Texas Tech University Athletics
Victoria Esson: From New Zealand to Texas Tech
August 04, 2011 | Women's Soccer
Aug. 4, 2011
by Britton Drown
Texas Tech Athletics Communications
The thought of her own unusual journey to Lubbock tends to bring a laugh to Victoria Esson. Spend some time with her though, and it becomes clear it's just a contagious aspect of her personality.
The newest addition to head coach Tom Stone's Red Raider soccer team tends to laugh often, and that lighthearted nature is one of Stone's favorite aspects of his new goalkeeper.
Of course there's also the talent and abundant experience that Esson brought along with her when she disembarked the long flight from her home in Christchurch, New Zealand. With that final step off the plane on July 4, she officially became the first-ever international soccer player in Texas Tech history.
Why not laugh a little?
"Having come so far, all the way across the world, I had to put myself out there a little bit," Esson said.
It's worked.
Quickly, she absorbed herself into her new team and a new culture in West Texas.
"She is learning how to say `Y'all'." Stone said with a laugh. "She is learning about cowboys and she is learning about American football. From the minute we met her, she has been just wanting to take it all in. That puts the team at ease immediately."
 | "She raises the maturity level on our whole team. Just the way she conducts herself, the way she prepares for the games and the way she trains." head coach Tom Stone |
But it's not just Esson who is learning. As the first international recruit in program history, her teammates have found themselves learning just as much.
"She is a really exciting player just to hang out with because she is from a different culture," junior midfielder Tiffini Smith said. "We always like to pick her brain to see what it's like over there."
For Stone, it's a relief. The fifth-year head coach recruited Esson solely through telephone conversations, and admitted he was anxious about finally meeting her face-to-face. That anxiety quickly vanished however once Esson finally arrived Lubbock.
"She has such an awesome personality and is so funny," Stone said. "Immediately, [she was] disarming with her fun, jovial attitude about being here. It's a culture shock, and she is just loving every second of it."
Yet that contagious personality certainly is not all that Esson brings to the Red Raider soccer program. The junior transfer has brought with her from New Zealand and into the Texas Tech locker room, an impressive level of experience. Esson has competed in three youth World Cups as a member of the New Zealand National Team, including the 2010 final team in Germany.
It's something Stone is excited for his players to draw from.
"When you are immersed in a national team setting, you can't help but have a really high standard." Stone said. "She raises the maturity level on our whole team. Just the way she conducts herself, the way she prepares for the games and the way she trains."
During the recruiting process, Stone and Esson found a connection as they both attended the FIFA U20 2008 World Cup in Chile. Esson, a member of the New Zealand National Team watched as Stone, an assistant coach for the U.S. squad, eventually won the tournament.
"That was pretty awesome," Esson said.
And it stuck with her. When the phone call from Stone came this year, the impression from 2008 lingered.
"I had a few options, but when I talked to Tom, almost straight away I thought, `This is a standout from the others'," Esson said. "He and his team worked really hard to get me here."
While they didn't know one another at the time in Chile, Stone, through the recruiting process, felt an urge to make sure she landed on his squad.
"She has great experience," Stone said. "She takes care of herself. She has come here to do well in American soccer. She didn't come here for vacation. She came here to get a great degree, and to win in college soccer. She carries that with her, and it is a little bit contagious."
For Esson, she is ready to officially begin the new chapter of her impressive soccer career. It's been a long journey, and she added she didn't necessarily know it would lead her from New Zealand to Texas Tech.
"It's a small world," Esson said, adding her trademark laugh.
