If all goes according to plan, the girls from the Indianapolis Youth Hockey Association Fusion and the South Indy Youth Hockey Association Sharks will one day be rivals on the ice.

But first, they formed a partnership.

When the Sharks were looking for an activity to expose more girls from the Indianapolis area to the game during USA Hockey’s Girls’ Hockey Weekend in October, they called on their friends to the north, the Carmel-based IHYA.

While the SIHYA is committed to expanding its girls’ membership, the association had some struggles in doing so. The IHYA provided a booming success story to use as an example.

The players from the quickly expanding Fusion all-girls’ teams came to the Sharks’ Perry Park Ice Rink in Indianapolis to practice, scrimmage and show those interested what all-girls’ hockey could be like. In addition, they invited girls from the Sharks to join them on the ice during their exhibition.

“We owe them a lot for coming down to our rink,” SIYHA president Jeremy Kuntz said.

Even as girls’ hockey is growing nationwide, the IHYA’s rapid increase in female players stands out.

After a few earlier attempts to get girls’ hockey going in Carmel, the association made a distinct commitment in the summer of 2011. Starting with six girls, the program quickly grew to 15 between September and November, then to 22 by the season’s end.

Cooperation from others was needed to sustain the growth, and that’s just what was received, according to Tim Bischof, an IHYA board member, girls’ head coach and officiating liaison.

There were 27 girls for the second season and 37 for 2013-14 before the numbers jumped up again to 53 this season.

“Our goal on numbers has been to increase the count at least five per year,” Bischof said. “So far, so good.”

Bischof spreads the credit for the success in many directions.

Kris May, a coach at the Carmel Ice Skadium, who is a former skating coach and the mother of two girls’ players, was the one who approached Bischof in 2011 about establishing a girls’ house program. Rink owner Mike Aulby offered many cooperative steps to encourage the growth of the girls’ game. The IHYA board and its leadership also committed to the recruiting efforts. USA Hockey’s American Development Model has guided skill instruction for the players.

The Fusion now has a 14-and-Under all-star team that plays in the Tier II Heartland Girls Hockey League. In addition, a mini-mite team, a mite team and two squirt teams play in the IHYA House League against boys’ teams.

The Sharks started with a girls’ squirt team while building up numbers at other age levels.

“With cupcakes, Kool-Aid and a spirit of play rather than winning, the girls had a blast,” Bischof said. “About 10 of those original girls are still with our program.”

Bischof calls Aulby the girls’ program’s “No. 1 supporter.” Aulby offered up ice time in the summer for 3-on-3 girls’ tournaments and again for Try Hockey for Free girls-only events in August and September before the second season.

“Between the rink, IHYA and families we knew, we started accumulating equipment and on-ice help,” Bischof said. “Josh Mervis sponsored the team, and we were able to advertise a reduced rate for the girls.”

By the end of the second season, the program drew even more players. The coaching staff was expanded for the third season, and the momentum has continued.

The ADM helps Bischof create coaching plans for the various ages and skill levels among the players.

“We run all of our practices with five stations,” Bischof said. “We are have 30-plus girls on the ice developing with good pace but at crazily different levels.

“Girls at like levels are grouped together and play, practice and compete with people that they can play, practice and compete with. As a boys’ squirt coach in the past, I believe the ADM offers a unique benefit to girls, too, because of this ability to group like ability levels.

“Also, the ADM allows the girls to see more skating and more puck touches. Further, with various levels, we need to have multiple drills at each station. The drills will change with the level of the group.”

Once an individual association succeeds in developing all-girls’ teams, one of the next steps is finding like teams to play against. The Fusion and their leaders have shown they are dedicated to that next step.

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.