MONROE - Seven area players are getting a chance to showcase their skills on the Rock County Fury girls hockey team.

The Rock County Fury is a girls hockey cooperative program that includes players from Janesville Craig, Janesville Parker, Beloit Memorial, Beloit Turner, Milton, Clinton, Monroe, Albany and Brodhead.

The Cheesemakers have three players on the team: junior Cammi Ganshert, freshman Rebekah Rath and freshman Anika Einbeck. The two Albany players on the team are sisters - sophomore Haley Knauf and freshman Alyssa Knauf. The two Brodhead players on the team are Brooke Teubert and Cheyenne Dilley.

Each of the players were involved in Monroe Avalanche youth hockey teams. Einbeck, Alyssa Knauf and Haley Knauf played on Team Wisconsin last year. Einbeck and Alyssa Knauf also played on a co-ed Bantam team last year.

"It's definitely a big change," Einbeck said. "The biggest change is playing with girls. In club hockey, it's a lot more forward driven. In high school hockey, it's a step up and the offenses are more spread out and more plays are run. It's very exciting. You never know who you will get to meet playing hockey."

Haley Knauf played on a U16 Team Wisconsin team last year. Alyssa Knauf and Einbeck played for a U14 Team Wisconsin team in addition to playing on the Monroe Avalanche Bantam team.

"I never thought I would get to play high school hockey," Haley Knauf said. "I thought we might have to play Capitols and then we couldn't play Team Wisconsin."

The Fury play a 19-game regular season before regionals begin. Home games are played at Edwards Ice Arena in Beloit and Janesville Ice Arena. There will be two home games at SLICE in Monroe this year. The Fury play Bay Area at 6 p.m. Dec. 8 at SLICE and Viroqua at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 2 in Monroe.

The Rock County Fury skated to an 8-4 win over defending state champion Central Wisconsin Storm of Wausau in the season opener Nov. 17. The Fury will play at Arrowhead today. Ganshert and Alyssa Knauf each scored one goal in the opener, and the Fury were led by Maggy Henschler who scored four goals.

"It feels really good," Ganshert said of the win against the defending state champions. "It's just one game. We can't take away much from that game. It was good to come out strong. We have only been on the ice for one week. We are still learning to play with each other."

Players from Monroe and the surrounding area more than doubled their numbers on the team this season.

"Last year, I was the only one representing Monroe," Ganshert said. "It's cool to see more girls from the area come out and on the team this year."

With about 25 players on the team this year, the Fury are able to field junior varsity and varsity teams. Haley Knauf, Alyssa Knauf and Einbeck are playing both JV and varsity, and Rath is on the JV team.

"My goal this season is to work hard to improve so I can make JV and varsity," Rath said.

Rath played on an Avalanche Bantam team for one year when she was 13. She took one year off and then got experience playing on the Ice Spirits club team in Verona.

"I want to work on my hockey skills to become a better all-around player," Rath said. "I think we have a talented team. I think we could go to state."

Ganshert, who is playing varsity, said the biggest improvement she has made in her game compared to two years ago when she was a freshman is her confidence in stick-handling skills.

Einbeck and the Knauf sisters started playing hockey when they were 4 on an Atoms team in Monroe. Having more familiar faces the first few practices made for an easier transition to a high school girls hockey team with players from nine different schools.

"We knew each other and that helped getting to know all the upperclassmen players," Alyssa Knauf said. "It's like we are all one big family now."