Jefferson High-grader Brooklyn Schneiderhan continues her ascent in college hockey

BILLINGS Playing against the boys was never a concern for Brooklyn Schneiderhan. She wanted as much ice time as she could get.

A graduate of Jefferson High School from the Montana City area, Schneiderhan has hockey in her blood. But opportunities to play on girls teams in Montana are few and far between.

Jim Stankiewicz / Saint Anselm College

So she had to make do with skating, stickhandling and shooting against tougher competition on boys' teams as she came of age on the ice.

Schneiderhan turned it into an advantage. Now she is a key part of the women's team at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire, a program that plays in the NCAA Division I New England Women's Hockey Alliance.

“The guys were a lot bigger and stronger than me, but I feel like that made me think more quickly about moving the puck and shooting, and that made me better,” Schneiderhan told MTN Sports during a phone interview. “I knew if I didn't have a good shot, I wouldn't be able to put the puck on net or score a goal.

“The boys were definitely faster. You had to keep your head up.”

Primarily a left wing, the 6-foot-2 Schneiderhan recently completed her sophomore season at Saint Anselm, a year in which she finished second on the Hawks with 17 goals and 28 points and led the team in shots made with 187.

The season represented a continued transition from her youth hockey career, when she played five seasons on the high school boys team in Helena, along with stints with the U14 Team Montana boys team and the U16 AAA boys Montana Vipers, which won a Combat Cup championship. in 2020.

Although she had played for the Montana Big Sky Wildcats, a team made up of girls from across the Treasure State, it wasn't until a few years ago when she competed with the Boston Shamrocks in the annual Beantown Women's Classic that an opportunity for college came along. presented himself.

“At that point I was literally only playing boys' hockey, and my parents decided to put me in a tournament to see if I could play on a girls' team and see what the college recruiting process was like,” says Schneiderhan, who originally from Medicine Hat, Alberta. “I had no idea. But I got a few calls from different coaches, and Saint Anselm was my last one.

“They said, 'We're from Saint A's, we really like how you're playing. We saw you in Beantown and you're our top recruit.'”

When Schneiderhan visited campus, she fell in love with both the school and the women's hockey program. And the rest is history.

Jim Stankiewicz / Saint Anselm College

Although a broken thumb slowed her as a freshman in 2022-2023, Schneiderhan still had 14 goals and 25 points to help the Hawks reach the championship game of the NEWHA Tournament.

This season those numbers grew and the team advanced to the semi-finals of the league tournament. In 64 career games, Schneiderhan scored 53 points.

Still, she says she still has a lot to accomplish. One of them is dialing in her shot; her shooting percentage was .091 last season.

“I've always set my standards pretty high, but I'm obviously hoping to win a championship with our team,” said Schneiderhan, a health sciences major. “Personal goals. Hopefully I can put more pucks in the net and then obviously be the best teammate I can be.”

Schneiderhan, who played volleyball and competed in track and field at Jefferson High, plans to return to Montana this summer to train for what she hopes will be a successful junior year on the ice. Another goal of hers is for Saint Anselmus to cross the threshold and win the NEWHA tournament for a place in the DI national women's tournament.

“I tried to become a leader,” she said. “Even if I don't have a letter (the 'C' for a captain or the 'A' for an assistant captain), I like to lead by example. I feel like our team is going to do really well next year, and I'm really excited to come back.

“Hopefully we can just start the season with a bang and finish what we started in the play-offs this year.”