Turning NCAA Hockey Dreams Into Reality

Neve Van Pelt played for the NCAA Providence Friars women’s hockey team from 2016-17 to 2019-20 and for the NWHL's (now PHF’s) Buffalo Beauts in 2020-21. She’s currently a student at the College of Sports Media in Toronto and an intern at The Hockey News. She’s writing a blog series about her hockey journey. 

In case you missed her first blog, she recalls what it was like playing hockey at a young age after being told to stop scoring so much in ringette.

About half of my conversations with my dad when I was younger consisted of me telling him, “When I grow up, I’m going to be an NHL player.” Props to Manon Rheaume for making history in 1992 and doing exactly that, but for me, this just wasn’t a reality.

Accepting this fate at a young age, my focus shifted to a dream that was possible to achieve: playing NCAA Div. I hockey.

When it comes to recruiting, there are many rules. NCAA coaches weren’t allowed to officially start contacting us until high school, so it wasn’t until bantam (U-15) and midget (U-18) that we’d start noticing coaches around the rink. 

There were a few schools, both American and Canadian, with which I was in contact. However, not one of those schools was Providence College, where I ultimately ended up.

Skipping ahead to my junior year of high school in Mitchell, Ont., I was in my second season of midget hockey, playing with the Saugeen Maitland Lightning in what would be my final tournament in the blue-and-white jersey. I couldn’t even make up what comes next.

My team was in the semifinal, tied 1-1 at the final buzzer. We went on to need not one, not two, not three…but seven periods of overtime hockey to finally win it.

The game itself was something I will never forget, but finding out that Bob Deraney – who would later become my head coach at Providence College – missed his flight back to Rhode Island because he couldn’t leave before the end of the game, was something I could barely even believe.

To this day, the goalpost I hit in the first overtime period on a penalty shot, and the five others I hit throughout the rest of the seven-OT marathon, still haunt me. With that being said, I still believe I have those 10 periods of hockey to thank for my full scholarship to Providence College.

Now, of course, there’s more to it, but it’s not every day a college coach is so invested in a game and how a player plays a full 10 periods of hockey that he literally changes his flight home to see the game through. 

Following the game, Deraney contacted me, expressing his interest and inviting me to come see the campus. A couple of weeks later, my parents and I were on a flight to Boston.

Interested in multiple schools on the East Coast, we made a trip out of it. After speaking with coaches from a few different schools, I was set to visit the University of Connecticut, Quinnipiac University, Merrimack College and, of course, Providence College.

Each school was beautiful in its own way, but only one left me with a feeling I couldn’t shake. 

The second we drove through the gate of the Providence campus, I immediately had goosebumps. From the security guard greeting us with his friendly Rhode Island accent to the stunning facilities, to the coaches and team making me feel right at home, this was a place I definitely saw myself fitting into.

The assistant coach, Melanie Ruzzi, showed us around the entire campus and gave us a feel of what a regular day as a student-athlete would look like. She showed us all of the amazing facilities, classrooms, dorm rooms, dining halls, etc., but also really got to know me and my parents during this time as well.

At the end of the visit, we went back to the rink and sat down with Deraney in the Leary Friends of Friar Hockey room. Something that stuck out to me in this moment was that they weren’t just looking for a great hockey player; they were looking for someone who fit in with the Friars’ culture. 

Coach Mel brought up how she really appreciated how genuine I was, and knowing they cared about the type of person I was showed me that this was a team I would love to be a part of.

As we drove away that day, every part of me knew that Providence College was exactly where I wanted to spend my next four years.

The coaches had seen me play at a few other tournaments, and my name had been on their radar for a while. Following my visit, they came to watch me again in a summer hockey showcase tournament, and I’ll never forget what happened next.

Back at home on a Sunday afternoon, my phone started buzzing on the couch beside me, and when I saw Bob Deraney’s number pop up, my heart couldn’t help but beat faster and faster.

I picked up the phone, and in his thick Boston accent, he greeted me with a friendly hello. Not knowing where this phone call was going, I said “hi” back, and we chatted for a few minutes about life and the tournament I played in over the weekend. Happy with how I played and knowing the type of player and person I was on and off the ice, the next few words changed my life forever.

Slightly blacking out during the phone call due to excitement, I don’t remember the exact words he used, but what I do remember is that on June 7, 2015, all of my hard work paid off. I was offered a full scholarship to play Div. I hockey at Providence College.

After thanking Deraney for this opportunity and expressing my excitement for my future with the Friars, I hung up the phone, sprinted outside to where my family was in the backyard, and just screamed. With very confused looks on their faces, I finally caught my breath to tell them what had just happened. As you can imagine, I wasn’t the only one jumping up and down and screaming after that.

It was a night I’ll remember forever, celebrating with my family and taking in what had just happened.

Five months later, my verbal commitment became official. Providence sent my NLI – National Letter of Intent – and with goosebumps over my entire body, I sat at the kitchen table in the hoodie I had bought my first time visiting the school, and I signed one of the most important documents of my hockey career. 

Sitting there across from my family, I could barely believe that my dream of becoming part of the Friars family was no longer just a dream.

During my senior year of high school, the Friars had me and two others from my freshman class, one of whom would become my freshman-year roommate, go to Providence for our official visits. This meant staying with a player on the team for two nights and experiencing the life of a college student. 

It was a unique experience, having the opportunity to wake up early for their morning workout, going to class with them and seeing what a lecture was all about, watch the team practice, and then of course going out to one of the best restaurants in the city and trying seafood for the first time.

After this visit, I couldn’t wait to go back and start things up, with the wait feeling short but long all at the same time. Before I knew it, my senior year at high school was over, and with one of the biggest smiles I’ve ever had on my face, I was headed to Rhode Island for my freshman year of college.