HANOVER — Ella Russ wasn’t sure she’d even be able to make it to Dartmouth this fall.
Russ, a freshman midfielder and forward on the Big Green women’s soccer team, hails from Auckland, New Zealand, the largest city in a country that imposed some of the tightest pandemic restrictions in the world.
But once COVID-19 cases declined in the United States in the spring and early summer and remained extremely low in New Zealand, and the Ivy League made the decision to resume athletic competitions for the first time since March 2020, Russ knew she would get to Hanover on schedule.
“They did a very good job as a family, where they were able to get her vaccinated,” Dartmouth coach Ron Rainey said. “This summer was pretty good as far as the cases in our country, and that made it pretty evident that we were going to have close to a normal quarter here. That helped them get her over here.”
It has certainly been a long and unlikely journey. Russ played several sports growing up in Auckland, including tennis and netball, but she shined brightest on the soccer pitch, playing in the New Zealand national team system.
In her debut with the U17 national team in 2019, Russ scored the opening goal of a 2-0 New Zealand win over Chile at a World Cup qualifying tournament in China. She currently plays for the U20 national team.
Russ has also competed in semipro domestic leagues in New Zealand — unpaid, so she could remain eligible to play NCAA soccer. She said a lot of athletes from New Zealand play college sports in the U.S., but she started her recruiting process late — so late, in fact, that she couldn’t visit prospective schools in person because the pandemic restrictions were already in place.
“I only started the process last year, which is different from everyone in America,” Russ said. “I sent videos out to coaches and had a lot of Zoom calls with them. Just tried to get a feel for it without being here.”
Russ had only visited the west coast of the U.S. prior to arriving in Hanover, and she had little familiarity with Dartmouth and its academic prestige. She showed interest in schools all over the country, including some other Ivy League programs. But she said Dartmouth just felt like the right fit and committed in the spring.
The Big Green have three other international players on the roster — Mist Grönvold is a senior defender and midfielder from Iceland, and senior defender Kat Grgic and junior midfielder Isabella Villaflor are both from Canada.
“Looking back on it, I didn’t realize how big a deal it was, moving across the world by myself,” Russ said. “But not overthinking is a good thing. It’s been really helpful having a few other internationals on the team to help me settle in.”
Rainey said Russ is the first Kiwi to play for the Big Green since Holly Patterson, who led the team with four goals during her senior season in 2016.
Russ appeared in five early-season games but has not seen playing time since Sept. 12.
She is yet to record any statistics beyond minutes played. But Rainey praised the freshman’s technical skills and said she’s taking time to learn how the college game differs from international soccer.
“We want to play to her strengths, which are her technique on the ball and her ability to keep the ball in possession,” Rainey said. “We’re looking forward to seeing her improve every quarter here, every year here, and I think she can have a bright future.”
Benjamin Rosenberg can be reached at brosenberg@vnews.com or 603-727-3302.