NORFOLK, Va. – Head coach Andrew Griffiths of the Old Dominion field hockey program has announced the signing of seven new student-athletes that will be members of the Monarchs in the fall of 2020.
The field hockey class of 2020 includes Lauren Holbrook, Delphine Marien, Shannon Quaile, Manon Scholl, Rina Tsioles, Jolene Ulichney and Eveline Westera.
"I'm excited for this class to join our program, and for the impact they will have on the future of ODU Field Hockey and the University," Griffiths said of his new recruits. "We have worked hard over the past few years and months to evaluate and to find the right mix of players, personalities and students. This is a group of individuals with a high level of athleticism and skill. A number of them are also leaders in their own school communities. Each of them has great potential, and we are excited to watch them work hard together with our team when they get here on campus."
The Monarchs will welcome three student athletes from Pennsylvania, two from overseas and two more from right here in Virginia.
Lauren Holbrook
Position: Midfield
Hometown: Yorktown, Va.
High School: Tabb High School
Club Team: Focus Field Hockey
Lauren Holbrook is a native of nearby Yorktown and attends Tabb High School, where she has compiled an impressive list of accolades. The two-year team captain was given the 2019 Coach's Award, was named First Team All-State and earned All-Region honors this past season after earning an All-Region nod in her junior year as well. She also was an All-Conference selection after her sophomore campaign in 2017.
Holbrook has led the Tigers to four semifinal appearances and two final appearances in the state tournament, winning the championship in 2016. She is also a two-year selection to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Academic Team.
When she's not playing field hockey, Holbrook could often be found on the track, as she is a two-time track region champion and a two-time track conference champion. She was a triple-sport athlete in each of her four years in high school. In the classroom, Holbrook is a member of the Math Honor Society, the treasurer of her National Honor Society branch and has earned the highest honors in all four of her high school years.
Head Coach Andrew Griffiths on Holbrook:
"Lauren is a tremendously hard worker and determined competitor on the field. She has natural leadership qualities, makes smart, simple decisions on the field and connects well with the players around her."
Associate Head Coach Natalie Holder on Holbrook:
"I have worked with Lauren for years now at many of our camps and clinics and she has been a great local supporter of our program. It has been awesome to watch her hockey development, but also see her leadership abilities mature along the way. Her work ethic is exceptional and I know this will continue when she joins ODU"
Why Holbrook chose ODU:
"I chose to play field hockey at Old Dominion because I love the school's atmosphere as well as the high intensity play and the amazing coaching staff. ODU is an incredible school that offers everything I love, field hockey and an opportunity for me to earn a great education."
Delphine Marien
Position: Forward/Midfield
Hometown: Kapellen, Belgium
High School: Sint-Michielscollege Brasschaat
Club Team: KHC Dragons
A native of Belgium, Delphine Marien comes to Old Dominion with experience at the national level. In her young career, at the age of 15, she was on the national youth teams from U15-U18 and she was named captain of the National U15 team. This past summer in the 6 Nations Field Hockey Tournament, Marien scored six goals, the most on her squad.
Marien was a member of the Girls Under 14 team that won the 2015 Belgian Championship. She also led her U16 and U19 teams to the semifinals of the Belgian Championships years later.
Head Coach Andrew Griffiths on Marien:
"Delphine is a fast, dynamic forward who makes an impact on the field. She can score goals, but also has the ability to set up scoring opportunities. She will fit in well with our aggressive style of play, attacking with speed and also in our aggressive press."
Associate Head Coach Natalie Holder on Marien:
"Delphine is a very dangerous attacker who suits our style of play here at ODU. She has incredible stick skills and creativity upfront and I know she will generate a great deal of attacking outcomes for our team. We are looking forward to helping her with the transition from Belgium to our family here at ODU."
Why Marien chose ODU:
"I chose ODU because of the facilities, both field hockey and the campus, that I saw in pictures. Also, I wanted to start a new adventure in American, and it is something I am really looking forward to."
