It's hard finding athletes as dedicated to their sport as the Bryn Mawr ice hockey players.
They have to get up hours before many of their classmates for the 5:30 am practices at Mount Pleasant Ice Arena.
"If anybody is willing wake to get up at 4:30 in the morning and go out and skate in the freezing cold, then you have to be really committed," Bryn Mawr senior defenseman Emily Maranto said. "And all our players are just that. They get there on time and skate hard."
It's not just practices that require a lot of sacrifice.
The Mawrtians have to travel to the Gardens Ice House in Laurel and Ice World in Bel Air several times a season for games.
Bryn Mawr can't play any games at Mount Pleasant because of the unavailability of ice time.
Youth, high school and men's teams also use the facility.
"I would give anything to even have two games at Mount Pleasant," said Bryn Mawr assistant coach Maureen Walsh, the school's headmistress. "We don't have any home games. They are always far away. The closest place we play is Patterson Park downtown. We always take a bus somewhere. I always say, 'A game is a four-to-five hour commitment every time.'"
"We do everything in the dark," she added. "The games are at night. There is no way for their friends to come see them play."
None of those problems seem to be keeping the players away from program. Bryn Mawr fielded a lineup of 30 players, its largest since the Mawrtians won a Mid-Atlantic Girls Hockey League championship in 2010.
That type of participation impressed first-year head coach Derek Welch, who replaced long-time boss Delbert Adams.
"We have had an influx of freshmen and some of them have never skated before," Welch explained. "They hopefully develop over four years into hockey players. And they usually do. It can be difficult with 30 girls out there. We have a lot of coaches. We have coach Walsh, Caroline Chessare, Brad Wolosson and Lora Peters."
The coaching staff saw the team's play drop off in the second half of the season. After a 4-1 start the team — led by senior co captains Hadley Brown and Maranto — lost six of its last seven games.
Bryn Mawr finished the season with a 7-0 loss to Holton-Arms School on Feb. 4 in Rockville.
"The first half of the season was awesome," Walsh said. "In the second half of the year, we had snow delays. I was reluctant to have the kids drive when there is a possibility of snow. We missed a lot of practices — probably seven. It interfered with the flow of the season."
Walsh and Welch can't talk about the season without mentioning sophomore goalie Georgia Brown, a first-year starter.
They both consider her the best goalie in the league.
"She is probably going to be the best goalie the school has ever seen," Welch said. "I think its because of her athleticism."
Walsh added: "She's active, physical and has a great glove hand."
Maranto spearheads the defense in front of Brown. It also includes Hannah Rosen, AP Smith, MacKenzie Kelly, Joanna Levin and Maria Ostendorf.
"Maranto is a great defenseman and very devoted to our teammates," Walsh said. "She is out in front and guiding and helping. She makes other kids look good."
Hadley Brown leads a group of forwards that include Abby Fisher, Anna Steiner, Annie Prevas, Annie Brinkley and Dani Martin.
"She is really an an elite athlete and one of the most extraordinary competitive kids I have coached," Walsh said. "She is very aggressive and very skilled. She is so accomplished and experienced."