next five years."

Russo said that Mansfield and OA parents met separetly last week after the School Committee meeting to go over the costs. He added that a joint meeting will take place at the Mansfield Library on Thursday at 6 p.m. between both schools' parents to go over the costs of forming a team.

"We've reached the point where we have a decent number of girls in our school interested in ice hockey," he said. "I've had parents contact me this year and last year wondering if there was an opportunity."

Russo explained to the committee that while girls were always allowed to play on the boys teams, there were still problems that could be solved by a girls-only team.

"Women's ice hockey is a little bit different than boys ice hockey," "It's subtle, but it's definitely different. The thing that the girls would be up against is the fact that the boys games are a lot more physical. There is far less checking; there's picks, there's defensive plays, but there's no checking."

Russo also said that the locker room can be an issue. He related an example from this year where the girl playing on the boys team had to dress in the girls locker room while the boys dressed in theirs.

"She has to come down the hall, wait outside the locker room door, once everyone's dressed she can come in for the pregame speach and get mentally prepared for the game and go over the game plan," he said.