Swimming with sharks is not an activity people generally find enjoyable.

However, skating with them has been a rewarding experience for three young Huntsville women.

Megan Nunn, Laurel Hill and Olivia Ross played this past season with the Barrie Sharks AA midget girls’ hockey team, members of the Lower Lakes Female Hockey League.

The trio of Huntsville skaters made the trek down the highway each week for games and practices, all in the name of playing high-level competitive hockey.

Nunn, 17, said that while there were many exciting times while skating with the Barrie team, there was another moment during the year that stands out in her mind.

“My proudest moment was when my coach asked me to be the captain of the team. It was an honour to wear the C and I loved every moment of it.”

Nunn, a centre with the Sharks, said that she started in hockey in 1997 and played house league for a few years before moving on to AE for a year. However, due to the contact and the size difference between her and the boys she decided to go to house league.

“I continued to play house league until my dad started up the Huntsville Huskies midget C girls’ team last year. I also have played all four of my high school years on the Hoyas girls’ hockey team.” She said that after a year with the Huskies she decided that she had to play elsewhere to mature as a player.

“I needed to play at a higher level girls’ hockey in order for me to develop as a player and I also needed to start opening some options for my future. Therefore, I had to play out of town. The closest midget AA program was in Barrie so I just decided to go and try out last spring.”

Ross, who tended the nets for the Barrie team, also felt she needed to move to another location to further her hockey career.

 “I have played boys’ BB team for the last five years prior to going to Barrie. My last year the bantam rep team travelled to Michigan for the International Silver Stick tournament, where we came second. That year we had an undefeated regular season and won the provincial championship. I thought last year was a good year to change over to girls’ hockey because our team ended on such a high note. In the hockey world you have to be known to be seen and Barrie was the closest midget AA team.”

As for Hill, her path to donning the Sharks’ jersey was slightly different than those of her teammates.

“I started playing house-league hockey in Huntsville at the age of seven and continued with that until my second year of atom. During that last year I had some conflicts with being able to make all the games due to other activities. For this reason my dad worked it out so that I could skate with the atom AE team as an affiliate. This got me interested in playing a higher level of hockey and the next year I played on the peewee AE team and stuck with that until my last year in bantam. While my primary commitment was to the boys’ team, I did play with an Orillia girls’ team as an affiliate player for two years, and then for the Huskies.”

She said that after her final year on the bantam team, Hill decided against playing hockey against boys and made the move to girls’ hockey. “The Sharks offered the high level and competitive hockey that I was looking for, plus the bonus of two other girls from Huntsville to share with the driving.”

Ross said that she found she had to adjust her goaltending technique while playing for the Sharks.

“While the level of competition was very high, and the hockey was faster paced, moving over to girls’ hockey I had to make some adjustments to my style of goaltending. Playing for Barrie I had a great opportunity to keep busy in the net.”

Nunn said her year in Barrie gave her the chance she was looking for – to improve her overall game.

“It allowed me to see and play against high-level girls, which has helped me improve as a player. It also allowed some coaches from various teams to see me play, which might have opened some doors for the future.”

It looks like that future will include a switch from being a shark to becoming a badger for Nunn.

“I am planning on attending university (most likely Brock) in a four-year kinesiology program and I plan on trying out for the varsity girls’ hockey team there. If everything goes as planned I will hopefully play four solid years of varsity hockey and finish my program successfully.”

Ross also plans on taking another step in her hockey career, but not at the post-secondary school level.

“I have accepted a goaltending position on the Mississauga Junior Chiefs,” she said. “They are an under-21 team in the Provincial Women’s Hockey League. We start training in the summer, but come September I will be living in Mississauga.”  

Hill, on the other hand, does not have firm plans like those of her now-former teammates.

“Though my passion for hockey remains strong I have to balance it with my other priorities, such as school and music. The personal commitment of my time and with no other rides to carpool, makes skating full-time with Barrie impractical for next year.

“I’m looking at the possibilities of skating part-time with Barrie. I also understand that Orillia is putting together a team for the first time this year that I’m considering playing with. In addition to this I plan to skate with the Huntsville High School team.”   

While there were numerous games and tournaments for the threesome and their fellow Sharks, there is one undisputed highlight to the year – competing at the 2008 Ontario Winter Games in Collingwood.

“Only eight teams out of around 50 make it to the games, so it was a real opportunity to be able to go,” said 15-year-old Hill, who patrolled the blueline for the Sharks. “Our team made the quarter-finals, and then battled it out for bronze against the Toronto Aeros, one of the best teams in the league. Although we lost in over time 1-0, it was an exciting weekend.”