Sports teams often thrive off of a sense of comradery with players calling one another family. Siblings Austin Gergens ’21 and sophomore Lauren Gergens are taking that a step further by joining the Hillsdale College club hockey team, sharing both the college and the ice for the first time ever.
“We’re two years apart, which I think is the most perfect age gap between siblings,” Lauren said. “I don’t know him being older. He’s my best friend, and he’s always been there to protect me. So yeah, I might be worried about someone accidentally running into me, but I know my brother’s gonna be right behind me just to get them right back.”
Austin played with the team its inaugural year but was unable to continue into the playoffs or his senior year due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Austin decided to return to Hillsdale after a year working as a middle school teacher in Texas. Now he works as a reporter for Michigan News Source and plays with the team, on the side.
“I just reached out and asked if they wanted help with scrimmaging or if they wanted someone to help, just kind of watch to give pointers or what not,” Austin said.
The Gergens siblings did not overlap during their respective times at Hillsdale. Lauren transferred in her sophomore year right after Austin graduated.
With her only hockey background being roller hockey games in her childhood, Lauren decided support from her brother was what she needed to strap on her skates and undertake a brand new sport.
“It’s my brother’s love for hockey,” Lauren said. “It’s just very inspiring. I’ve wanted to get back into a team sport because it’s been since high school since I’ve been on a team. Given that we’re in Michigan, and there’s lots of ice and snow, I decided that I wanted to just give it a try.”
In honor of this newfound shared love, Austin bought his sister a personal piece of new gear.
“I was born in Long Beach, California,” Austin said. “And there used to be, I can’t remember the division, I think it was an IHL League, but they’re called the Long Beach Ice Dogs, and unfortunately the franchise discontinued in the early 2000s. But as a kid, my parents would take me to games super young. And so I went on eBay and got us both jerseys as kind of an homage to home but also so we can match in practices. I am honored to be skating with many members from the founding year of the team, and very excited to share the experience with my sister.”
This will be the club’s third season, and senior Ben Hanson serves as the team’s president. Hanson said the team is not playing in the league this year due to the league’s already even number of teams and Hillsdale’s shorter season. The rink’s manager, Dave Templin, sets up teams for Hillsdale to play.
“Dave’s a trooper for us, and he has been since day one,” Hanson said. “He does a lot of the heavy lifting for us, and it all works out.”
The co-ed league is noncontact, and Lauren is the only girl on the Hillsdale team this season.
“In the game that was this last Sunday, she was the smallest by far,” Austin said. “I really tried to make sure she had the best gear she could have. I told her if something happens, I’ll take care of it.”
The team’s first game was Jan. 2 at the Optimist Ice Arena in Jackson, Michigan. The team lost the game 2-0 after no points were scored in the first two periods. The team has plans to play every Sunday at 12:30 p.m. at the same rink until spring break.
“I think almost like just under 50% of the original team is playing again this year,” Austin said. “So, to me, that’s really neat to be with a lot of people that I skated with that first season and come back to see them in their senior year now. It’s really something seeing how they’ve grown. This will be a really nice closing to a really great chapter, the Hillsdale chapter, but also the Hillsdale hockey experience.”
