Freshmen Casey Hooker, Paige Henry and Andy Morrison started this year as rookies. Hooker ended it with a "B" cut qualifying time for nationals. Henry and Morrison each ended it as an NCAC Newcomer of the Year.
Morrison, of Bristol, Ind., plays forward on the men's soccer team. He walked onto the team as a starter.
"I'm looking forward to next year, for sure," Morrison said. "I'm already ready for it. Hopefully we get a good recruiting class, but we should be just as good again. There are a few seniors that will be leaving, but hopefully we can fill those spots."
Morrison cherished the moments he was able to spend with his teammates and their accomplishments. One of his favorite moments was when the team defeated Ohio Wesleyan University at the conference championship — on his birthday, no less. But he identified less competitive moments as his favorites.
"My favorite part of being on the team would be, well, first of all, us being one of the better teams in Div. III is always nice, but I would have to say the guys," Morrison said. "Being with a bunch of great guys. It's such an awesome group. Just hanging out with them during the season is a lot of fun."
His teammate, freshman Charlie Parks, agreed that hanging with the team and Morrison was one of the best parts of the season.
"Andy is a fun, enjoyable guy," Parks said. "He's easy to get along with and he's a great player. He's a good scorer, he knows when to pass the ball. He knows how to move on the field well."
Agility and speed are crucial to the players and the team will be working on them this off-season. Morrison said they are playing indoors and doing drills until the spring season starts up.
Strong dedication to soccer has paid off for Morrison as well.
"As a player, he's got a great first-touch. You could give him a bad pass and he'll handle it well," Parks said. "He's good at distributing the ball after the first pass. He's got great feet, a good dribbler, and he's confident. Very confident on his feet, which is something you always want to see. Just knowing that he would know what to do when he got the ball, where to go, how to distribute it. Knowing that out of 100 times, 95 times he would make the right choice."
Parks noted that the shift from high school soccer to college soccer is a significant one, but that Morrison was able to overcome the challenge. He stated that players have to think on their feet and "make the right choices," which Morrison does.
"He's got a great attitude and you can tell that he loves the game," Parks said. "Got a lot of passion and helps create a fun atmosphere."
Louisville, Ken. native Paige Henry started as a forward and midfield for the women's field hockey team after being recruited by head coach Gina Preston.
"I originally thought I wanted to play Div. I, so I visited like, 13 Div. I schools," Henry said. "But then I thought that I didn't want something so intense and coach Preston emailed me. Plus I knew another girl who came and played field hockey here. So I came here and visited then just knew that I wanted to come here."
Henry's memorable times with the team were both on and off the field.
"My team highlight would be when we beat Denison here," Henry said. "They're our biggest competitor in the conference, and we beat them." Henry explained that her favorite memories including bonding with the team when staying in.
The team is now working towards the upcoming season.
"Now that we're in the off-season, we start practices and we have spring season when we'll do conditioning and practicing as well," Henry said. "We will also be training over the summer. We get a workout packet that we're supposed to be doing throughout the summer." Henry stated that players come a week early in the summer for preseason, training with three-a-days. However, the training "cools down" once the season begins.
Freshman goalie Maggie Steele said that she thoroughly enjoyed Henry as a teammate.
"My favorite thing about Paige is that she works really hard and motivates you to do your best," Steele said. "She is such a good player, and you can always tell that she gives 110 percent and that makes you want to give 110 percent as well."
But giving her full effort was a regular occurrence for Henry.
"I'm going to miss the games," Henry said. "My family would always come in for the games, so I'll miss seeing them and just being out on the field with everyone, having that competitive part of my life."
Even as the season ends, the bonds formed between teammates does not.
"She is very nice, she gets along with everyone," Steele said. "She's someone you can trust on and off the field and definitely someone you can depend on."
Swimmer Casey Hooker made a splash during his first year in DePauw's natatorium. In what has been a record-setting year for the Tigers, Hooker's performance has been one of many highlights.
Hooker, of Rensselaer, Ind., has been swimming since he was nine years. He wasted no time during his DePauw career and is already the school record-holder of six different events.
He now holds individual records in the 500-yard freestyle, the mile freestyle, 1000-yard free, 100-yard backstroke and is a part of both the 800-yard freestyle and 400 medley relays.
"Obviously I'm very happy with the records," Hooker said. "I've put in a lot of hard work, but it's really all about the team. It's an honor to represent DePauw."
But with all the success, Hooker never misses an opportunity to praise his teammates and coaches for their leadership.
"I didn't expect to do as well as I did," Hooker said. "I mean the team has done great, too. It's not just me. Everyone has done exceptionally well this year." Hooker stated that the captains did a great job leading the team as well.
Hooker assisted the Tigers in attaining a 3rd place overall finish at the NCAC Men's Swimming and Diving Championships. Hooker earned all-conference honors for his 3rd place finish in the 500-yard freestyle.
Hooker also earned his "B" cut time in in the 1,650-yard freestyle, ending in sixth place. He will compete in the NCAA Div. Championships at IUPUI's natatorium. Hooker is also a member 400-yard medley team, which is waiting to see if its time will allow them to compete as well.
Hooker is still in the pool training for nationals.
Even though Hooker's eyes are currently on nationals, he has larger goals. Ultimately, he wants a top place at the competition, which is a real possibility.
"He's an extremely talented swimmer," head coach Adam Cohen said. "He's been a missing piece on our relay teams and he's really brought us a lot of success. He's the whole package and has definitely intermixed well."
However, Hooker does not define his life around swimming.
"I wanted to go to a small college," Hooker said. "And I wanted to swim in college, but that's not why I picked DePauw. Academically, it's a great school. That was probably the biggest part — academics."
Hooker modestly shared his favorite memory of the team — watching the team improve and witnessing many achieve personal bests at conference.
His talent creates a bright future for himself.
"Last year was good, but this year has been uncharted as we've beaten a lot of tough opponents," Hooker said. "We weren't even close to the top ten at the start of the year but have defied the odds and are there now, and we look to continue this ride into nationals."
