Kacey Bellamy skates for Team USA during the 2014 Winter Olympics. (Photo courtesy of Bobby Bellamy)
BOSTON – Two-time Olympic silver medalist and Westfield native Kacey Bellamy scored another one for local fans with her latest shining moment.
Bellamy signed with the National Women’s Hockey League’s Boston Pride, the team’s general manager Hayley Moore announced Tuesday.
Moore was quoted as having called Bellamy “one of the best defensemen in the game … tough, dynamic (with) great vision,” according to a NWHL report. “We are confident she’ll add great leadership to our strong Boston unit.”
Bellamy’s signing comes on the heels of her second straight Olympic appearance for the United States women’s ice hockey team last winter.
The Whip City product rose up through the Westfield Youth Hockey League organization, advancing to Berkshire School (Sheffield) and the University of New Hampshire, before starring on Team USA and the Boston Blades, of the Candian Women’s Hockey League.
Bellamy returned to Westfield this past summer to play for the Ice Cats in the Kevin J. Memorial Hockey tournament.
Now, she is primed for the next stop in her sporting life.
“It is an absolute privilege to be signing with the Boston Pride,” Bellamy told The Westfield News Wednesday. “The NWHL is making history by the day and has been so supportive through the signing process. To be able to play with my best friends in my favorite city, I couldn’t ask for anything better.”
While Bellamy figures to be a key cog in the defense of the Boston Pride, she still has her eyes set on making the Olympics in 2018.
“In order for that to happen,” Bellamy said. “I have to set many small goals so I can reach that point. I know I am not getting any younger which means I need to work harder and do extra. But it makes it all worth it thinking about each and every one of my teammates.”
