The defining moment of Delanie Hill’s college soccer career — to this point, at least — occurred 16 months ago in the most pressure-packed match of her young life.
The starting defender was entrusted to take her team’s fifth and final penalty kick in a national semifinal shootout.
Hill, then a junior, took the term “clutch” to new levels, finding the right-back portion of the net as Marian defeated No. 1 William Carey to reach the title game of the NAIA national tournament in Orange Beach, Alabama.
Hill isn’t just any defender. She once scored seven goals in a match against Shelbyville as a Franklin senior, and she eclipsed the 100-goal mark during a four-year prep career in she was an all-Mid-State Conference selection on three occasions.
“I’m super calm. It’s just how I carry myself, I guess, and my coach (Gary Yohe) wanted people who wanted to take the kick,” Hill explained. “I just volunteered. At first, I didn’t know I was kicking last, but knew my teammates in front of me would make their kicks and that would put less pressure on me.”
Hill’s persona has been appreciated the past four years by Yohe, who describes it as ice water coursing through Hill’s veins no matter the score or situation on the pitch.
“It’s just her calmness. Delanie is so even-keeled, and that’s needed in the back,” said Yohe, whose team is again qualified for the NAIA postseason tournament after finishing as the national runner-up to Keiser University in December 2019.
“Even though it’s not always ideal, and I sometimes get on her about it, it’s who she is.”
Third-ranked Marian (18-2) is expected to begin postseason play by hosting match against a yet-to-be-named opponent next Thursday. The objective is to return south later in the month for nationals.
The Knights played the majority of their matches in the fall, took a hiatus following a 2-0 defeat of Grace College on Nov. 14 and returned to campus in mid-January to begin preparations for spring competition. Nationals were pushed back to April because of COVID-19.
“It’s kind of weird having to play in the spring,” Hill said. “Gary gave us a break and then we started preparing again. We normally do have a spring season, but the games don’t count for anything. Now the games count.”
Marian played an exhibition in February at Butler against the Bulldogs, losing 9-2, and won four of five matches in March before playing another tune-up — this one at home today against DePauw.
Because of the pandemic, Hill could exercise another year of athletic eligibility should she so desire. However, she plans to graduate from Marian in May with a bachelor’s degree in finance and, as she puts it, get on with her life.
Hill’s sister, Emilie, is a sophomore defender at the University of Evansville; youngest sister, Mollie, a junior defender at Franklin, has committed to follow Delanie’s footsteps and play for Yohe at Marian beginning in the fall of 2022
For now, it’s Delanie who can speak about what it’s like to be a student-athlete at Marian. She’s looking to extend her final season for as long as possible.
“Honestly, the past two years have exceeded my expectations,” Hill said. “Our whole team is hard-working. We put everything into everything we do. You can’t really beat the family atmosphere here. It’s been an amazing experience.”
