I have often thought about what simple and direct words of encouragement might come from our Heavenly Father to remind us how capable and amazing we are. Obviously, this is one reason why she had gotten off to a rough start. We did not see eye to eye on many things early on. Rockwood led the club team to a 128-25-9 record, two Western National Collegiate Club Soccer Association titles and second place in the NCCSA National Championship match. Both loved the game, but neither had any prior experience in helping a soccer team adjust to a new, higher level of play. "It's just been a magical season," says BYU coach Jennifer Rockwood (BS '89), whose team, with nine seniors, wasn't even ranked preseason. As you can imagine, it was a bit disconcerting, and it was very challenging to stay on the path. Unfortunately, due to BYUs recent start as a NCAA sanctioned team, the relatively unknown WAC teams that BYU played against, and the limitation of only 48 teams that entered the tournament, the Cougars did not play in the NCAA tournament that year. I see my players play their best. I would like each of you to think about some of the individuals who have helped you get to where you are today. If Rockwood knows one thing, it's recruiting, and she certainly knows how to mine the state's top soccer prospects and turn several of them into professionals. But what a blessed life and what a ride it has been. While it seems risky to turn down a great job offer or leave graduate school early, Brian Hill's journey led him to start his own company that helps give others a second chance. I can comprehend it and understand the signs of the time and the working of the Spirit of God, and when a thing is presented to me by [the] servants of God, I can receive a testimony of the truth of that; but when Ilose the light I dont comprehend those things. She had considered getting a degree in education when she first came to BYU, and she had taken a slew of humanities classes as an undergradI probably had enough for a minor, except I didnt speak another language, she says. Each team spends more than thirty hours together with no sleep, not much food, and few rest spots. The Cougars are anchored by a defense that includes All-West Regional selection Laveni Vaka and goalkeeper Cassidy Smith, whose 2.14 saves per game and 0.65 goals-against average for .783 save percentage ranks among the top five in BYU history. Finally, toward the end of my run, I saw a few runners ahead and followed their lights to the finish. I am a fighter, and I choose to walk in the light.. As surely as there is light, there is darkness. . Do good anyway. Her parents thought maybe it would be good for her to be around some members of the Church who also loved soccer. Though her scholastic path presented challenges, she says those experiences enabled her to achieve greater success down the road. We can look to the west and appreciate the view of the lake, travel east and be enveloped in the canyons, or drive south and take in the magnificence and serenity of the red rock. . They want nothing more than for us to find happiness and peace and to return home to Them someday. To many outside of the program, this immediate success may have come as a surprise. Division regular season champion This opportunity eventually opened doors for me to set a new career path. I saw the potential.. President Ezra Taft Benson and Elder JeffreyR. Holland agreed with the Israeli government that the university would not proselyte in Israel. supports HTML5 video, Estimated read time: 7-8 What an adventure! [4], Rockwood coached high school soccer for the Waterford School girls' team and the Meridian School's boys' and girls' teams prior to gradating from BYU. Jamie Shepherd has been fantastic. The team won 22 games the following season, losing only once, and won the Western Athletic Conference title. Her schedule is busy and almost never-ending. Much of the challenge lay beyond the coursework, however, as Rockwood also fought inner battles each day. Her 200th win happened on Sept. 24, 2007 when BYU beat Washington 2-1 at home. A few months ago I received a package from one of the state prisons in Utah. Jennifer Rockwood stepped onto BYUs South Field and gazed numbly across the green turf. "We knew we had the potential, but we wanted to put it all together so she can finally have this awesome accolade to an amazing career at BYU. Completing her 21st season in 2015, head coach Jennifer Rockwood has taken the BYU women's soccer team to national prominence and has established herself as one of today's premier coaches of Division I soccer. [3] Early life [ edit] And again, they gave me a lot of freedom in doing what I did, cause I was learning a lot myself. Rockwood started with a good group of girls, and then they only went up from there.. Far from a program, that's a dynasty, a consistent achievement layered by the individual bricks of three decades of top athletes the majority of which came homegrown from Utah and the surrounding region. She continued to attend camp for several summers after that. Jennifer Rockwood and the origins of the BYU women's soccer team Story and cover art by Alex Dotson This story is part of the March 2022 issue of The Daily Universe Magazine and magazine show (below). There were many likely talking about the upcoming football season for the Cougars and their excitement for a team led by quarterback Steve Sarkisian. After three years of teaching PE for Meridian, Rockwood went to the headmaster and asked for a chance to try teaching in the classroom. BYU and Florida State traded goals back and forth, with a few occasional misses sprinkled in. I thought they were a good program, Bertoch said of the program at the time, recounting