Photo by: Justin Lafleur
Lenke’s Legacy: A Transformative Leader
12/14/2021 7:25:00 PM | Field Hockey, Student Athlete, Features, Flight 45
By: Justin Lafleur, Lehigh Sports Communications
During Lenke Havas' decorated career, she was more than just a five-time All-Patriot League honoree, three-time All-Region honoree and 2021 All-American.
Havas was a transformative leader who has been a centerpiece in the rise of Lehigh field hockey.
A native of Maastricht, the Netherlands, Havas' focus in high school was playing collegiate hockey in the United States. Little did she know that she would become one of the best, if not the best, player in Lehigh field hockey history… not just for her on-field play, but most importantly, as someone who is leaving a legacy of leadership in transforming the Mountain Hawks' culture.
"Lehigh came up pretty early in the recruiting process, along with a couple other schools," said Havas. "The conversations I had with the coaches early on eventually made the decision for me. What Coach Dallmeyer said about wanting to turn the program around, and for me to be an important part of that, sounded really inspiring.
"I wanted to be part of something bigger than myself."
That, she certainly has been.
"At one point, Lenke had shared that her decision was between a few Big Ten universities and Lehigh," said Lehigh head coach Caitlin Dallmeyer. "In the end, her desire to be the change, to be a transformational leader and player in an emerging program, won out over other experiences offered to her."
Havas was the first international recruit of Dallmeyer and (now associate head coach) Taylor Dyer.
"We spent hours pouring ourselves over film sent to us through recruiting companies to determine which athlete we thought could have an immediate impact in our program," said Dallmeyer. "Lenke stood out, as physically, she was stronger than the majority of our athletes even without any formal weight room training, and her skills were at a level that did not yet exist in our program."
Havas helped begin a pipeline of sorts from the Netherlands to Lehigh. The Mountain Hawks' fall, 2021 roster included four natives of the Netherlands: Havas, junior Sarah Bonthuis, sophomore Lotte Smorenburg and first-year Guusje Hogendoorn.
"Not until senior year [of high school] did the opportunity to play in the U.S. come onto my radar," said Havas. "An ex-teammate of my old club did the same thing. My parents and I had talked about it and knew it'd be something I'd really love."
They were right. Havas' transition to Lehigh as a first-year in 2017 featured an obvious adjustment, but she thrived.
"I think the U.S. as a sports culture is sometimes more focused on overall athleticism than specific field hockey skills," she said. "In the Netherlands, it's very skill-based and we don't do extra conditioning or strength off the field. It's purely focused on what we're doing on the field. In the beginning [at Lehigh], I had to adjust a little bit to the weight room and the running."
Havas came into Lehigh with a strong repertoire, which only got better and better over her five years in the Brown and White.
"I was mostly a left midfield in high school and sometimes even played on the forward line," she said. "Definitely never on the defensive line. When I got here, Coach put me in the center back position, so it was definitely a big change, but it fit really well with our team at the time."
Over Havas' career, she made an impact all over the field – playing primarily center back and center midfield. She finished with 73 points (third in program history) via 26 goals (tied for third) and 21 assists (tied for first). This past fall alone, Havas was named both Patriot League Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week, earning the league's Defensive Player of the Year award. She also became the program's first-ever four-time All-League honoree last spring, then made it five this fall after another first-team honor.
But Havas' greatest legacy has come in the intangibles of building LUFH's culture.
"Coach wanted to build a winning program and build a championship culture," said Havas. "Making that statement is really bold and super inspiring.
"She asked if I wanted to be part of the change."
The answer was an emphatic yes. Havas was sold from the beginning, but knew it would be a process. Results wouldn't happen overnight.
"Especially in the earlier years, we had to focus less on the results on the field because if you start focusing on that, it's hard to keep people encouraged and to keep going," said Havas. "We were celebrating the small successes a lot to make sure that in the future, we had those in mind and could go for those bigger successes."
An important component of Lehigh field hockey's culture has been everyone understanding and embracing their roles.
"From the bench to the starters, everyone knows our roles really well and everyone wants to be the best person they can be in that role," said Havas. "That also means everyone is bought into the same vision and working towards the same goals."
Remember how Havas moved to center back to begin her Lehigh career? She would later move to midfield, and her reaction was one of a true leader.
