A journey that started in 2021 is nearing its end this year for three UNK soccer players. Emily Flowers, Dolcie Hanlon and Angelina Iocca have been a part of the program since before a 2022 rebuild under new coach Rob Breton began.
In their first three seasons, the Lopers played 53 matches and lost 43. This year, the team is still unbeaten after eight games. One difference is the bond that the team now shares compared to when they were freshmen.
“We’re really a whole family now,” Iocca said. “I would have never thought we would have gotten there either.”
They were each recruited during the pandemic and had similar stories on how they got to UNK. Iocca decommitted from another school before finding UNK. Flowers was recruited off her junior year film due to an injury. Hanlon found UNK’s ID camp which got her in the door.
The 2021 season was the final season for coach Chloe Roberts. The three each saw lots of playing time, due to injuries, on the way to a 2-16 season.
“It helped me gain confidence as a little freshman coming in, but I didn’t have much direction,” Hanlon said. “I never knew if I was doing the right thing.”
UNK let Roberts go after the 2021 season. Neil Piper was hired during the winter and worked with the team during March before his resignation was announced on March 28. Despite the stress and nerves that the coaching change and not having a spring season, the three decided to stay put for their sophomore seasons with Breton.
“I think the tough pill for me to swallow individually was that it did take starting from scratch to rebuild,” Hanlon said. “It wasn’t going to be an overnight process and Coach Rob made that apparent, but he was willing to put in the work and found more girls to add to the team that were ready to build up the program.”
The team did not win a game that season as the rebuild began. The three once again had thoughts about transferring but they pushed forward for their junior year and won three games.
“I think we started to raise a standard,” Hanlon said. “You could see that across the board. And you could start to see just all the work and everything he’s implementing paying off. We gained more respect on campus.”
“Disregarding the soccer part of it, I think the team chemistry really helped us find a lot, find more success last year,” Flowers added.
Now the team sits at 4-0-4 and is unbeaten through eight games as the Lopers continue to find more success as the trio finished its time playing for UNK.
“I think the start of the season has been great,” Iocca said. “I will say that I don’t think the job is finished.”
With conference play underway, the three look back knowing that they put everything they had into the program.
“I know that I can leave having put my full effort and my full determination, my full heart, into everything that I did,” Flowers said.