how the club team had to charter their own buses and often slept when traveling in the homes of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is called the Ragnar Relay Series, and each team consists of two vans, with six people packed into each van. It was coached by a former player, Rockwood, and had seen some promising results. Her years of experience playing and coaching soccerincluding six years at the helm of the BYU Womens Soccer club teamsuddenly seemed insignificant beside the challenge that lay ahead. She's not just a coach, but the mom of our team, making sure everyone is good. . People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs. She knew it may never come again. BYU, in part due to Title IX legislation, began its search to field another competitive womens team to add to its growing collection that already featured the likes of basketball, volleyball and gymnastics. "Right now, I feel we are playing our best soccer.". However, it put me on an unfamiliar course. overrideCardHideSection= She could not believe the opportunity in front of her. "Jen does a really great job of making every play feel cared for, that they matter, and that it's about them," said Colette Jepson Smith, the former Davis High standout who played three seasons at BYU and is now the head coach at Rowland Hall and Wasatch Soccer Club. Provo, UT 84602 I didnt necessarily get the best grades, Rockwood says of those tough upper-level classes, but I took pride in working as hard as I possibly could and making it through.. The pain of being so close to winning it all must have hurt, but as she normally does, Rockwood could only think about how much this meant to her players, especially to her two seniors Colohan and Tucker. Are you lighting the way for others? I wish she were here to sing it, but the lyrics include the following: Ive made my choice Facebook gives people the power to. (The Light in Their Eyes, Ensign, November 2005.). That major put me in positions where I was uncomfortable and forced me to do things beyond what I thought I could do, she recalls. We live in a world in which our lives are busier, noisier, and more stressful than evera time when nothing stops or even slows down. New episode and podcast released each week, focused on the team the Cougars play. They play with heart, for the love of the game, and just for fun and enjoyment. Rockwood has also coached youth club programs, high school teams and the Utah Olympic Development Program. When the girls play their best and get the best results, it all comes together. My thought was I was going to get this club team to the point of where and if we do transition to an NCAA status that we will be ready and be prepared so that BYU isnt just starting at ground zero, Rockwood said. Along with that comes the challenge of determining who will play and how much. Without the light no man can see. It is our responsibility. We must choose our friends and those we associate with very carefully. [Stand Ye in Holy Places: Selected Sermons and Writings of President HaroldB. Lee (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1974), 115]. Before long, she was made a middle school supervisor for curriculum, discipline, and activities, and she gained greater influence in the schools athletics program. Everyone else on my team was really fast. All I can do is try and pass on what I have learned.. "In many ways, losing to Utah State may have saved their season," Smith said. I must admit that the first thing I thought when asked if I would be willing to speak was, Really? Do good anyway. . [9] In 2021 Rockwood led the Cougars to their first ever College Cup. minutes. As surely as there is God, there is Satan. At Waterford, Rockwood taught seventh- and eighth-grade PE classes and coached the high school girls soccer team. The milestone came in Rockwood's 26th season with the Cougars, putting No. Smith-Bretzing couldnt help but laugh when she thought about those early years. She was rated as the No. West Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year, BYU women's soccer clinches first-ever College Cup with 4-1 win over South Carolina, 'This feels right': 7 seasons later, BYU keeper Cassidy Smith has Cougars aiming for history, Colohan hat trick guides No. Devotional Drawn to the Light Jennifer Rockwood March 15, 2016 Audio 0:00/34:50 Speed 36:47 Full Video Highlight Video Are you lighting the way for others? The Cougars scored 25 goals in the next five matches, sparking a six-match winning streak and 12 of their next 13. As the leader of the firm's Global Power & Utilities Practice and Co-Head of the Private Capital Infrastructure Practice, she works across . What an amazing opportunity it is to stand before you today. ", "BYU women's soccer: Coach Rockwood learns to loosen up", "Reaching 300, one win at a time for BYU's Rockwood", UNC womens soccer upsets BYU to advance to Final Four, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jennifer_Rockwood&oldid=1138996076, High school soccer coaches in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Women's association footballers not categorized by position, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, *Club domestic league appearances and goals, This page was last edited on 12 February 2023, at 20:38. , this immediate success may have come as a surprise feel we are playing our best soccer..... Coached the high school teams and the Utah Olympic Development program has also coached youth club,... Html5 video, Estimated read time: 7-8 what an adventure some members of the game, and each spends. Off to a rough start you can imagine, it all comes together 2021 Rockwood led the Cougars their! 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