More Than the Game: International Athletes Finding a Home at Western Iowa Tech

For international athletes at Western Iowa Tech, coming to the United States means more than joining a roster. It means entering a system that allows them to study and compete at the same time - an opportunity that doesn’t exist in many of their home countries. But it also means leaving behind family, friends, and everything that feels like home, and learning how to build that sense of belonging all over again here in Sioux City.

For many, the path to sports looks very different than it does in the U.S. In many countries, there is no built-in system that allows athletes to compete at a high level while attending college. Instead, they are often forced to choose between academics and athletics at a young age.

The athletes who try to do both often face long days, heavy travel, and constant sacrifice. Without school-based sports programs, athletes train through club systems, often traveling hours each day just to practice - all while keeping up with their studies.

Connor Osprey grew up in that system. Like many kids in Scotland, he started playing soccer as soon as he could walk. By the age of 11, he had signed with a professional club, balancing school in the mornings with hours of training each afternoon, often not returning home until late at night.

“I didn’t go to school too much… because football has always been my whole life,” he said. “I’d go to school from 9 till 10:30… then train for two or three hours… and get home at 11pm.” Soccer wasn’t just something he did - it was his future.

But that future isn’t guaranteed. After years of training and the opportunity to sign professionally, an injury changed everything. “I could have been… playing pro football… watching me on TV,” he said. Instead, Connor had to choose a different route, and he chose to come to the U.S. to continue playing while earning a college education.

For athletes like Connor, the U.S. system offers something many of them didn’t have before: the chance to pursue both.

“We don’t have high school teams… you have clubs outside of school,” said Karlo Dragojevic, a basketball player from Croatia. “You can play with a 35-year-old or a 19-year-old.” That structure creates opportunities to learn from more experienced players but also means competing against them for limited spots.

In Germany, some athletes attend specialized sports schools designed for elite development. “We have sports schools… where the best players from all over Germany train,” said Juli Voelkel, a member of the volleyball team. But even within that system, balancing academics and athletics requires long days and constant discipline.

Jana Pocovi Tosquella lived in a very small town in Spain, so she couldn’t get enough time on the soccer field. “… because only training two or three times a week with my team. … I don't know, like four hours of training a week or less. It was not enough for me. I wanted more.” So she, too, looked to the U.S. as an option.

To begin the process of coming to the U.S., most work with an agent who helps them navigate the system - building highlight films, researching schools, making connections, and managing the paperwork. It can take up to 18 months before everything is finally in place.

When everything is finally done – it gets real.

Through airports. On long flights. In unfamiliar cities where everything feels slightly off. With moments of doubt and frustration.

For Juli, that time came before she even unpacked. Her luggage didn’t arrive with her. She was alone, overwhelmed, and called her mom – she was ready to go home. Her mom convinced her to stay.

A trip to Walmart the next day with her coach helped, but it wasn’t the shopping that changed things - it was a stranger. A girl stopped her, tapped her on the arm, and complimented her shoes.

That’s all. It was a small moment, but it mattered. In that interaction, Juli saw something different - kindness, openness, a sense that maybe this place wasn’t as unfamiliar as it first felt. Maybe it was somewhere she could belong.

Connor’s first impression wasn’t the campus or the team - it was the air.

“So I came at the airport and I instantly felt wet… I’ve never felt anything like that in my life.”

The July heat in Iowa was nothing like Scotland. It was heavier, thicker, something you didn’t just feel, but wore.

But as the shock of the weather settled, something else stood out.

“The campus as a whole was so clean… the city… it’s almost like spotless.”

It wasn’t what he expected - but it wasn’t a bad thing either. Just different.

For Karlo, the contrast came from somewhere else entirely. He had already seen the United States - just not like this.

New York City had been loud, people everywhere, and lots of tall buildings. Sioux City was the opposite.

“You can walk from one side of the campus to the other… you don’t have big buildings, big skyscrapers… not a lot of people. But it’s really nice out here. I like it a lot.”

Even so, the hardest part of arriving had nothing to do with geography.

