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The Blue
Tribune

the Covenant experience narrative

The Blue Tribune is your place to learn about all things Covenant and keep up with stories from campus and beyond. By guiding you through the different aspects of Covenant, we'll help you decide if you want to pursue your very own Covenant experience.

Running with Endurance Discipleship at the Heart of Covenant Athletics

Track athlete in a blue Covenant uniform running on an outdoor track with mountains in the background.

Scrolling through covenant college’s athletics webpage, you’ll find content similar to other colleges—action shots of athletes mid-play, game schedules, win/loss records. But what you’ll see first is something that sets our program apart: a photo of student-athletes circled in prayer beneath the department’s mission statement, “Cultivating Disciples, Pursuing Excellence.”

While many collegiate programs chase titles with a “win at all costs” mindset, Covenant athletics’ mission is to first disciple student athletes and then win titles. “Our vision for the athletic department is very countercultural,” explains alumna Rachel (Lemay) Duble, assistant athletic director and associate head coach of women’s soccer. “We make sure that we’re pursuing excellent team dynamics, chemistry, and performance, while also putting an emphasis on the whole person—we don’t just see our players as a means to an end.” This mission is evident from recruitment and competition to coaching and team culture.

Relational Recruiting

From the first conversations in the recruiting process, Covenant coaches make sure the mission of discipleship is front and center. “We’re unabashed, upfront, and explicit with how we integrate faith into athletics at Covenant,” states athletic director and head tennis coach, John Hirte, also a Covenant grad. When recruiting, coaches are on the lookout for not only excellent athletes, but professing believers seeking to mature in their walks with the Lord. Covenant’s head baseball coach, Doug Simons, breaks down Covenant’s mission to prospective players by explaining the discipleship-focused covenantal philosophy in contrast to the evangelistic educational philosophy at colleges that don’t require their students be Christians. “Both philosophies are good and God uses both to build His kingdom,” he explains, “but about 98% of Christian colleges are under the [latter] philosophy whereas Covenant is part of the 2%—our goal is sanctification.”

This aspect of recruiting involves forming a relationship. “We get to know them—not just where they’re from, but the way they think, and how they were brought up,” describes Coach Duble. Whereas a lot of colleges ask recruits what talent or skill they will bring to their program, Covenant asks recruits what they want to get out of Covenant’s program, including if they are open to being discipled. “[Discipleship] is going to happen here,” says Coach Duble, “so if they don’t want that, then they probably don’t actually want to play sports here.”

Competing with Conviction

Though competition is valuable and rooted in a God-given desire to achieve, it is still easy to idolize success and winning. So, while Covenant athletics sets out to compete, it isn’t the main goal. “Competition is good, but we don’t talk about winning as much as we talk about performing and using our gifts and abilities in a way that makes our competition rise to the occasion,” describes Coach Duble. Senior soccer player Rachel Wall confirms, “Being a Covenant Scot is so much more than wins, losses, and championships. While we compete to win championships and play our hardest in every match, being a Scot means we are dedicated to each other and to creating a program that places God first.” Healthy competition, when done for the glory of God, is a service to the Lord and to others. “We do things well by working to play at the highest level because the Lord has given us that capability,” says Coach Hirte. “There’s something beautiful in getting to play for the Lord and leave it at His feet.”

Not only can performance be a form of worship, but the absence of it can also be worship. The Covenant athletics program has held to their conviction to keep the Sabbath holy by refusing to play any athletic events on Sundays. This has even resulted in a conference championship tennis match being forfeited, which caused the conference to change the policy so that future championships involving Covenant would not be held on Sundays. “Covenant is about ministry and discipleship, focusing on eternal things and not just getting a trophy,” says Coach Simons. “Coaches who do that are aiming way too low.” Student-athletes who come through Covenant’s athletics program know that the focus is Christ first and then performance.

Coaching for Character

Competition occurs during the season, but coaching happens nearly every day. “The way we coach is different in that we get to know the individual as a person and figure out where they are in their walk with the Lord,” says Coach Duble. The coaches realize that their students’ mental, physical, and spiritual wellbeing are all important parts of their growth as athletes and as maturing believers. “I get to teach students life lessons, from diet and habits in the weight room to how to control their anger on the field,” explains Coach Simons. “We’re teaching them to be selfless and to succeed as great employees, spouses, parents, etc.”

Student athletes attest to feeling seen, known, and cared for by their coaches outside of their sport. Senior soccer player Kade Theunissen confirms, “The coaches care about what’s going on with family, faith, and academics and do a really good job of checking in and showing us Christ’s love every day.” Building character and developing the whole person off the field matters in the grand scheme of life, but it also matters to exhibit Christ-like attitudes on the field. “Covenant is countercultural, so our baseball team should look different,” says Coach Simons. “We would rather lose the game with our character than win without it.”

Community with Christ at the Center

Teammates typically grow close due to the nature of athletics, but Covenant athletes grow spiritually through team Bible studies, pre-game devotionals, prayer, and accountability. “The women’s soccer team has been split up into small groups that meet every other week,” describes Coach Duble. “There is also a local alumna hosting a prayer group in her home as well as prayer partners on our team.”

The coaches also work to guide athletes in their spiritual walks outside of athletics by encouraging church involvement. “We get to see them really grow as they get involved in church small groups and help lead and worship,” explains Coach Hirte. Covenant’s athletics go a step further: if travel for an away game happens to interfere with Sunday worship, it is expected that teams find a local church to attend together. “If Covenant exists to serve the Church, then Sunday should be a sacred day,” says Coach Hirte.

Apart from structured Bible studies and prayer groups, the coaches make it a point to simply live for Christ in front of their athletes. “We’re going through joys and trials together,” describes Coach Duble. “This is the more organic side of discipleship which I think is often more impactful.”

Performance with Purpose

Covenant’s athletic department understands that they’re playing the long game. “We are trying to call our athletes to a higher purpose,” says Coach Simons. The call to make disciples is not a sprint, but a marathon, and often the win is not immediately apparent. Despite this, coaches continually remind their athletes of biblical truths that have eternal impact: “We tell our athletes, ‘your identity is not in your sport—it is in the Lord who uniquely created you for a purpose,’” Coach Hirte shares. This framework shapes how players approach competition, failure, success, and growth. “We want our athletes to know how to read scripture, how to pray, and how to articulate their faith,” Coach Duble says. “If they leave Covenant without knowing how to do those three things, then we’ve failed them.”

In Covenant athletics, running the race with endurance doesn’t just mean giving everything on the field, it means living every aspect of life with purpose and integrity with Christ as the ultimate prize—and that’s a victory worth far more than any trophy.

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