Merrimack Women's Hockey Welcomes New Addition Through Team Impact

NORTH ANDOVER, MA – The Merrimack College women's hockey team's new signing won't turn up in any box scores, but she'll no doubt be an important part of the team.

Nealy Prakop, a 14-year-old from Derry, New Hampshire, was officially introduced by Warriors' head coach Erin Hamlen at a Sept. 27 signing press conference. Prakop joins the Merrimack squad through Team Impact, a national nonprofit that matches children facing serious illness or disability with college athletic teams.

"Merrimack women's hockey is proud to work with Team Impact in welcoming the newest member of our team, Neala," Hamlen said. "Our student-athletes and staff cannot wait to spend more time involving Neala and her family in all aspects of our program, and cheering her on in all of her pursuits."

According to Danielle Hardee, regional director of programs for the Northeast at Team Impact, Prokop officially was matched with the team in Sept. 2020, and now she is looking forward to team activities including games, practices and other gatherings this season.

"Team Impact is excited to see Neala join the Warriors," Hardee said. "We are proud to work alongside Merrimack College, their athletic department and coaching staff to create lifelong bonds and life-changing outcomes between student-athletes and their Team Impact teammates."

Merrimack and Team Impa ct have worked together for the past 11 years, and 29 Team Impact children have been matched with different Warriors programs including: baseball, men's and women's basketball, cheerleading, football, men's and women's hockey, men's and women's lacrosse, men's rugby, men's and women's soccer, softball, women's swimming, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.

According to Team Impact, since its founding in 2011, the program has matched more than 2,3000 children with more than 700 colleges and universities in 49 states, impacting more than 60,000 student-athletes.

The Merrimack women's hockey team dropped a pair of games last weekend against Boston College, losing 4-1 on Thursday in North Andover and 4-0 on Friday in Chestnut Hill.

The Warriors are 1-3 on the young season, their lone win coming in a 2-0 victory over Syracuse on Oct. 1. Scoring for Merrimack in that game were senior forward Katie Kaufman and forward Celine Tedenby, who is a graduate student.