Shannon Quaile
Position: Back/Midfield
Hometown: Havertown, Pa.
High School: Haverford
Club Team: Main Line Mayhem
Shannon Quaile is coming off of a 2019 season in which she was selected to the All-Central League First Team, the Philadelphia Senior All-Star Team and was named Haverford's team MVP.
She was a three-year varsity starter for her high school and was named an All-Delco Honorable Mention after her junior year. In the classroom, Quaile is a four-year honors student, a member of the National Honors Society and a member of Best Buddies.
Head Coach Andrew Griffiths on Quaile:
"Shannon is a fast, athletic player, who reads the game well. She has played mostly in the back, but with her skill set and athleticism, she is versatile. Aside from being a tough defender, she can also be a threat to join the attack on the outside of the field when she sees space."
Associate Head Coach Natalie Holder on Quaile:
"Shannon is a very determined and smart player who reads game situations very well. She is a dynamic athlete and has an excellent ability to play strong defense which is a key factor for our success here at ODU."
Why Quaile chose ODU:
"I chose Old Dominion because of the challenging atmosphere. This school will push me in both academics and athletics to be the best possible. It's going to be a great fit because of the talented and distinguished coaching staff, state of the art training facilities, and I'll be able to pursue my career path as a speech language pathologist. I can't wait... Go Monarchs!"
Manon Scholl
Position: Forward/Midfield
Hometown: Virginia Beach, Va.
High School:First Colonial High School
Club Team: Saints Hockey Rocks
Manon Scholl, a local from Virginia Beach, joins the ODU field hockey program after playing four years at the varsity level in high school. While with the First Colonial High School, Scholl was named a captain this past year, and helped lead her team to the state championships in 2018. That same year, she was a Second Team All-State selection and was named as an alternate on the Futures team.
She spent her freshman year at Green Run High School, where she won her team's MVP award as well. With her club team, Saints Hockey Rocks, she helped lead her squad to sixth-place finishes in both the Regional Club Championships and the National Club Championships.
Head Coach Andrew Griffiths on Scholl:
"Manon is a powerful, athletic attacking player with a direct mindset. She loves to go straight to goal and has a strong shot. After her success in high school and club programs, she has the tools to make an impact at the collegiate level."
Associate Head Coach Natalie Holder on Scholl:
"Manon is a very dangerous attacker with her strength, skills and decision making inside the circle. She has a great ability to create outcomes both for herself and her teammates. I have always enjoyed working with her at many of our clinics and can't wait to work with her daily in the fall"
Why Scholl chose ODU:
"I chose to play hockey at ODU for a few reasons. First, ODU is about a 30-minute drive from my hometown of Virginia Beach, so I will never be out of touch with my family. Secondly, Old Dominion's program was great when I committed, and it continues to get better and better. Also, the coaching staff at ODU was so welcoming and I have great confidence that with their help, I will continue to develop as a hockey player."
Rina Tsioles
Position:Midfield
Hometown: Kingston, Pa.
High School: Wyoming Valley West
Club Team: Electric Surge
Rina Tsioles is a native of Pennsylvania and is coming off of a season where she led Wyoming Valley West to the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) 2A State Championship and was named the Citizens' Voice Player of the Year.
In her career, she has earned PIAA First Team All-State and MAX Field Hockey All-Pa./N.J. Region Second Team honors. She was also named a Top-50 Player and a Pa./N.J. Regional player to watch, according to MAX Field Hockey.
The four-year letterwinner in field hockey has won four District 2 Class AA Championships with Wyoming Valley West, is a NFC Selection and was also named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) High School National Academic Squad.
Off the field hockey field, Tsioles is a three-year letterwinner in track and field and a member of the National Honor Society.
Head Coach Andrew Griffiths on Tsioles:
"Rina is an influential player in the midfield, who can match up against the very best. She controls the flow of play with smart positioning and passing, and has an attacking mindset in her decision-making. Her defensive footwork is also excellent and she's a determined, focused athlete."
