Reese Sheehan started skating at two years old. At four she started logrolling because her older brother Devin was doing it, and in her words, “I wanted to do it as well to beat him.” At six she was a logrolling World Champion. For the girl that memorized the 186 digits of pi to set the seventh-grade school record, nothing has seemed out of her reach.

As the senior from Hayward season began to unfold, she was entertaining offers to play DIII collegiate hockey from Augsburg University, UW-Eau Claire, St. Norbert, and Adrian College in Michigan. It had always been her dream to play college hockey, but through her college search she began to wonder if it was going to be feasible. You see, her other dream is to become a doctor.

“For most of my life, I was pretty dead set on playing college hockey,” she said. “However, over the past year, I started considering not pursuing college hockey to focus my time on academics.” The influence of many years of volunteering and working in the healthcare field ultimately led her to her decision. “I wouldn't say there was one particular ah-ha moment,” noted Sheehan, “but an accumulation of experiences I have collected from my many years surrounded by this field.”

Then came a Christmas present unlike any other. The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire notified Sheehan that she was one of only ten students selected to be a part of the Blugold Biomedical Innovator Program, a scholarship program created through the partnership between Mayo Clinic Health System and the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Students in the program will be conducting biomedical research in collaboration with faculty and Mayo Clinic Health System professionals, as well as have opportunities to shadow physicians, attend medical conferences, and network with many different healthcare professionals.

An enthusiastic and grateful Sheehan described, “It will ultimately prepare me to attend medical school and pursue a career as a physician—my dream!” However, the scope and magnitude of the scholarship opportunity convinced her to forfeit her DIII hockey dream.

Reese’s parents Chad and Heather Sheehan allowed their daughter the time and space to make her decision. “As a parent, one of the greatest joys is watching your child discover who they are as a person and what they are passionate about,” said Heather. “For Reese, it's always been academics and hockey.  More recently, this passion for academics has grown into an aspiration to study medicine and become a physician - a desire to heal, to help, and to make a difference in the lives of others.”

Searching for and selecting a college can be a stressful and time-consuming endeavor for families. It is one of many important decisions that we face early in adulthood. For athletes who wish to continue playing their respective sport, the process becomes much more challenging. Hockey, unlike basketball or softball, isn’t offered by virtually every college, limiting the choices available.

“Her decision to prioritize her academics over athletics was not an easy one,” conceded Heather. “She had to weigh the thrill of competition, the camaraderie of teammates, and the excitement of playing hockey at the next level against her ultimate dream of becoming a doctor.  And in true Reese fashion, she made that decision with clarity, thoughtfulness, and an unwavering commitment to what she believes is her purpose.”

“As a parent, this decision is bittersweet,” declared Mom who works as administrator for Tamarack Health Hayward Medical Center. “Of course, there is a part of us that will miss watching her on the ice play the sport she absolutely loves with so much joy.  But far greater is the pride we feel knowing that she is following her heart and setting her sights on a future where she will undoubtedly excel and make an impact.”

For athletes choosing a college today feels more like a race against the clock. As coaches and players do the recruiting dance, depth charts can change with each phone call or email. As Sheehan waited to hear about potential scholarship programs, the decision to play hockey or not also weighed heavily on her mind.

“I cannot even put into words the sense of relief,” Sheehan admitted. “The decision not to play college hockey was one of the most challenging choices I have ever made, especially as this sport has been such a substantial part of my life for so long, but I can't wait to begin a new chapter of my life!”

With her decision made, the Hayward native can turn her focus to finishing her high school career with a 4.0 GPA and hopefully leading her Hurricane teammates to the state hockey tournament in March. The two-time First Team All-State selection currently leads her team in scoring with 23 points on 14 goals and 9 assists. The Hurricanes have amassed a 62-29-1 record during Sheehan’s four years. At only five foot-three you will not find a harder working player on the ice than Sheehan. Her tenacity and work ethic are unmatched. It is evident that the lightning quick feet she developed on the log have translated beautifully to the ice.

The 4th ranked Hurricanes are 7-5-1 on the season, but must fight their way through the state’s toughest sectional. Sheehan’s freshmen and sophomore seasons ended with Sectional Finals losses to the Storm and Superior. Last year they fell short losing to Superior in the Sectional Semi-finals. Come February, she and her teammates will get one more chance.

“I would love nothing more than to finish my high school career by holding a State Championship trophy,” she acknowledged.

Hurricane Head Coach Emily Stark has high praise for her senior captain, “Reese is a kind, hard-working, respectful individual. She's the first one on the ice and the last one off.” Sheehan is just the second two-year captain in the program’s history. For her career Sheehan unofficially stands in 10th place on the state’s All-Time Scoring list with 203 points (104 goals – 99 assists).

