Abby Wambach

Wambach attended Our Lady of Mercy High School in Rochester from 1994 to 1998, where she competed in soccer and basketball. She scored 142 goals during her high school career, including 34 in 1997. Her soccer coach, Kathy Boughton, recalled that Wambach often asked to practice diving headers—a skill which became her trademark as an international player. Following her senior season, Wambach was named to Parade magazine's High School All-America Team, and was voted national high school player of the year by Umbro and the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA). In 1997, she was named NSCAA Regional Player of the Year, NSCAA State of New York Player of the Year, Gatorade Circle of Champions New York Player of the Year, and cited by USA Today as one of the nation's top 10 recruits. Wambach was a three-year captain for the Rochester Spirit club team and was named All-Greater Rochester Player of the Year in 1995 and 1997. She was a member of the Olympic Development Program U-16 National Team in 1996 and the 1997 National U-20 Player Pool. She trained and played with the U.S. women's national soccer team while competing in the 1997 U.S. Soccer Festival in Blaine, Minnesota. In 1997, she was a member of the first American youth soccer team to compete in Beijing, China.

Considered the top college recruit in 1997, Wambach was sought after by numerous colleges, including top soccer programs at the University of North Carolina, UCLA, the University of Portland, and the University of Virginia. Wambach accepted a full athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, where she played for coach Becky Burleigh's Florida Gators women's soccer team from 1998 to 2001. Florida's program was only three years old, and the challenge of joining a less-established team appealed to Wambach. As a freshman in 1998, she helped the Gators win their first NCAA national championship over the 15-time champion North Carolina Tar Heels. The Gators also won four consecutive Southeastern Conference (SEC) championships from 1998 to 2001. Individually, Wambach was the SEC Freshman of the Year (1998), a freshman All-American (1998), a first-team All-SEC selection for four straight seasons (1998–2001), and a two-time SEC Player of the Year (2000, 2001). She twice received SEC Tournament Most Valuable Player honors (2000, 2001), and was named a first-team All-American her sophomore, junior, and senior seasons in 1999, 2000 and 2001. In addition to leading the Gators to the Final Four of the NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament as a senior in 2001, Wambach set school career records for goals scored (96), assists (50), points (242), game-winning goals (24), and hat tricks (10). Wambach was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of…

2002–2003: Washington Freedom in the WUSA

In 2002, Wambach was selected second during the first round of the WUSA draft by the Washington Freedom for the second season of the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA). The Freedom had tied for last place with the Carolina Courage the previous season, but were able to finish third in 2002 with a berth in the playoffs. The Freedom upset the Philadelphia Charge 1–0 in the semifinal, then lost 3–2 to the Courage in the final. Wambach served one assist during the final. After leading all first-year players in scoring, Wambach was named 2002 WUSA Rookie of the Year. She was the Freedom's leading scorer with ten goals and ten assists, and was tied for fourth for scoring in the league. She scored twice in the inaugural 2002 WUSA All-Star Game, and was named MVP of the game. During the 2003 season, Wambach tied with Freedom teammate Mia Hamm for first in league scoring, with 33 points. Her contributions helped propel the Freedom to the championship match of the Founders Cup, where she scored the game-winning goal to defeat the Atlanta Beat 2–1. Wambach was named the MVP of the tournament. Five days before the 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup, the WUSA folded, citing financial difficulties and a lack of sponsorship. In the summer of 2005, Wambach played for Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) club Ajax America Women, alongside national teammate Shannon Boxx. Wambach scored five goals and served three assists in three…

Wambach was born to Pete and Judy Wambach in Rochester, New York, and was raised in the Rochester suburb of Pittsford. She is the youngest of seven children, with two sisters and four brothers. She began playing soccer at the age of four after her sister Laura tried the sport. Their mother checked out a book from the library explaining how to play, and from then on soccer became a family tradition. In a 2011 interview, Wambach said her large family felt like a team environment which taught her how to compete. She explained that her siblings never let her win, forcing her to earn her victories. She was toughened up by her elder brothers, who fired hockey pucks at her for target practice. Wambach credited this early competition for her later success. While playing in her first youth soccer league at age five, Wambach was transferred from the girls' team to the boys' after scoring 27 goals over three games. As a pre-teen, she eluded defenders by heading the ball over them and then running around them. Wambach's brother Matthew described her as fiercely competitive; after he witnessed her tackle a neighbor boy at the age of 11 or 12, he felt she was destined for sports success.