Jacqui Little

Last updated

Jacqui Little
Personal information
Full name Jacqueline Elise Little [1]
Date of birth (1978-03-10) March 10, 1978 (age 45)
Place of birth Heerlen, Netherlands [1]
Height 5 ft 3 in (1.60 m) [1]
Position(s) Forward
Youth career
1993–1996 Valley United
College career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1996–1999 Santa Clara Broncos
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2001 Bay Area CyberRays 15 (1)
2002–2003 Washington Freedom 40 (5)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Jacqueline Elise Little (formerly Rimando; born March 10, 1978) is an American former professional soccer player. A fast forward, she played for Bay Area CyberRays and Washington Freedom of Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) and trained with the senior United States women's national soccer team. She played in the WUSA championship game in all three seasons of the league's existence and won the WUSA title on two occasions with her two different clubs.

Contents

Playing career

College

Little attended Santa Clara University and played college soccer. She graduated in 1999 with a degree in sociology. With the Broncos, Little reached the NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship Final Four in each of her seasons with the team. She was appointed to the University's Athletics Hall of Fame in 2019. [2]

Club

Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA), the first official professional women's soccer league in the United States, began in 2001. Little was a sixth-round draft pick (41st overall in the global draft) by the Bay Area CyberRays. In 2001, Little started three of her 15 regular season appearances, contributing a goal and two assists. [1] She made a brief appearance in the 2001 WUSA Founders Cup as the CyberRays secured the inaugural championship.

In November 2001 Washington Freedom traded their Brazilian forward Pretinha to the CyberRays for Little and a third round draft pick. In Washington, Little joined her twin Skylar Little, who was already on the Freedom roster. [3]

In 2002, Little started 12 of her 20 regular season appearances, scoring three goals as the Freedom improved their seventh-place finish in 2001 to third in 2002. She featured in the championship game but the Freedom lost 3–2 to Carolina Courage. Freedom coach Jim Gabarra praised Little's performances as an impact substitute: "Jacqui really accepted her role of coming off the bench well and provided a spark last year." [1]

Ahead of the 2003 WUSA season, Little kept fit in the off-season but also enjoyed some time away from soccer. [4] Another successful campaign saw Little start 19 of 20 regular season games and play in the 2003 WUSA Founders Cup win. [1]

International

In July 2005 Little was called into a senior United States women's national soccer team training camp in Carson, California. [5]

Personal life

Little and her identical twin Skylar Little were born in the Netherlands, but grew up playing soccer in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles. Skylar, a defender, played college soccer with UCLA Bruins, while forward Jacqui elected to move further afield with Santa Clara. [6]

In the 1999 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament, Jacqui's Broncos team beat Skylar's Bruins 7–0. Skylar was drafted by the Washington Freedom and faced Jacqui's Bay Area CyberRays in WUSA's inaugural match, which the Freedom won 1–0.

After the collapse of WUSA, Little took an office job with Reico Kitchen & Bath. Although she liked the job she was sad to no longer be a professional soccer player: "The fact that I was sitting at a desk instead of doing what I love to do, it just hit me like a ton of bricks." [7]

In December 2005, Little married her longtime boyfriend, Nick Rimando. He played for the United States men's national soccer team as a goalkeeper and is also from California. The wedding was performed by Rimando's teammate Ben Olsen in Malibu, California. [8] Rimando and Little have two children, Jett Nicholas Rimando and Benny Rose Rimando. [9] In 2016 she was living in Salt Lake City, and has since divorced Rimando. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Women's United Soccer Association</span> Professional soccer league

The Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) was the world's first women's soccer league in which all the players were paid as professionals. Founded in February 2000, the league began its first season in April 2001 with eight teams in the United States. The league suspended operations on September 15, 2003, shortly after the end of its third season, after making cumulative losses of around US$100 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brandi Chastain</span> American retired soccer player

Brandi Denise Chastain is an American retired soccer player, two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion, two-time Olympic gold-medalist, coach, and sports broadcaster. She played for the United States national team from 1988 to 2004. In her 192 caps on the team, she scored 30 goals playing primarily in the defender and midfielder positions. She scored a World Cup-winning penalty shootout goal against China in the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup final.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carolina Courage</span> Soccer club

Carolina Courage was a professional soccer team that played in the Women's United Soccer Association. The team played at Fetzer Field on the UNC-Chapel Hill campus in 2001, and then at the soccer-specific SAS Stadium in Cary, North Carolina in 2002 and 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Jose CyberRays</span> Womens United Soccer Association franchise

