Saturday, April 27 is the Day of Champions, and Northern State University student-athletes will spend their day volunteering on various projects in the Aberdeen area, and perhaps find love? This was true in 2010 for a student-athlete alumni couple Mark and Kendra Hanley.

The Day of Champions holds an even greater meaning for Mark and Kendra. It was the foundation of their love story.

Fourteen years ago, a soccer player caught the eye of a football player. After both were assigned to volunteer at “House of Hope,” Mark recalls scanning the group to see who all was there. After noticing Kendra, he stood close by her as they were getting split into smaller groups, in hopes of being placed in the same group.

As luck had it, his plan worked.

Mark decided to impress Kendra by painting a soccer-themed picture. They spent most of the morning making small talk and painting sports-themed pictures before painting the whole wall. 

“His painting was awful,” said Kendra “but I could see his intent and he quickly made an impression.”

As the day concluded, Kendra recalls Mark randomly playing tag in the lobby with a group of kids. Seeing how great with kids he was and knowing she wanted to be a mom someday, she immediately took interest. Since Mark lived close by to the location of the House of Hope project, he decided to walk home. Kendra and her group of friends approached him in a car and asked if he wanted a ride.

“For some reason I turned it down,” said Mark during an interview. “I still haven’t figured out why.”

He compares that moment to the final scene of the movie, “Dumb and Dumber”.

Throughout the following months Mark would “accidently” cross paths with Kendra around the Barnett Center and other campus events. They eventually began talking more and enjoying each other’s company.

Mark remembers their first summer together spending countless hours at the lake, helping Kendra with her math homework, and spent a lot of time watching the World Cup in hopes he would gain knowledge about soccer – a sport he knew little to nothing about. “It was cute,” Kendra shares “It showed me how interested he was and his commitment to wanting to know me and the things I love.”

She went on to Graduate School as he finished his bachelor's degree.

The spring of 2013 was a busy one for the couple. They purchased their first home, got engaged and both graduated from Northern State University.

The couple tied the knot on July 5, 2014.

Today, the couple resides in Aberdeen, SD, and have three children, Avery, Cameron and Evelyn. They enjoy spending their time attending Northern football, soccer and basketball games.

 “It’s crazy as I reflect on this story,” Mark said. “Kendra and I both had scholarship offers to other schools. Luckily, God had a plan for us to be at Northern State University and in the same group that day on the Day of Champions.”