Orono, ME – Head women’s ice hockey coach Molly Engstrom announces the incoming class for the 2023-24 season that consists of 13 new players.
First up is Raegan Wurm, a forward from Buffalo, Minnesota. She was captain of the Buffalo high school women’s ice hockey team for three consecutive seasons. Along with being a star on the ice, Wurm showed up on the golf course qualified for state and was named the MVP on her high school golf team two years in a row. She enjoys spending free time by wake surfing on the lakes in Minnesota as well as golfing and playing pickleball. Some favorites of Wurm include, her favorite Netflix show is One Tree Hill, favorite food is pasta, and her favorite music genre is country.
The next Black Bear making their way up the coast is Lila Shea from Thayer Academy. The forward enjoys training on and off the ice in her off season. Aside from training Shea enjoys spending time with family, going to the beach, biking, and working in her grandfather’s tomato garden. Some other sports she enjoys playing are lacrosse, tennis, and golf. Some of Shea’s favorites include Breaking Bad on Netflix and her favorite professional athlete is Connor McDavid. It is no surprise Shea loves hockey as she is also one of six siblings that all play.
Hailing from Dominion, Nova Scotia forward Sam Morrison played 17 games for the Cape Breton Lynx securing 37 points in the 2022-23 season. Morrison is a part of a big family, growing up with eight siblings. Besides hockey, she enjoys playing rugby and going on hikes. Morrison also uses her hockey IQ to help at hockey camps with younger athletes. A fun fact about Sam is that she enjoys eating fish.
The first defender on our list is Ashley Kokavec from Parkland, Florida. She played in 61 games for Belle Tire (AAA) in the 2022-23 season, recording 91 points. Kokavec spends her summer playing tennis at her father’s tennis academy and working out. She also enjoys sushi, snowboarding and wakeboarding. Kokavec grew up with two brothers.
Sophia Johnson comes to us all the way from Palmer, Alaska. The defender most recently played for Gilmour Academy and was an assistant captain for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. In the summer Johnson enjoys hiking, camping, and spending as much time outside as she can. She has one older brother and two younger sisters.
Ohio State University transfer Jamie Grinder joins the Black Bears after winning a National Championship with the Buckeyes. The 5’10” defender played 14 games over her two seasons at Ohio, recording one goal and one assist. Grinder has many summer hobbies including surfing, hiking, spike ball, and beach volleyball. Her favorite Netflix show is either Ozark or A Dog’s Purpose and the app she uses most is TikTok. Grinder also has one older brother.
Now we have the forward from Richland, Washington Mikayla Boarder. She attended the Shawnigan Lake School for four years where she was the CSSHL U18 female prep points leader in 2021-22 and 2022-23. Boarder enjoys shows like Criminal Minds, other sports such as soccer, and her favorite music genre is country. In the off season you can find Mikayla training, hanging out with friends, and on vacations with her family.
Ann-Frederique Guay joins Maine after skating at Norwich University. The 2022-23 captain captured 121 total points and was also NEHC player of the year and a First Team All-American. The graduate student forward from Quebec, Canada enjoys playing golf when she is not out on the ice. Guay also has one brother and one sister.
The Black Bears solo goalie pickup is red shirt transfer Julia Bachetti from St. Cloud State University. The 5’8″ freshmen from Tecumseh, Ontario, Canada was an Honor Roll Student throughout highschool (GPA 3.93). The goalide spends summer coaching youth goalie clinics with Prospects Goaltending and is an avid golfer during the off season. She has been playing hockey since seventh grade. Some other things Bachetti enjoys outside of hockey are the show Outer Banks and listening to country music. She is also one of three girls in her family.
Bria Holm is the next forward to join Maine. The Moorhead, Minnesota resident attended Moorhead high school and over the course of four seasons captured 140 points in 129 games played with 73 goals and 67 assists. Off the ice, Holm was a National honor Society member and played soccer. During the summer, she works as a Certified Nursing Assistant at a local clinic while also enjoying going to herlake cabin and hanging out with friends and family. Two of her family members include her older brother that currently plays club hockey at West Point Military Academy and a younger sister that currently plays hockey at Moorhead High School. Another member of her family is her dog named Lucky who is a black lab mixed with a springer spaniel. The last fun fact about Holm is that her favorite Netflix show is Grey’s Anatomy.
The last defender in this signing class is junior transfer Adriana van de Leest from Bemidji State University. The 5’11” defender spent the last two seasons in the WCHA, skating in 66 games, scoring one goal, and dishing out 10 assists. The Kelowna, British Columbia native was an honor roll student throughout her high school education and dean’s list sophomore year of college. Leest keeps herself busy in the summer by camping, hiking, surfing, spending time with family and friends, playing in a women’s soccer league, and working at different hockey camps. The defender also has many different favorite things to do off the ice; her favorite Netflix show is Ozark, Drake is her favorite music artist, in the summer wakesurfing is her favorite thing to do, and on long road trips her favorite is to play cards.
Lily Fetch joins Maine from East Ridge high school after earning 41 points in 26 contests in the 2022-23 season. Coming from Woodbury, Minnesota she appeared in 95 total games, scored 64 goals, dished out 82 assists, for a total of 146 points. The forward plays hockey and trains in the summer but she also plays golf and pickleball. She is also a nanny and coaches youth sports. In her spare time, Fetch loves to watch reality tv shows, especially Love Island. She also has two older sisters and one is a sophomore that plays hockey at Concordia College.
Eastern Ice Breakers (AAA) forward Haley Ryan is the last of Maine’s signing class. The Conception Bay South, NL, Canada native had many accomplishments in 2023 in the NL Female U18 Major Female AAA Hockey League including, top forward, league MVP, and the top points earner (41 points, 25 goals, 16 assists). Off the ice, Ryan spends her summers playing ball hockey. Other activities she loves include basketball, watching Grey’s Anatomy, and Snapchat. Ryan is the middle in her family with two older step siblings and two younger siblings.
“We are very excited about the incoming class.” Says head coach, Molly Engstrom. “We have an array of players we think have the ability to make a big impact on this program. It was a full team effort recruiting this class. We are grateful to the players who are joining us and the support we have received to go out and find them.”
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