My story.

As a pale, scrawny, freckle-faced girl in North Carolina, I grew up painfully shy. I refused to talk on the phone, to strangers and family alike. I would hold two birthday parties because I was so afraid of entertaining multiple groups of friends at once. I mumbled so quietly that even when I did choose to speak, no one could understand me. I was well-behaved and smart, but I never dared to answer a question in class because I so deeply hated speaking in front of others.

But when I was eight years old, I started playing soccer. I sprinted up and down the field, calling for the ball, shouting instructions to my teammates, pushing opponents and commanding space, loud and brave. I fell in love with the beautiful game, and then I fell in love with the US Women’s National Team. I read books about them, learned the names of every player and watched every televised match I could find. The team’s ruthless spirit and fearless attitude on the field translated into my life as well: I wanted to be better and I wanted to be the best, and I chased that wholeheartedly, led by the women of the national team.

My love for the game broadened over time as I came to understand its impact not just on me, but on the world. All the confidence, passion and joy that the game gifted me I saw contrasted against the messages girls generally confront. Whether subtly or overtly, girls are told to be timid, to be quiet, to be passive. Soccer tells women to be loud, to be confident, to be unapologetic. It tells us to be everything. It tells us to change the world.

In soccer, I found my voice and my dream to use that voice to its fullest capacity to tell the stories of women in sports. I envision a future as a leader in sports media with the platform to amplify the voices of underrepresented female athletes and highlight their accomplishments.

The energy I first felt on the field bled into my life off the field. Soccer taught me how to have passion, how to be loud, how to be bold. I grew from a meek, quiet girl into to a woman who was stubborn and outspoken and hungry for my dreams. And more importantly, I learned the principle that guides my life today: if you want something, go get it. Each of my passions - soccer, women’s rights, storytelling – I have pursued wholeheartedly to incorporate them in all aspects of my life.