Locals Leading Lady Lancers
Homegrown talent paying dividends for Grace women's soccer team
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Dale [email protected]
The Lancers have gone from what Voss called “not competitive” to being the No. 2 seed in this year’s Crossroads League Tournament.
It’s a journey that continues for a team that set a school-record for wins in a season last year with 17, followed this season by the program’s best mark in league play, 7-1-1.
“We’ve come a long way,” said Voss. “On a scale to 10, I’d say we were at zero when I got here. We were not competitive. Now, we go into every game thinking we can win. We think we can compete with every team on our schedule.”
Grace, 10-6-1 overall, will host seventh-seeded Taylor University Saturday at 2 p.m. at Miller Field in the first round of the Crossroads League Tournament.
With a win, the Lady Lancers will then host either No. 3 seed St. Francis or sixth-seeded Indiana Wesleyan on Nov. 2.
The championship game is scheduled for Nov. 9 and will be hosted by the team with the better seed.
Though Grace has never won the conference tournament, Voss and his players are clear about their plans.
“Our goal is to win the championship,” said freshman Meredith Hollar, the team’s leading scorer with 11 goals. “We can’t take any team for granted, but we’re confident we can win the championship.”
If the Lady Lancers put together three wins and claim the program’s first conference title, they will also earn their first trip to the NAIA National Tournament, which is being held in Orange Beach, Ala.
“We’re probably two players away from being a top 10 team in the country,” said Voss. “We’ve got girls who can score. We’ve got a good midfield. We need to make some strides defensively. We want to make a name for ourselves on the national level.”
While Grace has come a long way, Voss hasn’t had to go far to recruit talented players.
The Lady Lancers’ roster features plenty of local talent, players like former Warsaw Community High School standouts Hollar and Emily Hickerson, and former Wawasee star Mallory Rondeau.
Grace’s roster also include’s Bremen’s Heather Martin, Westview’s Kelsey Christner and Argos’ Hannah Alcorn.
Warsaw grads Amy Abbitt and Aubrey (Evans) Alcorn, both of whom played collegiately for the Lady Lancers, serve as Voss’ assistants.
“I live in this community,” said Voss. “We want Grace College to be a big part of this community. There’s a lot of talent right here locally. We want those girls to know they can come play at Grace.”
Despite missing her entire junior season and part of her senior campaign at Warsaw because of a knee injury, Hollar graduated as the Lady Tigers’ all-time leading scorer with 67 goals.
She also holds Warsaw records for goals in a game with five, something she did three times, and goals in a season with 28.
Hollar admits she dreamed of playing for a big school. She, however, said she loves that she ended up at Grace.
“I had dreams of going Division I my whole life,” said Hollar. “God led me to Grace. My knee injury was his way of letting me know he’s in control. I think it’s exciting being able to play with other local girls. Ending up at Grace has been a huge blessing.”
Rondeau graduated from Wawasee High School as the Lady Warriors’ all-time leader in goals.
At Grace she doesn’t have the pressure of being the go-to player.
“In high school I scored a lot of goals,” said Rondeau. “Here, I have a lot of other really good players around me. We have a really good team. Everything we do is as a team.”
Rondeau has scored two goals and dished out seven assists this season. She is second on the team in both shots and shots on goal, trailing only Hollar in both categories.
“Last year, she scored 17 goals,” Voss said of Rondeau. “This year, she has a different role, and she’s a great team player. She’s so filled with joy. The joy in her heart is her strength. She’s a lot of fun to be around.”
While Hollar and Rondeau are underclassmen with successful playing careers ahead of them, Hickerson’s number of games in a Grace uniform is dwindling.
It goes without saying, winning the conference tournament would be special to her and her fellow seniors.
“We’ve come a long way,” Hickerson said of the Lady Lancers. “From my freshman year until now, we’ve taken giant steps. To win the conference tournament as a senior would be so special.”
