Breakaway

by Alex Morgan

Early-season play with Cal was great too. It was liberating to be back on the field with my school. I loved being a Bear. I kept up my reputation as a late-game scorer, getting a terrific last-minute goal in the 3–1 win season opener against San Jose State, for example. But after nailing nine goals for my team, I had to leave for Portland to train for the U-20 World Cup.

  This time I was accompanied by one of my Cal teammates, Megan Jesolva, who was the leader in assists on the Bears. And yes, she was the same person I’d seen at the airport the day I left for college! She and I had become so close freshman year. We went to San Francisco together all the time, we studied together, and we hung around with the same group of guys from the men’s soccer team at Cal, including Servando. We had a similar sense of ambition—both of us wanted to play professional soccer—so we just got each other. I was thrilled to have her with me.

  Training began, and we played some friendly, or exhibition, games against Canada before traveling to Chile for the tournament. It’s funny they call them friendly games—Canada had beaten us in the qualifying tournament, so they were more competition than friends! But that’s how soccer works. Your supposed enemy may become your training partner in the next game. And my teammates on the U-20 team, whom I valued more than anything, were my competitors in other games because they played for rival colleges. Megan was the only person on the team who was my teammate on both squads.

  Friendly games are good training for a season or for tournament play. Coaches use them to see where the threats are in the other teams and what they need to pay attention to on their own teams. It’s sort of like preseason football—it doesn’t determine if you’re going to go to the Super Bowl, but it does help give the league, players, coaches, and fans the lay of the land.

  These early games would also determine who was on the starting roster for the World Cup. And even though I was picked last for the team, I was going to be a starter if it killed me. I’d played hard against Canada, and I worked my tail off in practices. And at the end of October, our coach, Tony DiCicco, announced that I was one of the starting forwards.

  I couldn’t believe it—I’d accomplished a major goal. I was going to Chile as a starter. I was nineteen years old, and I was going to play in the World Cup.

  Don’t Make Opponents into Enemies

  When you’re going after your goals, you’ll have people stand in your way. When we lost the NCAA tournament my freshman year, there were players on other teams who’d tripped me, prevented me from scoring, given me dirty looks, and frustrated my play so much that I felt defeated. These same players became my teammates on the U-20 team. The lesson here is that you can’t view an opponent—someone who, at one moment, prevents you from reaching your goals—as a sworn enemy. For one thing, the unfortunate truth is you’ll meet people like that throughout your life, and there’s no point wasting your energy on them. Also, they might be your partner in the next game (or group partner or coworker), and you’ll need them! So don’t hold grudges or be petty. Maturity and good sportsmanship will reward you and help you when you’re going after your dreams.

  CHAPTER 12

  * * *

  Chile had put its heart and soul into the U-20 Women’s World Cup that year, and it showed. It’s true that this wasn’t an event people would be watching on TV around the world. Women’s soccer is a big draw, but at the U-20 level, it’s not on everyone’s radar. But you wouldn’t have known that if you’d landed in Santiago when we did.

  The Chilean government had rebuilt four stadiums for the tournament and had worked hard to drum up local support, and fans had responded immediately. In South America, men’s soccer is the big draw, but we had packed stadiums for this tournament, and it made all the difference. I really felt like we were on the world stage.

  We played France and Argentina in our first two games. Our game against France was a big win, 3–0, and our match with Argentina was a crushing defeat for them, also 3–0. I scored two goals against Argentina, one in the ninetieth minute. There I was again—the late-game scorer.

  If you don’t know anything about soccer in Argentina, I will sum it up in one word: MASSIVE. The most famous men’s player from there, Lionel Messi, is such a big international star that he’s appearing in American commercials now. I love his team in the Spanish league, Barcelona, and I have tremendous respect for how the Argentine national team nurtured him as a player. Unfortunately, that doesn’t translate to the women’s side, where other women’s sports are much bigger. I think that’s a shame. We US women are lucky. Since 1999, soccer has been a big deal for girls, and we don’t stand in the shadow of boys. If anything, we are more famous and more successful—look at Mia Hamm! But it’s different in Argentina.

  The tables turned on us in our final game in the group stage, against China, and they beat us 2–0. But no matter—our wins against France and Argentina had secured us a spot in the tournament’s quarterfinals, where we were set to play England.

  We won against England, 3–0. Boom! That was our third shutout game of the tournament.

  The semifinal was a little tighter—we beat Germany 1–0 after an early-game goal against them. And then it was on to the final. It was my first major international final, and we were set to play North Korea, the team who’d won the previous U-20 World Cup. Historically, they hadn’t always been the most challenging team, but lately they’d been great, and their 2006 win in the U-20 finals had confirmed that.

  • • •

  The final started off at a furious pace, and we were constantly getting pressure from Korea. Even when my teammate Sydney Leroux scored from way outside the penalty box in the twenty-third minute, we didn’t feel completely at ease.

  I had really gotten to know Sydney over the last few months. She played for UCLA, so I was familiar with her from Pac-10 play and had gone against her in many games, but playing with her as my teammate was a whole different ball game. Since those first few months together, we’ve gotten so close. She’s now on the national team, and we’ve gone cliff diving on vacation in Hawaii and dressed up together for two Halloweens in a row. Sydney was also just at my wedding.

