DES MOINES, Iowa - Senior Alyssa Brand (Skokie, Ill.) of the Drake University women's soccer team is a recipient of this year's Missouri Valley Conference's Most Courageous Award, Drake Athletics announced Wednesday. Brand will be recognized before Drake's Thursday afternoon regular-season finale against Missouri State.
 
The MVC presents the award to past or present student-athletes, coaches or university administrators who demonstrate unusual courage in the face of personal illness, adversity or tragedy and whose behavior reflects honor on the institution or the Conference.
 
Brand was diagnosed with thyroid cancer midway through the 2017 season. A doctor's appointment the day before a match against UNI showed potential signs of cancer. She still played that night against the Panthers and even had an assist in the win. After the UNI win, she flew home to Chicago to get a biopsy, the day before Drake was scheduled to play at Evansville, and learned she indeed had cancer. Her parents brought her to Evansville on gameday where Brand started and earned another assist in another Drake win. Just one week later, Brand, who didn't miss any matches after the cancer diagnosis, scored two diving header goals in a comeback win over Illinois State that clinched the MVC regular season title for Drake. She went on to earn All-MVC Second Team honors for the second-straight year.
 
After the season and at the end of the 2017 fall semester, Brand took all of her finals one week early and returned home to Chicago for surgery that removed her thyroid and several lymph nodes. Since they were close to her vocal cord, she had to undergo physical therapy to help her recover her voice. After surgery and physical therapy, Brand then spent part of Drake's 2018 January Term studying abroad in New Zealand. She returned to campus in late January, continued her studies and then during spring break returned to Chicago for radiation treatment. During her radiation treatment, she had to be in complete isolation. Following the radiation treatment, she returned to campus, continued her academics, got physically fit and played the entire spring season with her team. Brand is an excellent student with a 3.71 grade point average in finance and marketing.
 
Brand's thyroid cancer was the second time her family was affected by thyroid cancer as Alyssa's mother, Michelle, was also diagnosed with it when she was nine months pregnant with Alyssa. Nearly a year cancer free, Brand was dealt another tough break early this season, suffering a knee injury that required surgery. She worked hard in her rehabilitation and returned to the field two weeks ago at Loyola. Last week, Brand scored the game winner at UNI and had an assist in the Bulldogs' comeback win over Indiana State.
 
Brand is the fifth recipient of the prestigious honor at Drake and first since 2011.