Thirteen goals, seven women, five alma maters.
The United States women's national team earned a 13-0 statement win against Thailand on Tuesday in the first game of the Women's World Cup, and of the 23 players on the team, 21 represented their universities with excellence at the collegiate level before becoming international stars. Let's take a look back at some the collegiate highlight moments from the U.S. goal scorers so far in this Women's World Cup.
ALEX MORGAN
Alex Morgan, a Cal alum, led the U.S. with five goals against Thailand, scoring first in the 12th minute and adding her fifth and final goal with three minutes left in the game. During her college career at California, Morgan led the Golden Bears in scoring all four years, and she helped guide Cal to the NCAA tournament every year. Morgan etched her name into California soccer history with her 45 goals and 107 points, good for third all-time at the school in both categories, though she missed portions of her college career for national team games.
Here's a look back at some of Morgan's highlights as an NCAA student-athlete at the University of California:
ROSE LAVELLE
A Wisconsin Badgers alumna, Rose Lavelle added the second goal for the United States against Thailand and added another in the 56th minute to become the third player on the squad to score more than once in the first Women's World Cup game for the U.S. As a student-athlete, Lavelle was a MAC Hermann Trophy semifinalist, a NSCAA All-American and a two-time Big Ten Midfielder of the Year. Like Morgan, Lavelle earned calls to play with the U.S. national team during her college career, missing Wisconsin games, but she still managed to leave quite an impact at her alma mater. She led in the team in points, shots, shots on goal, goals and game-winning goals during her senior year, and, in 2017, she became the first Wisconsin player in school history to go No. 1 in the NWSL draft.
Rose Lavelle reflects on her experience as a student-athlete here:
SAMANTHA MEWIS
A two-time team captain for UCLA in college, Samantha Mewis is a leader on the field, and she demonstrated that quality with her two goals against Thailand. During her student-athlete career, Mewis earned distinction as a MAC Hermann Trophy finalist in her senior year, and she also picked up Pac-12 Player of the Year honors that same season, leading the conference in goals, assists, points and game-winning goals. Her standout moment with the team, however, came in 2013, when Mewis and the Bruins topped Florida State to win the Women's College Cup. Three years later, the UCLA college star became an alternate for the U.S. Olympic team and has continued her national team journey since then.
Here's a look back at the 2013 game where Mewis and her team won the NCAA title:
MEGAN RAPINOE
The lone representative from the West Coast Conference on the scoring list for the U.S. so far in the Women's World Cup, Megan Rapinoe played her college years at the University of Portland where she won the NCAA championship in 2005. Rapinoe's college career was interrupted both by call-ups the national team and injuries, but she still left her mark on the Pilot program. An All-American, Rapinoe also earned College Cup All-Tournament Team honors and WCC Freshman of the Year honors in her debut collegiate season. Rapinoe opted to forgo her final year of eligibility to play professional soccer, and her experience has made her a valuable asset to the U.S. women's national team.
Relive the 2005 NCAA championship when Rapinoe and Co. won the Women's College World Cup:
CARLI LLOYD
Carli Lloyd, like her fellow national team members, dominated the college game as a student-athlete, earning All-American honors and leading Rutgers in career points and goals as well as season points and goals at the conclusion of her four-year career. She became the only athlete in program history to earn First-Team All-Big East Honors four times and also earned distinction as a semifinalist for the Hermann Trophy. Her time at Rutgers laid the groundwork for what would be an impressive international career that includes two Olympic gold medals and a 2015 World Cup title. Lloyd has also since been inducted into the Rutgers Hall of Fame.
Watch a highlight video of Lloyd's legacy at Rutgers:
