Two Former Gators on 2004 U.S. Olympic Soccer Team
Thursday, July 1, 2004 | Soccer
Two former University of Florida soccer standouts – Heather Mitts and Abby Wambach – are members of the 2004 United States Olympic Women's Soccer team. U.S. Head Coach April Heinrichs announced the 18-player roster today in Chicago. The pair are the first Gators to appear on an U.S.A. Olympic soccer roster.
As a senior in 2001, Wambach led the nation in scoring with 31 goals, 14 assists for 76 points. She is the Gators' career leader in goals (96), assists (50) and points (242) and stands sixth on the NCAA Career charts in goals and points. Wambach earned National Soccer Coaches Association of American (NSCAA) All-America first-team honors in 1999 and 2001. She is a four-time member of the All-Southeastern Conference first team and picked up the SEC Player of the Year award in 2000 and '01.
Wambach made her mark with the U.S. National Team in 2003 as she was honored as U.S. Soccer's Chevrolet Female Athlete of the Year. A member of the 2003 U.S. Women's World Cup roster, Wambach led her team with three goals in the WWC, tallying one of the most important goals in U.S. history in the 1-0 win over Norway in the quarterfinal. Wambach has scored 26 goals in her 37 appearances for the U.S. National Team.
Wambach was the No. 2 selection in the February, 2002 WUSA Draft. She was named the MVP of the 2003 WUSA Founders Cup III championship match on Aug. 24 after scoring both of Washington's goals to lead the Freedom to a 2-1 victory over Atlanta. Wambach finished the 2003 WUSA season sharing first in points with Mia Hamm (33), third in goals (13) and fourth in assists (7).
As a Gator, Mitts earned All-America and All-SEC honors in her final two seasons (1998 & '99). Mitts is third on UF's career list with 7,547 minutes played and is tied for fourth with 95 matches played. The defender also was a NCAA Championship All-Tournament team selection when the Gators claimed the 1998 national title. She was a second-round draft pick by the WUSA's Philadelphia Charge in 2000. Mitts started all 51 games in which she played for the Charge over three seasons, helping the club to the WUSA playoffs in the first two years
Mitts really caught the attention of the National Team staff in 2004, getting her first significant minutes with the full National Team and starting the last nine matches the USA has played. Primarily an outside back throughout her career, Mitts has been exhibiting quality play in the middle as of late. Her versatility and speed make her an important part in the U.S. defense. Mitts has earned 19 caps with the U.S. National team.
The Olympic format consists of an unusual 10-team format, with the teams divided into two groups of three and one group of four. The USA was placed into Group G with Greece, Brazil and Australia for the 2004 Olympic Women's Soccer Tournament. The USA will actually participate in one the first events of the 2004 Olympic Games when it faces host Greece on Aug. 11 at 11 a.m. ET at Pankritio Stadium in Heraklio, the most southern of the five Olympics venues. The official Opening Ceremonies are on Aug. 13 in Athens.
| U.S. Olympic Schedule | |||
| Date | Match-Up | Venue | ET |
| 08/11/04 | vs. Greece | Heraklio | 11 a.m. |
| 08/14/04 | vs. Brazil | Thessaloniki | 11 a.m. |
| 08/17/04 | vs. Australia | Thessaloniki | 11 a.m. |
| 08/20/04 | Quarterfinal | TBD by placement | 11 a.m. |
| 08/23/04 | Semifinal | Heralkio or Patra | 11 a.m./2 p.m. |
| 08/26/04 | Medal Match | Athens | 11 a.m./2 p.m. |
| 2004 UNITED STATES OLYMPIC WOMEN'S SOCCER TEAM ROSTER | |||||
| Name | P | Ht. | Hometown | College | Caps/G |
| Abby Wambach | F | 5-11 | Rochester, N.Y. | Florida | 37/26 |
| Heather Mitts | D | 5-5 | Cincinnati, Ohio | Florida | 19/0 |
| Briana Scurry | GK | 5-9 | Dayton, Minn. | UMass | 138 |
| Christie Rampone | D | 5-6 | Pt. Pleasant, N.J. | Monmouth | 118/4 |
| Cat Reddick | D | 5-5 | Birmingham, Ala. | UNC | 56/4 |
| Brandi Chastain | D | 5-7 | San Jose, Calif. | Santa Clara | 177/30 |
| Shannon Boxx | M | 5-8 | Redondo Beach, Calif. | Notre Dame | 23/9 |
| Mia Hamm | F | 5-5 | Chapel Hill, N.C. | UNC | 257/149 |
| Aly Wagner | M | 5-5 | San Jose, Calif. | Santa Clara | 63/14 |
| Julie Foudy | M | 5-6 | Mission Viejo, Calif. | Stanford | 153/44 |
| Cindy Parlow | F | 5-11 | Memphis, Tenn. | UNC | 143/69 |
| Kristine Lilly | M | 5-4 | Wilton, Conn. | UNC | 273/95 |
| Joy Fawcett | D | 5-6 | Huntington Beach, Calif. | California | 232/27 |
| Kate Markgraf | D | 5-7 | Bloomfield Hills, Mich. | Notre Dame | 118/0 |
| Lindsay Tarpley | M | 5-6 | Kalamazoo, Mich. | UNC | 23/7 |
| Angela Hucles | M | 5-7 | Virginia Beach, Va. | UVa. | 32/4 |
| Kristin Luckenbill | GK | 5-9 | Paoli, Pa. | Dartmouth | 3/0 |
| Heather O'Reilly | F | 5-5 | East Brunswick, N.J. | UNC | 22/3 |
