St. Edward’s University prides itself on many aspects, two of which are: student diversity and stellar athletics.
Of 272 student-athletes on the St. Edward’s athletic rosters, 27 are international, making that 10 percent.
Every country has different skillsets, customs, and mental approaches, which are particularly highlighted in soccer. Under the direction of Nick Cowell, a British-born coach, the three international players on the women’s soccer team are Swedish. On the contrary, the men’s soccer team has a roster comprised of athletes from various countries.
“Our coaches do a good job of pulling out the strengths of each and every type of player,” SEU men’s soccer senior captain Kyle Pujats said. “I think the best part about our team is that we all have a different way of thinking about the game. We kind of use those strengths to create a synergistic environment where each international culture builds on the other one.”
Listen to how men’s soccer players from these different cultures talk about the game:
Just like the women’s tennis team, half of the men’s tennis roster is made up of international players, and SEU Head Coach Estevam Strecker is a Brazilian native.
“I think that diversity helps us, makes it a little more interesting – people of different cultures and backgrounds,” SEU Women’s Head Coach Kendall Brooks said. “We’re always learning different things about each other and different cultures. Languages – it’s always an English lesson, or Spanish lesson, or a Dutch lesson… It just makes it a little more fun.”
Even for those athletes who were born and raised in the United States, everyone has roots from other countries – including all 51 U.S.-born baseball players on the St. Edward’s roster.
America’s national pastime is also a popular sport outside of the United States, and recently more professional stars are of Latin American descent. As for the St. Edward’s baseball team, two of them are twin brothers: Juan Cortina and Romeo Cortina, Jr. The sons of Mexican immigrants, these junior transfers are helping their teammates off the field just as well as on the field.
“In Spanish class, all my friends on the baseball team are always asking me to help them with their homework or projects, and they ask, “How do you speak so much Spanish?” junior right fielder Romeo Cortina, Jr. said, with a chuckle. “And when I say ‘Well I’m Mexican, bro,’ they say that I’m too light, but I promise I am.”
Ultimately, no matter where these student-athletes are from, St. Edward’s University serves as a home in a nation that is considered a melting pot of cultures.
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