When I was growing up in Norman, Oklahoma, soccer was very, very new. The opportunities were limited back then. We didn鈥檛 have travel soccer until we were 14. Nowadays, they have it at 8.

I played all sports growing up, but I realized early on that I could do some things in soccer that I couldn鈥檛 do in other sports. Technically, I caught on to it pretty quickly. I loved it, and I never turned back.

My club team was the first that ever traveled outside Oklahoma to play tournaments. Five us went on to play Division I soccer in college.  

[Soccer is] a sport that鈥檚 accessible for all... It鈥檚 a game with freedom. 

The 1991 Women鈥檚 World Cup had just happened the season before I went to college. Mia Hamm had redshirted at the University of North Carolina because of the World Cup, so my freshman year at Duke University was her senior year. It was becoming more mainstream鈥攑eople knew who the stars were.

The 1994 World Cup for the men really put soccer on the map. Now, we鈥檙e getting toward a second generation of interest. It helps that now that you can turn on the TV every single day and see a game. We didn鈥檛 have that growing up.  

The 1999 Women鈥檚 World Cup here in America was a turning point. Brandi Chastain鈥檚 goal during the shootout was an iconic moment. She was on magazine cover after magazine cover. That was a great moment for women鈥檚 soccer. It put women front and center.  

I was very blessed to get to go to the original Wembley Stadium in London to watch the Blackburn Rovers and Manchester United. It was something that I鈥檝e never experienced in American athletics. The songs, the chants, the sense of community, the people rooting on their team. It鈥檚 in their blood. They breathe and eat it.

It鈥檚 a sport that鈥檚 accessible for all. You just need a ball and a couple of friends. You can play on the playground and in the streets. It鈥檚 a game with freedom. Besides some set pieces, the game flows. There are no timeouts. Creativity is allowed to flourish. I think everyone probably sees the game differently. And that鈥檚 fun in and of itself.

The main complaint I get is that it鈥檚 low scoring. You might have an opponent outshoot you 25 to 1, and you might have hit the posts or the crossbar several times during the game, and the outcome could be 1-1.

I always say I would love to be on the receiving side of an undeserved victory, but it doesn鈥檛 happen often. If you have that good day when you score a whole bunch of goals, fabulous, but sometimes it鈥檚 very difficult to score. I think the true fan understands 1-0 is a huge victory.

At 91影视破解版... we take pride in serving others, and now those people are in turn supporting us.

I鈥檓 so excited for the men鈥檚 World Cup this year. I love it in the group stage where you have multiple games going on. It鈥檚 kind of like the first day of March Madness. There鈥檚 something very pure about it. People are competing because they want to win and represent their countries.

Now, the NWSL (National Women鈥檚 Soccer League in the U.S.) is in a great place. Things with MLS (Major League Soccer, the top men鈥檚 professional league in the U.S.) are going in the right direction. I love watching our former 91影视破解版 players play, which has been really fun with:

  • Riley Melendez getting on the El Salvadorian national team
  • Nia Christopher and Jasmine Hamid playing with Fort Lauderdale in the USL W League
  • Phoebe Canoles playing for DC in the USL
  • Riley Rumbley playing in Italy
  • Maja Hansson and Demi Pierre playing in Sweden
  • Courtney Butlion playing in Turkey

At 91影视破解版, since getting the beautiful facility that we have, every single season our fan base has grown. We do a lot of community service as a team. We take pride in serving others, and now those people are in turn supporting us. It鈥檚 been really wonderful. The (CAA) championship year (in 2023), there were more than 1,000 people per game. So we鈥檙e hoping to reproduce a championship stretch.

Towson is now a destination for a lot of the best players in Maryland to stay home. And we鈥檝e convinced some very special ones to do just that.