With a spark in her eyes, Tamia Tolbert started playing recreational soccer at just four years old. When her parents, Robert and Tangie, placed her on the team, Tamia’s interest in the game at such a young age made them enthusiastic about her potential. But when her grandparents came into town, excited to watch her play, Tamia had other plans for that game.
“She was bored,” Robert told The Michigan Daily. “And that game she picked up leaves on the field the entire time. So she had no interest in playing at all, she wanted to pick up the flowers.”
At the time, it made Tamia’s parents wonder whether that initial spark would ignite or fizzle out. They knew, however, that it was too early to make any decisions. After all, she was only a kid still learning the ropes. As Tamia gained more exposure to soccer, her spark grew into flames along with her competitive nature and strong work ethic. That flame ultimately turned her into the player she is today.
Now starting for the Michigan women’s soccer team, Tamia has become a crucial part of its success. Recording the third most minutes on the roster, the junior defender’s presence in the backline has helped build the Wolverines’ defensive fortitude.
For Tamia, the route from the recreational league to becoming a Division I athlete has been the result of her internal drive to become the best.
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Growing up in Texas, Tamia was always surrounded by athletes. Her dad played football for Purdue and her mom was a competitive cheerleader. Tamia’s older brother, Robert IV, and older sister, Tyla, were involved in football and soccer, respectively. It wasn’t a matter of whether Tamia would play sports or not, just a matter of which one.
Tamia decided to follow in her sister’s footsteps. Participating in her first rec league before transitioning to club soccer, Tamia learned the fundamentals of the game. As she adopted the basic skills like passing and dribbling, her athleticism also grew.
With the requisite strength and mobility, Tamia wanted to face better competitors like her sister, Tyla. Even though Tyla was a couple of years older, she inspired and pushed Tamia to be better on the field. As her role model, Tamia wanted the opportunity to play with her and improve her play. So as a nine-year-old, she began to play a few age groups above her own.
While she had the talent and athleticism that made her shine at times, the level of play often presented a challenge for Tamia. To reduce that gap in experience and skill, she took the initiative herself.
“There’s banging on the walls, or there’s noises coming out of the bedroom. You’d open Tamia’s door and she’s doing a workout routine,” Robert said. “She’s doing ab work, or she’s doing quickness drills. … No one’s telling her to do this. She just knew that if I want to be better at anything, then I’ve got to put work (in) myself.”
Tamia recognized that for her game to be sustainable and to match the required level of play, she would need more than raw talent. So she decided to hone in on a variety of skills. Whether it was by herself in her bedroom or during her training with her club team, she put in the extra hours perfecting them.
To prevent Tamia from getting lost in the midst of early recruitment, her parents realized it was better for her to play for lower-level clubs throughout middle school. That decision exposed Tamia to an environment where she had more time to work on her techniques and refine them instead of getting lost in the midst of recruitment. Being one of the better players on the roster, Tamia was heavily relied on. Understanding the weight of her responsibilities, she stepped up to the task and her dedication to the game never faltered.
Once Tamia recognized her skills had improved and she approached high school, she told her parents that she wanted to play for a better team. Thus, she joined the Solar Soccer Club Team in the US Soccer Development Academy of Texas. And Tamia’s diligence toward her game was evident as she competed at a higher level.
“She understood the importance of hard work,” then-Solar Soccer U19 coach Derek Missimo told The Daily. “… She’s little more old school as far as she never personalized any criticism. She always wanted feedback and the feedback that she loved the most was constructive feedback to make her better, and she always built on that.”
Her willingness to enhance her game went beyond working on her weaknesses by herself. She wanted input from her coaches to improve her technique and support her team as much as possible. Even though the roster consisted of other talented defenders, Tamia worked to become the best version of herself.
Tamia was at the peak of her soccer career. She was competing against the best players in the state, accomplishing what she pushed herself to do. But during her sophomore year, with collegiate coaches and recruiters on the sidelines of her games, Tamia went down with an injury. She tore her ACL and just like that, her season was over.
And soon after her surgery, a strenuous recovery process began, taking a mental toll.
“That was extremely hard for me,” Tamia said. “… Through that injury, I was pretty much separated from my team. I wasn’t around my teammates as much, I wasn’t as immersed in the team environment. … In that moment where I was a little bit more isolated, that’s when I really had to dig into my intrinsic motivation a lot.”
Not being able to play the game she grew up loving and be around her teammates was a challenging reality for Tamia. She always drove herself to play at the next level on the field, but the injury forced her to prioritize her health and recovery. Thus, she returned to focusing on what pushed her to improve her game and compete in the first place. It was her drive to become the best player she could be that influenced her training. And she used that same drive to attack her recovery, attending therapy three days a week.
Despite suffering unbearable pain at times during her journey back, Tamia embraced the injury, she considered her time away from the game a learning opportunity.
“As I was coming back from the injury, I was very particular about working on those fundamental things,” Tamia said. “I actually probably returned to the sport as a better passer, a better dribbler than I was before because when I had the opportunity to return to those basics and fundamentals, I really honed in on them and focused on them a lot.”
Tamia has always placed emphasis on her techniques and learning the nuances of the game. For most of her soccer career, she has prioritized enhancing those skills. This time around was no different. She was once again willing to learn and dedicate her time to refining her craft.
When she returned to the field just six months after surgery, her hard work was apparent. In her first season back in 2019, Solar Soccer’s defense conceded just 17 goals while scoring over 200 in a 35-game stretch. That year culminated with Solar Soccer winning the national championship.
Tamia and her team’s success on the field attracted a lot of recruiters, including Michigan coach Jen Klein. Receiving an offer from the Wolverines, Tamia’s dedication to the game resulted in the opportunity to play collegiate soccer.
In her freshman season, though, she was at the back of the depth chart. With defenders Alia Martin and Sydney Shepherd returning for their extra year of eligibility granted for COVID-19, Tamia patiently waited on the bench. From being a starter and playing heavy minutes in games throughout her career, it was difficult for her to take a back seat. But just like her early struggles playing up age groups and her ACL injury, this was another chance for her to become better by learning from the experienced players ahead of her what it takes to be a Division I soccer player.
In her sophomore year, Tamia finally became a starter and the work ethic that placed her at Michigan has persisted more than ever.
“Tamia takes training quite seriously,” Wolverines assistant coach Holly Hein told The Daily. “… It’s been awesome to see kind of her success and sustained tenure on her backline. That doesn’t happen without her ability to focus on and dial into the details.”
Tamia’s defensive presence and the intangibles she brings as the center back have helped restrict opposing offenses. In 2023, Michigan went through a stretch of more than 400 minutes without conceding a goal, and a lot of it can be attributed to her individual defensive and communication skills.
Through her leadership skills, Tamia’s ability to guide the rest of the players through her knowledge of the game helped her team’s defense throughout the season. Off the field, her leadership has taken strides through her three years with the Wolverines. She strives to build connections with players throughout the roster, whether they’re younger or older than her. Whether its on or off the field, she continues to push herself to improve.
Through mentoring other players or giving her all in practice, Tamia has contributed to Michigan’s success in any way she can. And as she approaches her senior year in the fall, she has one goal:
“I want to leave (Michigan) with no regrets,” Tamia said. “And knowing that I reached my pinnacle and I reached playing the best that I know I can play.”
Because striving to become the best version of herself is what has kept her spark alive.