That "Familie" Feeling
8/3/2021 5:38:00 PM | Field Hockey, Student Athlete, Features
By: Justin Lafleur, Lehigh Sports Communications
This fall, the Lehigh field hockey roster will feature four natives of the Netherlands.
While four years ago, Lenke Havas became the first in program history, today, the pipeline is as strong as ever. It's a pipeline that has even persevered through a pandemic – a testament to Lehigh and the field hockey program.
This fall, Havas (Maastricht) is returning for her fifth year, as she's enrolled in graduate school. Junior Sarah Bonthuis (Oud-Beijerland), sophomore Lotte Smorenburg (Rotterdam) and first-year Guusje Hogendoorn (Apeldoorn) also call the Netherlands home. How did they find Lehigh?
Their stories are similar in some ways, but different in others.
"Every Dutch student who would like to study in the United States pairs with an agency in the Netherlands," said Havas. "The agency is in charge of matching you with different universities. I had to put together a video of me playing, and had to take the SAT test and TOEFL test, which is an English International test."
From there, a profile of Havas was created by the agency, which was sent to different college coaches across the United States.
"Then, it's basically just a waiting game to see what coaches reach out and are interested in having you on their team," said Havas. "I had six or seven schools who said they might have a spot for me.
"Lehigh was one of the first schools to show interest."
The Mountain Hawks' philosophy of recruiting in the Netherlands is evolving, as it is with all student-athletes.
"We are diligent in finding those that don't just fit our culture, but also work to enhance it," said Lehigh head coach Caitlin Dallmeyer. "It requires a lot of work to find a student-athlete who is willing to take a hard look at our program, and choose to not just see the potential growth of the program, but also want to be the growth of the program."
Havas was very much drawn to Lehigh for that very reason – the impact she could make on the trajectory of a rebuilding program (something she has certainly gone on to do).
"It wasn't too hard of a decision to choose Lehigh because the Skype conversations with Coach sounded very appealing," said Havas. "It felt like it was for a bigger picture… something bigger than myself. A lot of other conversations [with other schools] mentioned expecting to be champions every season. What I liked about Lehigh was how there was so much room to grow, and so much room to build a better program."
From the beginning, Havas planned on making a decision fully virtually – relying heavily on long and thorough conversations with college coaches.
"It was mostly the Lehigh coaching staff telling me about campus, about the team and about the culture," she said. "I did the same with other schools. Eventually, you get some offers for schools and it's time to decide."
Two years after Havas, Bonthuis found herself in a similar situation – going through an agency to get her name out to Division I field hockey programs in the United States.
The only, but significant, difference for Bonthuis is she decided to visit.
"In November of my final year in high school, my dad and I visited schools so I could see the campuses, the environments and the people there," said Sarah. "I had to make a decision within a week. When I flew back, my dad and I had seven hours, so I made a list of all the pros and cons.
"When we arrived in Amsterdam, the decision was made."
Lehigh appeals to prospective student-athletes in so many ways. Havas confidently chose Lehigh virtually, while Bonthuis also decided on Lehigh following an in-person visit.
"The campus is beautiful," said Bonthuis. "When I was walking, I could see myself walking there [next year]."
On her visit, Bonthuis only met the two Dutch players on the team at the time – Havas, along with Sofie Meijlink (who's from De Bilt).
"I was sold," said Bonthuis. "Lehigh was the place I had to go."
When compared with Havas' virtual recruiting, Bonthuis' experience was a different path to the same result.
"Sarah had done a tour of U.S. schools, so we met and engaged with her and her family," said Dallmeyer. "We then planned a recruiting trip to the Netherlands and were able to see her again in her own playing environment, which was such a great experience for us."
The similarities and differences of recruiting Havas and Bonthuis truly exemplified the unique process of recruiting from the Netherlands.
"Every day, we receive several profiles from different agencies highlighting international athletes who want to come to the United States," said Dallmeyer. "We sort through them and first find the student-athletes who are academically qualified, then go on to evaluate game film. Game film can be tricky, as it's easy to only show your strengths and hide your weaknesses by leaving them out.
