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Millersville

Hall of Fame

Jennifer Ames

Jennifer Yoder Ames

  • Class
    2003
  • Induction
    2013
  • Sport(s)
    Women's Soccer
Speech

Jennifer Yoder Ames is the first women's soccer player ever inducted into the Millersville University Athletic Hall of Fame, and it's for good reason. Ames arrived at Millersville when the program was only six years into its existence and made an indelible impact, pushing the Marauders to new and unprecedented heights. Not only did Ames rack up individual accolades and records, but she also helped her team to four consecutive winning seasons one of the winningest four-year spans in program history.
 
The only four-time All-PSAC selection and three-time first team honoree in program history, Ames concluded her Marauder career with 27 goals and 13 assists, ranking second all-time in points with 67 and goals with 27. Her 28 points scored in the 2001 season still rank as the second-highest total in school history. In the 2002 season alone, she set the school record for goals in a game twice.
 
Ames' impact on the program was immediate. As a true freshman midfielder in 1999 she earned All-PSAC East Second Team honors after totaling eight points and helping the team to a five-win improve and a then-school record 10 victories. After landing All-PSAC East First Team honors as a sophomore, Ames delivered a breakthrough junior season in which she scored 12 goals and added four assists. Her goal total came within one of the school record and netted her NSCAA All-Northeast Region honors, but most importantly, it sparked her team to a new school record of 12 victories, including six in a row to close the season.
 
That momentum carried into her senior season of 2002. With 10 goals, Ames became the only player in school history to register 10 or more goals in back-to-back seasons. The production was key for a team that rolled to a 12-4-4 mark and reached the PSAC Tournament for the first time. After upsetting top-seeded Lock Haven 2-1 in the semifinals, the Marauders faced Bloomsburg in the PSAC Championship. Despite ending the game in a 1-1 tie, the Marauders were edged in penalty kicks.
The PSAC runner-up finish capped an incredible career for Ames, who also excelled in the classroom. She earned CoSIDA Academic All-District II First Team honors as a senior.
 
Since graduating with a bachelor's degree in special education in 2003, Ames has continually put others first. She was a learning support teacher at McCaskey High School from 2003-09 but stepped away from her teaching position when she and her husband Craig adopted their son, Samuel, who is now five years old. She completed a master's degree in marriage and family counseling from Lancaster Bible College in 2011. Ames has lived in Chiang Rai, Thailand since October of 2012 and works with Go To Nations to stop the human trafficking industry and assist in restoration of individuals who have been rescued. She and Craig are set to adopt a four-year-old daughter, Grace.
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