University of Delaware Athletics
Photo by: Mark Campbell
Patience Pays Off For Sydney Rhodes
11/1/2019 1:40:00 PM | Field Hockey
At 18 years old, away from home for the first time, with an exciting world in front of them, patience can be a difficult thing for college freshmen. Especially for student-athletes who have excelled at their sport all throughout high school.
But for Delaware senior goalie Sydney Rhodes, patience was the key to advancing her field hockey career to where it is today.
A native of Bel Air, Maryland, Rhodes was a four-year starter at C. Milton Wright High School, where her mother Janice was the head coach. When she arrived on campus at Delaware in the fall of 2015, however, the cage belonged to Emmeline Oltmans.
Oltmans was a two-time all-conference selection and regional All-American, in addition to guiding the Blue Hens to the National Championship in 2016. While being a backup was a change of pace for Rhodes, it ultimately gave her the opportunity to learn from an incredibly talented veteran netminder.
"I understood that my time would come when it was right, and until it did, I knew that I was going to push myself harder," Rhodes said. "I knew Emmeline was going to help me more so I could be at her skill level and then when she was gone, pick up where she left off."
"I think once she understood that it wasn't her time yet, based on the fact that she was not good enough yet, but there was a time frame laid out and a plan in place for her to become better, eventually become that starting goalie, she had to put the work in," head coach Rolf van de Kerkhof said. "And by her pushing our starting goalie, she would grow, and our starting goalie would appreciate it, and our starting goalie would then be a mentor to her."
After redshirting her freshman year, Rhodes saw action in 15 games across 2016 and 2017, including a remarkable .929 save percentage during her redshirt sophomore season. In 2018, with Oltmans graduated, Rhodes stepped into the starting role and ranked in the top 30 nationally in both save percentage and goals against average. She earned All-Colonial Athletic Association First Team honors as the Blue Hens won the CAA regular season championship.
This season, as the No. 12 Blue Hens sit atop the CAA standings headed into the final week of the season with a 12-3 record, Rhodes has started all but one game, recording a sparkling 0.90 GAA and 0.760 save percentage. As a fifth-year senior, she now has the opportunity to pay forward the mentorship to sophomore goalies Lizzie Gaebel and Becca Harbert.
"It allows her to say, okay I have to be a leader, even if I'm not starting," van de Kerkhof said. "Or I have to be a leader when I'm now the number one, and be a role model for others."
Rhodes notes that one of the areas she's grown the most in her time at Delaware is confidence, an crucial element of being an effective goalie at the Division I level.
"I definitely feel like I've grown more confident," Rhodes said. "Freshman year, I know I was very nervous to be playing at a college with such talented and awesome players. But now, as a fifth year, I've really become just calm and accepting. Every game I just have such a clear head. I want to be the best for [my teammates], and I know I can be."
"Confidence has happened to her because she put the work in," van de Kerkhof said. "She reflected on it. She allowed people to make her better, to challenge her. She learned from her ups and her downs. For the most part, she was humble in her growth, knowing that it would take time."
Excellent defensive teams don't happen because of a goalie alone, the defensive players in front of her must also play as a cohesive unit. Rhodes' confidence in goal contributes significantly to building that trust with her backs.
"As a former goalie myself, I know that nobody is going to play with me if they don't trust me," van de Kerkhof said. "You have to make the saves you're supposed to make, therefore you have to understand what you're supposed to do in what situation. You've got to remain calm, because if you are loud and panicking, it will spread quickly like wildfire through your defensive unit. A good goalie needs to be doing her job and at the same time help others to do their job better. That's what Sydney has done over time."
The Blue Hens have been a stellar defensive team this season, recording six shutouts and allowing just 1.13 goals per game. Delaware faces its biggest game of the season on Friday, Nov. 1, a matchup with reigning CAA champion William & Mary that will essentially decide this year's regular season championship and the No. 1 seed for the CAA tournament.
While a bright-eyed freshman Rhodes may not have been ready for a moment like this in 2015, her patience and hard work have paid off for the her and the Blue Hens to be confident going into any game.
"It's paid a great deal for me, especially this season," Rhodes said. "It was hard work, it was a lot of patience with Emmeline, and I did not mind it because she honestly was the best thing that helped me in this program, being behind her for three years."