Utilizing her quickness and high hockey IQ, makes finding time and space on the ice one of Sheehan’s special abilities. A look at her schedule away from the rink would indicate she has the same time management powers on land. Sheehan plays volleyball in the fall and participates in CrossFit and runs long distance in the spring. She ran her first half-marathon last spring and will be running a full- marathon this summer.

According to Stark, Reese is always looking for opportunities to help, and is a bit of a living legend to the younger Hurricane players. “Any volunteer time or chance to help the youth level she is the first one to sign up. We recently had an 8U girl’s scrimmage and she refereed the games for these girls who idolize her.”

After her logrolling World Championship as a six-year-old, Sheehan would go on to capture two second place and two third place finishes. She stopped competing her freshman year but continued to serve as a logrolling coach for two more years. She recently added boom running, which she describes as “running as fast as possible across a bunch of tied together logs on the water.” Whether the water is frozen or filled with logs, Sheehan can’t resist racing across it. In 2022 she won the U17 Division competition held at the Namekagon River Rollers competition in Hayward. 

“She's always looking for opportunities to get better,” said Stark.

Last April Sheehan helped the Wisconsin Selects, 19U, Tier II team win a National Championship in East Lansing, Michigan. After dropping their first game of the tournament, the Selects ran the table with five straight wins defeating the East Coast Wizards 3-0 in the championship game. They finished the season 24-5-1.

“Winning a National Championship was a surreal experience,” she exclaimed. “The opportunity to play against some of the best teams in the country and come out on top was a very special moment for me, and I could not have asked for a better team to do it with.”

As one of the state’s top players, Sheehan chose the Wisconsin Selects. She attributed her decision to the “team atmosphere” and that “everyone shows up to play hockey because they truly love the game and the teammates they get to play with.” In addition to Sheehan, there are six Hayward teammates on this years Selects team.

Selects Head Coach Emily Bauer heaped praise on the Hayward senior describing her as “ambitious, determined, humble, and easy to get along with. She is a key part of our team and a great leader.” Despite missing seven games, Sheehan is fourth in scoring this season with 14 points in sixteen games. Bauer continued, “She’s more likely to take the blame than take the credit, and we all applaud her humility. She is such a genuine person, and it has been a pleasure coaching her.”

“My coaches, both for Hayward and Selects, have played a measurable part in not only my hockey career but also in cultivating me to be the person I am today,” Sheehan said.

The lofty and often unrealistic expectations that are inconspicuously attached to young athletes can be a burden many players don’t know how to navigate. The resources we commit to building them into next-level athletes are significant and so is the pressure that comes with those commitments. Finding a highly regarded and sought after athlete that chooses to dedicate herself to the academic path is somewhat rare.   

The youngster who was logrolling before most kids learned how to skip, grew up chasing two dreams. From her sibling rivalry with her older brother, to her mothers connection to the medical industry to her father’s blue-collar example as a painter and drywaller, Reese stayed on a path toward those two dreams.

“I owe all of my success to my parents, as they have been the greatest source of support and encouragement throughout my whole life,” Sheehan conceded. Her journey is one of traditional small-town values and parents who guided her instead of bulldozing the path for her.  “Hayward is such a special and beautiful place to call home,” she said. “I love the small and close-knit community and all of the chances to spend time outdoors.”

In the movie Field of Dreams, there is a scene where baseball rookie Moonlight Graham must decide between saving a young girl’s life and committing to a lifetime of being a doctor or pursuing his baseball career. That is fiction, but it reminds me of the difficult choice Reese had to make. Giving up something you truly love is never easy. However, there is a silver lining for the Hayward native-daughter.

“I plan to play club or intramural hockey,” she admitted. “l will continue playing in some capacity. I love the game no matter what level it is being played at.”

Maybe down the road, life will imitate the movie. “My end goal is to obtain my Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Master of Business Administration (MBA) degrees, so I can be a practicing rural medicine physician while working on the business side of medicine as well.”

Having had the opportunity to work first-hand with Reese as a coach for the Selects, I can assure you this story and the young lady starring in it are not a dream. Reese Sheehan epitomizes the American dream, growing up in a small town with a big dream. To her obstacles were simply challenges that needed to be conquered. She didn’t make excuses for anything, instead choosing to fully utilize what this small northern Wisconsin town had to offer.

Hayward may not have a “field of dreams” but when it comes to hockey, they may just have the equivalent rink of dreams and perfect place for a future Doctor Sheehan.

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