Emily Leighton | Staff Writer

Sheena Van Roekel is set to begin her first season as Head Coach with the Buena Vista University (BVU) women’s soccer team. Van Roekel is from Milford, Iowa. She joins the Beaver team after spending the last three seasons as an assistant men and women’s coach at Iowa Lakes Community College. Van Roekel graduated in 2005 from Northwestern College with a four year career playing for the soccer team as a defender. Van Roekel graduated with a B.A. degree in English Education.

“If I were to classify anything as a challenge, it has been in how to help prepare the ladies for an upcoming match and help them to adjust to any changes needed to make a formation more effective. Our women have quite a bit of potential locked up, and it has been fun to see them unlock their abilities,” Van Roekel said.

Van Roekel knows this team is capable of many great things. She has high hopes for the Beavers, and she is excited to see how they finish the race for the 2014 season.

“From day one, they have been working hard to make the adjustments needed in order for the team to find the success they have so far. To look at the overall record and/or score doesn’t cover the journey they’ve been on thus far,” Van Roekel said.

Van Roekel and her team have devised strategies to keep the team going throughout the rest of the season.

“In moving forward, we need to take one match at a time. Although there are future visions, as a coach always desires the best for their squads, each practice, game, and season needs to be treated as it comes forward at face value. We know we have to take on our challenges as they come to us head on. We’ve been blessed with a team of young women that help one another up the ladder to success,” Van Roekel said.

The Beavers overall are 3-6-3 this season. There are only a few games left in conference play, and they take on Central in Pella this Saturday, starting at 1 p.m.

Graphic by Justice Gage