San Jose CyberRays was a professional soccer team that played in the Women's United Soccer Association. The team played at Spartan Stadium on the South Campus of San José State University in San Jose, California. Stars included U.S. National Team star Brandi Chastain, WUSA Goalkeeper of the Year LaKeysia Beene, and leading scorer Julie Murray. Other memorable CyberRays were Brazilians Sissi and Katia, Tisha Venturini, and "ironwoman" Thori Bryan, who played every minute of the first season. They were coached by Ian Sawyers, who received WUSA Coach of the Year honors in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Rimando</span> American soccer player

Nicholas Paul Rimando is an American former professional soccer player who last played as a goalkeeper for Real Salt Lake in Major League Soccer and the United States national team. He holds the Major League Soccer records for career wins, clean sheets, saves, and overall appearances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pretinha</span> Brazilian footballer

Delma Gonçalves, commonly known as Pretinha, is a Brazilian professional soccer coach and former forward. A longtime member of the Brazil national team, for whom she debuted in 1991, she played for clubs in Brazil, the United States and Japan before moving to Icheon Daekyo of South Korea's WK-League in 2009.

Thori Yvette Staples Bryan is an American retired soccer defender who previously played for the United States women's national soccer team and the Bay Area CyberRays in the Women's United Soccer Association.

Roseli de Belo, commonly known as Roseli, is a Brazilian footballer who played as a forward for the Brazil women's national football team.

Regina Marie Oceguera Schmuhl, known in the U.S. as Gina Eagleson, is an American-born Mexican former professional footballer who captained the Mexico national team at the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup. She also played for American soccer team Bay Area CyberRays in the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA).

Kelly Ann Lindsey is an American soccer coach and former defender who played for the United States women's national soccer team and the San Jose CyberRays of Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA).

Amanda Kate Cavan is an American mental health counselor, television personality, and former soccer forward who played for the United States women's national soccer team, as well as the Philadelphia Charge and San Jose CyberRays of Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA).

Rosalie Ann Cook is an American soccer coach and former player. A versatile defender or midfielder, she played for the San Jose CyberRays and Washington Freedom of Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) and won a single cap for the senior United States women's national soccer team.

The 2002 Women's United Soccer Association season was the second season for WUSA, the top level professional women's soccer league in the United States. The regular season began on April 13 and ended on August 11. The playoffs began on August 17, with the championship match between played on August 24 between the Carolina Courage and the Washington Freedom.

Anna R. Lydon is an American former soccer player who played as a defender, making six appearances for the United States women's national team.

Devvyn Kyle MacBeth is an American former soccer player who played as a midfielder, making nine appearances for the United States women's national team.

Louise Kristina Lieberman is an American soccer coach and former player. She is currently the head coach of the San Diego Toreros women's team. Lieberman played for the Washington Freedom of the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) and collegiate soccer for the UCLA Bruins.

Skylar Martine Meinhardt is an American former professional soccer player. A consistent right-back, she played for Washington Freedom of Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) and trained with the senior United States women's national soccer team.

Miren Maite Zabala Rementeria is a Basque American soccer coach and former professional goalkeeper. She played for Atlanta Beat, Philadelphia Charge and Carolina Courage of Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA).

Dawn Siergiej is a retired American soccer player who played for the Washington Freedom and San Jose CyberRays.

Emmy Barr is a retired American soccer player who played in the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) for the Washington Freedom. Prior to becoming a professional soccer player Barr was a preschool teacher who had graduated from Santa Clara University. Emmy Barr was a 5th round pick in the 2000 WUSA Draft.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "24 - Jacqui Little". Women's United Soccer Association. Archived from the original on October 28, 2003. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Jacqui Little '00". Santa Clara University . Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Freedom Trade Pretinha to CyberRays". Associated Press. November 14, 2001. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  4. ↑ Truman, Tim (March 4, 2003). "Washington's Little Twin Powers". Women's United Soccer Association. Archived from the original on September 28, 2003. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  5. ↑ "Four Former Broncos Invited To National Team Camp". West Coast Conference. July 17, 2005. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  6. ↑ Payne, Dave (April 21, 2003). "Little Sisters Propel Freedom". Women's United Soccer Association. Archived from the original on September 28, 2003. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  7. ↑ Steinberg, Dan (June 13, 2004). "Coping With the Loss of Freedom". The Washington Post . Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Behind the Badge: Triple threat". DCUnited.com. December 15, 2005. Archived from the original on October 25, 2006. Retrieved March 24, 2010.
  9. ↑ "KUTV 2News "Person 2 Person: Nick Rimando"". KUTV 2News Utah . June 9, 2013. Archived from the original on August 7, 2013. Retrieved July 2, 2013.
  10. ↑ Parker, Kevin (April 14, 2016). "The WUSA Washington Freedom 15 Years On: Where are they now?". All White Kit. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.