VIDEO: Marine Corps honors Braintree girls hockey senior Nikki McNamee
Nikki McNamee receives a “Distinguished Athlete Award” from Marine Sgt. Thomas Sweeney in a pregame ceremony.
RANDOLPH − Red, white and blue balloons were affixed above the entrance to the Braintree High girls hockey team’s locker room. Miniature American flags were waving in the stands. And flag knit hats and top hats were all the rage among the Wamps faithful.
Clearly it was a USA-themed night at Zapustas Arena on Wednesday.
With good reason.
Fans were there to watch some Bay State Conference action, but also to, well, salute senior center Nikki McNamee, who is headed to the U.S. Marine Corps after graduation. It’s a big commitment, obviously, and the Braintree community turned out to wish her well.
“There’s definitely some excitement around the event,” athletic director Chris Coblyn said before the Wamps took the ice. “(Her) parents really wanted to keep it low key and not have much fanfare, which speaks to how they operate as a family. But there’s definitely a buzz about the game.”
McNamee looked a little sheepish coming out of the locker room as the Wamps − her in particular − were greeted by a large banner affixed to the outside of the rink’s glass reading “We Are So Proud of You.”
“It was definitely nerve-racking,” McNamee said with a laugh after Braintree and Wellesley had skated to a 4-4 tie before a bigger-than-usual crowd. “I was happy, though. It was nice to see everyone (supporting me).”
Braintree coach Kevin Burchill said McNamee is the first future Marine he’s coached in more than two decades behind the Wamps’ bench. McNamee always seemed destined for some branch of the service, though.
“I have a (family) background of people joining the military,” she noted. “My grandfather was in the Marines. My dad was in the Air Force. My other grandfather was in the Coast Guard.”
“It’s a culture,” Kevin Burchill said, “and she’s bought into it.”
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McNamee originally thought about the Navy, but a Marine-bound brother of one of her teammates suggested she give the Marines a shot.
“So I went to talk to them and I realized (the Corps) wasn’t what I thought it was,” she said. “It has a lot of cool opportunities for me.”
“She started maybe a year ago to focus on the Marines and now doesn’t talk about anything else,” said her dad Brian, a Marshfield High grad.
Marine Sgt. Thomas Sweeney, a 2014 Rockland High grad, was McNamee’s…
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