Twins Morgan Trimper and Ally Trimper, along with Olivia King, will take a short break from their high school softball seasons this weekend to attend a regional ice hockey festival at the Northford Ice Pavilion in Northford, Connecticut.
They are competing for an invitation to one of the week-long age-group U.S. National festivals in St. Cloud, Minnesota, this July.
There will be players from every New England state except Massachusetts at this weekend’s festival. There are several other regional camps across the country.
The Trimpers are sophomores at Bangor High School, and King is a freshman at Old Town High.
The Trimpers played on the third line and were used as penalty-killers for the Class A Bangor High School boys team and King was on the second defense tandem for Class B Old Town/Orono.
Morgan was a center and Ally was her left winger.
The trio played together for an all-girls team from the Bangor area coached by Denis Collins and for an Auburn-based team, the Gladiators, which plays before and after the high school campaign.
Collins also coaches the Old Town-Orono boys team.
The trio earned an invitation to this weekend’s affair through their play at a tryout camp involving 400 girls in New Hampshire back in November. The festival will be held from Friday through Sunday, and every girl will play three games after an evaluated Friday night practice.
The Trimpers just turned 16 and King is 15.
Bill Leidt, the director of girls hockey in the New England region, said in the Trimper girls’ Under-17 age group, the 51 girls will be vying for six spots allocated to the national festival at their age group.
King is in the U-15 age group and will be among 51 girls vying for 15 spots to the nationals.
Leidt said they have the option to send fewer players if they don’t feel the talent level is high enough.
He explained there are more available national festival spots among the younger age groups is because evaluators haven’t seen them as much as the older players.
“We want [younger] kids to have more opportunity to be seen,” said Leidt.
Teams will sometimes play clubs in a higher age bracket so evaluators can see them “in different situations and under stress,” according to Leidt.
“The bottom line is it is incredibly difficult to make the national festival. I applaud every kid for showing up and trying out,” said Leidt.
“I’m really excited. It’s a great opportunity for us to see how we compare with kids from other states,” said Morgan Trimper, who is nursing a tender back but expects to be ready to go.
King and Ally Trimper echoed a similar sentiment.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun. I’m not nervous,” said Ally.
King said being invited to the festival is “quite an honor” and that she is really looking forward to it, although she admitted that it is going to be “nerve-wracking.
“It will be fun playing with different people, but at the same time, you are going to be evaluated,” said King.
The Trimpers will be on a team with Gladiators teammate Kristina Cornelio, who plays for the Saint Dominic Academy girls team in Auburn. King will be on another team.
The Trimpers said being on a team with Cornelio will be beneficial to their chances to earn a berth to the national camp.
“We were linemates at the first regional tournament [in New Hampshire] and we combined for 12 goals. We had a real good tournament,” said Morgan Trimper. “We’re familiar with each other so we should be a good strong line.”
Ally Trimper knows what is needed to be done to earn a spot at the nationals.
“You’ve got to work really hard, be strong on the puck and be first on the puck,” said Ally. You’ve got to show good hockey sense. Everyone there will be very talented so [the evaluators] will be looking for the little things that will set you apart from the other girls.”
“I’ve got to play fast. I’ve got to use my speed,” said Morgan. “I need to release by shots quickly.”
King said it will be important to play instinctively “and not overthink things.”
All three feel playing on a boys high school team has been helpful in their development.
“We played a faster pace of hockey on the boys team and it was more physical,” said Morgan Trimper. “Because you’re worried about getting hit in the boys game, you have to keep your head up and get rid of the puck quicker.”
“It was such a great learning tool for me,” said Ally. “It was so much fun playing on the boys team. It has given me a lot of confidence.”
Leidt said the players should know within seven days after the conclusion of the festival if they earned a spot to a national camp.