Liberty goalie Alex Keith (left) stands with Lady Flames' captains (from left) Haley Battles, Emerson Oakes, Zosia Adamek, and Brielle Fussy with ACHA Division I women's hockey Commissioner Molly Mahoney, helping to hold the national championship cup after winning it for the seventh time in March.
Returning captaincy corps complemented by Keith, first goalie coached by Lowes to wear a letter
8/1/2025 5:41:00 PM | Women's D1 Hockey
Senior Alex Keith will join graduate forwards Zosia Adamek, Haley Battles, and head captain Brielle Fussy and senior defenseman Emerson Oakes on this season’s leadership group.
Liberty University's ACHA Division I women's hockey team will return all four of its captains from last year — when the Lady Flames won their seventh national championship in dramatic fashion with a 2-1 double-overtime triumph over Maryville (Mo.) University near St. Louis — for the 2025-26 campaign.
For the first time, Head Coach Chris Lowes will add a fifth captain to the corps, with senior Alex Keith being the first goalie he has selected to an alternate captain role in his 16 seasons as head coach at the DII men's and DI women's levels. She will join senior defenseman Emerson Oakes and three graduate forwards — alternates Zosia Adamek and Haley Battles and head captain Brielle Fussy — on this season's leadership group.
"When Lowes called and told me, I was super excited. It made my summer," Keith said. "I've never worn an 'A' before, so to be that first person — that he put confidence in me for that position — made me feel super good. Last year, I was a part of all our leadership (activities), including captaincy meetings, and Lowes said the coaching staff and other captains wanted me to be a part of that group this season. It's awesome that they were able to trust me to be a part of that, especially at Liberty."
"Alex essentially served in this role last year, and traditionally you do not see a lot of goalies as captains, but she has done an incredible job and is leader in the locker room and on the ice," Lowes added, noting this will be the deepest and most experienced captaincy corps he has ever coached. "We are excited to be returning our entire leadership group from last year, and our coaching staff has a deep and veteran roster heading into the new season."
Fussy, who has followed her older sister Brityn's path to the head of the corps, enters her second season with the "C" on her jersey.
"Brielle is the ultimate competitor," Lowes said. "Her energy is infectious, and she hates to fail and hates to lose. We expect Brielle to set the standard in all she does."
He said Battles is a fighter and high-level competitor, leading the Lady Flames in practice and in games.
"She loves the game of hockey and expects to be a difference maker every time she steps onto the ice," Lowes said.
As the older sister to junior defenseman Sophia Adamek, Zosia Adamek has a similar shepherding relationship with all her teammates. With 19 goals and nine assists last season, she ranked second in scoring to Fussy (16G, 14A) and netted the game-winning goal in the national championship final against the Saints.
"Zosia has developed into one of the top players in our league," Lowes said. "She works hard at her craft and is a player's captain, meaning she looks out for her teammates, and they go to her when they need encouragement. I am excited to watch her compete this season."
As the only defenseman on the captaincy corps, Oakes adds stability and strength around the blue line.
"Emerson is a natural leader that we knew would be a great captain even as a freshman," Lowes said. "She plays as many minutes as anyone on our team and has developed into an elite two-way defenseman in the ACHA. Her approach to the game is something we hope our young girls will emulate."
Keith has spent this week in Victoria, British Columbia, with two of her fellow captains —Adamek and Fussy — helping Zosia and Sophia Adamek, and their brother, DI men's hockey sophomore defenseman Michael Adamek, run the R&D Adamek Hockey Summer Camp. It is the fourth summer the Adameks have directed the camp for players ages 10-13. Previously, they participated in the camp run for 20 years by their father, Mike, as he had done with his parents, Rudy and Doris Adamek, who started it.
"It's been super good to come up here and hang out with those girls and coach a camp, to be on the other side of the stick," Keith said. "There are three goalies at the camp, so it's been nice to have a smaller group, and I've gotten to know them a little more personally."
