Girls Hockey: Kenilworth hockey standout Bernstein burns the midnight oil

• Reprints

Lake Forest Academy's Natalie Bernstein (right) tries to push Lake Forest High's Chandler Scoco away from the puck. | Michael Schmidt~Sun-Times Media

Article Extras

Updated: March 3, 2012 8:35AM

Natalie Bernstein always was jealous of the boys who got to play hockey.

After she finished figure skating practice at the Winnetka Ice Arena, the younger Bernstein would stay to watch whatever hockey game followed.

“I liked it a lot better,” said the Kenilworth native, the first in her immediate family to play the sport. “It took a few years of convincing, but I finally persuaded my mom to let me play.”

Good choice.

Now a senior at Lake Forest Academy, Bernstein next year will attend prestigious Williams College and play hockey.

“I think it’s been worth it,” said the 18-year-old Bernstein, who attended New Trier as a freshman before transferring to Lake Forest Academy.

Still, it hasn’t been an easy road to Williamstown, Mass. According to Suzette, Natalie’s mother, Natalie often leaves early in the morning and doesn’t get home until nearly midnight.

Between school, practice and studies, Suzette said Natalie rarely stops her motor. What’s more, Suzette said Natalie’s bedroom light never goes off.

“I have to find a balance between everything,” said Natalie, who takes five advanced placement courses and maintains a 4.2 grade-point average. “I usually do homework in the car and take naps after school.”

On Saturday, the 5-foot-5, 115-pound center/winger practiced with her club team in the morning in Skokie before playing a game with Lake Forest Academy later in the day. The Caxys lost to Fenwick.

“I am enjoying it a lot,” said Bernstein, who played with the high school as a sophomore and as a senior. She skipped her junior season to concentrate on her schoolwork. “We aren’t the best team in high school, but I still am enjoying it.”

By most standards, Bernstein was late to hockey. She didn’t join a club team until she was 14 years old. But she hasn’t stopped playing since she enrolled with the Chicago Young Americans based in Glen Ellyn.

“It was tough getting into it at the time,” Bernstein remembered. “A lot of the girls had played since they were 4 years old. I came in not knowing how to handle the stick. It was difficult. The other girls knew what they were doing.”

With the blessing of her family, Bernstein dedicated herself to the sport. She’s attended numerous camps around the country and has played almost every day as a teenager.

“I kept working at it,” she said. “It helped playing year round.”

As much as Bernstein plays hockey, she found the time to join the varsity tennis team for three years at Lake Forest Academy.

“I’ve played tennis since I was really little, maybe since I was 5,” said Bernstein, whose younger brother Blake also plays hockey. “The tennis season is short, and it wasn’t that bad with club hockey. I liked playing it.”

Bernstein this week was named to the Amateur High School Association White All-State Team that will play the Red All-Star Team at 6:40 p.m Feb. 6 in Bensenville. She also leads the Caxys hockey team into the playoffs, which start this week. Lake Forest Academy was scheduled to open up with Warren on Feb. 1. The Caxys then play Latin, Barrington and Andrew the following week.