The Week for Winners

Noah Graves

            Fall break, October 16-23, was a big week for Dalat Athletics; it was ACSC time for men’s soccer and men’s and women’s volleyball. Men’s volleyball started off strong in Hong Kong, with initial hopes to bring home a medal. Early in the tournament, they faced an injury that proved to be critical to their success. Their star player, Andrew Kim, broke his leg on the first day of the tournament against Faith Academy. They continued to fight throughout the round robin stages, coming within just a few points of beating the best teams in the tournament. There were a lot of close games, but they needed that extra push to win, and for them, Andrew was the push they needed. After a lot of “almost wins” they had a low seed in the bracket and ended up finishing sixth in the tournament. They kept their heads held high and proved they could play with the best, as Emmett Balzer (12) received all-tournament honors. But please keep Andrew and his family in your prayers.

Women’s volleyball traveled to Korea and fought hard but finished in last. Losing a lot of seniors last year left a lot of big shoes to fill, and this season was a rebuilding season for them. They have a lot of promising, young talent, so you better watch out for the Lady Eagles these next few years. Mikaela Steinkamp (10) was named as an all-tournament player from Dalat.

 Men’s soccer was in Taiwan and was the big story of the week, bringing home Dalat’s first ACSC gold medal. Winning all their games, except one that ended in a tie, they displayed stellar playing and teamwork. They proved to be too much to handle for any team at the tournament, being an unstoppable force. There is not much to say other than that they were dominant. All-tournament honors were given to David Unruh (12), Jesse Lohman (11), Woo Young Chung (12), and Ben Finlay (12).

All of Dalat’s teams played with heart and represented the school well; we should be proud of all of them. Now we look forward to the next season of Dalat Athletics—let’s bring home some more medals!