"I would always tell Lenke that I loved the idea of her in the midfield, but I needed to find a center back that could do the job in her place, and she needed to be fit enough to transition at the speed of the game we were working to play," said Dallmeyer.
"Lenke took that as a challenge. She not only worked harder to level up her fitness, but she also took on the role of mentor to her fellow defenders, to assist in their development, and help them earn their way into filling the center back role."
It was one, of many, examples of what has been working for the Lehigh field hockey program. In other words, the Mountain Hawks have brought in the right people and normalized behaviors of a winning culture.
"You have to be willing to put in a lot of unrecognized work," said Havas. "We were working as hard as a championship team, but our results weren't there yet because it's not something that happens overnight. I do think it takes people who are very persistent and really mentally tough who can work through a lot of adversity and still believe in the end goal."
Credit the coaching staff for bringing in the right people. Once those players arrive to campus, leaders like Havas help reinforce the vision described in the recruiting process through their actions.
"Putting in extra time on the field [is critical], along with setting high expectations for fitness levels, working on your personal skills and reaching out to teammates off the field – building those strong relationships so you can take and receive feedback," said Havas. "Those smaller behaviors were really important in setting us up for results on the field."
Havas and (fellow fifth-year) Drew Pecora have shared a similar vision to the coaching staff, and have always tried to relay that vision to the team.
"Especially in the beginning where there was more of a divide between people who were going to stick it out and people who weren't, we tried to look for the future generation and see who would stick with it," said Havas. "We always tried to be mentors and have people maintain the belief that we would get there eventually, to not give up, keep our heads down and keep working hard."
Keep working because of one word… belief.
"We believed in the program and we knew the program was eventually going to be successful," said Havas. "We wanted to keep relaying that to the people who came after us so we could build that strong foundation and culture that eventually allowed us to enjoy success."
There was obvious and understandable disappointment in losing that semifinal, 1-0, but there were no regrets. The Mountain Hawks left it all on the field.
"The competitor in me always wants more and of course, I wanted to win a championship in my last year," said Havas. "You're always shooting for the stars, but there's definitely no regrets. Coming in my first year, the goals were to make the tournament and to have a winning season, and we did that. I think we exceeded everyone's expectations in how we were able to play American. We held our own very well, we competed with them and if things would have been a little bit different, maybe we come out on top. That's how close it was.
"I'm super proud of how we played. That was definitely the overwhelming emotion after the game… pride."
Havas has so much pride in Lehigh field hockey's growth, and her role in something bigger than herself, that she jumped at the opportunity to come back for a fifth year of field hockey (while earning her graduate degree in applied economics).
"Lehigh has far exceeded all my expectations," said Havas. "If it hadn't, I wouldn't have stayed an extra year. I didn't even have to think about it when I heard the NCAA was allowing us to come back. I was like 'let's go… another one.' And I would probably stay a sixth year if I could."
When talking expectations, the feeling is mutual. Lehigh proved to be a perfect match.
"Lenke exceeded every expectation I had for her coming to Lehigh," said Dallmeyer. "I knew she would be talented, but I had no idea how she would continue to grow in talent at the rate she has, year after year, adding new elements to her game. She has been diligent in adjusting to our asks of her, always putting the team before herself."
Havas' time in uniform is now done, but her (and her class') impact will be long-lasting, due in large part to her team-first mentality.
"I hope our class will be thought of as the catalysts of change," she said. "I hope this wasn't just a winning season in the span of losing seasons, but this was the first winning season in the next infinite winning seasons. I hope this was the beginning of so much more."
"I don't believe any of our athletes are replaceable," said Dallmeyer. "Our athletes have significant meaning in different ways to our program, and when their time is done at Lehigh, they leave an unfillable void. However, more phenomenal athletes will come through our program, learn, grow and lead in ways that are authentic to them, and help our program move forward in new ways."
Havas' journey has come to a close, but a new and exciting chapter of Lehigh field hockey now opens.
"For me, this season was my end of Lehigh field hockey on the field, but I hope it's the beginning for everyone who is coming in after me – to keep winning and keep wanting more."
During Lenke Havas' decorated career, she was more than just a five-time All-Patriot League honoree, three-time All-Region honoree and 2021 All-American.
