While her teammates and many of her family members were being taken through the wrath of Hurricane Irene, junior Lauryn Hutchinson of the VCU women's soccer team was being delivered some good news.
Earlier this morning, Hutchinson was named to the Trinidad and Tobago women's national team in preparation for the squad's upcoming participation in the Pan American Games.
"This opportunity is a life-changing experience for me and I look forward to growing not only as a player, but as a person," Hutchinson said. "Tim and Tiff have given me connections and this world class dream that I have always dreamt of ever since I was a little girl. I will carry this experience with me for the rest of my life and share it with my children and my children's children."
The junior forward's father, Nigel Hutchinson, is a Trinidad and Tobago native, which makes the current Ram eligible for the national squad.
Hutchinson appeared in both of the Black & Gold's last weekend in North Carolina, but headed to the national team tryouts on Wednesday and was unavailable for this weekend's home tournament for Co-Head Coaches Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak and Tim Sahaydak.
In her first two seasons with the Rams, Hutchinson played in 33 games, 12 of which were starting nods. She scored her first two collegiate goals last fall against CAA foes, Delaware and Drexel.
Hutchinson will make her way back to Trinidad and Tobago in late September to prepare for the 2011 Pan American Games, which is scheduled for October 14-30 in Guadalajara, Mexico.