She followed her sisters onto the ice. Now, after playing for Team USA, she hopes to go pro.

Sloane Hartmetz, who's committed to the University of Minnesota for hockey, says having her older sisters to push her on the ice helped make her the player she is now.

Phoenixville's Sloane Hartmetz skates for Team USA.Read moreMelissa Katz / USA Hockey

by Mia Messina

Published June 16, 2025, 5:00 a.m. ET

Growing up, Sloane Hartmetz always wanted to do what her older sisters, Hadley and Quinn Hartmetz, were doing.

That’s how Sloane found herself skating by the age of 2 and playing hockey by 5 years old.

Over a decade later, she was representing USA Hockey.

Sloane’s parents grew up skating and wanted their daughters to do the same, but when Hadley was taking lessons in Reading and saw players for the Reading Royals practicing, she wanted to start playing hockey. When Sloane saw how much her sisters were enjoying it, she followed suit.

“I tried everything to get her to play a different sport, but she just loved it, so there was no way to get around it,” said Justine Hartmetz, Sloane’s mother. “She just took to it and loved it and has grown so much from the game, learning responsibility, learning how to manage time, learning respect.”

Sloane grew up in Phoenixville and played boys’ hockey locally for the Valley Forge Minutemen and the Junior Flyers. While she said playing with boys helped shape her physicality, speed, and playmaking, she already was used to the competition, thanks to her sisters.

Hadley Hartmetz is seven years older than Sloane, while Quinn Hartmetz is five years older. As the youngest of the trio by a large margin, Sloane was always trying to keep up.

“That’s the big thing. They push each other to achieve what they want and how to go for it,” Justine said.

Sloane added: “I think that was definitely helpful. And then always watching them, their games, I think it helped build my hockey sense, knowing what to do on the ice, and learning skills from them and new things to try.”

Hartmetz was named Rookie of the Year for the Phoenixville High School varsity team, before transferring to Shattuck-St. Mary’s in Minnesota her sophomore year.

“[Hadley] went to Shattuck, and she loved it,” Sloane said. “I did visit a few other schools and talked about playing another year of boys’, but I saw how much she loved it and how much she got better, and the friendships she made and still has from there, so I thought that’s like where I wanted to be, especially with the coaching staff there, just successful.”

Sloane was part of Shattuck’s national championship team in 2024. A few months later she was invited to USA Hockey’s under-18 camp and represented Team USA at the under-18 series vs. Canada that summer.

“I was just training all hockey the whole summer. You don’t get much time to spend with friends or socialize, but I saw it was worth it,” Sloane said. “I just trained with a couple guys. I trained at a place called Elite Edge, and they’re so helpful. The workout trainer pushes you in the gym. They push you on the ice every day.”

Sloane also represented the country at the 2025 IIHF Under-18 Women’s World Championship in January in Finland. Sloane and Team USA brought back a silver medal from the tournament after losing to Canada, 3-0, in the gold-medal match. The blueliner recorded two goals in the six games she played in the tournament.

“It was definitely nerve-wracking the first couple games, just getting used to the level of playing,” Sloane said. “It’s a new team, so new girls, meeting all of them, and then just taking it in and representing my country. A lot of girls have this dream, so definitely didn’t take advantage of it.”

With one year left at Shattuck, Sloane is committed to play at University of Minnesota in the fall of 2026. She said her time at Shattuck has helped prepare her for finding the balance between hockey and school.

While she followed in her oldest sister’s footsteps by playing hockey and going to Shattuck, she had little desire to follow her collegiate path. Hadley started at Boston College before transferring to Ohio State, where she won national championships in 2022 and 2024. Sloane said she never had any interest in Boston College and only had a little interest in Ohio State before committing to the Gophers.

“Visiting Minnesota and talking with the coaches, I knew that’s where I wanted to go,” Sloane said. “I just loved it.”

Justine said that all of her daughters, especially Sloane, led the decision-making throughout their careers, making the call on teams, boarding schools, and colleges. Justine said she and her husband, Joe, just “take them where they need to go.”

“It was hard, sacrificing what we did, missing family things, but she was so driven that she didn’t want to miss hockey, so we were there to support her,” Justine said. “We’re fortunate enough that they had the drive to achieve everything that they’ve achieved so far, and especially Sloane with what she’s achieving.”

With the introduction and expansion of the Professional Women’s Hockey League, Sloane hopes her journey with hockey won’t end with college. Hadley currently plays in the PWHL for the Boston Fleet.

“I think it’s cool that girls can now have a more realistic dream for playing hockey professionally,” Sloane said. “I’ll hopefully get drafted and play in the [PWHL] one day.”