O'Quinn Ready For the Responsibilities of Being a Tri-Captain

• Stoneham Patch Whiz Kid of the Week, Colleen O’Quinn, 17
• Stoneham High School
• Accomplishment: O’Quinn was named captain for each of the three sports she participates in at (Hockey, softball, soccer).

Key to Awesomeness: O’Quinn was voted captain for all three sports. During her three seasons in hockey, O’Quinn has racked up eight goals and 23 assists.

“I consider myself more of a play maker than a goal scorer in both hockey and soccer,” O’Quinn said.

O’Quinn made the varsity soccer team as a junior and she made the varsity softball team as a sophomore. O’Quinn recalled some of her memories when first being called up to the varsity level.

“I scored two goals for varsity soccer, one of which was a header in game one of the tournament”, O’Quinn said. “As a junior I played right field as a starter. I hit one inside the park home run this past season in Wakefield. We qualified for the tournament, but lost in the first round to Burlington.”

Being a tri-captain is a big responsibility and O’Quinn is ready to work hard and get her teams ready for the seasons.

“I lead by example through my work ethic. I feel that I work harder than most of my teammates and classmates on the field and ice as well as in the classroom,” O’Quinn said. “I always work my hardest in every practice and game and hard work does not usually go unnoticed.”

O’Quinn wants her work ethic to rub off on her teammates so they can go deep into the tournament.

“My hard work inspires others to higher levels of achievement,” O’Quinn said. “My positive attitude is very contagious and will carry my team farther than expected.”

O’Quinn has many goals set for each sport this upcoming season and qualifying for the State Tournament in each sport is one.

“My goals for my upcoming soccer season is to qualify for the tournament and make it to the third round of the tournament, which was one round more than last year,” O’Quinn said. “For hockey, I plan on qualifying for the tournament and advancing to the quarterfinals at the very least.”

O’Quinn is very excited for the upcoming hockey season because the team has a lot of talent returning.

“There is a lot of talent on the team and I am hoping to see home heads turning at the start of the season,” O’Quinn said. “Our hard work and success throughout the summer and fall season will definitely transfer into the winter season and I am confident that we will have a great outcome.”

O’Quinn knows there will be some obstacles in this year’s softball season, but is ready for the challenge.

“We are losing some key players. Over the past two seasons, we have lost some phenomenal players, but I still believe we will be a big threat to the Middlesex League,” O’Quinn said. “Preseason training for softball will be conducted by the captains and should be very beneficial for the team. I plan on qualifying for the tournament and advancing to the third round.”

O’Quinn trains very hard for each sport during her free time to be the best she can be when the season rolls around.

“I plan on getting stronger through the Power Enhancement Program I attend throughout the summer on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays,” O’Quinn said. “I play soccer four days a week in the summer and play hockey on the weekends. In my free time I go to the batting cages to improve my hitting.”

O’Quinn knows her success does not come without the help of her family.

“My family encourages me to do sports throughout my life and were always there to drive me to games and practices,” O’Quinn said. “My underlying drive was created from my two older brothers. I always wanted to be able to play sports just as good as them and throughout my life I have developed a deep desire to play sports.”

O’Quinn pointed out that their positive encouragement helped her get up every time she fell down.

“My family helped me believe in myself even when I was failing at something,” O’Quinn said.

O’Quinn also respects the fact that her coaches care about her work ethic and success.

“My coaches have also contributed to my success because they always appreciate my work ethic and have encouraged me to go further,” O’Quinn said. “When I realized how much coaches noticed and admired my hard work, I only wanted to work even harder.”