67-Amy Rodriguez, on juggling being a mom and a pro athlete

In today’s episode, I interview mom of two, pro soccer player, World Cup champion, and 2x Olympic gold medalist Amy Rodriguez.

If you’ve ever seen Amy play, she’s a feisty, sneakyyy mom (said in the tone of the kid from that viral Jimmy Kimmel youtube video).  She’s got a special fire every time she steps on the pitch. 

In highschool, Amy was a top recruit and was named the Gatorade player of the year. Her senior year, she made her first appearance for the US National team.She went on to play at USC, where she played a vital role in helping them win their first NCAA championship. 

After college, her career continued to flourish. She won gold medals at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. The next year she gave birth to her first child, missed the entire year, then made a quick comeback to help the US win the World Cup in 2015. 

Since then, Amy has brought another beautiful child into the world, but upon her comeback she tore her ACL. Being the resilient sneaky mom that she is, Amy made a full comeback and now currently plays for and captains the Utah Royals FC. She fulfills all of her team duties,  while also being a mom to a 6 and 3 year-old boy. Talk about Superrrr mom! 

In today’s episode, Amy talks about:

• her crazy, unconventional lifestyle of balancing being a mom and a professional soccer player 

• how having kids has benefited her both on the field and off 

• the childhood setback that pushed her to the next level

• personal stories from being one of the best players in the US

• the mantra that has helped her through the highest pressure moments in her career

• the characteristics that she believes allowed her to thrive in her sport

And more!

Listen on iTunes HERE 

Resources:

Follow Amy on instagram

Follow Arrow Living on instagram

Be the first to know when a new podcast or article drops, and receive other magical contentHERE 

A list of the 11 books that have had the biggest impact on my life as an athleteHERE

63-Becky Sauerbrunn, turning your weaknesses into strengths, having a presence, and believing in aliens

In today’s episode I interview cat lover, sci-fi fantasy aficionado, 2x World Cup champion, Olympic gold medalist, Becky Sauerbrunn. 

Y'all, no two ways about it, Becky is a baller. She is one of the most consistent players in the game of soccer. But, one of my favorite things about Becky is how she just straight up does her. She doesn’t change who she is to fit in. She speaks her opinion, about sometimes difficult topics, And she stands up for others. She is one of those leaders who leads by example and treats everyone with respect. I think that’s why she’s admired so much by all of her teammates. 

Becky was born in St Louis Missouri. She played basketball and volleyball, but always knew soccer was her number one love. 

Becky played at the University of Virginia, then went to the pro level and currently represents the USWNT. 

She has played professionally for the Washington Freedom, magicJack, DC United, Utah Royals FC, Roa IL, FC Kansas City, where she won’t two NWSL championships. She is now a Portland Thorn, which is lovely because Portland is the place she calls home. 

In the NWSL, she has earned the NWSL best 11 every single year and is a 4x defender of the year. 

Becky is a regular call-up for the national team. Like I said, she is a  2x World Cup Champion and an Olympic gold medalist. She captained the team from 2016-2018 and is currently the president of USWNT Players Association. She is huge advocate for equal pay.  

And I just want to reiterate she is a freakin’ good human being. 

In today’s episode, Becky talks about

• how, as an introvert, she has trained her whole life for this quarantine 

• what sets national team players apart from other players (hint: not a lot) 

• dealing with having a huge dream, but so much of it being out of your control

• the story of a youth national team coach telling her she had no speed or presence, and how she turned those “weaknesses” into strengths 

• why she named her cats Missy Elliott and Olive Oil

• owning her nerdiness 

• what it was like when she opened a letter from her idol, Ruth Bader Ginsburg 

• her belief in aliens 

And more!

Listen on iTunes HERE 

Resources

Register for Free Webinar 

Mustard bath  

Burrito Folding Technique  

 Follow Becky on instagram

Follow Arrow Living on instagram

Be the first to know when a new podcast or article drops, and receive other magical content HERE 

A list of the 11 books that have had the biggest impact on my life as an athlete HERE

53-Meghan Klingenberg-on how to stay confident through the ups and downs, Daring Greatly, and playing hooky

In today’s episode, I interview World Cup Champion, US national soccer team member, Portland Thorns FC defender,  Meghan Klingenberg.

