Hockey has been a part of Hutchinson senior Alex Hantge’s life for a long time. It started when she was young. Her dad, Jon, put Alex and her sister, Sam, on skates. She didn't like it at first, but when her older sister started to play, that's when Alex’s love for the game began.
“I quit for a year,” Hantge recalled, “and then when I saw my sister get all the cool equipment from the store I was like, ‘Oh, I wanna play hockey.' I just decided to put skates back on, and ever since then I loved the game.”
That moment and everything since then has led Hantge to today. As the senior captain of the Tigers, she’s helped lead the team this year and for many years. In fact, she’s been such a force that she recently climbed the team’s record book to third in career points (207) and second in goals (100). She sits behind Sara Carlson (315) and Claire Cripps (226) in points, and Carlson (192) in goals.
TIGER INSPIRATIONS
It’s no coincidence Hantge is now mentioned alongside two of the best Hutchinson girls hockey players in the program’s history. As a young player in her 10U season, those were the players she looked up to, she says. She wanted to be just like Carlson. That's when the hard work started.
Hantge began shooting pucks in the garage and building obstacle courses in her backyard to make her faster. The work began to pay off, and after her 12U season she was selected to play on the varsity team.
It was a big change to go from 12U to varsity, but Sam was there to help her younger sister make the adjustment.
“She really kept me under her wing,” Hantge said. “It was super fun. We obviously had our differences at some points, but that's how siblings are. But we actually got along super well. We loved playing with each other and being there for each other.”
Looking back on the past six years, Hantge says it’s been crazy for her. With many ups and downs, the time has gone quickly. As the regular season begins to wrap up, Hantge is hoping she can extend her senior year into the playoffs as long as possible. To do so, she knows it will take more than just herself. It’s a team effort.
“We would never have been able to be where we are without each other,” she said. “We worked really hard to get where we are. The season has been really fun. We've won a lot of games, we've had a couple downs, but we always come back after those.”
As a senior captain, that means she is now the player other look up to for leadership. Hantge isn’t the vocal voice in the locker room, instead she leads by example. She doesn’t take practices off and plays every shift like it might be her last.
“She's one of those girls, you don't have to ask Alex to play at top speed,” girls hockey head coach Marc Telecky said. “No matter what we're doing, she's playing a high level. Having a teammate like that, people are looking to jump in a line to get a rep with that because they know they're going to have to play at the top of their game and push their skill set.
“From that perspective, it doesn't matter what we do, she's not trying to cut corners, she's not trying to duck out of a rep. When she does that rep, she plays with high intensity. She's never one of those people who will come in and say, ‘Hey, I'm not feeling well.' She loves to compete.”
Every team and every player wants to qualify for state, and Hantge is no different. But more important to her is that the team works hard and has fun. That’s what got her to this point, and once that starts to go away, that's when the team begins to falter.
“You can only play hockey for so long and be with the people who also enjoy it and who you've been growing up with your whole life.” Hantge said.
AFTER HIGH SCHOOL
When her days as a Tiger are done, Hantge plans to remain on the ice. She’s committed to the University of Wisconsin-River Falls girls hockey team next year and will major in business. Out of all the other schools that she was looking at, River Falls stood out for its commitment to the classroom and its brand of hockey.
“I was looking at Gustavus, Hamline, Bethel, a couple of smaller, private schools,” Hantge said. “I wasn't really interested in the big schools. The coaches (at River Falls) were pretty cool. They kind of took me under. They made me feel a lot more comfortable.”
She knows that this won't last forever. After college, Hantge wants to find her dream job and become her own person. She knows these are special years in her life, and she wants to make the most of them while they last.
“You've just got to enjoy the ride while you can,” she said. “It goes by quick.”
