Amanda Cromwell has been on World Cup and Olympic teams, played in the first women’s professional league in the U.S. and, in her inaugural season at UCLA, coached the Bruins to their only NCAA title.
There wasn’t much in women’s soccer she hadn’t seen or experienced — until last year, when a once-in-a-century pandemic canceled classes, practices and finally the season. So when Cromwell got word in a Zoom call that her team could return to campus for training and a shortened 15-game season this winter, she cried.
“I turned off my video because I had to wipe a tear away I was so overwhelmed with emotion,” she said.