Thiessen Excels at Truman State, Eyes Future in Coaching and Teaching

by Bill Althaus, Grain Valley News

Grain Valley High School three-sport star Emma Thiessen had to make a couple of interesting decisions after the legendary Eagle graduated in 2024.

Thiessen, who was all-state in soccer and tennis, was also a force both on the bench and the court for coach Randy Draper's basketball team.

Whatever sport she was playing, along with the leadership she provided as the vice president of the Eagles student body, Thiessen was a force to be reckoned with.

And when she made the decision to attend Truman State University, where she became a starter on the Bulldogs soccer team, she felt at peace with the decision.

"I had to make some big decisions, and I'm happy with the decisions I made," said Thiessen, who has spent much of the summer at home chilling with her family.

"I player for 'families' in each sport," she explained. "The tennis, basketball and soccer girls were always there for me, and I felt like I was already there for them. It was more than a team, it was a family.

"And I felt the same way when I met everyone on the Truman State soccer team - the coaches, the players and everyone who was associated with the team.  I'm excited about the success I had a freshman and can't wait for my sophomore year."

Thiessen burst onto the area sports team as a freshman.

Thiessen scored 29 goals and added 23 assists as a freshman while helping lead Grain Valley to the 2021 Class 3 state runner-up finish. She was the only freshman named to the MHSSCA Class 3 all-state first team.

Grain Valley moved up to Class 4 in her sophomore season and fell in the district playoffs. Thiessen earned her first Examiner Player of the Year award with 26 goals and eight assists.

As a junior, Thiessen was Class 4 all-state honorable mention with 21 goals and 15 assists.

She totaled 21 goals and 25 assists and was named the MHSSCA Class 4 all-state second team and was chosen as the Suburban White Conference Player of the Year along with being named all-conference, all-district and all-region for the fourth straight year.

She was a four-time all-state player for Draper's tennis team and provided a spark when she came off the bench for the Eagles basketball team.

"It's nice to see someone who has worked as hard as Emma worked for four years be rewarded with a college scholarship and all the post-season honors," Draper said. "Making a decision on where you want to go to college can be stressful on the student and her parents.

"She made a decision where she is close to home, and where she is thriving as a student/athlete.

"And every time I see here, she says, 'Coach, I have three years left of college, and then, well you know, I want to come back and coach soccer and tennis and teach math.

"That's a way off, and I haven't made any final decisions on when I might retire as a coach, but Emma is a force of nature. And she will be a force of nature when she comes back to Grain Valley to teach and coach."

Along with all her soccer success at Truman State, she enjoyed the same type of academic accolades as she was a member of the Academic All-Great Lakes Conference academic team.

She had a 3.3GPA and began that trek to return home to make an impact as a coach and a teacher.

"I knew what I wanted to do when I was a freshman in high school," she said. "I wanted to play soccer and basketball, and then Coach Draper introduced me to tennis and I loved all three sports.

"And I'm working hard in the classroom so I can be a math teacher at Grain Valley High School. The teachers here are as great as the coaches, and I couldn't be happier with my decision to attend Truman State."

Former Grain Valley High School three-sport standout Emma Thiessen recently wrapped up a successful freshman season at Truman State, where she is a starting member of the Bulldogs' soccer team. Photo courtesy Truman State