International student-athletes finding a home in Mossy Creek
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – All 20 varsity sports at Carson-Newman University benefit from the presence of student-athletes who have a diverse set of backgrounds and come to Mossy Creek from all over the world. Nowhere is this truer on than on C-N’s soccer teams.
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – All 20 varsity sports at Carson-Newman University benefit from the presence of student-athletes who have a diverse set of backgrounds and come to Mossy Creek from all over the world. Nowhere is this truer on than on C-N's soccer teams. In 2016, the Carson-Newman men's and women's soccer teams consisted of a combined 55 student-athletes. More than half of those men and women were from outside the United States. For them, coming to Jefferson City is a completely new experience that does include some difficult times, but overall, it's an opportunity that's invaluable each individual. Said freshman goalkeeper and native of Nottingham, England Joe Boyd: "To live in another country and still play soccer every day, I'm really enjoying it."
For American high school students, the process of selecting a college generally follows a pretty set pattern. They select the schools they're interested in, visit each institution, send in their application and decide on where they want to go. For international students, it's completely different. "I didn't visit any of the schools I got recruited by," said sophomore forward Magda Mosengo (London, England.) "There are organizations and companies that act as the middleman for you and the schools. They'll make a highlight video, they'll talk to schools because either they've been here and played soccer or they know the coaches through their personal experiences." "I started the process with tests and making a video," said freshman defenseman Tobias Solem Karlsen (Kongsvinger, Norway), "and part of the process was just waiting for coaches to contact us.
For each recruit, there are multiple reasons they're looking to come overseas. One of them is the level of play. "The standard of soccer at university back home, apart from a couple of teams, nowhere near the standard out here," said Carson-Newman assistant coach and former C-N goalkeeper Kavi Luchowa (London, England). "Sports is so huge for college in America, with the infrastructure and funding and investment and everything like that, and it's not like that at all back home." The added attention paid to the sport in the United States provides the student-athletes with advantages they wouldn't have otherwise. "I think with what they do in America," said freshman goalkeeper Jacqueline Burns (Cookstown, Northern Ireland), "such as practicing every day, whereas in the U.K., you might only practice maybe three times a week. Because of that, you develop much faster."
Playing in the U.S. also can also provide players with a better chance to get an opportunity on the professional level. "Everyone at home thinks that, if you want make it in women's soccer, America was the place to be because of the [National Women's Soccer League]," said Mosengo. "The rough idea I had was I go to college, I perform well, I get drafted." A degree from an American school is also a huge benefit when looking for a job after graduation. "If you have a degree in a different language," said Karlsen, "it opens so many doors for you. To come over here, learn a new language and experience a new culture, I couldn't say no to it.
Without being able to come to Mossy Creek before enrolling, those considering Carson-Newman become enchanted with the school via other means. "I was in contact with a number of schools," said Karlsen, "and the name Carson-Newman just popped up. I think it was an afternoon and it was the day after I was in a Skype meeting with the coaching staff. They were talking about everything the school had to offer and I was pretty much sold." C-N's outstanding academic standing, as well as its reputation for athletic excellence also plays a role in swaying prospective students. "I liked the fact that it's a smaller school" said Boyd. "It allows for an opportunity to be more focused in the classroom and connect with the teachers. I also saw the facilities online and for Division II, there's not much better with the locker room and the field house, as well as the reputation on the field having reached the national final a few years ago. That was something I wanted to be a part of."
Coming to a school so far from home, in a country most of them had never been to, is not without some nervousness and anxiety. "When I made the decision [to come to Carson-Newman], I thought it was going to be easy," said Burns. "I figured I'd make new friends, it'll be a whole new experience, but the closer it came to being time to get going and make the trip, it started to get really hard. I realized that I was leaving my family and leaving basically everything behind me and going into this new world where I knew no one." "I'd never been so far away from home for such a long period of time," said Mosengo. "At the end of the first semester, I was itching to get home, because I'd missed it so much, but you soon adapt and being away from home, you learn so much, you gain so much independence that you enjoy it."
Living in Jefferson City is also something that takes getting used, especially for the newcomers who are used to residing in big cities. "It's a whole different lifestyle," said Mosengo, "especially because, where I live, I'm a lot more near the city. You're very dependent on others to help you move around. It's a culture shock. You think you know everything about the culture, but you actually know very little." Fortunately, the community does it's best to make sure the transition is a smooth one. "At the start," said Burns, "it felt weird to come to a new school and a new country, because this is my first time in America, but you learn a lot. The people are really welcoming."
For some, the difficulties involve more than just being away from home and learning about a new culture. "We learn [English] in high school or middle school but I wasn't good at all," said sophomore defender Thibault Mathorez (Graces, France). "It was difficult to the point that I barely could have a conversation with someone." One of the benefits of having such a diverse group of players, however, is there are no shortage of student-athletes on both squads who have dealt with the same issues. "There was a French player here [when I arrived], Rumwald Le Guevel," said Mathorez. "He helped me a lot for the first few weeks. It makes it a lot easier because the other players can explain how everything works here. The day I arrived here, Rumwald took me around the campus and explained everything to me." For Karlsen, the presence of senior Marius Staalby, a native of Trondheim, Norway, helped him adapt to student life at Carson-Newman. "[Marius] made things a lot easier for me," he said. "Every question I had, whether it was about school or soccer, he knew all about it. Every time I had a question, I would go to him before I'd go to other people. It makes a difference."
As each new member of the squad becomes accustomed to life on campus, it becomes part of their job to assist the next member of the team making the journey over to a new country and trying to fit in amidst new surroundings. Many of these student-athletes find themselves answering the same questions they once asked. "As soon as internationals arrive," said Luchowa, "you try and help them out and make sure they have everything they need. I've had two years of new people coming and it's actually quite funny to sit and watch. You know the questions they're going to ask because it's the exact same questions that the players the year before had asked and you know the kind of struggles that they're going to go through. It helps when you can give them a bit of a warning on that because then, when you go through the struggle, you know you're going to be O.K. because it's an ordeal everyone has been through." "It was a difficult experience to leave home," said Burns, "but it got better when I got here."
Each year in Mossy Creek, both Carson-Newman's men's and women's soccer teams welcome aboard a host of players from any number of different countries set to spend their first season in the Blue and Orange. It's seldom an easy transition for these men and women, most of whom are only teenagers and some of whom are still learning English. Luckily for them, there are a number of factors that help make the journey easier. Whether it's assistance from teammates who've been through the same kind of struggles or a community that welcomes them with open arms, each new recruit is made to feel like they're part of the Carson-Newman family. "I want to feel like the people coming in can have the same experience I did," said Boyd, "because it's very nerve-wracking coming over. I was a bit worried when I first got here, but the lads were class when I first came out here because they've all been through it and know what it's like. I want to do that for the new guys coming in. Even lads who came in this year, we can all be there for each other. It works really well. I'm definitely happy with my choice."
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