"You can't get a realistic picture of an athlete from a few clips of film, therefore, there is a large risk associated with the process. We had to base our decision on bringing Lenke to Lehigh off of film, reference checks and Skype calls (now Zoom calls)."
For Bonthuis, having Havas on the roster from her own country and culture certainly helped. And with Sarah's decision to come to Lehigh came momentum, which has seen Smorenburg and Hogendoorn follow in her footsteps over the ensuing two years.
Because of the momentum, there is now a mentor from the Netherlands waiting on campus (for everyone except Havas, since she was the first).
"Lenke had the strongest mentoring role for me during my first week in the United States," said Bonthuis. "She also helped a lot with preparation; we met during the summer [heading into my first year] and she went over the run test and what I had to pack. She sent me this entire list of things I shouldn't forget to bring."
Once Bonthuis arrived to campus for preseason, she transitioned well. But even so, it can be scary being so far from home.
That's especially where Havas' mentorship came into play.
"I slept in her room during the first week of preseason," said Bonthuis. "She said whenever you want to talk about something, just talk to me. We can have our conversations in Dutch during the night because I'm sure you must miss that with your family.
"She was there for me, incredibly."
The language barrier for the Dutch is a bit of a challenge, but not too bad, as English is taught in the Netherlands from a young age.
"Everyone in the Netherlands speaks Dutch, but because no one else in the world speaks it, we have to learn different languages," said Bonthuis. "Because English is the number one language in the world, we start learning English really early."
Bonthuis was in middle school when she started formal English lessons.
"I did Bilingual in high school, so I had six years of Bilingual education (high school starts at age 12 in the Netherlands), which helped me a lot," said Bonthuis. "When I came to the United States, I was really good at the educational English; I knew what everyone was saying in my classes. I had to figure out how to communicate on the field, but I learned that within two weeks.
"You start talking with your teammates and your friends and it happens without you even knowing it."
With the addition of Smorenburg, Sarah's role reversed.
"Sarah has been doing a great job with Lotte," said Havas. "I've been much less needed. I definitely hope that will continue in the future; it's a great opportunity to be a mentor as the older person. It's also great for the incomer to have this anchor on the team, who can see things from their perspective.
"I hope it will continue and I think it will. Hopefully, Lotte will pass it down to Guusje and Guusje will pass it down to the next one."
It says a lot about Lehigh, and the people at Lehigh, that the Netherlands pipeline is only growing stronger amidst a pandemic (a time when it's only natural to feel apprehensive about traveling a long way from home). A large reason for that is the coaching staff, who cares deeply about their student-athletes as people.
"[In March of 2020], I decided to go home right after spring break and it proved to be the right decision," said Havas, referring to Lehigh initially announcing a two-week shutdown before it quickly turned into the rest of the semester as the gravity of the pandemic became more clear. "I felt super supportive from the team and coaches. They were on the side of going home and that it was okay if I couldn't make it back in time. That this situation was probably better to be home.
"They were totally right."
Havas felt supported in whatever decision she made.
"It wasn't as hard to make the decision to go home because I knew they were supportive of it and understood," she said.
Similar thoughts went through Bonthuis' head, who had begun spring break in San Francisco before returning to campus when the news broke.
"I was on the phone with my dad and he thought this wasn't going to be over in two weeks," said Sarah. "I just want to be home in crazy times like this, so I immediately texted Coach to say I'm going home. She said it was a smart decision and she just wanted me to be safe and home with my loved ones.
"Coach has been so supportive during this entire stretch – also when I said that I wanted to be remote for the fall (2020) semester," Bonthuis continued. "It felt like you couldn't make the wrong decision.
"You have to do what's best for you, and something that's beneficial for you – both mentally and physically."
College is an opportunity to grow in so many ways, and Lehigh provides that environment for all its student-athletes. The reputation of Lehigh is growing within the field hockey community, not only domestically, but also internationally.
"Over the last two years, I've had a bunch of girls who know me, see me on Instagram or know my mom or dad, reach out saying they've been thinking about going to the U.S. and asking what I recommend," said Bonthuis. "The first thing I say is do it. It's honestly one of the best things that's happened to me. Being at Lehigh, every day, I keep saying to myself wow, this is such an adventure.
"I'm so lucky to be going through this alongside an amazing team that feels like family."
