Jan. 19, 2018
By Zac Ellis
VUCommodores.com
Last fall, Madiya Harriott found herself adjusting to the SEC as a freshman defender on Vanderbilt’s soccer team. But this week the Davie, Fla. native suits up for a different squad: the Jamaican national team, which competes for the 2018 CONCACAF Women’s U20 Championship beginning today in Trinidad and Tobago.
The event features under-20 national squads from North, Central America and the Caribbean, all vying for a shot to advance to the 2018 FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup.
“I am extremely honored to have been selected to represent Jamaica to the best of my ability,” Harriott said. “It brings me an immense amount of joy to play soccer for the Jamaican national team. Doing what I love, while representing my family’s country and all the people of Jamaica rooting for us, is such a blessing. Making the people I care for proud validates me with passion and purpose.”
Harriott was first invited to join the Jamaican team when an assistant coach spotted her after a game with her Florida-based soccer club, Sunrise Sting. Harriott, who is half Jamaican, later ventured to Jamaica as a 15-year-old ahead of the squad’s appearance in the U17 CONCACAF tournament in Grenada.
Now Harriott has ventured to three different countries wearing a Jamaican uniform, an experience she describes as invaluable.
“There’s so much that I’ve learned from playing on the international stage,” Harriott said. “Not only has my holistic game improved exponentially, but international play has also diversified my outlook on cultural perspectives and learning the game from another point of view. It has exposed me to different types of cultures, which is extremely enlightening.”
As a freshman at Vanderbilt in 2017, Harriott looked the part of a future difference-maker in the SEC. She fought through an early injury to play in 17 games, starting seven. Harriott’s lone goal on the season was a late game-winner that sealed a 1-0 win over LSU last Sept. 17. The newcomer helped the Commodores reach the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2006 and win a tournament game for the first time since 1998.
Along the way, Harriott found her own game improving.
“SEC soccer is definitely a completely different atmosphere,” Harriott said. “Everyone is on an equal playing field and the separator is just a matter of who’s working the hardest and who wants it more. But I learned to be a student of the game and develop skills I’ve never had to use before. The SEC is just so emphatically intense and physical. The speed of play is fast-paced so there is little room for error.”
Vanderbilt head coach Darren Ambrose said Harriott’s international experience will serve her well as a Commodore.
“Anytime an athlete has the opportunity to represent their country or country of their family, it is the highest honor they can achieve,” Ambrose said. “It’s a tremendous honor for Madiya, and having the experience of playing in qualifying games for the U20 World Cup will be invaluable to her as she continues in our program. The bar is high for her, and this will help her continue to grow as an athlete.”
Jamaica kicks off its U20 championship berth against Mexico today. It will face the United State on Sunday and Nicaragua on Tuesday. The top three finishers qualify for the 2018 FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in France, an objective that remains fresh on Harriott’s mind.
“Qualifying for the World Cup is the ultimate goal,” Harriott said. “It would be an incomparable and indescribable feeling. I would be privileged to play in the World Cup for Jamaica.”
Zac Ellis is the Writer and Digital Media Editor for Vanderbilt Athletics.