When Meghan was thirteen years old, her mom pulled her out of middle school. The two of them road tripped to University of North Carolina to see the women’s soccer team play for the first time. After that game, Meghan began writing letters to the head coach Anson Dorrance, expressing her interest in playing for his team.

Her dreams of becoming a Tarheel came true, and her career accelerated from there. After college, Meghan was drafted to the Women’s Professional Soccer league. She received her first call up to the full national team in 2011 and became a mainstay from then on out. In 2012, she just missed out on the Olympics roster, and went to London as an alternate. This experience created a huge paradigm shift for Meghan. She knew that if she wanted to be on the team, then she had to be different than everyone else. So she opted to head overseas to Sweden and play with some of the best players in the world.

Meghan unconventional path paid-off, and in 2015, she started every match in the World Cup, and helped the team win gold.

She currently plays for the Portland Thorns, who won the NWSL championships last season

In our conversation, Meghan talks about

-her insanely competitive family, and how a Disney Trivia game night turned into family members shunning each other for days

-her involvement with the USWNT Players Association and standing up for equal pay

-how she deals with the pressure of US national team camps

-the value she has found in seeing a therapist

-her approach for dealing with haters on social media

-how she became Edie’s (Portland Thorns head coach, Mark Parson’s daughter) special friend

And the Arrow Living Book Club that’s going down soon. If you want to join,  SIGN UP HERE .

Enjoy my conversation with the lively, confident Meghan Klingenberg.

Listen on iTunes HERE 

Shownotes

:50 Who is Meghan Klingenberg?

3:00 Arrowliving upcoming book club  Join in here arrowliving.com

4:30 2014 Australian visit and cutting Kendall’s hair

6:00 Meghan’s love for Portland

6:54 What is Meghan’s typical day of training look like?

7:45 Meghan’s am routine

8:45 Meghan’s after training activities

10:00 Working with the USWNT on Players Association

12:45 Has Megan always been politically active?

14:03 When did Megan’s love of cooking begin?

16:15 Meghan’s family

17:25 Crazy Klingenberg game nights

18:53 In her opinion, is her family competitiveness healthy?

21:13 What other sports did Meghan play?

21:47 Did Meghan have a goal of playing on the Nat’l team?

23:55 What attracted Meghan to University of North Carolina?

26:35 Does Meghan have other obsessions beyond soccer?

30:05 When did Meghan get called up the Nat’l team, camp experience and China?

33:12 How does Meghan deal with the stress of soccer?

38:13 What was Meghan’s 1st tournament that she tried to make on the national team?

41:11 How did Meghan’s time in Sweden change her mental outlook?

42:55 Daring Bravely   Brene Brown

44:18 Meghan’s perspective of being vulnerable on the soccer field

47:04 How does Meghan deal with being in the spotlight?

48:46 Meghan’s favorite hate message that she has received

49:26 How does Meghan get her confidence back after a poor game?

51:00 What goes through her mind during her training sessions?

52:45 Which 2 teammates would you have bury a body?

53:54 What is the funniest memory of the Portland Thorns season?

56:46 What is Meghan’s guilty pleasure right now?

58:02 What is the coolest place Meghan’s ever been?

1:02:26 What is it like leading up to the National team announcement?

1:08:09 What one thing does Meghan have on her bucket list?

1:10:34 How did Edie Parson’s and Meghan become friends?

1:15:00 Women’s v. Men’s soccer disparity of pay

1:20:00 What was Meghan’s first thought when she woke up this morning?

1:20:13 Meghan’s morning routine?

1:20:48 What is the biggest misconception that people have about Meghan?

1:22:40 What is one absurd belief that she has?

1:24:44 What is the worst advice Meghan’s ever been given?

1:26:22 What is Meghan’s favorite failure?

1:28:35 Meghan’s greatest accomplishment

1:30:21 What is one tip Meghan gives tto female athletes?