This fall, the Lehigh field hockey roster will feature four natives of the Netherlands.
While four years ago, Lenke Havas became the first in program history, today, the pipeline is as strong as ever. It's a pipeline that has even persevered through a pandemic – a testament to Lehigh and the field hockey program.
This fall, Havas (Maastricht) is returning for her fifth year, as she's enrolled in graduate school. Junior Sarah Bonthuis (Oud-Beijerland), sophomore Lotte Smorenburg (Rotterdam) and first-year Guusje Hogendoorn (Apeldoorn) also call the Netherlands home. How did they find Lehigh?
Their stories are similar in some ways, but different in others.
"Every Dutch student who would like to study in the United States pairs with an agency in the Netherlands," said Havas. "The agency is in charge of matching you with different universities. I had to put together a video of me playing, and had to take the SAT test and TOEFL test, which is an English International test."
From there, a profile of Havas was created by the agency, which was sent to different college coaches across the United States.
"Then, it's basically just a waiting game to see what coaches reach out and are interested in having you on their team," said Havas. "I had six or seven schools who said they might have a spot for me.
"Lehigh was one of the first schools to show interest."
The Mountain Hawks' philosophy of recruiting in the Netherlands is evolving, as it is with all student-athletes.
"We are diligent in finding those that don't just fit our culture, but also work to enhance it," said Lehigh head coach Caitlin Dallmeyer. "It requires a lot of work to find a student-athlete who is willing to take a hard look at our program, and choose to not just see the potential growth of the program, but also want to be the growth of the program."
Havas was very much drawn to Lehigh for that very reason – the impact she could make on the trajectory of a rebuilding program (something she has certainly gone on to do).
"It wasn't too hard of a decision to choose Lehigh because the Skype conversations with Coach sounded very appealing," said Havas. "It felt like it was for a bigger picture… something bigger than myself. A lot of other conversations [with other schools] mentioned expecting to be champions every season. What I liked about Lehigh was how there was so much room to grow, and so much room to build a better program."
From the beginning, Havas planned on making a decision fully virtually – relying heavily on long and thorough conversations with college coaches.
"It was mostly the Lehigh coaching staff telling me about campus, about the team and about the culture," she said. "I did the same with other schools. Eventually, you get some offers for schools and it's time to decide."
Two years after Havas, Bonthuis found herself in a similar situation – going through an agency to get her name out to Division I field hockey programs in the United States.
The only, but significant, difference for Bonthuis is she decided to visit.
"In November of my final year in high school, my dad and I visited schools so I could see the campuses, the environments and the people there," said Sarah. "I had to make a decision within a week. When I flew back, my dad and I had seven hours, so I made a list of all the pros and cons.
"When we arrived in Amsterdam, the decision was made."
Lehigh appeals to prospective student-athletes in so many ways. Havas confidently chose Lehigh virtually, while Bonthuis also decided on Lehigh following an in-person visit.
"The campus is beautiful," said Bonthuis. "When I was walking, I could see myself walking there [next year]."
On her visit, Bonthuis only met the two Dutch players on the team at the time – Havas, along with Sofie Meijlink (who's from De Bilt).
"I was sold," said Bonthuis. "Lehigh was the place I had to go."
When compared with Havas' virtual recruiting, Bonthuis' experience was a different path to the same result.
"Sarah had done a tour of U.S. schools, so we met and engaged with her and her family," said Dallmeyer. "We then planned a recruiting trip to the Netherlands and were able to see her again in her own playing environment, which was such a great experience for us."
The similarities and differences of recruiting Havas and Bonthuis truly exemplified the unique process of recruiting from the Netherlands.
"Every day, we receive several profiles from different agencies highlighting international athletes who want to come to the United States," said Dallmeyer. "We sort through them and first find the student-athletes who are academically qualified, then go on to evaluate game film. Game film can be tricky, as it's easy to only show your strengths and hide your weaknesses by leaving them out.
"You can't get a realistic picture of an athlete from a few clips of film, therefore, there is a large risk associated with the process. We had to base our decision on bringing Lenke to Lehigh off of film, reference checks and Skype calls (now Zoom calls)."