  But back to the game. Like I said, we were playing so well, but a 1–0 margin felt a little too slight. We wanted a comfortable lead going into halftime.

  With three minutes left in the half, my teammate Elli Reed threw the ball in from the right sideline, and I gained control of it. Caught between two defenders, I dribbled past them. I almost lost the ball to yet another, but I got control and took off. Another Korean defender came after me, and I cut inside and passed her. I was twenty-six yards from the goal, but I saw my shot, and I took it. I kicked hard with my left foot, and the ball sailed long . . . and over the goalkeeper’s head. It went into the upper-left corner of the goal. We were up 2–0!

  I was later quoted as saying that making that goal was one of the best feelings of my life, and I still feel that way. Not only was it the sheer exhilaration of seeing it go in, but it was also the fact that I wasn’t intending to make the shot that way. I’d gotten off-balance just before I kicked, so I was kind of surprised. I’d been hoping just to get the ball into the goal, but when I wobbled, it sailed perfectly toward the far post and went in. I made a shot in a way I hadn’t necessarily meant to.

  Halftime came and went, and then we went into the second half. But the game stayed ours.

  We finished off the match strong, winning 2–1. The North Koreans netted a goal in the ninety-second minute, but it was too late. The referee blew the whistle almost immediately after they scored.

  I could hardly believe it. We’d won the U-20 World Cup, and we’d done it because of hard work and sheer determination. I had accomplished a goal I’d held for so long, that I’d dreamed about so many times. But that night I dared to dream one more thing: I wanted to join the US women’s national team, and I wanted us to win the World Cup, too.

  Maybe I was feeling that way not ju
st because of the way I’d played but also because a seed had been planted. Pia Sundhage, the head coach of the women’s national team, had been in the stands watching the U-20 team that day. I wonder now what would have happened if she hadn’t been there. Would I have been called up to the national team when I was? Did her being there that day change my future forever? I’ll never know, but I do know that I’m so glad the final played out the way it did. I think we really impressed her that day, and I know that my playing well gave her something to think about.

  People Are Watching

  If you’re pursuing your goals successfully, people will start paying attention. It could be the teacher who notices how hard you’re studying and wants to write you a recommendation for a summer program, or it could be the varsity coach who sees that terrific shot you made in a junior varsity basketball game. Pia Sundhage had taken notice of me at some point, and that might have contributed to her decision to come to the finals of the U-20 World Cup. The lesson here is that you should always try your best because it may attract the attention of someone influential who wants to help you along the path to your dreams.

  CHAPTER 13

  * * *

  Things were just a little more serious for me when I got home. I was getting called for interviews and was being recognized on campus more often. It was beginning to dawn on me that my dream of playing soccer professionally—the goal I’d had since I’d scrawled it on a piece of paper when I was eight—might actually come true. In fact, it looked like chances were good that it would, and soon.

  That summer, the Cal team traveled around Europe, playing exhibition games. We played in Milan, Lake Como, Rome, Switzerland, and Ireland. It was an absolute whirlwind, but I had the time of my life. We were in games with players from around the world, which, of course, I’d experienced before, but it was a first for many of my teammates. Italian players play differently from Americans, and so do Irish and Swiss players. The sport has reached so many countries that it’s evolved in tiny ways in each corner of the world. That doesn’t mean there aren’t the same rules—FIFA ensures that the game is pretty consistent across the globe—but there are nuances of play that make each country’s players different.

  Soccer has given me the opportunity to travel the world. I realize I’ve been lucky—you may play on a team that doesn’t venture outside your own state. But if you have any opportunity to travel outside the country, do it. You can learn so much from other cultures—the foods they eat, the languages they speak, their belief systems, their traditions, and more. Even reading a book about another country or watching a foreign film will teach you a lot. However you do it, getting a taste of something outside your own comfort zone may change your perspective on life.

  I dove even further into the world outside my home when I traveled to Madrid, Spain, for a month that summer to study. Ever since my sister Jeri studied abroad in Australia, I’d dreamed about doing the same. I spoke Spanish very well, but I wasn’t fluent, and I wanted to be more conversant. A month in Spain would help me do that.

  I loved every second of my month there. The trip also reminded me how much I enjoyed learning outside the soccer field. Academics were still so important to me. As I mentioned before, I’d decided long before college that there was no way I was going to neglect my studies for soccer. I was about to declare my major: political economy, with a concentration on Latin America, which meant taking four semesters of Spanish. I worked hard while I was in Madrid so I could become fluent. But I also had a lot of fun. After focusing on soccer so much for so long, I think I desperately needed to let loose. We ate tapas, danced, traveled to other cities on the weekends, and watched some fantastic soccer. And after the month was over, I returned home fluent—or close, at least!

  By the time I returned to the States, I was ready to be back on the field. I missed soccer desperately—my love of it lives way down deep in my bones—and I was itching to go back to my team. But Spain was a fantastic end to a school year that had given me so much: the World Cup, a loving boyfriend, and real hope that I was going to fulfill my dreams. I was ready to do even more great things in my junior year.

