Stefanie Marty sat in front of a television in Nussbaumen, Switzerland, eyes glued to the screen. The clock read 1 a.m., as she watched the gold medal game of the women’s ice hockey competition during the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympic games.

Little did Marty know, only four years later she would be skating on the ice in Torino, Italy, representing her country in the same event on the same grand stage.

Marty, one of the captains of the SU women’s ice hockey team has amassed the most experience of any member of the team. The sophomore forward has shredded up the ice for a multitude of teams in an array of events over her career, which not many of her teammates can boast.

From the Olympic Games, to the World Championships, to the Frozen Four, Marty has traveled to three continents. The forward has been a member of the Swiss national team since 2003, playing in Winnipeg, Harbin, China, and of course, Torino.

Back home in Switzerland, Marty played club hockey for EV Zug, twice winning a championship. Yet the experience of playing hockey in Europe and internationally wasn’t enough at times for Marty. Club hockey proved to be far from professional and she wanted more.

‘To play for the national team is an honor, but looking at Switzerland as compared to the U.S., we do not have many girls that play,’ Marty said. ‘Many teams in Switzerland shut down because they don’t have enough funds; it’s far from professional. We had had 10 to 15 players on a team. If I were to play at home it wouldn’t match this level, I have a totally different role on this team.’

After the 2007 season in the Swiss League, Marty decided to cross the pond and play college hockey in the United States. Her first stop was the famed women’s ice hockey program at New Hampshire. There, along with her current SU teammate Lucy Schoedel, Marty was a member of a team that qualified for last years’ Frozen Four.

‘It was a big tournament, like a world championship,’ she said. ‘Now I know what it’s like to be on top and play there.’But her time at UNH ended after one season despite four goals and one assist in her rookie campaign. For Marty, the transition to UNH didn’t transpire like she envisioned.’I thought it would be cool to come to the U.S., but I didn’t fully grasp what it meant to play college hockey,’ Marty said. ‘UNH wasn’t what I expected or wanted, and a year later I knew what it meant to be a collegiate athlete.’

So then why did Marty, who was at a perennial powerhouse in women’s hockey, choose to leave for an upstart Syracuse program?

‘I chose Syracuse because it is such a big sports school, and the opportunity I see in this program is just huge,’ she said. ‘I couldn’t say no.’

Thus far, she has been very successful as one of Syracuse’s co-captains, tallying two goals and an assist heading into the program’s first-ever home stand this weekend at Tennity Ice Skating Pavilion.

Marty hopes that her time in Central New York can also benefit the Swiss International team. A squad that since that pivotal day in February six years ago has proven to be one of the most up-and-coming national teams in women’s ice hockey. It finished in fifth- and fourth-place, respectively, in the last two World Championships.

‘Since I started playing with the national team at age 15, we have improved a great deal,’ Marty said. ‘With the success that we have had in the last year we are gaining more support back in Switzerland.

‘It’s growing but it’s growing slowly. Now more young girls are beginning to play sports and play hockey. More and more people are realizing what it takes to have a successful program back in Switzerland.’

Looking ahead approximately a year and a half, the Swiss national team has already qualified for the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.

This time, as opposed to three and a half years ago, Marty and the squad will be looking to make some noise – an accomplishment that surely benefits from all of the different experiences Marty has had over the past few years.

‘Last time it was like, we were glad to be there,’ Marty said. ‘In Vancouver we feel it is possible we will do something.’

aolivero@syr.edu

Published on October 29, 2008 at 12:00 pm