EAGLE COUNTY, Colo. — The Mountain Women’s Hockey League is celebrating 20 years of time on the ice at the Eagle Ice Rink.
"We are celebrating this year, which is our 20th year with this league," said Sheryl Staten.
The league started in 2003 with Ginny Crowley who, along with a few other women, found their children’s old hockey gear fit them, so they put it on and started playing.
"In a group of women, we knew our son’s hockey equipment fit us, so we said let’s try to play hockey," Crowley said.
There are around 100 women playing in the league these days and they have their own creative jerseys. Original players like Martha Miller say the league helps make sure women keep playing hockey.
"It has influenced a lot of daughters in the valley who have gone on to scholarships," Miller said. "They think they can play hockey and grown up never believing anything other."
The only problem is that limited ice time means only so many women can play. There’s a waiting list to get a spot on a team, and this year, those spots filled up in just days.
"Two days this year," Staten said. "It was amazing. One player said it was like buying Taylor Swift tickets."
"We are located in Eagle, Colorado, and we have people even coming over from Fairplay, from the Leadville area, Glenwood Springs, Vail and Summit County," Staten said.
It’s fun, but the women who play say one of the biggest reasons they stay on the ice is the warm support they get from the group both on and off the ice.
"These days are tough, but these ladies work to bring each other up," Staten said.
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