Stevenson's Sorenson doubled her fun

Sophie Sorenson, a prolific goal scorer and volleyball hitter, laughs at the stats.

Six kids. Two sets of twins.

"Some people say she cheated because she had only four births," Sorenson, who graduated from Stevenson three weeks ago, jokes of her mother, Geri.

Making the most of opportunities runs in the Sorenson family. Few sports clans put up better stats collectively than the Sorensons, Kildeer residents who not only have numbers on their side but lots of athletic talent and will. Actually, there is a Will. Sophie and Will, both Division I-bound athletes, are twins, so are Jack and Olivia. Kalei is the oldest child of Steve and Geri, while baby-of-the-family Lili is an incoming freshman and, yes, athletic.

Few families have an athlete like Sophie, whose lacrosse and volleyball stats her senior year were ludicrously good. The midfielder's school-record totals of 93 goals and 159 points on the lacrosse field this spring capped a spectacular senior year, which includes her being named the Daily Herald Lake County Female Athlete of the Year.

The twin doubled her fun, so to speak.

"I can't think of an athlete more deserving of this award in her lacrosse career alone, not to mention her volleyball accolades as well," Stevenson girls lacrosse coach Sarah Gutierrez says of Sorenson, who holds just about every offensive record in program history. "I've been blessed to coach Sophie over these four years, and I know our program and Patriot family will feel her impact and legacy for a long time."

Sorenson, who will play lacrosse for the University of Connecticut, was the captain of the Daily Herald Lake County All-Area girls volleyball team last fall after tallying 386 kills, 264 digs and 60 aces in leading the Patriots to a Class 4A regional title. The lefty was a three-time all-area selection, excelling as a 5-foot-9 outside hitter.

"I definitely didn't let my height stunt my growth as a player," says Sorenson, cleverly.

A volleyball player since she was a second-grader, Sorenson didn't swing a lacrosse stick until about the sixth grade. Older brother Jack, who plays football for Miami of Ohio, was loving lacrosse, and that sparked her interest.

"I really liked my club coach when I joined," Sorenson says. "She just made things very fun. I really liked the girls that I met there."

Height didn't matter in lacrosse and, besides, the running required suited her. After all, her parents, high school sweethearts from Green Bay, were runners. Steve, Harvard-educated, and Geri, a UW-Green Bay graduate, had competed marathons. Sophie had even tried triathlons when she was younger.

"I just felt (lacrosse) was a better fit than volleyball," Sorenson says. "It was like I found my sport."

What a find. Sorenson tallied 266 goals, 126 assists, 392 points and 416 draw controls over four varsity seasons, all school records.

"She's one of the toughest competitors, fittest athletes and hardest workers I've worked with," Gutierrez says. "Her ability to see the field, shoot the ball, dish the ball to her teammates, control the draw circle and play both ends of the field is truly elite."

Sophie might be part of another record set this year: most combined assists by twins. Harvard-bound Will, a setter/right-side hitter, dished out 598 assists for Stevenson's boys volleyball team this spring. Sophie notched a school-record 66 assists with her lacrosse stick, after she made it a goal to share the ball more.

"I grew as a player," she says. "That was important to me."

Her coach wasn't surprised.

"Sophie leads her team by example, and she opens herself up to correction and coaching through the tough conversations and the exciting ones as well," says Gutierrez, whose Patriots saw their season end with a 13-11 loss to Glenbrook South in a weather-shortened supersectional at Lake Zurich. "She learns constantly about the game. And, she always has fun. It's nearly impossible to pull her off the field after a practice when there's an open net because all she wants to do is keep playing the game."

No stat adequately explains that passion.