NOTRE DAME GRAD MAKES ALL-AMERICAN

Matt Vollink began his college soccer career at Quincy (Ill.) University as a walk-on, meaning he received no scholarship money.

He ended it as an All-America as the former Notre Dame High School standout was recently named to the NCAA Division II second team by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.

"When I first heard about it, I was shocked," said a grinning Vollink, back home in Cape Girardeau last week during Quincy's winter break. "I never thought I'd make it, but it's a quite a thrill. I'm really excited about it."

Vollink's play this year during his senior season at Quincy suggests that the honor was well deserved. He scored 20 games for the Hawks and was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Co-Player of the Year.

A 5-foot-9, 155-pounder, Vollink became the first Quincy player to score at least 20 goals in a season since 1981 and he is only the seventh Hawk to reach the 20-goal mark in school history.

"I give a lot of credit to the team I had behind me," said Vollink, who helped lead the Hawks to a 15-6 record. "We had a really good team. We ended up losing in the conference championship game, but we're in a really tough conference."

During his four-year career at Quincy -- he was a full-time starter the past two seasons and also played a lot as a freshman and sophomore -- Vollink scored 32 goals and added 13 assists for a total of 77 points, 45 coming in his senior campaign.

Not bad for the 1997 Notre Dame graduate, who after earning all-state honors for the Bulldogs went to Quincy without a scholarship.

"I didn't have any scholarship offers, but I had been looking at the school for academic reasons," Vollink said. "It's a really nice school and I wanted to go there. I asked the coach if I could try out, and I made the team."

And Vollink played well enough to gradually earn more and more scholarship money.

Now that his college playing career is over, Vollink is looking toward the future. He's scheduled to graduate in May with a degree in criminal justice, but his success this past season has gotten him to thinking about a possible professional career.

"After I found out this (making All-America), I would like to hopefully play a little bit after college, either indoor or outdoor," he said.