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Celina High School senior Caleb Felver, seated left center, will get the chance to play collegiate hockey at East Texas Baptist University next season.
CELINA - To play hockey at a high level, Caleb Felver has had to put in the hours and miles.
To continue his play, the Celina High School senior will be heading to Marshall, Texas, after committing to play at East Texas Baptist University.
With no ice hockey programs in the Grand Lake area, Felver has had to travel to areas where the game was played.
"I started playing through my dad. He played it when he was younger and got me into it," said Felver. "Just over the years I started in Findlay, went to Columbus, played two years at both places and went to Toledo."
Felver, a defensemen, is currently playing for the 18U team for the Sylvania North Stars, a Tier-1 junior program based out of the Tam-O-Shanter ice complex, roughly an hour and 45 minutes from Celina.
The desire to play hockey took some sacrifices.
"I had to not play football this year to fully commit to hockey, which I truly love," said Felver. "I took online college classes so I would be able to go to practices and games. My parents helped me get there. It all ended up working out well."
The family support has been huge for Felver.
"My family was a big part. When I couldn't drive, they always drove me to practice. Every game I had someone there," said Felver. "One of my grandpas would come with me. He passed away last April, but was one of my biggest supporters. He loved watching my games and that drove me to get better. The support from all my family members helped me get to where I am at today."
It was at a showcase event where East Texas Baptist first connected with Felver.
"We were at one of the showcases in Massachusetts," said Felver, who is looking to major in biology. "They reached out to us and started talking. They wouldn't even talk to me until they heard what my GPA (grade point average) was. We ended up going down. The coaches took us out, explained everything and gave us a tour and offered me a spot."
ETBU, an NCAA Division III school, plays its hockey outside the NCAA in the American Collegiate Hockey Association D2, which features smaller colleges as well as non-varsity club hockey programs.
The Tigers play in the Texas College Hockey Conference. ETBU won the TCHC tournament in 2023 and were 10-16-0 overall and 8-8-0 in the TCHC this past season, facing mainly teams based out of NCAA Division I like Arkansas, Southern Methodist, Texas A&M, Texas and Texas Christian.
