Earlham College

Originally from Batesville, Indiana, Nyah Herbert plans to pursue a career as a physician’s assistant. A lifelong athlete, Nyah played a variety of sports growing up before ultimately choosing soccer. “My parents wanted me to choose one sport once I got older. The other sports I kind of got tired of and quit playing, but I couldn’t stop playing soccer.” She grew up attending FC Cincinnati games, including her first-ever live soccer match. Nyah began as a midfielder and attacker before moving to defense, where she found her strength. “Being a defender helped me become more aggressive, and I was able to use my experience as an attacker to be a good defender.” She takes pride in her positive mindset and tenacity, especially when defending, saying, “I like shutouts. Before games I set my mind to that not only is the other team not going to score, but they aren’t going to even get a chance.” 

Nyah’s competitive mentality has made an impact both on and off the field at Earlham. She was voted Most Improved Player by her teammates in her second season and earned MVP honors against Anderson after making two goal-line saves. As a dual-sport athlete in soccer and track, she has earned Academic All-Conference honors and has placed in the top 10 in Earlham’s history in every track event she has competed in, despite having no previous track background. She credits her dad for helping shape her mentality as an athlete. “My dad was always a big sports guy. He always asks me the hard questions and pushes me to be my best.” Nyah will be graduating a year early from Earlham.  

Why Earlham? 

“The community was my biggest reason for choosing Earlham. During my visit, I actually felt like I was part of a family and that I was seen. At Earlham, everyone knew your name and not just your face. I was instantly welcomed onto the team and made strong connections with the girls as if we'd always been close! I built strong relationships with other students very quickly during my time here and I feel like that was what really made Earlham my home away from home.”