After Northland College announced the closing of its campus on the shore of Lake Superior earlier this year, Beloit College welcomed the student-athletes to visit its campus on Wisconsin’s southern border. All Northland college hockey players and coaches were invited to transfer and nearly 50 players made the decision to be a part of Beloit’s inaugural men’s and women’s NCAA Division III hockey programs, which will compete in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The players travelled from Illinois, North Dakota, Minnesota, Missouri, Wyoming, Ontario, Russia, and elsewhere, to take home ice as Buccaneers at the new Woodman’s Sports & Convention Center in Janesville. For some of them, Beloit was their third college, and they all wondered, “Will Beloit be a good fit?”

The first clue came during the teams’ tour last spring. “We stepped on campus and it was so different … a good different,” says women’s co-captain Rachel Fussy ’27. “It was close to the river, so we were still by a body of water. The landscaping was beautiful. I loved the winding sidewalks and the history of the effigy mounds.” As excitement built for the new program, players embraced their new identity as Buccaneers. Goalie Zoey Soost ’27 spent the summer designing her helmet while recovering from a torn labrum. She worked to get the details just right, reaching out to Beloit College graphic designer Tori Schell for the Buccaneer colors to surprise her coach and teammates.

Returning to campus for the start of classes, players were welcomed by what Beloit College has to offer during their time as student-athletes and beyond — professors with a wealth of knowledge, diverse internships, access to an athletic trainer, facilities like the Powerhouse, off-campus jobs, and a bustling downtown with such favorites as Bushel and Peck, Flying Pig ice cream, and Zen Sushi. As fall semester progressed, their connections to people and places on campus grew, increasing the level of comfort in their adopted home.

For Ben Stewart ’27, a good fit was as much about what Beloit College provided as it was about what his teammates were prepared to give. “It’s a sense of pride and family every time I put on the jersey with Beloit across the chest. It’s only a Beloit experience if you get involved,” Ben says. “We were given lifelines academically. Communication with college admissions staff and faculty made everything easy.”

His sentiment is echoed by many who express gratitude for the warm reception, help with transfer paperwork, communication with faculty, facilities work on new locker rooms, strength and conditioning, injury rehab, and especially their coaches’ commitment. “Our coach has put hope into us when there wasn’t any. Kelly (Millins, women’s head coach) is in it for the long run. It’s exciting to have a coach who is as passionate as we are,” says co-captain Kennedy Gruhlke ’27.

Sam Holy ’26, co-captain of the men’s team, worked long days all summer in construction building an ice rink. While he didn’t see that structure finished, Sam embraces opportunities to keep building represented by the Buccaneer logo etched just past center ice. “What’s important is to pave the path for future seasons. I want us to have the right habits on the ice and off the ice, to be headed in the right direction. Working hard, day in and day out, no matter how hard it gets.”

Success during the 2025-26 season will be measured by more than wins, according to both teams. “We want to make a good first impression,” says Trey Taylor ’26, co-captain, “in the classroom, in the dining hall, and on the ice.” Rachel agrees, adding, “It’s the tone we set for the years to come, years and years that they’ll have this program.”

Ice hockey has a storied history at Beloit College, going back to infamous club teams in the 1970s and 1980s, and the excitement around the return of the sport after all these years is palpable. After a year of uncertainty, these student-athletes have found a home as Buccaneers, on campus and on the ice, and they are ready for the next era of Beloit hockey.