Preview: The new issue of Roanoke College magazine

The lessons Loren (Messick) LaPorte ’08 learned as a softball standout at Roanoke College fuel her success to this day.

LaPorte, head coach of the James Madison University softball team, guided the team through a remarkable 2021 season, capped in June with a first-time appearance in the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.

The JMU Dukes kicked off the World Series on June 3 against No. 1 overall seed University of Oklahoma — and won. What followed was a performance that captured the hearts of fans across the country — and had even the Dukes' toughest rivals rooting for them throughout the series.

Despite a second meeting loss to OU in the semifinals, it was LaPorte who might have held her head highest.

“They loved each other, they played for each other," she says of the JMU team. "They supported each other and they were able to get through the ‘hard’ with each other."

Again, lessons — "handling the hard," she calls it — that she learned at Roanoke College.

"I loved everything about Roanoke," she says. "It was a good place for me, and it really set me up for my future."

Shining moment.

Click here to read more about LaPorte in a preview of the new issue of Roanoke College magazine. Other featured content includes:

• The new Environment Center: A group of Roanoke College faculty and students has embarked on a project to convert an underused section of the College’s Elizabeth Campus into an environmental preserve and outdoor laboratory.
• In search of PLACE: An updated approach to career services helps connect Roanoke College students with purpose and meaning beyond the classroom and the workplace.
• A long time coming: A College alumnus remembers his good friend John Pirro ’77, a Maroons lacrosse legend who will be inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2022.