Havas was a transformative leader who has been a centerpiece in the rise of Lehigh field hockey.
A native of Maastricht, the Netherlands, Havas' focus in high school was playing collegiate hockey in the United States. Little did she know that she would become one of the best, if not the best, player in Lehigh field hockey history… not just for her on-field play, but most importantly, as someone who is leaving a legacy of leadership in transforming the Mountain Hawks' culture.
"Lehigh came up pretty early in the recruiting process, along with a couple other schools," said Havas. "The conversations I had with the coaches early on eventually made the decision for me. What Coach Dallmeyer said about wanting to turn the program around, and for me to be an important part of that, sounded really inspiring.
"I wanted to be part of something bigger than myself."
That, she certainly has been.
"At one point, Lenke had shared that her decision was between a few Big Ten universities and Lehigh," said Lehigh head coach Caitlin Dallmeyer. "In the end, her desire to be the change, to be a transformational leader and player in an emerging program, won out over other experiences offered to her."
Havas was the first international recruit of Dallmeyer and (now associate head coach) Taylor Dyer.
"We spent hours pouring ourselves over film sent to us through recruiting companies to determine which athlete we thought could have an immediate impact in our program," said Dallmeyer. "Lenke stood out, as physically, she was stronger than the majority of our athletes even without any formal weight room training, and her skills were at a level that did not yet exist in our program."
Havas helped begin a pipeline of sorts from the Netherlands to Lehigh. The Mountain Hawks' fall, 2021 roster included four natives of the Netherlands: Havas, junior Sarah Bonthuis, sophomore Lotte Smorenburg and first-year Guusje Hogendoorn.
"Not until senior year [of high school] did the opportunity to play in the U.S. come onto my radar," said Havas. "An ex-teammate of my old club did the same thing. My parents and I had talked about it and knew it'd be something I'd really love."
They were right. Havas' transition to Lehigh as a first-year in 2017 featured an obvious adjustment, but she thrived.
"I think the U.S. as a sports culture is sometimes more focused on overall athleticism than specific field hockey skills," she said. "In the Netherlands, it's very skill-based and we don't do extra conditioning or strength off the field. It's purely focused on what we're doing on the field. In the beginning [at Lehigh], I had to adjust a little bit to the weight room and the running."
Havas came into Lehigh with a strong repertoire, which only got better and better over her five years in the Brown and White.
"I was mostly a left midfield in high school and sometimes even played on the forward line," she said. "Definitely never on the defensive line. When I got here, Coach put me in the center back position, so it was definitely a big change, but it fit really well with our team at the time."
Over Havas' career, she made an impact all over the field – playing primarily center back and center midfield. She finished with 73 points (third in program history) via 26 goals (tied for third) and 21 assists (tied for first). This past fall alone, Havas was named both Patriot League Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week, earning the league's Defensive Player of the Year award. She also became the program's first-ever four-time All-League honoree last spring, then made it five this fall after another first-team honor.
On Tuesday, Havas was named a third team All-American, Lehigh field hockey's first All-American in nearly four decades.
But Havas' greatest legacy has come in the intangibles of building LUFH's culture.
"Coach wanted to build a winning program and build a championship culture," said Havas. "Making that statement is really bold and super inspiring.
"She asked if I wanted to be part of the change."
The answer was an emphatic yes. Havas was sold from the beginning, but knew it would be a process. Results wouldn't happen overnight.
"Especially in the earlier years, we had to focus less on the results on the field because if you start focusing on that, it's hard to keep people encouraged and to keep going," said Havas. "We were celebrating the small successes a lot to make sure that in the future, we had those in mind and could go for those bigger successes."
An important component of Lehigh field hockey's culture has been everyone understanding and embracing their roles.
"From the bench to the starters, everyone knows our roles really well and everyone wants to be the best person they can be in that role," said Havas. "That also means everyone is bought into the same vision and working towards the same goals."
Remember how Havas moved to center back to begin her Lehigh career? She would later move to midfield, and her reaction was one of a true leader.
"I would always tell Lenke that I loved the idea of her in the midfield, but I needed to find a center back that could do the job in her place, and she needed to be fit enough to transition at the speed of the game we were working to play," said Dallmeyer.
