Essi Toivanen '22 Recruiting Profile

Being born and raised in Hyvinkaa, Finland, a country full of hockey and other winter sports really inspired me to start playing sports. I played ringette for 8 years and have always played many other sports on the side too. While playing ringette I noticed it was something that I really enjoyed doing and it opened up lots of new opportunities for me.  When we moved to London, England in 2014, ringette was not an option. I did not want to give up my skating skills and a sport that I really enjoyed playing, so I wanted to give hockey a shot.  While playing hockey I also did other sports like soccer and gymnastics. Hockey then became my new passion and I played for two years in London until we moved again.

Currently now living in Seattle, Washington I am still playing hockey for a girls AA team and enjoying every second of it. Hockey is something that I love and I want to improve my skill level at, as much as possible. This sport has become a big part of my life and it is the only sport that i am fully focused on at the moment and planning to be for years ahead.

I want to get into a good college which will help me to get into a job that motivates me and where I can do things that I am passionate about.  When I think of a good college I think of a good reputation amongst students and companies hiring new people, and a place that pushes me forward to do well. I want to get a chance to explore around and really dig deep to find something that I love to do. As this being my last year in middle school, I have many ideas about a job that would motivate me to do well, but I am not sure yet what these ideas will lead to. I am sure that I will have a more clear idea about what I want to do during high school when I have put more thought into this and when I have better explored my options.