An All-America midfielder at Santa Clara University her last two seasons, Jen Lalor has put aside school and her college career for the moment to train with the U.S. women’s national team. At stake is a spot on the U.S. Women’s World Cup team.
‘Right now it’s considered a job. All we do is eat, sleep and play soccer.’
SOCCER AMERICA: Like a few of your teammates on the national team, you still have some college eligibility left, but you’ll have to take some time off from school to train with the U.S. at its training site in Florida. Was that a difficult decision to make?
No, not really, because it’s my goal to be here, to be in the World Cup and the Olympics. Once I got the opportunity, I already knew I would take time off from school.
If you have to take more time off next year, to train with the U.S. prior to the 1996 Olympics, are you prepared to do that too?
I think I have to wait and see. I think everyone who’s not in the starting lineup has to. Hopefully, I’ll have to take time off.
Would you miss the ’95 college season as well as classes?
Right now, I’m planning to. I think they’re giving us an option, we can come down here and train with coaches. I’m the only one [of the current college players] who’s going to redshirt.
For the fall, I might go back to school — but I wouldn’t play soccer then —
and go to classes. First, I’m going to see who else is staying down here and who I could train with.
How does your college coach, Jerry Smith, feel about that?
He said whatever decision I make, he’ll support it.
Of all the college players with remaining eligibility, you probably had the most playing time of any non-starter. Was it then when you felt that you had a pretty good chance at making the team that goes to Sweden?
Yeah. Before that, I was always going into camps, but still inside I wasn’t a part of it still until this past summer, because it was the qualifying and everything. When I got to play, I felt more a part of it.
Can you see yourself cracking the starting lineup in the midfield, which presumably would include Julie Foudy, Kristine Lilly and Tisha Venturini?
No. The midfielders they have now, they totally deserve to be there and totally deserve to be starting.
Are there any teams in this year’s tournament that you don’t like playing against?
I don’t like Norway at all, but they [aren’t] in our bracket. They’re just very… it’s beyond physical… They’re not very respectful. And once they get the ball, their fullbacks just boot it down the field.
Is the “residential” training camp in Florida just what the U.S. women needed — a permanent training site — to prepare for the World Cup?
Yeah. It’s just like a job. Right now, it’s considered a job. All we do is eat, sleep and play soccer. It’s nice. You don’t have to worry about the stress of school all the time. It makes you feel more laid back. You can solely concentrate on soccer.
How long did it take you to find a place to live in the Orlando area?
Actually, the people here set it all up for us. A lot of us didn’t see it before we got here. Julie Foudy went looking and she said this place was nice.
Our furniture is paid for, they have the pots and pans already here, all we have to pay for is our food. Everything is here within walking distance.
About 13 of us live in this complex.
by Soccer America Associate Editor Dean Caparaz