Stephanie Cox

Stephanie Cox

Personal information
Full name	Stephanie Renee Cox
Date of birth	(1986-04-03) April 3, 1986
Place of birth	San Jose, California, United States
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Playing position	Defender/ Left Back
Youth career
2002–2005	Elk Grove Pride
2005–2008	Portland Pilots
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2009	Los Angeles Sol	19	(0)
2010–2011	Boston Breakers	34	(1)
2012	Seattle Sounders Women	3	(1)
National team‡
2000	United States U-14
2002	United States U-17
2003–2006	United States U-19
2005–2007	United States U-21
2005–	United States	82	(0)
Honours Women's football Competitor for the United States Olympic Games Gold 2008 Beijing Team competition
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 9 June 2012. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 9 April 2012

Stephanie Renee Cox (born April 3, 1986), née Stephanie Renee Lopez, is a Mexican-American professional soccer defender, Olympic gold medalist, and former member of the United States women's national soccer team. She previously played for the Los Angeles Sol and Boston Breakers of the WPS as well as the Seattle Sounders Women of the W-League.

Early life

Born in in San Jose, California, Cox grew up in Elk Grove, California and attended Elk Grove High School where she helped lead her soccer team to two league championships. She was named to the all-section team as a junior and senior, won the youth All-American award from NSCAA and was named a Parade Magazine All-American. On top of her numerous soccer achievements, Stephanie also lettered in basketball for three years and managed to graduate with a 4.17 GPA.

University of Portland

Cox attended the University of Portland, where she started 23 matches her freshman year. In 2005, after returning to the Pilots following a redshirt season to play for the US, Stephanie helped lead her team to an undefeated record of 23-0-2 and an NCAA Championship and was named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team. The following season, she started in 13 games and scored her first collegiate goal.

In 2007, after she returned from the World Cup, Lopez led the Pilots to 11 straight wins and 10 shutouts and helped her team advance to the NCAA quarterfinals. After the World Cup, Stephanie had a chance to forgo her remaining collegiate eligibility and become a salaried player with the senior national team, but loyalty to her team and prior commitments led her back to Portland where she graduated with a 3.7 GPA and a psychology degree and a Spanish minor in December 2007. She was honored as the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award winner, recognizing her as the nation's top senior in women's soccer. 2007 also marked the first time the award was presented to a female soccer player. Cox was also chosen as Oregon's Female Amateur Athlete of the Year for 2007.

Playing career

Club

Los Angeles Sol

In 2009, Cox signed with the Los Angeles Sol for the inaugural season of the WPS. She made 20 starts in 20 games for a total of 1800 minutes. The team came in first in regular season standings, but lost the championship 1-0 to Sky Blue FC.

Boston Breakers

After the Sol disbanded after the 2009 WPS season due to financial difficulties, Cox was acquired by the Boston Breakers during the 2010 WPS Dispersal Draft. Cox helped lead the team to second place in the regular season standings. She started all 24 games and scored one goal during the 2010 WPS season.

Cox returned to the Breakers for the 2011 WPS season. She started in all 11 games in which she played.

Seattle Sounders Women

After the WPS suspended operations in early 2012, Cox signed with the Seattle Sounders Women, joining fellow women's national team members, Hope Solo, Megan Rapinoe, Sydney Leroux, and Alex Morgan. She made 12 appearances for the club tallying a total of four points on two assists and one goal.

International

Stephanie became involved in the US National Team Youth program in 2000. At the U-20 level, she played at the 2004 FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship in Thailand; two years later, she captained the US team in the 2006 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Championship in Russia. She made her first national team career start against France at the Algarve Cup in 2006. Her play helped the Women's National Team win a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

Personal life

Cox has assisted her parents in leading a group of teens to Egypt to paint an orphanage, traveled to the Bahamas to clear land for construction of a learning center, traveled to Mexico to serve meals to American missionaries, and was part of a team that created a Hurricane Katrina fundraiser in 2005. She recently became a spokesperson for Casey Family Services, the country's largest foster care organization.

Stephanie lives in Gig Harbor, Washington with her husband, former University of Portland baseball player Brian Cox, and daughter.

External links

• Stephanie Lopez – FIFA competition record
• Stephanie Cox – FIFA competition record
• US Soccer player profile
• Los Angeles Sol player profile
• University of Portland player profile