4 Trojans playing at 4-year level
A total of four former NIACC softball players are now playing at the four-year level.
Laken Lienhard is playing at University of St. Thomas, a NCAA Division I school in St. Paul, Minn. St. Thomas plays in the Summit League. Brianna McPoland is playing at Truman State University, a NCAA Division II school located in Kirksville, Mo.
Sydney Toman is at Trine University, a NCAA Division III school in Angola, Ind., and Rayvn Krachey is playing at Northwestern College, a NAIA school located in Orange City.
Lienhard hit .532 in ICCAC contests with 16 doubles, seven home runs and 31 RBIs. As a pitcher, Lienhard was 11-3 in league games with a 4.00 earned run average with 58 strikeouts and 20 walks in 71 2/3 innings pitched.
"Laken is someone who I'm not going to ever shy away from talking about how much she meant to NIACC Athletics, ever," NIACC coach Matt Egger said. "The first time I ever met her, it was just a given that kid is going to be successful in whatever she does.
"She's a natural born leader and not in a bad way. If you were lucky enough and walked on campus as a freshman, you instantly knew that if I follow what she does, I'm going to be good. I'm excited that she is chasing her dream playing college softball, and not just because that it is Division I, more because she always said that she wants to be challenged. Hopefully, it won't be long before her name is brought up for the hall of fame in NIACC Athletics. She worked and bought in and she deserves it."
McPoland hit .437 with three doubles and 11 RBIs in league play.
"Bri was a 'gamer' for sure," Egger said. "With her ability to block pitches and her durability, she pretty much caught every inning for us in her two years at NIACC.
"That's tough to do with the junior college schedule. That means no injuries and had herself ready to go for the season.
"She was a also kid of found out who she was as a hitter in her sophomore season and was good with it. I didn't try to do too much other than have competitive at-bats. She grew so much as a player and a person. I always say Bri is Bri. I can't wait to see what she does at Truman."
Toman hit .389 with 10 home runs, 32 RBIs and scored 26 runs in league games.
"Syd has legit power," Egger said. "She was one of the players who competed well in my first year and had her eyes set on moving on.
"Academically, she is one of the most organized and focused student-athletes I've been around. As a coach, you appreciate knowing everything is also being taken care of off the field. We talked during her sophomore year about schools and Trine came up a little later in the conversations, but I'm excited for her because I think it is a great fit academically and gives Syd a chance to continue to chase a national title."
Krachey hit .347 with four doubles, one home run and 17 RBIs in league play in the 2023 season.
"Ravyn helped change NIACC softball," Egger said. "She was one of our third-year players and I got the opportunity to watch her grow personally, athletically, and as a leader for two years.
"She took on wrestilng, which she hasn't done since like she was 8. I was all in for that because she needed to be challenged more. Including her with all the other graduated sophomores, Ravyn is someone who will be able to look back and say…'I helped change NIACC softball.' She will never admit it or talk about it but she was leading the country in hitting for the first three weeks or so of the year. And when we talked, she had no idea. She is going to have a great career at Northwestern, because she won't stop outworking people."
The 2023 NIACC softball team had a turnaround of 33 games in the win column from the 2022 to 2023 season and Egger gives a lot of credit to the sophomore class.
"Overall, there were a ton of stories about the sophomores that I can give you," Egger said, "even the ones that are at UNI and Iowa State just going to school that have finished their softball careers after here. I am proud of them, too.
"Going from 3 wins in year one to placing second in this league and hosting (by winning) the first regional tournament in NIACC history, to leading the country in doubles for most of the year, to having the accolades for all-Region, all-Academics, being ranked at the end of the season. My teams going forward will, hopefully, continue to build on what they accomplished. The 2023 team could be, coming from just me, should be thought of as, the changing point in the history of NIACC softball."
