Taekwondo team builds solid foundation in preseason, preps for first ECTC event in Rhode Island

Saturday, November 2

Providence, RI

TBD

Liberty University Club Sports

ECTC Tournament

Junior Julia Eesley spars with a teammate at the team's practice facility in Candlers Station.

Taekwondo team builds solid foundation in preseason, preps for first ECTC event in Rhode Island

10/23/2024 11:35:00 AM | Taekwondo

The Flames and Lady Flames have bolstered their rosters with 20 newcomers to complement 18 returning fighters.

Liberty University's taekwondo team is gearing up for its first competition of the fall semester on Nov. 1, at an East Coast Taekwondo Conference (ECTC) tournament hosted by the University of Rhode Island.

The Flames and Lady Flames have more newcomers (20) than returning student-athletes (18) this season.

"We have a really good mentality of discipline so we're going to see a lot of improvement," Flames junior Ericson Lehmann said. "Our team culture is drastically discipline-based, but we still have a very family-based culture. We're all just here to work together as a team and as a family to help make each other better and improve."

He said the Flames and Lady Flames have represented Liberty and the Lord well wherever they have competed and he expects that to continue this season with an even larger roster for Head Coach Tom Childress to draw from.

"Our big numbers give us a great advantage and I'd like to say we have a really good reputation among other schools," Lehmann said. "That really enables us to spread the Gospel and be good witnesses at any tournament we go to."

Lady Flames junior Khara Pastean has witnessed the transformation of team members as they have built one another up through their time in the training room, sharpening one another's talents on the mat.

"I'm really happy to see the passion that people have to come here," she said. "We're just a month in and you can already see the results. It's a big time commitment, but everyone is willing to put in the work. With enough diligent practice, we will be able to keep advancing. When we do things for God's glory, it's no longer on us to be who we are, it's who He is and people can see that."

Childress said there will be some changes in the way the National Collegiate Taekwondo Association (NCTA) run its national tournaments in the spring semester. The National Championships will feature a separate NCTA Cup which will allow representatives from the six regions to form teams of three to compete in both poomsae and sparring.

"It's going to be a lot of fun with the returners that have gone and competed before and then having new people that have yet to see competition," Childress said. "We're looking forward to seeing how everybody does."

A new NCTA Regional Conferences initiative is being introduced to help organize six regions around the United States to allow more opportunities for college students to compete and grow as athletes and leaders.

Lehmann said the future looks bright for the program as it represents the Mid-Atlantic Region at Atlantic Collegiate Alliance of Taekwondo (ACAT) events leading up to nationals, which will be held in April on the East Coast.

"Last year was a really successful season and I'm so glad to be back," he said, referring to last season's NCTA Championships in California. "The team is getting better every year and this year is no exception. I think when we go back to nationals, we'll have even more success and see an even better performance this time around."

Video edited by Reagan Underwood/Club Sports Director of Video & Media Interview