JOSH FRIEDMAN

@JFriedman57

Tziarra King wasn’t planning on doing anything special during her first collegiate spring break.

The 2016 Winslow Township High School graduate was simply going to come home and work out.

Still, North Carolina State University women’s soccer coach Tim Santoro reminded King not to slack off. Her life could change drastically by the time she returned to Raleigh.

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King recalled what her coach said to her before she left, "He said, I’m not trying to get your hopes up, it’s not set in stone, but just be prepared if an opportunity pops up."

It did.

King was invited to train with the U-23 Women’s National Team, the “Triple A” of the Women’s National Team as Santoro put it, in Portland, Oregon, from March 23-April 2.

“It was kind of unbelievable, honestly, just being in that stadium, wearing that uniform, it was just something I couldn’t even describe,” the 18-year-old attacker said. “It’s what I’ve been aiming for my whole life. It’s kind of amazing.”

King started the second game of the Thorns Spring Invitational and came off the bench in the third.

“I’d say I definitely kept up,” she said. “… I honestly didn’t know what to expect going into it because obviously going into a program like that you’re going to have the best of the best from around the country there. I obviously consider myself to be one of the best, not in a cocky way, but I’m definitely confident in my ability. … I was going in to play my game and show what I got and show why I deserve to be there.”

King proved that during her first season at N.C. State, leading the team with eight goals and 17 points as the Wolfpack made the NCAA Sweet 16 in their first NCAA Championship appearance since 1996.

She was named to the All-Atlantic Coast Conference Third Team, All-ACC Freshman Team and National Soccer Coaches Association of America Southeast All-Region Team.

“With the ACC being the strongest conference for women’s soccer and her doing so well … I think she was as good as any attacker in our league last year,” said Santoro, a Bridgeton native and 1990 Cumberland Regional graduate. “Not just freshmen, I think she was as good as any ACC attacker and that’s saying a lot. The combination of her skill on the ball and her athleticism is a rare combination.”

King might not have had a chance to display those skills in the ACC had it not been for a fluke encounter with Santoro after her sophomore year.

Santoro was visiting his family back in South Jersey when he decided to catch a club tournament.

Santoro had trained in Winslow during his scholastic days, and when he saw the township’s name on the participating teams list, he decided to check its game out.

“They happened to have a really good player and it turned out to be Zee,” he said. “I spent two years recruiting her. It’s funny, I still laugh about it with her and her parents.”

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King’s youth background is what made her U-23 invitation even more improbable.

“That makes her unique,” Santoro said. “There’s a lot of kids that come up through the national team system, they play with the U-15, U-17, U-19 teams and go through the national team process. Zee hasn’t had that. I’m not saying she wasn’t good enough, she was just never afforded the opportunity.

"It’s like someone took a flier late in the draft, and the next thing you know they’re playing in high Double A and next with the Phillies. She didn’t take the conventional route.”

King’s performance with N.C. State put her on the map.

“Being on a big stage, playing in the ACC, you’re going to have a lot of eyes on you,” she said. “That was one of the reasons I wanted to come here, because I knew with my skills and my athletic ability I would be able to make an impact on the game. Coming in, I wanted people to know my name.”

It happened faster than she thought though.

“This past year has been such an amazing year for me,” she said. “I couldn’t even describe how thankful I am for everything that happened.”

Josh Friedman; (856) 486-2431; jfriedman2@gannettnj.com