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Summer 2019 | By Jenna Marina Lee

UCF rising senior Konya Plummer 麻豆精品 S檚 journey to becoming the聽youngest team captain at the 2019 FIFA Women 麻豆精品 S檚 World Cup聽started on the sideline of an open field in the small Jamaican聽community of Epsom, Saint Mary.

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At 14, Plummer had just received her first soccer ball as a gift from her mother, and she took it to a field hoping to join a competitive evening game.

The neighborhood boys didn 麻豆精品 S檛 think she was good enough to play, so they took her ball and sent her to sit on the side to watch.

Plummer plopped down and began braiding long blades of grass to pass the time. And then, with the same determination that would eventually drive her to lead the first Caribbean nation to a Women 麻豆精品 S檚 World Cup appearance, she聽vowed to prove herself.

麻豆精品 S淚 started training. I had to be strong and I had to be tough, 麻豆精品 S� Plummer says. 麻豆精品 S淔rom then, I decided, I 麻豆精品 S檓 never going to sit on the sideline again. 麻豆精品 S�

What unfolded next has been an adventure that has provided the interdisciplinary studies major with the opportunity to forge a path unlike anyone in her native country who has come before her.

Plummer 麻豆精品 S檚 hometown is roughly 40 miles from Jamaica 麻豆精品 S檚 capital, Kingston, on the northeast side of the island. She describes it as 麻豆精品 S渃ountry 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S� which is the nickname her national team teammates gave her 麻豆精品 S� and says it 麻豆精品 S檚 her favorite place in the world.

When she was 16 years old, she flew on a plane for the first time to compete in Miami, and her world opened up. The idea聽that something more could be out there propelled her to move to the United States and join a club team, West Pines United F.C. in South Florida.

There, she first caught the attention of Hue Menzies, who is the executive director of a competitive club team in Oviedo and the Jamaica women 麻豆精品 S檚 national team 麻豆精品 S檚 head coach.

麻豆精品 S淪he was the best of the younger players. We felt like we needed to follow her, 麻豆精品 S� says Menzies, who joined the women 麻豆精品 S檚 national team staff as a consultant in 2015 before taking over as head coach a year later.

She soon worked her way up to the senior national team as a center back defender and was named captain. Menzies says she may be young on paper, but her maturity and leadership qualities are evident in the way she carries herself.

麻豆精品 S淲e have players on the team who are 33 years old and look up to her. It 麻豆精品 S檚 just who she is as a person, 麻豆精品 S� Menzies says. 麻豆精品 S淪he is Jamaica. She is what Jamaica is about. 麻豆精品 S�

麻豆精品 S淒o I look strong? 麻豆精品 S澛燩lummer asks as she poses during a photo shoot on UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 soccer field. Sure, there are brief moments when she 麻豆精品 S檚 also concerned about the integrity of her top bun, but she never asks if a strand of hair is misplaced or if the makeup artist on call can glam her up a bit.

麻豆精品 S淒o I look strong? 麻豆精品 S�

Because of their lack of opportunities and the perception of female footballers in their country, the women of Jamaica have to be strong.

Jamaica has no professional league for women. Even in 2019, some people insist it 麻豆精品 S檚 a men 麻豆精品 S檚 game 麻豆精品 S� no women allowed.

According to a feature story that ran in the June issue of ESPN the Magazine, the Jamaican Football Federation has cut the funding for the team twice, leaving the squad disbanded for years at a time and eliminating any possibility of qualifying for a World Cup or Olympics.

When the federation did reinstate the team, the article states that the players did their own laundry. They rode in rickety vans. The squad would practice and then break for a few days so players could work at their day jobs. Meanwhile, Jamaica 麻豆精品 S檚 men 麻豆精品 S檚 national team has full funding and ran training camps ahead of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, even though their squad hasn 麻豆精品 S檛 qualified for the tournament since 1998.

The women 麻豆精品 S檚 team has had to largely rely on benefactors, like Cedella Marley (Bob Marley 麻豆精品 S檚 daughter), to get to where they are today.

By qualifying for this year 麻豆精品 S檚 World Cup, the聽team cautiously hopes the milestone will serve聽as a catalyst for change and progress.

Menzies has made it a priority for the women 麻豆精品 S檚 national team to run soccer clinics for children. In the past, he says they were lucky to draw 20 kids. Now, 200 will show up.

麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 all about preaching the opportunity is聽there if you just focus yourself to beat all the odds聽around you and make that decision to go on the聽right path, 麻豆精品 S� he says. 麻豆精品 S淚 think football can do that聽for them. It 麻豆精品 S檚 another avenue for young females聽who want to come to the States and get a聽proper education. 麻豆精品 S�

Shortly after the team qualified聽for the World Cup, Olivia Grange,聽Jamaica 麻豆精品 S檚 minister of culture, gender,聽entertainment and sport, insisted on a聽countrywide celebration for the Reggae聽Girlz, the team 麻豆精品 S檚 nickname.聽People lined the streets to聽welcome the players as they聽pulled into towns. Plummer聽accepted keys to the聽city at various聽stops, including聽Montego Bay and Kingston, on behalf of the team.聽Concerts were held. They met the prime minister.

Menzies says the whole experience was more聽than any of them expected. The only thing he聽could compare it to is when he witnessed Nelson聽Mandela visit Jamaica in 1991.

麻豆精品 S淲e already see the impact. We call them 麻豆精品 S榯he聽wagonists. 麻豆精品 S� We have no problem with you jumping聽on the wagon. We just want you to stay on it, 麻豆精品 S澛燤enzies says. 麻豆精品 S淥ur story doesn 麻豆精品 S檛 end now. It goes聽beyond. I don 麻豆精品 S檛 want our players and our staff to聽become complacent. We still have to remember聽the reason why we 麻豆精品 S檙e doing this. It 麻豆精品 S檚 not just about聽the World Cup. It 麻豆精品 S檚 about how we are going to聽sustain this after the World Cup. 麻豆精品 S�

Prior to this year, just three Knights had ever been聽named to a FIFA Women 麻豆精品 S檚 World Cup roster in聽the 28-year history of the championship: Lena聽Petermann, who played one season at UCF in聽2013 before turning pro and competing for her聽native Germany in the 2015 Women 麻豆精品 S檚 World Cup;聽Amy (Allman) Griffin 麻豆精品 S�88, a 1991 champion;聽and legend Michelle Akers 麻豆精品 S�89, who was a part聽of three World Cups and led Team USA to two聽championships in 1991 and 1999.

This year, however, Plummer was one of four聽Knights who represented their countries in聽France, and the first UCF student-athlete聽to compete on the global stage while still聽enrolled in school.

麻豆精品 S淧articipating in the World Cup or winning a聽World Cup championship is the equivalent聽of competing at the Olympics or winning聽a gold medal. It 麻豆精品 S檚 a dream that any聽soccer player is going to have.聽That 麻豆精品 S檚 the pinnacle of your聽career, 麻豆精品 S� says UCF women 麻豆精品 S檚聽soccer head coach Tiffany聽Roberts Sahaydak,聽who won Olympic聽gold and the聽World Cup during her 10 years as a member of the U.S.聽women 麻豆精品 S檚 national team.

Roberts Sahaydak was 22 years old 麻豆精品 S� just a few聽months older than Plummer is now 麻豆精品 S� when she聽helped the United States capture glory in the 1999聽World Cup in front of more than 90,000 fans at聽the Rose Bowl in California. Much like Plummer,聽the UCF coach didn 麻豆精品 S檛 have any female soccer聽players to look up to when she was growing up.聽But in 1999, Roberts Sahaydak became that role聽model for the next generation.

麻豆精品 S淜onya is now in that position to be that聽person for Jamaica, which is incredible to think聽about, 麻豆精品 S� Roberts Sahaydak says. 麻豆精品 S淪ome little girl聽from Jamaica is going to be watching Konya this聽summer, and that fire is going to go off. They are聽going to say, 麻豆精品 S業 want to be just like her when I grow聽up. 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S� Having these role models helps these young聽girls stay on path and stick to their education,聽stick to their work ethic and their dreams. 麻豆精品 S�

And that realization is not lost on Plummer.

Whether she 麻豆精品 S檚 on the field or studying for a聽test, she thinks about the kids looking up to her.聽She thinks about her family. She thinks about her聽teammates. She thinks about the people in her聽hometown who stop her on the street to ask for聽her autograph. And she doesn 麻豆精品 S檛 want to disappoint聽a single one of them.

She says she wrestles with some heavy聽questions: How should she deal with fame? How聽can she achieve all she wants to and still have a life聽outside of soccer? Why was she appointed to be a聽leader at such a young age?

While on an official national team trip to South聽Africa in April 麻豆精品 S� two months before stepping onto聽the field in France for the biggest moment of her聽life thus far 麻豆精品 S� she got the answer.

麻豆精品 S淚 was talking to one of our hosts and she聽said, 麻豆精品 S榊our name means leadership. It means聽command. 麻豆精品 S� I almost cried when she told me that, 麻豆精品 S澛燩lummer says. 麻豆精品 S淚 was searching for the answer my聽whole time being a captain 麻豆精品 S� why was I chosen?聽It may be a coincidence, but I take it seriously.聽Everything happens for a reason.

麻豆精品 S淚 was born to be a leader, and I was born to be聽in this moment. 麻豆精品 S