Kathleen Newcombe doesn’t back away from a challenge.
Despite being sidelined partway through the high school rugby season, the Port Williams teenager wants to play both rugby and hockey at Acadia next year.
The fortunes of the Horton team took a turn for the worse when its captain and team leader suffered a knee injury.
“I think I tore my meniscus and sprained my MCL and ACL,” the 18-year-old said in an interview last week. “I’ll know better once I have an MRI, but, depending on how bad it is, I may need a scope or even surgery.”
Newcombe was carrying the ball during a match against King’s-Edgehill when se was hurt.
“An opponent was coming at me, and, in trying to sidestep, I hurt my knee,” she said.
Newcombe, who also was part of the Horton girls’ hockey team during her high school career, plans to study kinesiology at Acadia, specifically athletic therapy or physiotherapy.
“I like working with people, and I’m interested in working with sports injuries,” she said. When she visits her physiotherapist, “we have some great conversations.”
Multi-sport athlete
In addition to hockey and rugby, Newcombe has also played soccer at Horton and was part of the wrestling team.
“I guess I kind of like the rough stuff,” she said.
While she has been playing rugby four years, Newcombe has been playing hockey since she was five years old.
“I feel like I’ve played hockey most of my life,” she said. Most recently, she played one season with the Valley Wild girls’ team and then played midget B with the boys.
“I like being athletic. It’s a lot of fun, and I really enjoy bonding with my teammates.”
Of the two sports, hockey is her favourite, but rugby is a close second.
Newcombe is attracted to rugby for a lot of the same reasons as hockey, she said.
“What’s made it so much fun is having so many of my friends on the team,” she said.
Horton rugby coach Dave Galloway is also a factor, she said.
“He’s definitely one of my favorite coaches. He makes rugby fun, and helps everyone enjoy it,” she said.
“He always has a positive outlook. A lot of times in girls’ sport, you need that kind of support.”
Newcombe is now looking forward towards September, where she will become the third member of her family to attend university. Her oldest brother, Robert, graduated from Dalhousie and is an industrial engineer in Halifax; her brother, David, just graduated from Saint Mary’s with a business degree.
Acadia was the only school where she applied.
“I like the Valley and being close to home, though I’ll be living in residence,” she said.
Getting off the sidelines
As for playing sports at Acadia, her injury may have derailed her goals a bit, but Newcombe “would like to try out for both the rugby and hockey teams.”
Acadia’s rugby coach Matt Durant has been speaking with Galloway, she said, but Newcombe hasn’t spoken to the Acadia coach yet.
“He knows I’m interested in playing.”
Her career at Horton, however, may be over. Newcombe is disappointed that it appears “right now, I’m done for the year” in terms of playing rugby.
“After that depends on what the MRI shows,” she said.
Despite the setback, Newcombe is hopeful she will be able to achieve her goal of playing both women’s varsity rugby and club hockey at Acadia.
Kathleen Newcombe doesn’t back away from a challenge.
Despite being sidelined partway through the high school rugby season, the Port Williams teenager wants to play both rugby and hockey at Acadia next year.
The fortunes of the Horton team took a turn for the worse when its captain and team leader suffered a knee injury.
“I think I tore my meniscus and sprained my MCL and ACL,” the 18-year-old said in an interview last week. “I’ll know better once I have an MRI, but, depending on how bad it is, I may need a scope or even surgery.”
Newcombe was carrying the ball during a match against King’s-Edgehill when se was hurt.
“An opponent was coming at me, and, in trying to sidestep, I hurt my knee,” she said.
Newcombe, who also was part of the Horton girls’ hockey team during her high school career, plans to study kinesiology at Acadia, specifically athletic therapy or physiotherapy.
“I like working with people, and I’m interested in working with sports injuries,” she said. When she visits her physiotherapist, “we have some great conversations.”
Multi-sport athlete
In addition to hockey and rugby, Newcombe has also played soccer at Horton and was part of the wrestling team.
“I guess I kind of like the rough stuff,” she said.
While she has been playing rugby four years, Newcombe has been playing hockey since she was five years old.
“I feel like I’ve played hockey most of my life,” she said. Most recently, she played one season with the Valley Wild girls’ team and then played midget B with the boys.
“I like being athletic. It’s a lot of fun, and I really enjoy bonding with my teammates.”
Of the two sports, hockey is her favourite, but rugby is a close second.
Newcombe is attracted to rugby for a lot of the same reasons as hockey, she said.
“What’s made it so much fun is having so many of my friends on the team,” she said.
Horton rugby coach Dave Galloway is also a factor, she said.
“He’s definitely one of my favorite coaches. He makes rugby fun, and helps everyone enjoy it,” she said.
“He always has a positive outlook. A lot of times in girls’ sport, you need that kind of support.”
Newcombe is now looking forward towards September, where she will become the third member of her family to attend university. Her oldest brother, Robert, graduated from Dalhousie and is an industrial engineer in Halifax; her brother, David, just graduated from Saint Mary’s with a business degree.
Acadia was the only school where she applied.
“I like the Valley and being close to home, though I’ll be living in residence,” she said.
Getting off the sidelines
As for playing sports at Acadia, her injury may have derailed her goals a bit, but Newcombe “would like to try out for both the rugby and hockey teams.”
Acadia’s rugby coach Matt Durant has been speaking with Galloway, she said, but Newcombe hasn’t spoken to the Acadia coach yet.
“He knows I’m interested in playing.”
Her career at Horton, however, may be over. Newcombe is disappointed that it appears “right now, I’m done for the year” in terms of playing rugby.
“After that depends on what the MRI shows,” she said.
Despite the setback, Newcombe is hopeful she will be able to achieve her goal of playing both women’s varsity rugby and club hockey at Acadia.
