European experience helps senior midfielder adjust game

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Born into an athletic family with talent and passion for field hockey in the Netherlands, it is only natural that Sabine van den Assem proudly displays her love and dedication to the sport every time she steps out onto Ralph Young Field.

Described by her teammates as a natural leader on the field, the senior midfielder for the field hockey team is a first-time Spartan who looks forward to achieving the high goals that she and her team have set.

“Sabine is fortunate in that she has a great field hockey background coming from a real (field) hockey country,” said head coach Rolf van de Kerkhof, who shares the same Dutch hometown as van den Assem. “She grew up in a field hockey family, and she has everything in place to be a big-time contributor. So far, she’s doing a great job in living up to the expectations we have for her.”

Playing for her school in the Netherlands last year, van den Assem’s father was introduced to van de Kerkhof, who expressed an interest in having her play for MSU under him.

Having already heard positive things about the Spartan program from her friends, she looked at this as an opportunity for new experiences and a new way of playing field hockey.

“The way (the Spartans) play is much more physical, and the mental aspect is way more important here and they focus on it more,” van den Assem said. “Back home, we focus more on technical skills and that’s what we train.”

While van den Assem recognizes she is benefitting from her experiences as a Spartan, her teammates acknowledge that she has brought a lot to the group as a whole.

“Sabine’s a really hard worker. I feel like we can all draw strengths from her,” sophomore back Corey Block said. “She’s always working hard, and she never leaves anything left at the end of the practice. She always puts it all out there.”

Admitting that there is a noticeable difference with van den Assem’s presence on the field, Block said she’s grateful that van den Assem took advantage of her opportunity to play for a university in the U.S. She said that van den Assem has used her position as a senior and new Spartan to be a leader and introduce novel skills to her teammates.

“She’s such a good leader,” Block said. “If she sees something that her teammate could do better, she’ll come up to you (and say something). It’s just great because that’s a big thing on our team — coaching each other so that we can be the best that we can be.”

In the Spartans’ opening games this weekend, they defeated Central Michigan and No. 10 Duke, and van den Assem’s play on the field was beautiful. In the game against Central Michigan, she scored two unassisted goals, one of which was the game-winning point.

Van de Kerkhof continued his praise for van den Assem, saying that she has helped bring the team together on and off the field, and that’s what will lead to a successful team.

“Sabine is a part of a great team, and that team has done an excellent job, not only in the last couple weeks, but also in the entire 2010 year to build team chemistry,” van de Kerkhof said. “And I think Sabine walked into a great setting where her contributions are adding to more team chemistry.”

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