"Lenke took that as a challenge. She not only worked harder to level up her fitness, but she also took on the role of mentor to her fellow defenders, to assist in their development, and help them earn their way into filling the center back role."
It was one, of many, examples of what has been working for the Lehigh field hockey program. In other words, the Mountain Hawks have brought in the right people and normalized behaviors of a winning culture.
"You have to be willing to put in a lot of unrecognized work," said Havas. "We were working as hard as a championship team, but our results weren't there yet because it's not something that happens overnight. I do think it takes people who are very persistent and really mentally tough who can work through a lot of adversity and still believe in the end goal."
Credit the coaching staff for bringing in the right people. Once those players arrive to campus, leaders like Havas help reinforce the vision described in the recruiting process through their actions.
"Putting in extra time on the field [is critical], along with setting high expectations for fitness levels, working on your personal skills and reaching out to teammates off the field – building those strong relationships so you can take and receive feedback," said Havas. "Those smaller behaviors were really important in setting us up for results on the field."
Havas and (fellow fifth-year) Drew Pecora have shared a similar vision to the coaching staff, and have always tried to relay that vision to the team.
"Especially in the beginning where there was more of a divide between people who were going to stick it out and people who weren't, we tried to look for the future generation and see who would stick with it," said Havas. "We always tried to be mentors and have people maintain the belief that we would get there eventually, to not give up, keep our heads down and keep working hard."
Keep working because of one word… belief.
"We believed in the program and we knew the program was eventually going to be successful," said Havas. "We wanted to keep relaying that to the people who came after us so we could build that strong foundation and culture that eventually allowed us to enjoy success."
That success came in a significant way for Lehigh in 2021. The Mountain Hawks finished 11-7, their most wins (and first winning season) since 1994. Lehigh advanced to the Patriot League Tournament for the first time since 2011, finishing 4-2 and giving eventual league champion American all it could handle in the semifinals.
There was obvious and understandable disappointment in losing that semifinal, 1-0, but there were no regrets. The Mountain Hawks left it all on the field.
"The competitor in me always wants more and of course, I wanted to win a championship in my last year," said Havas. "You're always shooting for the stars, but there's definitely no regrets. Coming in my first year, the goals were to make the tournament and to have a winning season, and we did that. I think we exceeded everyone's expectations in how we were able to play American. We held our own very well, we competed with them and if things would have been a little bit different, maybe we come out on top. That's how close it was.
"I'm super proud of how we played. That was definitely the overwhelming emotion after the game… pride."
Havas has so much pride in Lehigh field hockey's growth, and her role in something bigger than herself, that she jumped at the opportunity to come back for a fifth year of field hockey (while earning her graduate degree in applied economics).
"Lehigh has far exceeded all my expectations," said Havas. "If it hadn't, I wouldn't have stayed an extra year. I didn't even have to think about it when I heard the NCAA was allowing us to come back. I was like 'let's go… another one.' And I would probably stay a sixth year if I could."
When talking expectations, the feeling is mutual. Lehigh proved to be a perfect match.
"Lenke exceeded every expectation I had for her coming to Lehigh," said Dallmeyer. "I knew she would be talented, but I had no idea how she would continue to grow in talent at the rate she has, year after year, adding new elements to her game. She has been diligent in adjusting to our asks of her, always putting the team before herself."
Havas' time in uniform is now done, but her (and her class') impact will be long-lasting, due in large part to her team-first mentality.
"I hope our class will be thought of as the catalysts of change," she said. "I hope this wasn't just a winning season in the span of losing seasons, but this was the first winning season in the next infinite winning seasons. I hope this was the beginning of so much more."
"I don't believe any of our athletes are replaceable," said Dallmeyer. "Our athletes have significant meaning in different ways to our program, and when their time is done at Lehigh, they leave an unfillable void. However, more phenomenal athletes will come through our program, learn, grow and lead in ways that are authentic to them, and help our program move forward in new ways."
Havas' journey has come to a close, but a new and exciting chapter of Lehigh field hockey now opens.
"For me, this season was my end of Lehigh field hockey on the field, but I hope it's the beginning for everyone who is coming in after me – to keep winning and keep wanting more."
Players Mentioned
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/ Field Hockey
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D/M
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