When skating alongside their teammates, it is often hard to remember that Abby Cook and Deziray De Sousa are just 18 years old. Over the course of 28 games in the 2016-17 season, the pair, along with four other freshmen, have cemented themselves as vital assets to the Boston University women’s hockey team.

On the ice, Cook can be seen next to her linemate, senior defenseman Sarah Steele. However, Cook has not been limited to spending all of her time in the defensive zone, evidenced by her three goals this season.

The Kelowna, British Columbia native also has seven assists under her belt, the first of which occurred during her first Hockey East game when the Terriers beat Providence College. She is currently one of the leading defensemen behind captain and senior defenseman Alexis Crossley.

“I think in Abby’s case it was right out of the gate,” BU head coach Brian Durocher said. “She was pretty comfortable here. She helped kill some penalties, took a regular shift and has been right near, if not at, [the] top of the plus-minus for our team. Of late she’s played a little more on the power play, so obviously she plays all three phases of the game at a young age.”

Deziray De Sousa has been right behind Cook, collecting eight points of her own. Though not the top scorer of the team’s impressive offense, De Sousa has been a key member of her line as a left wing.

“She is a strong player around the puck, she’s strong on the wall, she’s strong in front of the net,” Durocher said. “If I give you one word for her so far this year, it’s that she’s been consistent and you know that’s all you can ask for as a coach.”

Most notably, De Sousa scored her first collegiate goal to break a tie in a game against then-No. 4 Boston College and lead BU to a 5-3 win.

“It was a pretty big game,” De Sousa said. “We also beat them for the first time [this season] so it was really exciting. Everyone gets super excited when you score your first goal, so it’s a lot of fun.”

While both freshmen have proven themselves as productive players, they talked about the anticipation and excitement they felt when scoring their first collegiate goal.

“It’s almost a relief,” Cook said. “You don’t know when you’re going to score, so when it happens, it’s just really exciting.”

Prior to calling Walter Brown Arena their home, both freshmen had successful junior hockey careers.

Cook enjoyed four seasons with the Pursuit of Excellence Hockey Academy, where she earned four medals and notched the most points as a defenseman in her final season.

She said her experience playing for a high-profile, competitive hockey team in high school eased her transition as an NCAA student-athlete.

“It teaches you how to follow a schedule, so it was an easy transition coming here,” Cook said.

De Sousa went through an intense program in her hometown of Montreal, Quebec before playing just north of Boston at the Phillips Exeter Academy, where she served as the team’s assistant captain.

Though both were well-prepared to make the jump to college hockey, the level of competition in high school is not comparable to that of Hockey East and top programs like BU, they said.

“In high school, not everyone is at the same level, so the passes aren’t as hard [and] people aren’t as quick as they are here, so here everyone plays as a team,” De Sousa said. “It’s not really a few individual players that stand out, so everyone here can play together and it’s such a faster pace.”

The transition from high school to college is hard for any incoming freshman, and the duo have the added pressure of the responsibilities that being on a collegiate team entails. Yet, they agreed that the unity of the players fostered by the upperclassmen helped as soon as they stepped foot on Commonwealth Avenue.

The family-like culture of the team that Durocher and his staff have created can be seen on and off the ice, as the teammates joke after practice, give each other words of encouragement on the bench or see each other in the dining hall.

The two freshmen Terriers still deal with the perils and challenges of being newbies on the team as well as on campus. However, amidst the chaos of BU’s large urban campus, they have found a sense of belonging and a new rink to call home.

“We have such a good team atmosphere that it’s so fun to come here everyday,” De Sousa said. “After classes, I just look forward to come to the rink.”

“It’s pretty easy with the girls, [who] are all really accepting. Out there you just got to work as hard as you can,” Cook added.

Cook and De Sousa said they hope to write their own legacy as Terriers, but they respect the work put in by all who came before them. This is shown in the immense pride in which they put on their jerseys with “Boston” on the front.

“It’s a lot [of emotion] putting the jersey on,” Cook said. “Wearing that everyday is just huge, especially [with] the girls who were here before us.”

The two players will have an opportunity to represent their team in their first Hockey East playoffs, and they look to the new experience with enthusiasm.

“It’s a new experience for us, so I’m just really excited to see how it is,” De Sousa said.

As for the rest of those watching, they wait patiently to see what more the two freshmen, and this team, can accomplish.