Adjusting to life in college can be difficult. Most new students are experiencing a new environment, a rigorous academic workload, as well as being away from home for the first time. Add to that the challenge of college athletics, the adjustment of coming from a major metropolitan area to a small Kansas town, not to mention working with cultural and language barriers, and you’ve got the experience of four men’s soccer players at Hesston College.
Sophomores Masaki Kato (Tokyo, Japan), Hussein Abtidon (Nairobi, Kenya), Carlos Hernandez (Bogota, Colombia) and freshman Ermias Mekonen (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) have brought their soccer skills and academic interests to a small college in a small Kansas town that stands in stark contrast to their respective metropolitan homes.
Playing the world’s most popular game for the varsity soccer team has provided common ground and undoubtedly eased the transition to their new surroundings in south central Kansas. All four players say that being a member of the team has widened their friendship circle and deepened connections to campus.
“Playing soccer made it easy to make friends,” Kato said. “Soccer has been a passion of mine throughout my life, and being able to continue to play has made it easier for me to connect here at Hesston.”
“Being included on the roster definitely made the social transition easier for me here,” Mekonen agreed. “I’ve been playing the game since I was a little kid, and I think being able to keep playing has helped me here.”
The game itself has proved a bit different from their respective backgrounds, too.
“It was difficult to adjust to the style of soccer here in the first few days,” Abtidon said. “But that became easier the more time I spent with the coaches and players. The coaches have been a big help, they do a good job of listening and teaching.”
“Our international players have made a big impact on the roster,” Hesston coach Kurt Hostetler said. “This experience has been meaningful for them I believe, and it gives our American players a chance to interact with students from different cultures.”
This year’s roster is typical, as the men’s soccer program at Hesston has enjoyed a long-standing tradition of diverse and talented rosters that mirror the general campus. International students make significant contributions to Hesston’s student body, and one example of the richness and diversity they bring to the campus community can be seen on the soccer field.
Former Hesston men’s soccer coach Gerry Sieber described the many international players he mentored as a coachable group who made a positive impact on his teams.
“I felt the International players made a fine contribution to the Hesston program over the years,” Sieber said. “It was amazing to me how well they meshed and got along with our American kids. It seemed to me they each showed patience learning from each other and there never seemed to be a gulf between them.”
“These four have been a pleasure to coach,” Hostetler said. “The dynamic that international students bring to our teams and our campus is remarkable. The relationships built this fall have shaped players’ lives in a meaningful way, and I think we’ll all take away many positives from this season.”
In soccer, Hesston College competes in Division I of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). Located 30 miles north of Wichita, Hesston College is the two-year liberal arts college of Mennonite Church USA.