Sports athlete of the week

MOLLY E. MCSHANE ’13 McShane is ‘a little ’stitious’

Field Hockey captain talks about how she balances her sports, work, and fun

Meet Molly E. McShane ’13. Molly started playing field hockey nine years ago as preparation for her high school’s highly competitive team. Having played many different sports growing up, field hockey must have come naturally to her because now, nine years later, she is the captain of the MIT Women’s Field Hockey team — currently tied for first in the NEWMAC conference and 13-3 overall this season.

Molly’s impressive accomplishments with the team include All-American accolades her freshman and sophomore years, as well as academic All-American recognition her sophomore year. She was named the New England East Regional Division III player of the year her freshman year, and was first-team NEWMAC all-conference her freshman and sophomore years.

Her favorite moment with the team so far has been winning the NEWMAC championship her freshman year. MIT went into the tournament as major underdogs, and Molly remembers celebrating with her fellow teammates and the MIT Women’s Soccer team, which had also won the NEWMAC championship on the same day.

Molly doesn’t consider herself superstitious, but to quote The Office character Michael Scott, she is “a little ’stitious.” That said, before every game, Molly can be found eating a peanut butter sandwich. Needless to say, it seems to be working for her.

Molly is a proud member of Alpha Phi sorority, where she served as IM chair last semester. She also participates in just about all of Alpha Phi’s IM games.

When she isn’t on the field or busy working towards a degree in Course 2A (with an emphasis on product design), Molly likes going out to the movies with friends or staying in and cooking dinner with her Alpha Phi sisters. Her favorite food (not before games, of course) is mac and cheese, and she loves watching 30 Rock and Arrested Development. Molly is also involved with the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, which organizes community service events, promotes health and wellness, and encourages participation in athletic events.

Be sure to support Molly and the women’s field hockey team as they round out the regular season with a game against Babson College before beginning NEWMAC conference championships.