  Step Out of Your World

  When you’re going after your goals, you can sometimes become set in your ways. You might wear the same lucky socks every game or eat the same breakfast before every game, or more broadly speaking, just develop the same mind-set before every big challenge or step. But venturing outside your comfort zone can be really good for you. Exploring other cultures is so important, whether you do it on vacation or by reading a book. I learned things from playing against Italians that made my game better. Don’t get into a rut. Constantly try to expand your world view so you can dive into your goals with a well-rounded mentality.

  CHAPTER 14

  * * *

  I’d been away so much during my sophomore year, training and playing with the U-20 team—plus the World Cup had booked me solid for weeks at a time—so I just hadn’t been the presence on my college team that I knew I’d be this year. With that in mind, I was excited and ready when I started preseason training in August. I wanted to give Cal my all during my junior year.

  I got some good news midway through the month. I’d been put on the short list for the Hermann Trophy, which is the biggest individual player award in college soccer, and the winner was going to be decided later that year by Division I soccer head coaches. My coach, Neil, couldn’t have been more complimentary of me when I got named. He thought I’d worked for it and that I deserved it, and that meant the world to me.

  We’d all gotten a lot closer to Neil on the European trip. In fact, we’d all gotten a lot closer to one another—for the first time in a long while, we’d had a chance to talk about life, our families, our boyfriends, and everything in between. We weren’t rushing off to class or hustling on the field. Instead, we were bonding in a beautiful place. But getting to know Neil as a person was beneficial to us and to him. It’s one thing for your team to feel like they’re together, but it’s the icing on the cake when you’re unified with your coach. Neil had been our coach for three years, but this was the first year it truly felt like home with him.

  This was a good thing because we had two new assistant coaches. Our old assistant coach, Jennifer Thomas, had left the previous year, which had been tough for us. She was a rock for our team, and she really understood the Cal program because she’d been a player there herself. But we were lucky to get two new assistant coaches who seemed very promising. One of them, Tracy Hamm, had been a Cal player too. We needed someone who was instantly part of our culture, and she fit the bill. The other new coach, Libby Hassett, was incredibly skilled at technique, which was something we’d needed to work on. Her plan was to help our goalkeepers zero in on the specifics that would prevent balls getting across the line. The previous year, a lot of shots on goal had gone in when they just shouldn’t have. Libby was also so funny, always making jokes and keeping things light. She obviously knew when to get serious, but she just loved to mess around, make fun of herself, and keep any situation happy. I loved her work-hard, play-hard attitude.

  With the new assistant coaches, Neil had pretty big ambitions for us that year. The team had been so dependent on a few players to hold us together—and I was one of them—but he wanted to strengthen each and every player to make us stronger as team. This extended to the ten new freshmen on the team, whom Neil vowed to push harder than the rest of us. He realized that two or three players can’t hold a whole team together, so he wanted each of us to play our best that year. This could lead us to winning the Pac-10 championship and advancing beyond the second round in the NCAA tournament. We’d been so close in the past, especially in my freshman year, when we’d lost to Stanford on penalty kicks.

  We really put our best foot forward in those early games—we had a few shutouts, we consistently outshot our opponents, and our defense was stronger than it had ever been. I scored a hat trick in one game, which was
thrilling. The early results showed how hard we’d worked. We rose to #7 in the national rankings, which made us all proud.

  I have so many theories why the beginning of that season was such a good one, but I think what I’ll remember most is that we were like sisters. Maybe it was coming off that summer trip to Europe, or maybe it was having two new coaches, which can cause you to either sink or swim. But our team stuck together like glue, which made our game all the better.

  I was thankful we had this camaraderie because things were about to get rocky, and if there was anything we were going to need, it was one another.

  Become a Mentor

  When I was a junior, I’d had national team experience and had gone to two NCAA tournaments, plus a World Cup final. I had loads of experience under my belt, yet I realized how important it was to be a good role model to the underclassmen, especially the freshmen, who had just come in. When you’re going after your goals, you may spend a lot of time looking up to people—coaches, teachers, or players you respect—but don’t forget how important it is to be a mentor. If you take the time to help someone improve their game or work harder toward their goals, you’ll probably discover that you learn something too. People who are successful often become more successful because they’re good teachers and role models, so don’t hesitate to take someone under your wing.

  CHAPTER 15

  * * *

  We lost a heartbreaking game midway through the season. Despite outshooting them 25–8, we were defeated by Cal Poly 1–0 in overtime—our first overtime loss of the season. The game really wore us out, and we dropped in the rankings. None of us felt good about it.

  It’s one thing to lose a game when you’ve fought like crazy, but it’s another to lose a game you’re supposed to win. You just feel lousy when that happens. This isn’t reserved to soccer, of course. I’ve felt like a failure after making a bad grade on a test that I knew I should have aced. It’s okay to let it get you down. But don’t let it keep you down. After all, it’s just one day. Things can turn around, but you have to be able to put the effort in. That definitely won’t happen if you’re spending all your time moping around!