‘It’s really hard’: Teen referee says confrontation with parents wasn’t her first - WPRI.com

WARWICK, R.I. (WPRI) — As a younker crystal hockey referee, 16-year-old Braelyn King has grown a heavy skin.

But it wasn’t until a verbal confrontation during an crystal hockey tournament successful Warwick past play that she considered stepping distant for good.

“This wasn’t the archetypal incident, truthful I’ve conscionable gotten vulnerable,” she said. “I privation to enactment connected the ice, but it’s truly hard.”

King, who grew up playing crystal hockey, was refereeing a crippled betwixt 9- and 10-year-olds astatine Thayer Arena erstwhile a fistful of parents from 1 of the teams didn’t hold with her officiating.

“I was getting acceptable to driblet the puck and they were going connected and connected and on,” she recalled.

King had to footwear 1 of the parents retired of the rink, portion 2 others ended up leaving connected their own.

But by that point, she had already started breaking down.

“I gave my puck to my spouse and was similar ‘I’m sorry, but I can’t continue’ and got disconnected the ice,” King said.

King said this isn’t the archetypal clip she’s experienced the wrath of spectators, adding that it’s an ongoing problem.

“Parents are yelling astatine teenagers similar we don’t cognize what we’re expected to beryllium doing due to the fact that we’re underage,” she said. “It feels sometimes similar they’re targeting us.”

Her begetter was determination erstwhile helium saw his girl astir burst into tears connected the ice.

“She’s an athlete,” Marc King explained. “We’ve traveled up and down the East Coast for each sorts of events. Those events are expected to beryllium astir having a bully clip and making lifelong memories.”

While Braelyn said she considered quitting connected the spot, she opted to instrumentality to the rink and is refereeing this weekend.

Braelyn hopes that by telling her story, parents and different spectators volition deliberation doubly earlier degrading those who are conscionable trying to bash their jobs.

“I consciousness similar if parents are going to yell, they should astatine slightest cognize what they’re talking about,” she said.

Though she decided not to propulsion successful the towel, Braelyn plans to steer wide of larger tournaments, since astir of the incidents person progressive parents from out-of-state teams.