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But for Delaware senior goalie Sydney Rhodes, patience was the key to advancing her field hockey career to where it is today.
A native of Bel Air, Maryland, Rhodes was a four-year starter at C. Milton Wright High School, where her mother Janice was the head coach. When she arrived on campus at Delaware in the fall of 2015, however, the cage belonged to Emmeline Oltmans.
Oltmans was a two-time all-conference selection and regional All-American, in addition to guiding the Blue Hens to the National Championship in 2016. While being a backup was a change of pace for Rhodes, it ultimately gave her the opportunity to learn from an incredibly talented veteran netminder.
"I understood that my time would come when it was right, and until it did, I knew that I was going to push myself harder," Rhodes said. "I knew Emmeline was going to help me more so I could be at her skill level and then when she was gone, pick up where she left off."
"I think once she understood that it wasn't her time yet, based on the fact that she was not good enough yet, but there was a time frame laid out and a plan in place for her to become better, eventually become that starting goalie, she had to put the work in," head coach Rolf van de Kerkhof said. "And by her pushing our starting goalie, she would grow, and our starting goalie would appreciate it, and our starting goalie would then be a mentor to her."
After redshirting her freshman year, Rhodes saw action in 15 games across 2016 and 2017, including a remarkable .929 save percentage during her redshirt sophomore season. In 2018, with Oltmans graduated, Rhodes stepped into the starting role and ranked in the top 30 nationally in both save percentage and goals against average. She earned All-Colonial Athletic Association First Team honors as the Blue Hens won the CAA regular season championship.
This season, as the No. 12 Blue Hens sit atop the CAA standings headed into the final week of the season with a 12-3 record, Rhodes has started all but one game, recording a sparkling 0.90 GAA and 0.760 save percentage. As a fifth-year senior, she now has the opportunity to pay forward the mentorship to sophomore goalies Lizzie Gaebel and Becca Harbert.
"It allows her to say, okay I have to be a leader, even if I'm not starting," van de Kerkhof said. "Or I have to be a leader when I'm now the number one, and be a role model for others."
Rhodes notes that one of the areas she's grown the most in her time at Delaware is confidence, an crucial element of being an effective goalie at the Division I level.
"I definitely feel like I've grown more confident," Rhodes said. "Freshman year, I know I was very nervous to be playing at a college with such talented and awesome players. But now, as a fifth year, I've really become just calm and accepting. Every game I just have such a clear head. I want to be the best for [my teammates], and I know I can be."
"Confidence has happened to her because she put the work in," van de Kerkhof said. "She reflected on it. She allowed people to make her better, to challenge her. She learned from her ups and her downs. For the most part, she was humble in her growth, knowing that it would take time."
Excellent defensive teams don't happen because of a goalie alone, the defensive players in front of her must also play as a cohesive unit. Rhodes' confidence in goal contributes significantly to building that trust with her backs.
"As a former goalie myself, I know that nobody is going to play with me if they don't trust me," van de Kerkhof said. "You have to make the saves you're supposed to make, therefore you have to understand what you're supposed to do in what situation. You've got to remain calm, because if you are loud and panicking, it will spread quickly like wildfire through your defensive unit. A good goalie needs to be doing her job and at the same time help others to do their job better. That's what Sydney has done over time."
The Blue Hens have been a stellar defensive team this season, recording six shutouts and allowing just 1.13 goals per game. Delaware faces its biggest game of the season on Friday, Nov. 1, a matchup with reigning CAA champion William & Mary that will essentially decide this year's regular season championship and the No. 1 seed for the CAA tournament.
While a bright-eyed freshman Rhodes may not have been ready for a moment like this in 2015, her patience and hard work have paid off for the her and the Blue Hens to be confident going into any game.
"It's paid a great deal for me, especially this season," Rhodes said. "It was hard work, it was a lot of patience with Emmeline, and I did not mind it because she honestly was the best thing that helped me in this program, being behind her for three years."
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Players Mentioned
Goalkeeper
/ Field Hockey
Goalkeeper
/ Field Hockey
Goalkeeper
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Goalkeeper
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