When Kiki Van Zanten stepped onto the field in Melbourne, Australia, to make her Women’s World Cup debut for Jamaica on Aug. 8, she achieved a goal she had set more than a decade before.
But it came in a way the 2019 Stevenson graduate never could have foreseen, her mother, Priscilla, recalled.
“I remember when she was 10, she said her goal was to play soccer in a stadium where people have to pay to see her play,” Priscilla Van Zanten said. “So, check and check.”
Priscilla Van Zanten was among those in attendance when Kiki Van Zanten started at forward for Jamaica in its game against Columbia in the Round of 16. It was the culmination of a two-week Down Under dream.
“It was absolutely amazing,” Priscilla Van Zanten said. “I was beaming with pride the entire time, from getting on the plane to getting home to even now. Never in a million years did I ever think that this would be a reality.”
Kiki Van Zanten, 21, who earned all-state honors as a senior in her only season of high school soccer, was eligible to play for Jamaica because her mother was born there. She has had a stellar career at Notre Dame, where she is a graduate student.
“I am so grateful to represent my mom’s home country,” Kiki Van Zanten said. “I have felt more connected to my Jamaican side of the family and that part of my heritage.
“This team has helped me really embrace my Jamaican culture, and I can’t put into works how much pride I have in Jamaica.”
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Kiki Van Zanten’s father, Kent, played football at Illinois Wesleyan. But she probably gets her speed from her mother, who ran track in Jamaica, a country steeped in running tradition. Priscilla Van Zanten moved to Evanston when she was 15 and served in the Army Reserves for 29 years, retiring as a lieutenant colonel.
The younger generation of Van Zantens chose soccer as their sport. Kiki Van Zanten’s older sister, Brianna, was a forward at Case Western Reserve, and her younger sister, Mimi, is a freshman defender at Florida State. All are honors students.
Kiki Van Zanten was a member of the U.S. U17 national team player pool, but she was not chosen to represent the country after that. Her selection to the Jamaican national team helped salve that disappointment.
“My journey has really been fortunate, and I am very grateful for the hardships or the low points because it brought me to where I am today,” she said. “Without those moments, I would not have learned very important lessons that brought me to the World Cup.
“I also know my 10-year-old self would freak out at some of my accomplishments I’ve had so far.”
Kiki Van Zanten was selected for the Jamaican team after a 10-day camp in Jamaica in June. That was followed by 22 days of training in Amsterdam and Australia.
Jamaica was the smallest nation in the 32-team World Cup field. But the Reggae Girlz, who had never won a World Cup match, shocked many by advancing out of group play by beating Panama 1-0 and playing to scoreless ties with heavily favored France and Brazil.
Kiki Van Zanten didn’t play in those games but did play the first 45 minutes against Colombia before being subbed out. It was an experience she will never forget.
“I actually was pretty calm,” she said. “I kept telling myself that this isn’t my first game or my last. This is what I’ve trained so hard for and I deserve to be here.
“Playing against so many fans is intimidating for the first few minutes, but then you totally forget about the thousands of people there and focus on the game.”
The success of Jamaica and other underdog teams in the World Cup is putting more focus on the sport, in particular the deep well of talent at the NCAA level. A total of 54 current Division I players were on World Cup rosters, including 12 for Jamaica.
“I think that people sometimes undervalue the level of college soccer and how intense it can really be,” Kiki Van Zanten said. “I felt like without my college training environment I would not have been ready to compete in this World Cup.
“I feel like many big DI schools’ training facilities and support staff can be more extensive and invested in than smaller professional leagues in Europe.”
The World Cup set attendance and television viewership records, which is encouraging to Van Zanten.
“The viewership for this World Cup has created worldwide attention that there is a huge market for women’s soccer and that it is continuing to grow,” she said. “People should invest in it now because it will only get bigger and bigger.”
Kiki Van Zanten has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and is working toward a master’s degree in business analytics. But she’s not ready to hang up her cleats.
“I don’t really think about my career as a legacy just yet because I feel it’s still in the early stages,” she said. “I just hope that I enjoy my professional career in soccer and that I will have impacted the game positively or been a role model for little girls wanting to get into the sport.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.