Emily Leighton | Staff Writer

Rachel Novotny is a sophomore biology major here at Buena Vista University (BVU). Novotny also plays a role on the women’s soccer team as their varsity goal keeper.

With this women’s soccer team being so young, Novotny sees this season as a building year and can always see that there is room for improvement.

“As a whole, I think we are doing better than the previous year. Even though the scores don’t show it, we played some pretty good games. In the beginning of the season we lost a majority of our games by only one or two and went to overtime plenty of times. Even with the amount of new players, our communication is always improving,” Novotny said.

The head women’s soccer coach, Sheena Van Roekel, relies a lot on Novotny to be the strength of the defense on the field. The keeper is one of the positions that Van Roekel respects the most on the pitch.

“Rachel brings the sense of security that you can’t find anywhere else. There are times in which our defense faces some tough shots and she never ceases to make a difficult shot look like an easy save. We wouldn’t be nearly as strong in the back without her,” Van Roekel said.

Novotny has seen a lot of growth in herself from her freshman to sophomore season. She has learned to be one of the key players at all times, even if she is not directly involved in the play.

“I’m the goalkeeper, so I can see the whole field. This requires communication throughout the whole game. I’ve learned to step up and become a leader for our defensive line. Whether that be vocally or by just communicating with them on and off the field,” Novotny said.

With two years left at BVU, Van Roekel hopes to see Novotny continue to take strides in both her leadership and general skill in the goal.

“I’d like to see Rachel continue to push the envelope as she truly is a gifted keeper. A football team has their quarterback and we have Rachel; she is our stronghold back there. The best athletes don’t get better unless they rise to the challenge and take the risk head on. Rachel has proven that already within her past two seasons. Through injuries and tough games, she never quits. I’m excited to see how much she grows from this season to the next,” Van Roekel said.

Women’s soccer now stands 3-11 overall on the season and 0-5 in conference play. They continue conference play Saturday, Oct. 24 at home beginning at 5:30 p.m. against the Duhawks of Loras College.

Photo by Taylor Staab