Salvations and baptisms highlight Club Sports fall semester full of spiritual growth

Gallery: (12-4-2024) Club Sports baptisms fall 2024

At least a dozen Liberty University Club Sports student-athletes were baptized this fall semester on team retreats, in the Liberty Natatorium, or in Liberty Lake, making this season a spiritually invigorating one.

Four Division II men's hockey players were baptized on the team's retreat to Stone Ridge in Appomattox County in late August, starting a trend that has carried on throughout the semester.

"We had guys that stepped up and shared their testimonies and other guys just responded," Flames Head Coach Ben Hughes said. "The Holy Spirit was moving, and they were obedient. God just wants to do something on this team, and, for the leadership and the coaches, it was humbling to be a part of that. We just tried to get out of the way."

Liberty's triathlon team has witnessed a similar spiritual movement within its ranks this season, especially in the aftermath of a team member going into anaphylactic shock after an allergic reaction on the bus trip back from the USA Triathlon Age Group National Championships in Atlantic City, N.J., in mid-September. The bus pulled over, and teammates and coaches prayed over the triathlete while awaiting emergency response. A team member alertly applied an EpiPen, and he was quickly revived.

"God is so awesome, and He is moving so profoundly on our team, and a lot of times He moves you more in the storms," Gollnick said, noting the ripple effect has been revival with one team member baptized. "It's amazing. Nothing happens by accident. Our theme for the year is 'God is in control,' and it's just so evident."

In mid-November, three men's lacrosse team members — senior midfielders Will Geary and Ryan Merbach and sophomore goalie Ian Carvajal — were baptized by Head Coach Kyle McQuillan and Club Sports Associate Athletic Director for Holistic Development Reese Braband on a team bonding trip to a player's family's property with a lake in Ferrum, Va. Earlier in the semester, sophomore Kaeden Kuch was baptized by his resident shepherd in Liberty Lake, located between the Jerry Falwell Library and the Reber-Thomas Dining Center.

Two Division I women's hockey defensemen — freshman Jules Lefaive and sophomore Sophia Adamek — made first-time commitments to the Lord, experiencing God's grace through salvation. Two others — freshman forward Tristan Craig and junior goalie Alex Keith — were baptized at the Liberty Natatorium on Nov. 20, surrounded by teammates, coaches, and family. Tim Witt, executive pastor of Impact Church in Forest, and his wife, Club Sports Associate Athletic Director for Sports Medicine and Senior Women's Administrator Angie Witt, performed the baptism.

"Now, there's nothing that they can't accomplish or overcome," Lady Flames Head Coach Chris Lowes said, noting that more baptisms may follow in the near future, as the DII women's hockey team experienced last season. "God is doing awesome things. It's all part of the team growing and centering around our mission, which is Training Champions for Christ."

A member of the LU Dance team also made a public profession of faith through baptism at her church.

While no Club Sports mission trips are scheduled over the Christmas or New Year's holidays, as in recent years with the DI men's and DI women's hockey teams taking three trips to Finland to serve with Operation Mobilization (OM), there are some new ventures for Club Sports teams upcoming in the spring semester and summer months.

Approximately half of the men's and women's Ultimate teams are planning to spend their Spring Break from March 10-14 at the High Tide 2025 in Myrtle Beach, S.C., playing in the tournament as a co-ed team but mainly focusing their time and energy on discipleship and evangelism.

Then, in late July, members of the men's and women's disc golf teams will travel to Nokia and Tampere, Finland, to help support the 2025 Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) World Championships as many did for the 2024 event held on the nearby New London Tech and Ivy Hill Golf Club courses in Bedford County in late August. They will also conduct clinics and serve alongside Pastor Dave Pike, who has coordinated the hockey teams' trips to Finland, through OM evangelistic outreaches.

A team of Club Sports Disciple Makers will participate in a multi-sport Power Camp in Southeast Asia from June 13-22, with basketball, pickleball, Ultimate, and soccer being the four primary sports offered. That will be a first-ever, all-sports overseas trip offered through Liberty Club Sports.

Braband is anticipating at least 15 Disciple Makers will travel and serve on that team, ministering to and discipling children in a country resistant to the Gospel. He is also hopeful that 50 or more members of any Club Sports team will help work at the first Mid-Atlantic Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) Competitors Camp, featuring 15 male and female sports for campers between the ages of 13-18, hosted by Liberty from June 29-July 3.

Applications and interviews for huddle leader and counselor positions are ongoing and continuing through mid-March.

By Ted Allen/Staff Writer

Salvations and baptisms highlight Club Sports fall semester full of spiritual growth

Players Mentioned

Sophia Adamek

Ian Carvajal

Tristan Craig

Will Geary

Kaeden Kuch

Jules Lefaive

Ryan Merbach

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