She has developed closer relationships with her teammates over the past eight months since being baptized before Thanksgiving at the Liberty Natatorium and has emerged as a more vocal leader in the locker room and on the ice.
"As a captain, part of the leadership corps, I'm glad I was able to set that example over our culture — for what our team looks for when it comes to leaders and how our spirituality plays a huge part in that," Keith said. "The biggest part of our team is helping girls to grow closer to God in our faith. That's more important than our titles and more important than our wins at the end of the day."
Keith, who earned All-Tournament Team accolades in leading the Lady Flames to their sixth national title in the past seven tournaments, has experienced both personal and team revival in recent seasons.
"I honestly feel like a completely different person even from the person I was coming into Liberty, and it's affected my game in the best way possible," she said. "One of the main reasons I've been able to put myself into a position as a leader and spiritually is due to that transformation I've been going through these past couple years."
She is hopeful that that change is evident in the way she plays, the way she leads, and the way she lives on and off the ice.
"Now that I'll have an 'A' on my jersey, it's a lot more prevalent to other people, teams we play against, and people watching our games," Keith said. "There's more accountability, how I play, how I compete, my body language, how I represent Liberty."
She said as a goalie, which she compares to a quarterback on the ice, she will have a unique job description as a captain.
"It's definitely a little different compared to the other girls because of my position," Keith said, noting she tries to be an extra set of eyes to warn her defensemen of oncoming pressure. "I like to make sure I'm heard out there. I talk as much as I can and try to use my voice in a productive way."
Lowes said Keith has tremendous vision as a goalie and brings calm to her teammates.
"I love Alex's approach to the game," he said. "She is an even-keeled and emotionally strong kid, which is so important as a goalie. Our players respect her preparation and have trust in her when she is in the net. She is one of the top goalies in our league, if not the best."
That gives her instant credibility as a captain who leads by her actions as well as her words.
"Girls will look less to me when it comes to specific skills or the way I play," Keith said, noting skaters and goalies have completely different skill sets and styles on the ice. "(Being a captain) is definitely more of a locker room role, focusing on our team and the girls. All the core values, the things I'm going to be focusing on instilling with our girls, will be the same, and I'm 100 percent, totally up to that challenge."
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer
For the first time, Head Coach Chris Lowes will add a fifth captain to the corps, with senior Alex Keith being the first goalie he has selected to an alternate captain role in his 16 seasons as head coach at the DII men's and DI women's levels. She will join senior defenseman Emerson Oakes and three graduate forwards — alternates Zosia Adamek and Haley Battles and head captain Brielle Fussy — on this season's leadership group.
"When Lowes called and told me, I was super excited. It made my summer," Keith said. "I've never worn an 'A' before, so to be that first person — that he put confidence in me for that position — made me feel super good. Last year, I was a part of all our leadership (activities), including captaincy meetings, and Lowes said the coaching staff and other captains wanted me to be a part of that group this season. It's awesome that they were able to trust me to be a part of that, especially at Liberty."
"Alex essentially served in this role last year, and traditionally you do not see a lot of goalies as captains, but she has done an incredible job and is leader in the locker room and on the ice," Lowes added, noting this will be the deepest and most experienced captaincy corps he has ever coached. "We are excited to be returning our entire leadership group from last year, and our coaching staff has a deep and veteran roster heading into the new season."
Fussy, who has followed her older sister Brityn's path to the head of the corps, enters her second season with the "C" on her jersey.
"Brielle is the ultimate competitor," Lowes said. "Her energy is infectious, and she hates to fail and hates to lose. We expect Brielle to set the standard in all she does."
He said Battles is a fighter and high-level competitor, leading the Lady Flames in practice and in games.
"She loves the game of hockey and expects to be a difference maker every time she steps onto the ice," Lowes said.
As the older sister to junior defenseman Sophia Adamek, Zosia Adamek has a similar shepherding relationship with all her teammates. With 19 goals and nine assists last season, she ranked second in scoring to Fussy (16G, 14A) and netted the game-winning goal in the national championship final against the Saints.
