August 2015

Carli Lloyd, Superstar of the Women’s World Cup

Carli LloydCarli Lloyd

Carli Lloyd
Carli Lloyd strikes a triumphant pose after scoring a goal against Japan in the Women’s World Cup final.

Carli Lloyd is America’s latest sports superstar. She plays for the United States women’s national soccer team. In the July 5 final of the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, she scored a hat trick against the Japanese team. In soccer, a three-goal score by a single player is called a hat trick. Lloyd’s hat trick came in the first 16 minutes of the match. This was the fastest hat trick in World Cup history. Lloyd even made one of the goals from 50 yards away! She was given the Golden Ball award for being the best player in this year’s World Cup. She also earned the Silver Boot for her six goals and one assist during the tournament.

Lloyd was born and raised in Delran Township, New Jersey. Delran is a small community in the southern part of the state, not far from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lloyd has been playing soccer since she was five years old. As a child, she had a lot of natural ability and worked hard to develop her skills. At Delran High School, she became a star player on the girl’s soccer team. She stood out by scoring many goals, winning awards, and leading her team to lots of victories.

At Rutgers University, Lloyd played on the Scarlet Knights women’s soccer team. There, she became the school’s all-time leader in points and was named to the First-Team All-Big East all four years. At Rutgers, Lloyd earned a degree in Exercise Science and Sport Studies. In 2013, she was named to the Rutgers University Hall of Distinguished Alumni.

Today, Lloyd plays soccer professionally for the Houston Dash in the National Women’s Soccer League. She is also a member of the United States women’s national soccer team. In addition to appearing in this year’s Women’s World Cup, she was on the team in the previous two World Cups. She also scored the game-winning goals that helped the U.S. women’s team win gold in the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics. Training is very important to Lloyd’s game. She works hard in her off time with her trainer and mentor, James Galanis.

Off the field, Lloyd helps charities such as Habitat for Humanity. She also runs a soccer camp for kids in New Jersey. A hometown ice cream shop named a flavor after her called Carli’s Cake Batter Cookie Dough Kick. Lloyd loves to shop, read, and play golf in her spare time. She also likes to write. She is working on a book about her life that will be published next year. She has traveled to many parts of the world, but still thinks New Jersey has the best pizza and is the best place to call home.

Image credit: ©Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Related Links

 
Question 1
What tournament did Carli Lloyd do well in this year?





 
Question 2
Where does Carli Lloyd think is the best place to call home?






Rate this story:
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars
Loading...