Laura Heyboer (2022) - Hall of Fame - Michigan State University Athletics

Laura Heyboer

Induction:
2022
Class:
2011

Laura (Heyboer) Heethuis
Women's Soccer (2008-11)
Hudsonville, Mich.
MSU Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2022

HIGHLIGHTS:

Three-time All-American (2008, 2009, 2010)
2008 SoccerBuzz.com National Freshman of the Year and Freshman All-American
Four-time All-Great Lakes Region First-Team
2011 First-Team Academic All-America
Three-time Academic All-District (2009, 2010, 2011)
2008 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year
Four-Time First-Team All-Big Ten (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011)
MSU career leader in points (139), goals (57), assists (25) and game-winning goals (19)
Drafted by Sky Blue FC in the 2012 Women’s Professional Soccer Draft

HALL OF FAME FEATURE: CLASS OF 2022

Laura (Heyboer) Heethuis just might be the greatest women's soccer player ever to represent the Green and White. Having earned four All-America selections, four first-team All-Big Ten nods, the 2008 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and MSU George Alderton Female Athlete of the Year awards, these accolades barely scratch the surface of the impact Heyboer had on the Michigan State women's soccer team over four seasons.

Upon hearing she was being inducted Heyboer said, "I'm extremely humbled and honored to be considered and chosen for this. Michigan State was such a special place to me and there were so many resources to help and assist on my student-athlete journey and on into my career and the rest of my life."

Heyboer, originally from Hudsonville, came to East Lansing with two Michigan Miss Soccer and two Gatorade Player of the Year awards already under her belt from her prep years at Unity Christian.

Despite being a Michigan native, Heyboer didn't have any particular ties to a local university, and went into the recruiting process with an open mind. But it was MSU that stuck out to her from the beginning.

"The minute I stepped on campus at Michigan State, it just felt like home, and part of that was from the coaches who were recruiting me, making it feel like home," she recalled. "Everyone was so welcoming and so helpful and created this feeling of being right at home, but also feeling comfortable being challenged to be better. I think that was one thing that drew me to Michigan State. I knew that was the place that I needed to be."

Heyboer's stellar abilities were immediately on display in her rookie season. As the team's leading goal and point scorer that year, she was named an All-American and the SoccerBuzz National Freshman of the Year. She also was the Big Ten's Offensive Player of the Year after leading the conference in scoring that fall. Her 51 points and 21 goals still rank third in MSU history in the single-season record books. With the rest of her collegiate career still ahead of her, Heyboer had plenty of time to further leave her mark on the Spartan record book.

After a record-setting inaugural year, it was a journey back to square one when Heyboer suffered a major setback in 2009. The then-sophomore broke her leg scoring the game-winning goal in a contest with Minnesota.

"It was the first big injury of my career, so it was definitely difficult to go through. I credit my faith, my family and the people on campus who became a part of that family as well for giving me strength," Heyboer said. "It was a difficult process. But, if you're committed to the journey and committed to that process, you've got every resource here that you need to get yourself back on the field. I stayed committed to that and put in the work because I knew I had more that I wanted to accomplish. And thankfully, I was able to do that and to continue to play."

Despite the setback, Heyboer's numbers that year still ranked among the best in single-season school history. It also barely slowed her down from continued success in her final two seasons as a Spartan. In her senior year, she helped the team win a program-best seven Big Ten games.

"Our group, coming in as freshmen … we were basically written off as a low-contending team even though we knew that we had a lot of talent. So starting freshman year, our focus and mentality flipped. We were hungry for more and were willing to put in the work to earn it. We committed to that and stayed committed to the process, and we continued to grow. With that growth came confidence in ourselves to compete, and I think it was huge to end senior year with a record like that for us," she said.

Heyboer graduated MSU with Academic All-America accolades on top of her numerous athletic honors. She left the squad with the top career marks in points (139), goals (57), assists (25) and game-winning goals (19), numbers which all still stand today.

When the opportunity arose to go pro following graduation, Heyboer eagerly accepted and was the 19^th pick in the Women's Professional Soccer draft, selected by Sky Blue FC.

"The league was an opportunity to continue to do what I love to do. My coaches, athletic trainers, the strength staff, all continued to support me with whatever direction I wanted to go. And it showed me that those resources which Michigan State can offer didn't go away when I graduated, they just continued. The men's coach [Damon Rensing] was pretty gracious to let me jump into some trainings with the men's soccer team as well, just to kind of keep my touch on the ball and continue to get ready to go play. I spent two years in the league, and I enjoyed every minute of it."

In 2014, Heyboer teamed up with her husband, Brad, to become a coaching duo at Waynesburg University in Pennsylvania. Brad, a former Division III athlete at Calvin College, took over the head men's soccer gig for the Yellowjackets, while Laura spearheaded the women's program and served as an assistant coach with the men's squad.

After a successful seven years on the East Coast, the couple made the decision to return to their Michigan roots, with Brad taking the Athletic Director post at Kalamazoo Christian and Laura working in athletic apparel sales for BSN sports. Through it all, Heyboer credits her experiences while at Michigan State for making the difference in her life and career.

"Being recognized from Michigan State is super special because they've helped me in every step of my journey from college to today. There are so many people working together that make it possible for student athletes like myself to come and compete."

Heyboer is the first-ever women's soccer player to enter the Michigan State Athletics Hall of Fame. After much campaigning with the university, women's soccer became an official varsity sport at MSU in 1985, and with the 50^th anniversary of Title IX taking place this year, Heyboer reminisced on the importance of advances for women in sport.

"When you have women who are brave and go after what they want, and want to compete and have those opportunities they didn't have before … it takes somebody with a lot of bravery to get that going," she commented. "I'm so extremely thankful for the way which women's sports has grown over the many years, and for those who started MSU women's soccer and made it into what it is today, because you need those people that come before you in order to grow from there. Now it's my job as well to help continue that. I coach my daughter, Hayden. Whether she chooses to continue playing is up to her, but I just love being able to teach the game of soccer and continue to help move the sport forward."