"Zosia has developed into one of the top players in our league," Lowes said. "She works hard at her craft and is a player's captain, meaning she looks out for her teammates, and they go to her when they need encouragement. I am excited to watch her compete this season."
As the only defenseman on the captaincy corps, Oakes adds stability and strength around the blue line.
"Emerson is a natural leader that we knew would be a great captain even as a freshman," Lowes said. "She plays as many minutes as anyone on our team and has developed into an elite two-way defenseman in the ACHA. Her approach to the game is something we hope our young girls will emulate."
Keith has spent this week in Victoria, British Columbia, with two of her fellow captains —Adamek and Fussy — helping Zosia and Sophia Adamek, and their brother, DI men's hockey sophomore defenseman Michael Adamek, run the R&D Adamek Hockey Summer Camp. It is the fourth summer the Adameks have directed the camp for players ages 10-13. Previously, they participated in the camp run for 20 years by their father, Mike, as he had done with his parents, Rudy and Doris Adamek, who started it.
"It's been super good to come up here and hang out with those girls and coach a camp, to be on the other side of the stick," Keith said. "There are three goalies at the camp, so it's been nice to have a smaller group, and I've gotten to know them a little more personally."
She has developed closer relationships with her teammates over the past eight months since being baptized before Thanksgiving at the Liberty Natatorium and has emerged as a more vocal leader in the locker room and on the ice.
"As a captain, part of the leadership corps, I'm glad I was able to set that example over our culture — for what our team looks for when it comes to leaders and how our spirituality plays a huge part in that," Keith said. "The biggest part of our team is helping girls to grow closer to God in our faith. That's more important than our titles and more important than our wins at the end of the day."
Keith, who earned All-Tournament Team accolades in leading the Lady Flames to their sixth national title in the past seven tournaments, has experienced both personal and team revival in recent seasons.
"I honestly feel like a completely different person even from the person I was coming into Liberty, and it's affected my game in the best way possible," she said. "One of the main reasons I've been able to put myself into a position as a leader and spiritually is due to that transformation I've been going through these past couple years."
She is hopeful that that change is evident in the way she plays, the way she leads, and the way she lives on and off the ice.
"Now that I'll have an 'A' on my jersey, it's a lot more prevalent to other people, teams we play against, and people watching our games," Keith said. "There's more accountability, how I play, how I compete, my body language, how I represent Liberty."
She said as a goalie, which she compares to a quarterback on the ice, she will have a unique job description as a captain.
"It's definitely a little different compared to the other girls because of my position," Keith said, noting she tries to be an extra set of eyes to warn her defensemen of oncoming pressure. "I like to make sure I'm heard out there. I talk as much as I can and try to use my voice in a productive way."
Lowes said Keith has tremendous vision as a goalie and brings calm to her teammates.
"I love Alex's approach to the game," he said. "She is an even-keeled and emotionally strong kid, which is so important as a goalie. Our players respect her preparation and have trust in her when she is in the net. She is one of the top goalies in our league, if not the best."
That gives her instant credibility as a captain who leads by her actions as well as her words.
"Girls will look less to me when it comes to specific skills or the way I play," Keith said, noting skaters and goalies have completely different skill sets and styles on the ice. "(Being a captain) is definitely more of a locker room role, focusing on our team and the girls. All the core values, the things I'm going to be focusing on instilling with our girls, will be the same, and I'm 100 percent, totally up to that challenge."
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer
Players Mentioned
D
/ Women's D1 Hockey
C
/ Women's D1 Hockey
F
/ Women's D1 Hockey
F
/ Women's D1 Hockey
D
/ Women's D1 HockeyRock the Rink Podcast: September 16
Friday, September 19
Liberty WD1 vs Washington Pride Highlights
Tuesday, September 16
Rock the Rink Podcast: September 9
Friday, September 12
Liberty WD1 vs Washington Pride Game Recap
Tuesday, September 09