Women’s hockey captain embraces leadership on and off the ice as she graduates from the University of Guelph
When Katherine Heard tipped the puck into the back of the net, propelling the Gryphons to a provincial championship, the crowd went wild. In front of a sold-out arena, the captain finished her university career raising the McCaw Cup.
You could say she saved the best for last.
“It was so cool,” Heard says of the experience. “I had so many friends there, so many family members. I look back at photos and it just feels unreal. I can’t even describe the feeling.”
Heard was not only given the MVP award in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championship game, but also set a personal record for goals, assists and points in her final year, and was named OUA West MVP and a first-team all-star.
“Coming into your last season, you learn to appreciate everything more,” she says. “Knowing this is my last time doing this, I wanted to give it my all.”
‘Leading by example’
In her final season with Gryphons hockey, and her first as captain, Heard stepped up to embrace the team culture that pushed her and the team to new heights.
“Every single person on our team does a great job of leading by example.”
Heard was assistant captain last year and took on a more vocal role as captain for her final season.
“As captain, you’re the one leading people toward a common goal,” she explains. “You want to do it for your team.”
Katie Mora, head coach of the women’s team, says Heard’s ability to motivate the team around her played a pivotal role in the team’s success this year.
“She scored some big goals for us this season in big moments,” Mora says. “Stepping up when your team needs you is a big part of leadership.”
It was the women’s hockey program that first drew Heard to the University of Guelph from her hometown of Arva, Ont. A campus tour confirmed it was the right fit. “It felt like home,” she says.
Heard says she faced some struggles early on in her academic career. After switching programs and settling into sociology, she found her stride. Between coursework and research, Heard had plenty of opportunities for hands-on and theoretical learning that set her up to pursue graduate studies in the future.
PWHL paving way for professional women’s hockey
However, Heard is part of a generation of women athletes who can now envision a future in hockey beyond the varsity level, thanks to creation of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL).
“Players are seeing a world where there’s a career path in women’s professional sports,” Mora says.
The Gryphons’ captain already sees the impact of the league’s success on university sports. When Heard started at U of G, there wasn’t a place for women to go pro. Now, there’s a goal that female athletes can work towards.
“It breaks my heart to see so many girls have to stop playing sports after high school,” Heard says. “Now, there are so many PWHL players who are so incredible and showing young women there is a place for them in professional hockey.”
For Heard, that’s moving on to play hockey in Europe.
“I would love to play at the highest level of hockey I can, for as long as I can,” she says.
Wherever Heard and her fellow graduating teammates end up, Mora is confident in their success.
“It makes me so happy to know they’re going to represent our program and the Gryphons so well internationally,” she says.
Mentorship for first-year student-athletes
Heard isn’t just a leader on the ice. Named the W.F. Sportswoman of the Year, Heard was recognized for her work as a mentor in the Student-Athlete Mentor Program (SAM Program) and hitting the ice every week with the Junior Gryphons. The SAM Program pairs first-year student-athletes with upper-year students to help them navigate the challenges of starting a new phase of life.
“We connect about how academics are going, work through practice exams, set them up with resources and offer whatever support we can,” says Heard.
This year, she mentored an engineering student who was looking for an opportunity to talk about anything but school and sports. “A lot of people just need someone to listen who understands.”
Only students with top marks are selected as mentors, something that Mora attributes to Heard’s drive to continuously improve.
“We as coaches can recommend students for the program,” Mora explains. “We want students who have shown academic success who can share knowledge with incoming student-athletes.”
With university behind her and her sights set on convocation, Heard says her experience at U of G will guide her into the future.
“I know I will succeed because of how U of G prepared me,” she says. “The experiences I’ve had, the adversity and injuries I’ve overcome, the skills I’ve developed as both a student and an athlete. It’s all shaped the way I think.”