For Bonthuis, having Havas on the roster from her own country and culture certainly helped. And with Sarah's decision to come to Lehigh came momentum, which has seen Smorenburg and Hogendoorn follow in her footsteps over the ensuing two years.
Because of the momentum, there is now a mentor from the Netherlands waiting on campus (for everyone except Havas, since she was the first).
"Lenke had the strongest mentoring role for me during my first week in the United States," said Bonthuis. "She also helped a lot with preparation; we met during the summer [heading into my first year] and she went over the run test and what I had to pack. She sent me this entire list of things I shouldn't forget to bring."
Once Bonthuis arrived to campus for preseason, she transitioned well. But even so, it can be scary being so far from home.
That's especially where Havas' mentorship came into play.
"I slept in her room during the first week of preseason," said Bonthuis. "She said whenever you want to talk about something, just talk to me. We can have our conversations in Dutch during the night because I'm sure you must miss that with your family.
"She was there for me, incredibly."
The language barrier for the Dutch is a bit of a challenge, but not too bad, as English is taught in the Netherlands from a young age.
"Everyone in the Netherlands speaks Dutch, but because no one else in the world speaks it, we have to learn different languages," said Bonthuis. "Because English is the number one language in the world, we start learning English really early."
Bonthuis was in middle school when she started formal English lessons.
"I did Bilingual in high school, so I had six years of Bilingual education (high school starts at age 12 in the Netherlands), which helped me a lot," said Bonthuis. "When I came to the United States, I was really good at the educational English; I knew what everyone was saying in my classes. I had to figure out how to communicate on the field, but I learned that within two weeks.
"You start talking with your teammates and your friends and it happens without you even knowing it."
With the addition of Smorenburg, Sarah's role reversed.
"Sarah has been doing a great job with Lotte," said Havas. "I've been much less needed. I definitely hope that will continue in the future; it's a great opportunity to be a mentor as the older person. It's also great for the incomer to have this anchor on the team, who can see things from their perspective.
"I hope it will continue and I think it will. Hopefully, Lotte will pass it down to Guusje and Guusje will pass it down to the next one."
It says a lot about Lehigh, and the people at Lehigh, that the Netherlands pipeline is only growing stronger amidst a pandemic (a time when it's only natural to feel apprehensive about traveling a long way from home). A large reason for that is the coaching staff, who cares deeply about their student-athletes as people.
"[In March of 2020], I decided to go home right after spring break and it proved to be the right decision," said Havas, referring to Lehigh initially announcing a two-week shutdown before it quickly turned into the rest of the semester as the gravity of the pandemic became more clear. "I felt super supportive from the team and coaches. They were on the side of going home and that it was okay if I couldn't make it back in time. That this situation was probably better to be home.
"They were totally right."
Havas felt supported in whatever decision she made.
"It wasn't as hard to make the decision to go home because I knew they were supportive of it and understood," she said.
Similar thoughts went through Bonthuis' head, who had begun spring break in San Francisco before returning to campus when the news broke.
"I was on the phone with my dad and he thought this wasn't going to be over in two weeks," said Sarah. "I just want to be home in crazy times like this, so I immediately texted Coach to say I'm going home. She said it was a smart decision and she just wanted me to be safe and home with my loved ones.
"Coach has been so supportive during this entire stretch – also when I said that I wanted to be remote for the fall (2020) semester," Bonthuis continued. "It felt like you couldn't make the wrong decision.
"You have to do what's best for you, and something that's beneficial for you – both mentally and physically."
College is an opportunity to grow in so many ways, and Lehigh provides that environment for all its student-athletes. The reputation of Lehigh is growing within the field hockey community, not only domestically, but also internationally.
"Over the last two years, I've had a bunch of girls who know me, see me on Instagram or know my mom or dad, reach out saying they've been thinking about going to the U.S. and asking what I recommend," said Bonthuis. "The first thing I say is do it. It's honestly one of the best things that's happened to me. Being at Lehigh, every day, I keep saying to myself wow, this is such an adventure.
"I'm so lucky to be going through this alongside an amazing team that feels like family."
Players Mentioned
M/F
/ Field Hockey
D/M
/ Field Hockey
D/M
/ Field Hockey
F
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