Northwest female athlete of the year: Annie Korff, Hersey

When she gets on the campus of the University of Iowa, Annie Korff will focus on her major of pre-physical therapy.

For the first time in four years, she won't be a competitive tennis player in the fall, basketball star in the winter and soccer standout in the spring.

A 10-varsity letter winner and an energetic, powerful leader, Korff is the Daily Herald's Northwest female athlete of the year.

She earned all-conference and all-area the past two years in soccer and in basketball.

She helped lead coach Mary Fendley's basketball team as the team captain and MVP this winter, then was an all-area selection in soccer for the second straight season.

"Annie is the perfect blend of athleticism, skills, and competitiveness," Fendley said. "These things, combined with great support from her family, she was able to excel in three sports."

Annie's brother Matt (student at Indiana) and sister Kathryn (graduated from Illinois) were also three-sport athletes for four years at Hersey.

"I think so many kids, and their parents, are told when they are young that you can't be successful in more than one, or maybe two sports," Fendley said. "Annie's work ethic and perseverance have shown that idea to be false."

And Korff enjoyed every minute of every sport.

"I will definitely remember the people that I had the pleasure of playing with," Korff said about her nonstop career at Hersey. "Regardless of the season, I remember the girls I played with and how amazing each season was playing with all of them."

Korff was as competitive as anyone in each sport.

"There was never one season where we didn't play against great teams or have very intense games or matches," she said. " That's what helped make it so special and taught me to be more and more competitive each time I stepped on the court or field."

She credits her family with her success.

"Part of the reason I was so successful was absolutely my siblings," Korff said. "It was them giving me an amazing path to follow and learn from. I wanted to be exactly like them and as successful as they were.

"And of course my parents (Glen and Deb). It was rare when they were not at one of my sporting events. They put so much time into my career as well and I thank them for everything they have taught me."

Annie's father was her coach, even into high school.

"He would always say that he could teach us the skills and talent of the game but not how to compete," Annie said. "Or the effort that we put in. That was always on us. But the drive to be talented was definitely a huge reason as to why I had such a memorable high school sports career."

A career that started as a young girl.

"Like my brother and sister, I was always outside and doing something active," Annie said. "So when they started doing sports, I was always on the sideline watching. And I knew I wanted to be the same way. My dad was always super into sports as well."

Annie's first sport at Hersey was in the fall of 2011 when she became a member of the tennis program.

"Tennis was a sport that I took on only a couple years before high school and it was just kind of a fun sport I chose to play," she said. "I was a soccer fanatic as a kid, but something changed around eighth grade and I became obsessed with basketball. I think the atmosphere and speed of the game really got me hooked and for sure the idea of there only being five girls on the floor but the team being almost triple the size."

Despite her busy sports schedule, Korff never missed a beat in the classroom, making the honor roll for seven semesters and graduating with honors while earning the prestigious Howard Lester Female Athlete of the Year award from District 214.

Hersey tennis coach Sharon Meintzer described Korff's character by using a Thomas Jefferson quote that said: "Far and away the best prize that life offers is having the chance to work hard at work worth doing."

"That quote epitomizes Annie Korff's work ethic and commitment," Meintzer said. "Both of those qualities are what makes Annie separate herself from so many others: She will not quit - in the classroom or the athletic arena."

Meintzer points to the fact that Korff would sometimes come late to practice after a tutor session with a teacher to make sure she understood the content in her class.

"Part of tennis practice was spent integrating strategies discussed onto the court and slow moving to coordinate the mind and the body to get it right for matches," Meintzer said. "Annie was often heard asking to do an activity that involved more movement and competition against others. She enjoyed the hard work. It was a challenge at times but one that she was seeking to overcome."

Korff placed fourth in No. 1 doubles in the Mid-Suburban meet.

"It was her work ethic and commitment that got her there," Meintzer said.

You will get no argument from soccer coach Darren Llewelyn.

"Anne has proved herself to be a highly disciplined, hard working, and multi talented student athlete that loves the thrill of competing at the highest level," he said. "Whether in the classroom, on the court, or on the field, Annie strives to be her best and win. In team sports she is willing to contribute to the team in any way necessary to reach team goals. She likes to succeed, she likes to win. Throughout her career at Hersey, Annie has represented us all at the highest level and provided a great example for those trying to follow in her footsteps."

Korff was an extremely intelligent and disciplined center back on the soccer field.

"She is extremely athletic and fast and she controlled the box for us this year against teams that play in the air," Llewelyn said. "She has an excellent ability to read the game and put herself into position to make the plays. She is fast, tough, and aggressive."

Hersey's soccer team broke records in almost every category this season and Korff was a major reason.

"Annie possesses an uncanny ability to read the game coming at her and consistently puts herself into position to break down the opponent's attack and win the ball," Llewellyn said.

Korff was steady force all along in basketball. The Huskies won 49 games the past two seasons and Korff was ever so instrumental. Her 11.4 points and 6.1 rebounds a game will be missed next season.

"But not as much as the intangibles that she has given us the past three seasons," Fendley said. "I feel lucky that I have gotten to coach Annie these last three varsity seasons. More so, I am fortunate to have known her and her sister Kathryn since they were fourth graders at basketball summer camp. I have seen each of them transform from a little camper to an extremely successful athlete, a tremendous student and an incredible counselor/coach at summer camp. What great representatives for our school and community."

Korff and her Huskies were the only Mid-Suburban League team to defeat Fremd, which finished second in the Class 4A state tournament this winter.

"I would say the one memory from my sports career that sticks out the most was the second half of my basketball season when the team finally came together to play for each other," Korff said. "And created the run that we did to the sectional final."