UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State junior center Katie McMillan had a stellar weekend against Providence College last weekend, scoring a goal on both days of the series at Pegula Ice Arena, proving she can do just about anything on the ice for the Nittany Lions.
On Friday, an assist by Shea Nelson gave McMillan a huge third period goal that tied the game up 2-2 and sent the game into overtime. On Saturday, McMillan scored from in front of the net after a wraparound pass by Loli Fidler from behind the net to give the Nittany Lions a 2-0 lead in the second period.
The Nittany Lions defeated Providence 5-3 on Saturday, following a 3-2 overtime loss on Friday.
McMillan's ability to put the puck in the net both days in this series proves Head Coach Jeff Kampersal's observations of McMillan's versatility as a hockey player. This season, Kampersal switched McMillan from the position she played her first two years at Penn State, defenseman, to the offensive side as a center.
For McMillan, switching positions this year was not very difficult.
"Fortunately, I did play forward my entire youth hockey career, so it's not completely foreign to me," McMillan said.
"She's a jack of all trades," Kampersal said. "She can play any of the five positions."
McMillan has primarily played center for the Nittany Lions this season, taking faceoffs and covering open spots on the ice, but there have been several times where she has drifted back to her old blue-line position. She's often seen quarterbacking Nittany Lions' power play unit.
"It is good to know she can jump back there on the point on the power play. She can center the next line if her power play doesn't get out there. So the fact that she is versatile makes her extremely valuable to us," Kampersal said.
"Going from defense to forward, it's kind of like a third defenseman in our defensive zone," McMillan said. "I kind of think like the defense. I get what they're doing. I can kind of read where they're going to go and what the next play's going to be, so I think that is beneficial."
Where McMillan has really been noticeable this season is offensively. She has already matched her career high of four goals in a single season which she set in her freshman season of 2016-17. It's taken her just eight games to match that total.
"She's had great offensive output," Kampersal said. "She's usually kind of our defensive role [player]. She's great on the forecheck. She can score goals too, but any goals we get from her are gravy because her role is a bit different, but she's stepped up and took advantage of chances that she's had."
She has also made positive plays on the ice for the Nittany Lions even when she isn't scoring, as indicated by her team-high +7 rating.
Her teammates enjoy the intangibles she brings to the squad.
"Her line barely ever plays in the defensive zone because she can get the puck out so well because she has that defensive background, but then she's great in the offensive zone too," sophomore forward Natalie Heising said.
Defensively, she's a smart player that understands where she needs to be on the ice. Much of knowing where she needs to position herself on the play comes from experience as McMillan has played in all 79 games since starting her hockey career at Penn State.
The smarts she displays on the ice in being able to play multiple positions certainly correlates to her success in the classroom as well. A finance major, McMillan truly embodies the meaning of being a student-athlete here at Penn State by not only succeeding on the ice, but off the ice.
She was named a College Hockey America (CHA) Student Athlete of the Year recipient in 2017-18. The award was given to 15 student athletes in the conference that earned a 4.0 GPA for that season.
In addition to her individual CHA academic honor, she has also been honored as a member of the Academic All-Big Ten team, a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar, AHCA All-American Scholar and a CHA All-Academic team member. All accomplishments that are as or more impressive than her time on the ice.
McMillan was also named to the All-CHA Rookie Team in 2016-17, which included a CHA Rookie of the Week award on Nov. 7, 2016.
Success, both academically and athletically, has been engrained in McMillan since a young age. At Minnetonka High school in Minnetonka, Minnesota, she earned the following honors: four-year "A" honor roll member, graduated Summa Cum Laude, and the 2015-16 Minnetonka High School Female Athlete of the Year.
Brains, talent and determination have already paid off for McMillan, and a position change doesn't seem to be giving her much hassle.
"She's the perfect center," Heising said.
McMillan and the rest of the Nittany Lions (4-3-1) will travel to Erie, Pa. this weekend to face Mercyhurst (3-5-0) in their first CHA series of the season. Penn State will return home the following weekend for its matchup against Syracuse, which will include their THON game on the second day of the contest, Sunday, November 4th at 2:00 p.m.
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