Sophomore midfielder Zeta Kromah’s journey to William and Mary is far from typical. From Liberia to Nebraska to Williamsburg, Va., her path epitomizes the blazing of an entirely new trail.
Kromah’s journey starts in the Liberian capital, Monrovia, home to nearly 2 million residents. There, she featured for LEAD Monrovia Football Academy.
“LEAD is basically where I learned everything,” Kromah said. “I learned how to be a leader, work hard, dream big.”
During her youth in Liberia, Kromah looked up to soccer players Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo for both what they achieved on the field and how they carried themselves off the pitch.
“Messi is an inspirational player who does not talk a lot, he just lets his work on the field do the talking,” Kromah said. “I also like Ronaldo because of his perseverance, his mentality.”
While Kromah now plays and lives in the United States, she remains connected with her LEAD teammates.
In addition to playing for LEAD, Kromah also featured for the Liberian women’s national team at multiple levels. Kromah’s first call-up for her country came in 2019, when she played for Liberia’s first U-17 women’s team.
“I was a goalkeeper at that point, but when I made the team, the coaches took me as a midfielder,” Kromah said.
Kromah’s time with the U-17 group ended with her wearing the captain’s armband. After her first experience with the senior national team, Kromah moved to Fremont, Neb., where she featured for both Fremont High School and Fremont Soccer Club.
Despite moving to an entirely new country in high school without her family, Kromah settled in immediately.
“I had a pre-departure orientation for six months before coming to America, so I pretty much knew about the American culture,” Kromah said. “My host family, they have hosted lots of international students, so they know what students face.”
After recording seven goals and four assists for Fremont High School, Kromah returned to Liberia, where she searched for a U.S. university.
“I started reaching out to coaches and seeing if I can get a scholarship because that was the most important thing,” Kromah said. “I wanted to go to college outside Liberia because college in Liberia is strictly academic.”
Kromah credits LEAD Academy co-founder Will Smith ’14 for assisting her throughout the process, especially when it came to acting as an intermediary between her and collegiate soccer programs in the U.S.
However, the timing of Kromah’s search for a college proved challenging, as it came late in the process. Many schools had already finalized their rosters and distributed scholarship money.
Despite this, Tribe women’s soccer head coach Julie Shackford and associate head coach Marsha Lycan still took a chance on Kromah.
“I got on a Zoom with Shackford, she was really impressed, and then that is how they started [to] fit me into the team,” Kromah said.
Even today, she and Shackford still recall this story, Kromah added.
Both Shackford and Lycan recognized Kromah’s contributions to both the Tribe and her community back home.
“She has a true giving spirit, shown in the way she gives back to her Monrovian community and creates opportunities in soccer that would not otherwise exist,” Shackford said.
During her time at William and Mary thus far, Kromah has developed as much off the field as she has on it — something that took her by surprise.
“William and Mary has taught me a lot about building connections, being a community with a sense of belonging,” Kromah said. “I really appreciate my teammates, they are all super supportive, the coaches who support me on and off the pitch.”
Kromah’s story extends beyond her journey to William and Mary. She remains committed to giving back to the next generation of Liberian soccer players.
This past winter, she founded Tribe Stars in Liberia. The organization serves to empower underserved youth through the sport Kromah holds dear to her heart.
“I want a lot of kids to feel like a star wherever they are, [and] I am taking my Tribe community to Liberia,” Kromah said.
While Tribe Stars only launched recently, the first camp Kromah hosted saw incredible success.
“[At] the first camp, we hosted 105 participants, where we had several workshops on the importance of leadership, teamwork and building confidence,” Kromah said.
While there was no shortage of young Liberians passionate about soccer, Kromah had to look elsewhere to help these children turn their dreams into a reality.
“I thought of reaching out to possible donors, [the] William and Mary community and around Virginia, to donate used soccer equipment for those kids,” Kromah said. “We donated [that] equipment to kids, they were really excited.”
Looking forward, Kromah knows what she hopes to achieve.
“For soccer, the plan is to go pro,” Kromah said. ”The main reason I want to go pro is just to help my community — to help build a lot of infrastructure, give kids the opportunity, the education and just make my community a better place.”
