UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- For some people, traveling a state away is enough to make them homesick. However, what if you going to school and playing the sport you love means moving to another country away from your family and friends?
Multiple members of the Penn State men's soccer team made that tough decision in coming to State College.
"There were other schools that I considered," sophomore Callum Pritchatt said. "But, no other schools gave both the best academics and athletics. When comparing it to other schools, Penn State was a pretty easy decision."
Pritchatt, who is from Birmingham, England, is one of seven players on the Penn State roster that call another country home. The Nittany Lions have three players from England, and one each from Ireland, Canada, and Israel. Sophomore Mikey Conneh, another England native, said his experience coming into Penn State was a little different because he decided to come in the spring semester.
"I had to figure stuff out myself a little bit," Conneh said. "It was a bring transition, especially with classes and stuff. The team was really welcoming and they really offered hand in helping me adjust to the new environment."
Head coach Jeff Cook explained that recruiting players from another country is different because you are so reliant on the recommendation of alumni or close friends who know the game.
"I believe that every player that joins us at Penn State, we have to meet," Cook said. "We have to meet their families in order to understand what makes them tick and what they're like as characters first and foremost. It is important and we do have a lot of network from Penn State and people I've met in the game."
Captain Dani Marks came to Happy Valley from Ra'anana, Israel, where military service is mandatory. Marks served a total of 16 months in the Israeli Defense Forces' National Service and was released in February 2014. He explained that it put his life on hold, but it didn't keep him from playing the game.
"I worked very hard to get a job in which I could, most days, go back home," Marks said. "Back to my hometown to play with the team I belong to. So sometimes I would miss trainings and I'd miss games, but by large I belonged to a team."
Coming from a different country can be difficult, but both Pritchatt and Conneh said they are kept so busy during the year, they don't have much time to sit and think about it. Conneh did share that after games he does get a bit homesick.
"What I find really hard, is when we have a home game or a close away game," Conneh said. "When all the boys are talking to their parents after the game or if their parents can come watch every game, that's the only part of homesickness I feel I really struggle with."
Although they are far from their original home, each of the players have found a new home and family in Penn State and the men's soccer team. The experiences they have gained in Happy Valley, whether on or off the field, will stay with them for years to come.