Hickerson has scored three goals this season and assisted on two others.[[In-content Ad]]
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The Lancers have gone from what Voss called “not competitive” to being the No. 2 seed in this year’s Crossroads League Tournament.
It’s a journey that continues for a team that set a school-record for wins in a season last year with 17, followed this season by the program’s best mark in league play, 7-1-1.
“We’ve come a long way,” said Voss. “On a scale to 10, I’d say we were at zero when I got here. We were not competitive. Now, we go into every game thinking we can win. We think we can compete with every team on our schedule.”
Grace, 10-6-1 overall, will host seventh-seeded Taylor University Saturday at 2 p.m. at Miller Field in the first round of the Crossroads League Tournament.
With a win, the Lady Lancers will then host either No. 3 seed St. Francis or sixth-seeded Indiana Wesleyan on Nov. 2.
The championship game is scheduled for Nov. 9 and will be hosted by the team with the better seed.
Though Grace has never won the conference tournament, Voss and his players are clear about their plans.
“Our goal is to win the championship,” said freshman Meredith Hollar, the team’s leading scorer with 11 goals. “We can’t take any team for granted, but we’re confident we can win the championship.”
If the Lady Lancers put together three wins and claim the program’s first conference title, they will also earn their first trip to the NAIA National Tournament, which is being held in Orange Beach, Ala.
“We’re probably two players away from being a top 10 team in the country,” said Voss. “We’ve got girls who can score. We’ve got a good midfield. We need to make some strides defensively. We want to make a name for ourselves on the national level.”
While Grace has come a long way, Voss hasn’t had to go far to recruit talented players.
The Lady Lancers’ roster features plenty of local talent, players like former Warsaw Community High School standouts Hollar and Emily Hickerson, and former Wawasee star Mallory Rondeau.
Grace’s roster also include’s Bremen’s Heather Martin, Westview’s Kelsey Christner and Argos’ Hannah Alcorn.
Warsaw grads Amy Abbitt and Aubrey (Evans) Alcorn, both of whom played collegiately for the Lady Lancers, serve as Voss’ assistants.
“I live in this community,” said Voss. “We want Grace College to be a big part of this community. There’s a lot of talent right here locally. We want those girls to know they can come play at Grace.”
Despite missing her entire junior season and part of her senior campaign at Warsaw because of a knee injury, Hollar graduated as the Lady Tigers’ all-time leading scorer with 67 goals.
She also holds Warsaw records for goals in a game with five, something she did three times, and goals in a season with 28.
Hollar admits she dreamed of playing for a big school. She, however, said she loves that she ended up at Grace.
“I had dreams of going Division I my whole life,” said Hollar. “God led me to Grace. My knee injury was his way of letting me know he’s in control. I think it’s exciting being able to play with other local girls. Ending up at Grace has been a huge blessing.”
Rondeau graduated from Wawasee High School as the Lady Warriors’ all-time leader in goals.
At Grace she doesn’t have the pressure of being the go-to player.
“In high school I scored a lot of goals,” said Rondeau. “Here, I have a lot of other really good players around me. We have a really good team. Everything we do is as a team.”
Rondeau has scored two goals and dished out seven assists this season. She is second on the team in both shots and shots on goal, trailing only Hollar in both categories.
“Last year, she scored 17 goals,” Voss said of Rondeau. “This year, she has a different role, and she’s a great team player. She’s so filled with joy. The joy in her heart is her strength. She’s a lot of fun to be around.”
While Hollar and Rondeau are underclassmen with successful playing careers ahead of them, Hickerson’s number of games in a Grace uniform is dwindling.
It goes without saying, winning the conference tournament would be special to her and her fellow seniors.
“We’ve come a long way,” Hickerson said of the Lady Lancers. “From my freshman year until now, we’ve taken giant steps. To win the conference tournament as a senior would be so special.”
Hickerson has scored three goals this season and assisted on two others.[[In-content Ad]]
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