Saint Thomas Aquinas Star Ella Przybylski excels in hockey, softball

Ella Przybylski helped lead Saint Thomas Aquinas to a state softball championship this past season and now she’s officially First Team All-State. But her athletic journey doesn’t stop there. She also dominates on the ice as a hockey player, showcasing her talent in two competitive sports. “I kind of grew up watching my dad and my brother play, so obviously I just wanted to get on the ice and get going,” she said. With only one all-girls hockey team in the area at the time, Ella joined her older brother on the all-boys KC Stars team. It wasn’t easy at first.“She fell more than she stayed up, and we thought she wasn’t going to like it,” said her father, Mike Przybylski. “But she fell in love with it.”As Ella got older, the boys she played against became bigger and more physical.“I played one game on varsity my freshman year. I had three shifts, and like, one of my shifts I got absolutely laid out. I was like, oh boy, this is going to be a long four years,” she said. “But after that, I got right back up.”Now, Ella is preparing to attend the University of Arkansas, where she will play on the women’s hockey team. She’s proud to be a role model for younger girls in the sport.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. —

Ella Przybylski helped lead Saint Thomas Aquinas to a state softball championship this past season and now she’s officially First Team All-State.

But her athletic journey doesn’t stop there.

She also dominates on the ice as a hockey player, showcasing her talent in two competitive sports.

“I kind of grew up watching my dad and my brother play, so obviously I just wanted to get on the ice and get going,” she said.

With only one all-girls hockey team in the area at the time, Ella joined her older brother on the all-boys KC Stars team.

It wasn’t easy at first.

“She fell more than she stayed up, and we thought she wasn’t going to like it,” said her father, Mike Przybylski. “But she fell in love with it.”

As Ella got older, the boys she played against became bigger and more physical.

“I played one game on varsity my freshman year. I had three shifts, and like, one of my shifts I got absolutely laid out. I was like, oh boy, this is going to be a long four years,” she said. “But after that, I got right back up.”

Now, Ella is preparing to attend the University of Arkansas, where she will play on the women’s hockey team.

She’s proud to be a role model for younger girls in the sport.