"I didn't prove anyone wrong. I proved myself wrong."

Alaina Giampietro joined Robert Morris University in 2023 as part of a newly reinstated program, but her journey in the game started much earlier at her grandfather's local rink in Ohio. Now, as the captain of the Colonials, she is balancing the weight of Division I hockey with the responsibility of building a team culture from the ground up.

On Episode 119 of Rinkside Rundown, Alaina shares:

• The Ohio Origins: How early mornings skating with her grandfather laid the foundation for her career.
• The Rebuild Reality: What it actually takes to establish a culture and a legacy in a program’s first years back on the ice.
• The "Prove Myself Right" Mindset: How shifting from external validation to internal growth changed her development as a player and leader.
• The Impact Beyond the Scoreboard: Why leaving the program better than she found it is her ultimate goal at RMU.

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Episode 118 of Rinkside Rundown continues the “Road to the PWHL Draft” series with Union College defender and captain Stephanie Bourque.

A native of Moncton, New Brunswick, Bourque has built a standout NCAA career defined by consistency, durability, and production. She became Union’s all-time leader in points and assists among defenders and set an ironwoman streak, appearing in over 140 consecutive games. This season, she was also among the most utilized players in NCAA women’s hockey, averaging more than 28 minutes per game.

In this episode, Bourque reflects on her journey through junior hockey and the NCAA, her development as a leader, and how she’s preparing for the next step as she looks toward the 2026 PWHL Draft.

“Trust the process and be patient.”

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Tory Mariano grew up in a household where sport was everything. Her dad took her to events across every discipline imaginable, and where she started in tee-ball, competed in multiple sports, and carries all of that athletic foundation into the way she reads the game today.

And it was her grandfather, a professional tennis player and someone she never got to meet, who has been a role model and North Star through it all. "I want to be as good as him," she said.

That drive led her to Northeastern, where she found the right coaching staff and the right environment to help push her to become the player she always knew she was. "Everything just kind of clicked. This is where I need to be."

In Episode 117 of Rinkside Rundown, Tory shares that journey from where it all started to being on the cusp of the 2026 PWHL Draft. She talks about her first championship team in 8th grade, how competing across multiple sports shaped her hockey IQ, what drew her to Northeastern, what her year of focused preparation actually looked like, and what she wants a PWHL team to know about her before draft day.

"Everything that I've done, I feel like it's starting to pay off. I'm proud of myself, and it's been hard, but I'm glad to see where I am now."

This is the first episode in my "Road to the 2026 PWHL Draft" series, so be sure to subscribe to Rinkside Rundown for more conversations with players and leaders shaping the future of hockey. Discover more at www.rinksiderundown.ca
Follow the podcast on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/rinksiderundownpod