Lila Snow ’24 is a four-year Senior from Illinois and member of Girls Varsity Hockey. She usually plays forward, but this year is working on playing center. She is committed to play Division 3 hockey next year for Hamilton College.
Teammate Marygrace Lawry ’27 said, “Lila is an extremely important piece of our team, as she is a strong skater with lots of skill. Our team will be looking for her to help drive our offense. Lila is a great teammate on and off the ice.”
Head Coach Kelsie Fralick ’11 said, “Lila is such a dynamic player. Her speed and strength make her a really fun player to watch. She has a hard and accurate shot, but also has soft hands to be able to stickhandle and deke. She was a top point scorer last year, and I think she’ll lead the offensive charge this season, as well. I’m excited to see how much she will contribute on both sides of the ice in her final season as a Bearcat.”
How did you start playing hockey?
I started skating when I was three. I grew up playing hockey with boys, and I was usually the only girl on my team. I joined an AAA program, the highest level I could at the time, and played with a club team called Chicago Mission starting when I was 12. Before I came to Hotchkiss, I won the national championship with Mission.
At Hotchkiss, I started on the varsity team Prep year while simultaneously playing on a club team called the Wolf Pack. When you play at prep school and in a club it’s called split season, where you have to play hockey during the fall and spring. While at Hotchkiss, I started to play for the Mid Fairfield Stars, one of the best tier-one club teams in CT.
I absolutely loved the club. I did two years on that team, starting Lower Mid year. We ended up winning the national championship.
What has it been like for you playing here?
Playing with Hotchkiss for the past four years has been super fun. My Prep year was a bit bumpy. With a huge team, I didn’t play a lot. But making Mid Fairfield at the end of my Prep year was a huge confidence- booster.
During my Prep and Lower Mid years, the older girls treated all the younger girls so well and we had such a good bond, which definitely influenced me. This year, I want to reflect that treatment for the younger girls.
What have been some of your favorite moments playing with the team?
Last season, we went to The Hill School over the long winter weekend, and the team was told to stay in the wrong place, in Covid housing. As a team, we were struggling with bonding new and returning players, but this chaotic moment brought the team back together. So much quality time was spent together as a team, and we were all in the trenches of Pennsylvania together, eating our steak and cheeses. We were given horrible housing with prison beds in the basement of a random place, but we were all together, and we had such an amazing time.
What has your college recruitment process been like?
I’m committed to Hamilton College, which is a New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) school in upstate New York. I had known since lower midyear that I wanted to play NESCAC hockey, so I was pretty focused on those schools. I didn’t get too stressed about the process, as I trusted my hockey ability and knew I couldn’t really go wrong with any NESCAC school.
How did you decide to commit to Hamilton?
When I visited Hamilton this past July, the campus felt right. The coaches expressed their confidence in my ability and what I could do after their program.
The fact that there were people there that believed in me really drove my decision. It felt like they wanted me. The final decision was between two schools; I really did like the other school, but I went with my gut and chose the school that felt right.
What are your goals for college and beyond for your hockey career?
I’m going to continue to progress; I want to grow not just physically but also mentally in the sport.
I want to make a big impact from day one at Hamilton, and it would be great to receive any sort of NESCAC honors. I also want to continue to grow as a leader at Hamilton and maybe one day become a captain.