Associate Head Coach Natalie Holder on Tsioles:
"Rina is an outstanding athlete who has incredible game awareness on both side sides of the ball. She dominated at the high school level with her skills and also her work ethic and I am excited to watch her transition to the college level of play. I have no doubt she will be a huge asset to our team"
Why Tsioles chose ODU:
"I chose ODU because of its high-level athletics and welcoming environment. When I stepped on campus it felt like home."
Jolene Ulichney
Position: Forward
Hometown: Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
High School: James M. Coughlin High School
Club Team: Electric Surge
Jolene Ulichney is the third Pennsylvanian in ODU's 2020 recruiting class, as she hails from Wilkes-Barre. She is coming off of a senior season where she led the James M. Coughlin High School field hockey team to a Wyoming Valley Conference District II Class 3A Championship following a year where her team finished as conference runner-up in Class 2A. She was also selected First Team Pennsylvania Coaches Association Class 2A All-State for the third-consecutive year and First Team Citizen's Voice All-Star, also for the third-straight campaign.
MAX Field Hockey has also recognized the four-year letterwinner and three-time team captain, naming her a Player to Watch in both 2017 and 2019, and selecting her for its Top-100 list in 2018. Ulichney was also named Times Leader Second Team All-Star in both her sophomore and junior seasons.
Off the field, Ulichney has been a member of the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) for three years, and has earned second place (2018-19) and third place (2016-17) at the FBLA Region 16 Leadership Conference. She is a member of the National Honor Society and an Honor Roll student.
In the spring, Ulichney was a member of her high school's lacrosse team, where she was a three-time letterwinner.
Head Coach Andrew Griffiths on Ulichney:
"Jolene is a skillful player and a dynamic athlete. She has excellent ball control skills, a natural attacking instinct and she likes to play direct to goal, but also can play smaller combination passing, or open up to space on the side of the field."
Associate Head Coach Natalie Holder on Ulichney:
"Jolene is a creative and exciting player to watch. She has a natural attacking mindset and excellent stick skills to create outcomes upfront. She is also very coachable to adapt her skill set wherever needed. She is a very positive and hardworking player and I am very excited to welcome her to our team"
Why Ulichney chose ODU:
"Stepping onto the ODU campus instantly gave me a feeling of home. Seeing the welcoming smiles and beautiful surroundings, I knew this is where I wanted to continue my journey."
Eveline "Fien" Westera
Position: Midfielder/Defender
Hometown: Dordrecht, The Netherlands
Previous School: Insula College
Club Team: DMHC
Eveline Westera, the younger sister of current Monarch Ilse, will join her sister at ODU next fall. She has years of field hockey experience, first playing the sport at the age of seven.
Her native country has groomed her to play at the highest level since she was the age of 12, where Westera was selected to play trials for the Zuid-Holland district team, a team designed to prepare its players to play on the national level, twice. As an U12 player, she won the technique championships on her club team, scoring highest in different technical elements and in the 2014-2015 season, she was named captain of her U12 team.
Three years later in the 2017-2018 season, she led her team to win the International HDM Easter Tournament. The following season, Eveline was chosen by her teammates to be co-captain and she was the top-scorer of the team, with 13 goals that season.
Head Coach Andrew Griffiths on Westera:
"Fien is a versatile player, who has experience in a number of positions. She is skillful and smart on the ball, and her reach and length makes her difficult to play against. We are excited to have her join her sister on the team here at ODU."
Associate Head Coach Natalie Holder on Westera:
"I'm very happy that Eveline will be joining our team and have the opportunity to play alongside her sister. She has excellent game knowledge and hockey experience from playing at a high level in the Netherlands and I'm excited to watch her transition to the American college system."
Why Westera chose ODU:
"I chose ODU because of the great field hockey facilities and coaching staff. I'm also excited to start my American adventure and playing on the same team as my sister."
Field Hockey Announces Recruiting Class of 2020
Head Coach Andrew Griffiths announced ODU Field Hockey's Recruiting Class of 2020