Wake Forest Athletics
Deacon Sports Xtra: Wake Forest Experience Laid Foundation for Murphy’s Success All Across the World
8/8/2022 8:00:00 AM | Field Hockey, Les Johns
“I still look back on the entire experience fondly. It was such an amazing community. I’m just so thankful to play the sport I love, be coached by Jen and be surrounded by such amazing people. And I got my degree at the same time. You’re humbled when you’re experiencing it.”
When in the sixth grade, Molly Murphy made a trip to Winston-Salem to see the Wake Forest field hockey team win its third national championship in a row. She knew right then she wanted to eventually become a Demon Deacon.
"This is awesome," Murphy thought at the time. "I'd never seen hockey other than the grade-school level. I'm going to go here one day."
Just six years later, Murphy played in 20 games for the Deacs, earning Second Team All-South Region honors in the freshman season of her historic career at Wake Forest.
At Villa Maria Academy in Phoenixville, Pa, Murphy helped lead her team to the state semifinals as both a junior and senior; and earned a spot on the U.S. U-19 team. Along the way, she started being recruited by Wake Forest head coach Jennifer Averill.
"I felt so honored and flattered," Murphy said. "It was my goal and I put in the work. Jen has been there forever. It was great to meet her when I was younger. I just fell in love with Wake Forest field hockey at a young age and stayed in love with it.
"When the recruitment envelope showed up I was just so excited. I looked at other places to just compare. After visiting other great places and taking some time to think, my gut was telling me Wake Forest. It was surreal."
Her time at Wake Forest, which included one overlap season with her younger sister Meghan, far surpassed her own lofty expectations.
"I loved it," Murphy said. "It was as amazing as I thought or even better. I was part of an incredible family atmosphere and got the experience as a student-athlete. It was everything I could have ever wanted or more.
"I still look back on the entire experience fondly. It was such an amazing community. I'm just so thankful to play the sport I love, be coached by Jen and be surrounded by such amazing people. And I got my degree at the same time. You're humbled when you're experiencing it."
Without an active club hockey system in the United States, Murphy moved to Australia, where she began playing in their premier league.
"I knew I didn't want to just stop playing," Murphy said. "I had been involved in the U.S. development system from a very young age. I'd hoped to make the senior team and was one of the last players cut. We don't have a club system in the states, so I went abroad to get better.
"That was a fun experience and by chance met the guy I'm now married to. Then I came home, tried out (for the U.S. development system) and experienced heartbreak again. I started to think about life after hockey and had a break for a couple of years."
She then went after her masters, studying in Amsterdam.
"The Dutch love hockey," Murphy said. "It is so cool. I loved it there. It's probably my favorite place. The Dutch are so good at hockey."
And she was able to continue her field hockey career in Amsterdam.
"That was probably the highest level I've ever played, even though it was on the second team," Murphy said. "I'm so excited I've been able to keep playing, especially after missing it for a couple of years. It was great to have highly-skilled players around to push you."
She now lives in Glasgow where she is a human factors engineer, working with medical devices doing usability testing and research. She also has a small jewelry business and has found a hockey league in which to compete — the top league in Scotland.
Murphy moved to Glasgow toward the end of 2021, wanting to play field hockey alongside her sister-in-law.
"I'm playing with my sister-in-law," Murphy said. "She's also a hockey star. She's going to the Commonwealth Games and is an incredible hockey player."
"I was only playing for the second half of the season," Murphy explained. "I was really grateful to get a chance to train and play. I'm proud of the girls. There were girls on the team for years working toward this. I feel like I got so lucky with the group of girls who have worked to be part of this team and winning culture."
Her team won what is called the Double in that league, claiming both the regular season and tournament championships.
"It's the Scottish Cup," Murphy said. "Winning the league is winning the most games in the season. They call it a Double if you do both. It was the first time that club has ever won that."
The season runs from September through May, and Murphy is excited for the new season to begin.
"The foundation that was built at Wake Forest in hockey and team culture, I've been happy to carry on with me all over the world," Murphy said.
