Her childhood was spent in Wilton, Connecticut and her college years at North Carolina University. She has played 101 internationals and scored 37 goals. She was her squad's most successful scorer at the 1995 Women's World Cup. The 24 year-old was so determined to stay as a fixed part of the US women's team as they prepare for the Olympic Games, that she knew she needed match practice above all else. The indoor game is so fast, it helps my quickness, mentally and physically, and forces me to make earlier decisions when I have the ball.
Guys are always a step ahead in quickness and strength.
American team captain Mia Hamm knows how much the indoor season has helped her teammate. Offensively she is always a scoring threat, and defensively she rarely gets beat. The fact she can come here and compete says so much about her. The coach of the Washington Warthogs is former US men's international, Jim Gabarra, who starred as the Americans finished runners-up in the 1992 FIFA Indoor World Championship in Hong Kong, and whose wife Carin is still better known under her maiden name Jennings, nominated best player in the 1991 Women's World Cup in China. Gabarra acknowledges that the female star on his team can only compete on merit and not enjoy any special status.