Although most hype surrounding university ice hockey follows the season, a new spirit institution is making sure to assist UT’s team last spherical. Texas Ice Beauties was shaped in February 2019 to guide the Texas Ice Hockey membership group. Stephanie Lutz, a human development and family sciences sophomore, founded the organization because of her love for the game. While the East Coast — where Lutz grew up — has a huge hockey fan base, she said she wants to assist in developing and fostering an appreciation for the sport at UT. “People born in Texas and grew up in Texas didn’t even think about ever playing as it’s just not something that’s a big deal as it would be somewhere like the East Coast,” Lutz stated.
To accomplish this, Lutz said the Ice Beauties would do fund-raising, sell products, and serve in the network. She stated they desire to pair each group member with a participant to specially assist and cheer for at some stage in the season. Lutz stated that this preference to support the group and gamers came from attending video games and noticing small crowds. “We need to get to know them and be there for them if they want us to assist with something,” Lutz said. “(We want to) show them that they have a set of humans helping them and could be there for them.”
Matthew Bowers, assistant professor of practice in kinesiology and fitness education, said the Ice Beauties could increase emblem focus and sell engagement among the crew and community. “We don’t commonly consider Texas a hotbed for hockey, so having a business enterprise like this could offer greater regular attendance, engagement, and guide and probably be that crucial mass required to attract greater human beings,” Bowers stated. When more enthusiasts are drawn in, Bowers said the lovers could see that they can create motivating surroundings for the group and affect home games. “The idea is that the more raucous and wild the environment, the more that blessings us, the house team,” Bowers said.
Nicolas Samadian, psychology junior, and hockey crew vice president, stated that as they gain more exposure every year and attendance at video games can vary from 50 to 400 humans, they’re still looking to construct a larger fan base. “The larger the group, the better we play,” Samadian said. “We’re always going to pop out and play to the satisfaction of our potential, but if you have the group behind you, it does experience higher. It makes you want to work harder and impress the humans there.”
Lutz said she had recruited participants to bring buddies to games and posting in Facebook businesses and hopes to develop the corporation for the subsequent season. By the time the season starts offevolved inside the fall, they’ll officially recruit and require club fees. “Hopefully, they can get the word of Texas Hockey accessible a bit extra around campus,” Samadian said. “Not everyone on our crew can schedule time and whatnot, so it’s precise to have a club designated for you. I’m virtually thankful for that.”