“I remember the day I was flying… I remember the separation from my family.”

Jana wasn’t sure what to expect.

“Before getting here, I was kind of scared… like, am I gonna like it? Am I gonna be happy here with all my family there in Spain? It’s difficult. It’s a big change.”

No matter how different the landscape looked - or how welcoming it felt - every athlete felt that same point where excitement gave way to distance, and home suddenly felt very far away.

Coming to the U.S. doesn’t just mean adapting to a new place – it often means relearning the sport itself.

For some, that adjustment is immediate. For Juli, it was disorienting.

“It felt like I’m learning a complete new sport.”

Even the basics were different. The ball didn’t move the same, didn’t feel the same.

“It’s just weird… when you play with a ball every single day for so long, and then you get here and it’s completely different.”

For a time, it threw her off. But within a couple of weeks, she adjusted – she had to.

Because the differences aren’t just in how the game is played. They’re in everything surrounding it.

“I arrived, I looked at my locker… I got four different practice shirts. Sweaters. Shoes. Gym shoes… I even got socks.”

She was excited because to her, it was more than just gear. It was support.

“I have someone who takes care of my body after practice… we have a room with an amazing PT.”

Back home, those resources weren’t a given, they were something you had to pay for yourself. Here, they were part of the system. And for these athletes, it meant more than convenience. It meant they were being taken care of.

That feeling is important because the first week after an athlete arrives on campus is critical. This is when everything begins at once - new routines, new teammates, new expectations. They meet coaches, register for classes, learn the layout of campus, adjust to the food, the language, even unfamiliar rules like the legal drinking age.

Some arrive with time to ease into it. Others are thrown in immediately.

Francisco Punte, a soccer player from Argentina, arrived late - just two days before his first scrimmage. There was very little time to adjust. Luckily, his position gave him some stability.

“Because I’m a goalkeeper, it’s always the same… stop the ball.”

Even so, the differences in game play were noticeable.

“In Argentina, it’s more technique… here it’s more physical.”

For Juli, her first night in the dorms could have been isolating and disheartening. Instead, it became something else entirely.

“My teammates… they helped me out. They gave me clothes, towels… something to shower.”

In that moment, she wasn’t alone anymore. She had arrived as a stranger in a new country but was immediately welcomed into a team that began to feel like family.

Not every transition was difficult. Jana arrived a week before classes and had time to settle in.

“I was meeting everybody… discovering everything… I just loved it.”

For many, the connections they’ve made have extended beyond the season. Teammates become lifelong friends, staying in touch across countries and continents.

Connor described it simply: “I already felt like… we’ve got best friends for life… it makes it a lot easier when you’ve got people you’re comfortable with.”

Over winter break, one teammate drove eight and a half hours from England to visit him in Scotland.

What began as a leap into the unknown became something more - a new home, new friends. But even as they build something new here, life continues without them back home.

“Seeing my brother grow up without me, it’s just crazy. When I left, he was 5’6”… now he’s 6’1” at 14,” said Juli.

It’s not just the milestones, it’s the everyday moments.

“…just walking 10 minutes to my grandma’s house… having someone that gives you an actual hug… someone who knows you from the beginning… that is something you don’t have here.”

That absence is constant.

“You don’t have your parents, your dog, your cat, your sisters, your brothers…” said Mia Ortiz, a volleyball player from Paraguay. She spent her 20th birthday more than 5,000 miles from home. “It’s difficult… but I really wanted to do it. So here I am.”

The experience changes them.

“You always find something good here… it taught me so much,” Juli said. “Two years ago, I was 17 and scared of everything. Now… I feel more secure about myself.”

Each of these athletes has gained confidence, independence, and the ability to adapt - to rely on themselves, trust others, and push beyond what they thought they could handle.

Their futures look different now.

No matter where they go next, their paths all run through Sioux City - through Western Iowa Tech. It’s a journey they may not have expected, but one they will always carry with them.

“I will remember it… my first memories here, my friends… where my dream started,” Francisco said.

Juli puts it simply:

“I just want to see as much as I can… because you never know what happens next.”