Florida State's Amanda DaCosta may be in her rookie season as a Seminole, but she has made an immediate impact on a team that has gone 6-3-2 overall so far this season and is in the thick of the ACC race. DaCosta has started all 11 games, and has netted two goals and assisted on four others. This student-athlete was accomplished even before Florida State. She has been a member of the U-17 National Team, Eastern New York Olympic Development Program, Region I Development Program, and New Jersey State Cup championship club team. DaCosta looks to be a force on the Seminole squad as well as in the classroom in the next four years.
How did you get started playing soccer?
I got started when I was four years old. We had "Micro Soccer" in New York, which is like Little League where a bunch of little kids are running around the field. My dad signed me up for it because he loved soccer. It started from there, and I played on different teams as I moved up.
What would you say is your greatest accomplishment as an athlete?
I would say being a member of the U-17 National Team through the Olympic Development Program (ODP).
How did you get involved with the National Team?
Every state has an ODP. New York has three - the South, East, and West - and I was part of the eastern New York ODP. You go to regional training camps. We would get looked at and hope to be noticed and placed in the regional pool, where you could then be identified for the national pool. From the national pool, you could be identified for the national team. That's how you would traditionally get on the national team, but I was noticed at a college showcase and identified for the national pool there.
Can you talk about your experiences with the National Team?
It's really cool. I went to my first national identification camp when I was 15, and traveled a little bit more when I was 16, including to California. It really took off when I was in the 17 age group. I got to go to Argentina, we went to Seattle and Canada. We played a lot more and had training in Florida. It was a lot of fun and I got to play with really great people. A lot of the same girls moved up along with me, so I got to know them really well. We got the opportunity to play against the U-20 or U-21 team from Argentina and its World Cup team, which was great.
What's the biggest difference between playing high school/club soccer and playing in college now?
There's a huge difference, especially coming into such a competitive league as the ACC. Everyone is just so much better. There really is no weak team in the ACC - every game is a battle and it can go either way. In club soccer, it's more of a roller coaster. On one day, you could play a team that is really good and the next, you would play a really bad team. It's consistently intense here at Florida State.
What is it like playing every day in a conference like the ACC?
I love it. It's like a job, but more fun. Usually you don't like going to work, but you love going to practice. It's cool because it's just part of my life. It's always been part of my life, but here even more so because you just go to class and then go hang in the locker room until practice and then you go play! That's pretty much what it is every day. The training is really good. We have great coaches here.
What do you still hope to accomplish or what are some goals for your Florida State career?
This is probably going to sound typical, but I definitely would like to be an All-American. I'm a good student and would like to get that academic status as well as being an athlete. Afterwards, I would like to see what I could do with the National Team. There are no U-18 or U-19 teams right now, so I'm on hold right now. If I get noticed, I could get pulled up to the next level, but it's a wait-and-see process. I'm hoping that one day I can make the next level - that's my ultimate goal. Right now I'm just focused on going for a national championship with Florida State. As for myself, I'm focused on doing what I need to do to earn All-American and just generally getting better.
What has best helped to acclimate you to the college scene so far, athletically or academically?
A lot of it has to do with girls on the team. I'm from New York so I'm far away from home here. I didn't really have a chance to be homesick because of the pre-season schedule. I was so busy that I wasn't even thinking about home. The girls have been there for me from the beginning and have showed me around and introduced me to their friends. It was great because coming into the school year, I already had a group of friends between my teammates and all the other athletes that were here in the summer. Our academic advisor does a great job, too. We have mandatory study hall and have to spend a certain amount of hours in study hall. We also have tutors and amazing facilities with everything we need - tutors, computers, study areas, anything we could need. It helps because I live in a dorm and I cannot focus in the dorm at all. The study hall is better for getting things done!
What is it like going so far away from home?
I love it! I love Florida and the weather. Tallahassee is very different than my home in New York, they are two different extremes. I wasn't really looking at any local schools. Not to get away from my parents or anything, but all the schools I was interested in were farther from home.
What's the best advice you've received?
Never settle for less than what I could be. Always push myself to do more than I already think I can do.
Who is your most influential role model?
It's hard to say. Obviously my parents, because they started me on soccer when I was little. My dad coached me. They've always helped and supported me between driving me to practices, which weren't exactly around the corner. They drove me an hour and 15 minutes to practice, so it was a big commitment on their end. As far as soccer itself, I would say my club coach. He's very inspirational and he prepared me so much for college. Everything he said it would be, it is. He put me into a college atmosphere so I would be ready for this and never let me settle for anything.
What is your most memorable moment in sports?
When I went to Argentina, we got to see a professional soccer game. It was the craziest thing I have ever seen because soccer in other countries is not how soccer is in the United States. They are out-of-control! It was amazing to see. Obviously I love the sport and it has been my life, but our culture isn't as crazy about it as their culture is. They live and breathe soccer. It's one of the most popular sports in the world, but not really here in the United States. It was really cool to see that passion that everyone has and be in that atmosphere with all the chanting and all the people. It was just crazy.
Why did you choose Florida State?
I just fell in love with it. I went to go visit Marquette up in Wisconsin, and I really liked it. I was also thinking of other schools, like UConn, but there was just something that appealed to me more at Florida State. When I left here from the visit, I just knew that I was going to be here. It was just a feeling that I got from my official visit.
What are you studying or planning on studying?
When I came in here, I was set thinking, "Ok, yeah, I know what I'm going to do." That was a lie! I thought I was going to do exercise science, but I'm probably going to switch my major. I'm thinking a lot about psychology. I'm taking a psychology class right now and I really like it.
Any thoughts for after Florida State?
After graduation, I'm going try and keep going with the national team. I want to play as long as I can. If I don't make the National Team, I'm going to think about playing overseas. I just know that playing soccer is something I'm going to keep doing as long as I can. I would also like to coach, but other than that, I'm still undecided.
Amanda DaCosta and the Seminoles return to action tomorrow (10/7) at Virginia Tech at 1 p.m., and return to Tallahassee next Thursday (10/11) for a match-up with Maryland at 7 p.m.
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