Friday, September 19, 2014

An Introduction from Niall


     Hi everyone, my name is Niall Masterson. I will begin by giving you all some insight to my past and how life has taken me to Rogers State. So anyone that has met me will know that I sound a little bit strange, this is because I hail from the green fields of Ireland. I was born into a loving family being the youngest of three siblings. I grew up in Ballyboughal which is a small rural village in north Dublin. As you can imagine there is not a whole lot to do in a small village in Ireland but my friends and I always done a good job of keeping ourselves occupied. Spending all our time outside it was usually playing soccer that filled our days. At that time I played for fun, little did I know later in life it would take me to where I am now.

     After high school I had made the decision that I wanted to travel to the US and continue my education as well as play soccer for a university. So I began my pursuit in a small college in Dublin. I took part in a one year soccer course which was designed to get young student athletes across the pond to America. After a successful year I was lucky enough to get in touch with a coach from Coffeyville Community College, Kansas. Within three weeks of talking to the coach I was on a plane heading towards Kansas.
One of my last moments in Ireland before I left.
This was at the Cliffs of Moher, along the west coast of Ireland.

     You could say it was a little bit of a culture shock. The first thing I remember was getting off the plane and getting struck by ninety degree heat. This was a lot different than a comfortably low fifty degree climate. It wasn’t long before I started to adapt and was able to enjoy a new culture. I met a lot of great people in Coffeyville, they helped me enjoy my freshman year. At the end of my freshman year I heard about Rogers State University. Once I done some research on RSU I was highly impressed and wanted to visit the campus. I soon got in touch with Derek Larkin the head soccer coach. I finally got to see the campus and fell in love, it was perfect for me. Needless to say I acted quickly and got my transfer for the following fall semester, I was going to be a proud Hillcat.


     I began my RSU career as a sophomore in the fall of 2012. It has been extremely easy for me to settle in and I have met a lot of great people. I am now a Corporate Communications major and still represent the university on the men’s soccer team. I have made a lot of great memories here and will continue to do so in the remainder of my time here. 
My parents came to visit and watched me play for the Hillcats