Ella Murphy Thrives with Team Canada

Ella Murphy ’24 has had a year she’ll never forget.

After a breakout season with the field hockey team last fall, Murphy packed her bags for Barbados in April — but this was no vacation in the Caribbean. 

Far from it, in fact. 

Murphy, a native of Kitchener, Ontario, spent 21 days on the island nation with Canada’s field hockey junior national team, which was competing in the 2023 Junior Pan American Championships. 

Canada went face-to-face with nations from North, Central, and South America for a chance to advance to the Junior World Cup, which will be played in December in Chile. 

For Murphy, playing in the Junior Pan American tournament was a reward for the years she spent training with Canada’s junior program, an experience that has taken her to different parts of the world for matches. She first joined the program at age 14 and played at different junior levels before reaching the U21 team. 

Murphy said she was thrilled to play in the Junior Pan American. 

“It took a lot of work for that to happen,” Murphy said. “The best feeling I’ve ever felt is standing on the field with my teammates and singing the national anthem. I don’t think anything will compare to that.”

The tournament in Barbados proved to be a major challenge for Murphy. She competed against some of the best field hockey players in the world. The speed of the game was different from what she had seen before. 

And as a defender for Canada, Murphy was often busy trying to foil an attack.

“It was definitely a much faster game, and all the players had an extremely high level of stick skills and one-on-one skills,” Murphy said.

Murphy had to adjust to playing a new position. At Colgate, she’s a midfielder. But Canada shifted her to defense. 

The field was another challenge. Games were played on a sand-based field, which meant the ball rolled faster. The field differed from the water-based turf Murphy is accustomed to at Colgate.

And then there was another important matter to consider: her schoolwork.

The tournament meant she had to miss more than two weeks of classes — with finals on the horizon. When Murphy wasn’t training, preparing for an opponent, or playing a match, she was in her hotel room, studying and doing homework. 

Her professors made accommodations for her situation. But to avoid falling behind, Murphy had to manage her time in new ways. 

“My professors were amazing,” she said. “I can’t thank them enough for how supportive and flexible they were with me. I was doing schoolwork at every possible moment between field hockey and training and sleep. I was doing Zoom calls with professors. I learned how to balance field hockey and school like never before.”

Though exhausting, her experience in Barbados was satisfying. She helped Canada advance to the Junior World Cup without compromising her grades. The tournament also taught Murphy new things about the sport that she wants to apply with the Raiders this fall.

“I took away a lot of things I need to work on, that I’d like to get better at, to get at the level of the players I faced at the Junior Pan American Championship,” she said. “It was eye-opening for me to see what can be achieved on the field. I learned a lot of cool tricks and skills.”

Murphy led the Raiders in scoring with 17 points last season and earned All-Patriot League Second Team honors for the first time in her career. She was named to the Patriot League Preseason All-League Team before the start of the current season. 

Now as captain of the team, Murphy is eager to help the Raiders succeed. She also wants to make the best of her senior year.

So far, Murphy has taken full advantage of the opportunities at Colgate. 

She’s used the training facilities on campus to elevate her conditioning, which is necessary to meet Canada’s high standards for fitness. She credits Bryan Klobuchar, Colgate’s director of strength and conditioning, with helping her reach her fitness goals. 

“He helped me so much. He ran me through fitness testing. He was really a huge addition to my training,” she said.

Murphy is a member of the Newman Community, the campus church group, which gathers every week for services.

As a history major, she has made war and violence her focus. She has a fascination for World War II, a topic she discovered as a child after reading every history book she got her hands on.

She’s completing a minor in English, and has taken advantage of Colgate’s liberal arts education by enrolling in courses in as many different topics as possible. The strategy has helped her narrow down her future goals. 

Murphy said she wants to play field hockey for a fifth year. But she’s also interested in graduate school or law school. 

Growing up as the oldest of five children, Murphy was homeschooled through elementary school. Colgate’s small class sizes have been an enormous benefit. 

“The academics have been incredible,” she said. “I love what I’m studying. I have amazing professors and advisors who are supportive. I love having small class sizes. That’s something that has been very helpful.”