Hitting the links may mark the end to playoff hockey disappointment, but for two members of the SAIT Trojans, it’s just the beginning.
Karmen Mooney was the first person Tashel Scantlebury met when she came to SAIT to try out for the Trojans hockey team.
Five years later, they’re team captains, about to tee up their last season — not just in hockey; but in golf too.
“We practice every day, about an hour-and-a-half, on top of three to four workouts a week, depending on if we play Thursday or Friday, Saturdays,” Scantlebury explained. “We’re at the rink with our team every day for about four hours.
“Sundays are pretty much our only day off.”
Scantlebury, a former nominee for Trojan athlete of the year, convinced Mooney to join her on the newly reformed golf squad last year.
SAIT had shuttered the program for nearly 20 years prior to that.
In a huge step forward, the team has qualified to compete in the national college championship from Oct. 15-18 in Montreal.
But it means the pair will miss their hockey season opener in Edmonton.
“It’s our first time competing out of the province since we’ve been to SAIT,” Mooney explained. “I’m really excited to see what the other competition is like and get out and see what the course is like in Montreal.
“We feel bad enough missing our first game. If we could’ve flown into Edmonton in time for the first one, we would’ve.”
Once the final round at nationals wraps up, Mooney and Scantlebury will be on a red-eye flight back to Alberta, just in time for their last home-opener.
“We’ve been here for five years,” Scantlebury added. “It’s just something we have to do.
“Hockey is our life. I just couldn’t imagine missing a hockey game — ever.”
The juggling act they’re sharing may make for one crazy ride, but these athletes plan to keep it up right to the end.
“It’s actually a shorter season than you think,” Mooney said. “I’m just trying to cherish it before it flies past my eyes and it’s over.”
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