UNIVERSITY PARK — Tessa Janecke, a standout forward for Penn State Nittany Lions women’s ice hockey, has been named to the U.S. Olympic Women’s Ice Hockey Team, becoming the first player in Penn State women’s hockey history to reach that stage. For a program that has grown rapidly over the past decade and for a community that has embraced it, the moment feels both historic and deeply personal.
“I think I was just kind of relieved finally knowing who was going to get to go and what our team was going to look like,” Janecke said during a recent media availability. “But yeah, I was pretty excited.”
That call to the Olympics was more than a reason to celebrate. It was a checkpoint in a journey that began long before Pegula Ice Arena, long before national television audiences and long before Olympic expectations. Janecke grew up watching college hockey players skating on international stages, imagining herself in those sweaters and hearing those anthems. At the time, it was a dream. Now, it’s a boarding pass.
What makes the milestone resonate so strongly in Centre County is not just the Olympic logo stitched onto her sweater, but what it represents for Penn State and the region. Women’s hockey at Penn State is still young by college standards, still building its tradition year by year. Janecke’s selection signals that the program has arrived on the world stage.
“It’s always an honor to get to throw on your flag,” she said. “Just being able to take in that moment and appreciating kind of what’s led you to that moment.”
That path runs straight through Happy Valley. Janecke spoke repeatedly about gratitude for teammates past and present, for coaches and for the environment that helped shape her into an Olympian. While the Olympic stage will be louder, brighter and far more crowded, she said the approach won’t change.
“There can’t be a moment that’s too big or one that we’re not prepared for,” she said. “I think honestly it’s just going to be us trying to channel out just excess noise.”
For Penn State fans accustomed to sold-out crowds and white-out energy, there’s a familiar pride in seeing one of their own represent something even larger than a university.
Janecke understands that connection. She knows what it means to play in front of a loyal fan base and she carries that with her as she prepares to represent an entire country.
Beyond the ice, her Olympic selection also underscores how much the women’s game has evolved. Janecke spoke about sharing the locker room with veterans from the Professional Women’s Hockey League and what it means to see a future that once didn’t exist.
“To get to play alongside them, it’s pretty cool,” she said. “But it’s also just cool knowing that you have a future after college and knowing that at one point, that wasn’t possible.”
She described a sense of responsibility. Janeke discussed learning from those who helped build the professional game and understanding that her generation will be tasked with pushing it further, making it more equal, more visible and more sustainable.
The Olympics will take her away from Penn State for about a month, including training, travel, competition and closing ceremonies. She’ll miss games. She’ll miss her teammates. But she has no doubt they’ll respond.
“I have confidence in our team that they’re going to be just fine without me,” she said. “Honestly, I think they’ll play even harder knowing that I’m gone.”
For young players watching from local rinks and living room couches, Janecke’s message was simple and sincere. Dreams, she said, are allowed to be big.
“This was always my dream from when I was little. Going to college games and seeing those college players on these national teams, who I’m now playing with” she said. “No dream is ever too big. If you set your mind to something and work hard for it, you will be noticed no matter where you’re from.”
She encouraged young athletes not to measure themselves against others, not to get lost in comparison and never be afraid to ask for advice along the way.
As she prepares to step onto the Olympic ice, Janecke carries more than her own ambition. She carries Penn State pride and a community that watched her become something it had never seen before: an ice hockey Olympian in blue and white.
