Evolution of Hannah Anderson helps Texas Tech soccer return to NCAA Tournament
Hannah Anderson was having troubling finding a way to show her appreciation for Tom Stone.
The pair have spent the last five years together, each leading the Texas Tech soccer team in their own way. Anderson, the team captain and emotional leader. Stone, the head coach with oodles of experience.
Simply saying "Thank you" wouldn't suffice, so Anderson decided to use another of her skills: she painted him a picture.
Anderson first picked up the brush in classes at Hobby Lobby with her mom and younger sister. A creative-minded person at her core, Anderson returned to the craft around early high school with her stepmom. Her home in Lubbock now features many of her finest works.
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"Whenever people come visit our house," a smirking Anderson said, "my roommates will always be like 'Yeah, she painted that' and I'm like 'OK, guys.'"
Her proudest work, though, hangs in Stone's office.
The piece in question depicts Anderson's back in the foreground as she's facing Stone, whose arms are up instructing his center back. Art imitating life.
"It means the most to me," Anderson said, "and just seeing how happy he was and surprised, that was the most rewarding for me."
Anderson has had plenty to be proud of on the pitch as well. On Tuesday, the Big 12 defensive player of the year and her teammates learned the Red Raiders made even more history — a common theme this season — when they earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, which begins Friday.
Hosting Florida Gulf Coast in the first round at John Walker Soccer Complex, the Red Raiders have already achieved plenty, more than any of them, Anderson included, could have ever imagined.
'She's her'
Stone has seen plenty of Anderson over their half-decade together, yet he still finds himself in awe with what the fifth-year senior is capable of, like her game-winning header as time expired at Texas earlier this season.
That doesn't mean he's surprised by any of it. Anderson has been a starter since the day she arrived in Lubbock out of Liberty High School in Frisco. She got the nod in the first game of her freshman year manning Tech's backline defense and hasn't left.
"She's that kid," Stone said earlier this year. "She's her, I guess as you would say. She plays great defense. She's our leader, our captain. ...We're getting every bit of that fifth-year senior bonus bump with her performances and I couldn't be happier for her. She's worked really hard to be in this position."
Through her time in a Red Raider uniform, Anderson has absorbed information like a sponge. She looked at how Charlotte Teetter — her co-captain last year — handled being a leader and emulated that. Anderson said Teeter is one of her best friends and learned plenty from her former teammate.
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As much as she's grown on the pitch, Anderson said her biggest strength is she's what's changed for her outside of the game.
"I would just say evolving more into me," Anderson said. "When you grow up kind of knowing who you are, like who you want to be, the type of leader that I want to be, the kind of teammate I want to be. I think when you're younger, you really look up to the older girls and how they set the example, and I learned a lot from older girls when I was younger.
"That allowed me to be who I want to be and grow with my teammates along the way."
Her teammates have rave reviews about Anderson as well. Prior to her season-ending knee injury, Macy Blackburn joined Anderson as one of the top one-two punches in the Big 12. They're just as connected outside of soccer.
"She's compassionate, she's hard-working," Blackburn said. "It's kind of hard not to love her. She really works for those relationships off the field, which I think for girls is so important."
'Leaving those gates open'
This time last year, Texas Tech was on the bubble, unsure if they were going to get into the tournament. They wound up on the outside, similar to Anderson's second and third years with the team.
While the Red Raiders patiently waited for their name to be called in Monday's selection show, some teammates shook their legs in anticipation. Others fidgeted with each team name called.
Anderson was cool as a cucumber. She knew the Red Raiders were in. That allowed her to soak it all in.
"Obviously this year already has been a historic year for Texas Tech soccer, and honestly for myself, too," Anderson said, "so just talking for the whole team, we're just super excited for the opportunity and trying to make the most of it."
Anderson was confident the Red Raiders had a solid year ahead of them in 2023. She also admits the picture she had in her head pales in comparison to the reality.
Along with the team's first NCAA Tournament appearance since her freshman year, Anderson and the Red Raiders had the most wins (15) before suffering their first loss, collected the program's first Big 12 regular-season title, earned the highest national ranking (fourth) and top seed in the NCAA tourney (No. 2) in team history.
Comparing what she thought possible and what has transpired, the picture is very different now.
"At the beginning of the year," Anderson said, "I would have painted the most together team ready for opportunity. At the end, I would say that we achieved more than what we wanted to and that we're not even done yet. Leaving those gates open, ready to see what the next month has in store for us."
Texas Tech vs. Florida Gulf Coast
What: NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament (First Round)
When: Friday, 6 p.m.
Where: John Walker Soccer Complex
Records: Texas Tech 15-1-4, Florida Gulf Coast 12-4-5
Notable: Texas Tech is making its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2019. This is the first all-time meeting between the Red Raiders and Eagles.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Anderson's evolution helps Texas Tech soccer return to NCAA Tournament