Resources

Click HERE to join the Arrow Living Book Club

Click HERE to become a part of Friday Feelz

Click HERE for a list of the 10 books I believe ever female athlete MUST read.

Click HERE  to be the first to know when a new podcast or article drops, and receive other exclusive content

Follow Meghan Klingenberg

www.meghanklingenberg.com

On Instagram:

@meghankling

On twitter:

@meghankling

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44- My mom, Ann Johnson- On parenting a female athlete, supporting your child’s obsession, and feeding the team

In today’s episode, I interview my mother, Ann Johnson.

I often get asked by parents about what their kid needs to do to make it to the next level. I believe the driving force must come from the kid, but parents can have a huge impact on a child’s well-being. My mom is one of my biggest supporters and is a big reason I am where I am today. She’s also a freak of nature athlete and can kick my butt in workouts.

In our conversation we talk about
-her favorite type of workouts, including one that can easily be done at home
-why she didn’t get involved with coaches decisions, even if she disagreed
-the most challenging aspect of parenting a female athlete
-her stance on kids playing multiple sports vs specializing on one
-why parenting athletes is like being a full time chauffeur
-the delicious meals she cooked for my teammates and the crazy games she had us play while w/ the Portland Pilots, Sky Blue FC, and the Portland Thorns

And more.

Enjoy my conversation with my favorite mother in the whole wide world

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Follow Ann Johnson:

On Instagram:   @annclairej

If you haven’t already, I would be so very grateful if you rated and left me a review of the podcast. It takes two minutes! Here’s what to do.

1. Click HERE

2. Click “view in itunes”

3. Click the “ratings and reviews” tab

4. Click “write a review” and show me love <3

Resources

Click HERE to become a part of Friday Feelz

Click HERE for a list of the 10 books I believe ever female athlete MUST read.

Click HERE  to be the first to know when a new podcast or article drops, and receive other exclusive content

36-Christine Sinclair- On how to be a leader and her recovery from perfectionism

In today’s episode, I interview the captain of the women’s Canadian national soccer team and Portland Thorns FC striker Christine Sinclair. Christine is a Legend with a capital L. She attended University of Portland (Go Pilots!) While there she was a Mac Hermann trophy recipient and a  2x NCAA champion.  She has received countless other accolades throughout her career including being the a 12x recipient of Canada’s Soccer Player of the Year, 2x bronze Olympic medalist, she’s been short listed for fifa player of the year 7 times, and is the second leading goal scorer in the world, just behind Abby Wambach.

But even more admirable than her accolades, is who Christine is as a human. Despite being one of the top players in the world, she is incredibly down to earth. Christine despises being in the spotlight and is a private person in general, but in our discussion she opens up and explains in her own words, she’s actually not a “hermit.”  You’ll see that she’s a little bit weird and quite funny.

In our conversation we talk about

• How everyone can be a leader, and what it takes to become one

what it was like surpassing her idol Mia Hamm in all-time goals-scored

-The impromptu speech she gave in the locker room to her distraught teammates during the Olympics

-How the loss of multiple family members completely change her perspective on soccer, and allowed her to take her game to the next level

-Why she slurps mustard before and during the half-time of games with Emily Menges  (Emily also makes a guest appearance!)

-The method she uses to become a world-class finisher

-Why she named her achilles tendon “Clarence”

I’d love to hear what you learned from this episode. Please leave a message in the comments

Show Notes

:57 Who is Christine Sinclair?

3:45 Charlie, the love of her life!

5:15 How did Christine choose University of Portland

9:00 How was winning the NCAA women’s soccer championships?

10:05 What is Sinc’s top moment in her career?

11:15 Other sports played by Christine

11:45 When did she know soccer was her main sport?

13:25 Was she always a standout player?

14:04 Did she have goals from the beginning of her career?

14:35 What players did she idolize?

15:32 When did she know she would play in a world cup?

15:44 What did it feel like to surpass Mia Hamm’s goal scoring record?

18:02 Why is Christine so well liked by teammates?

19:45 Does Sinc like being a leader?

21:05 Can everyone be a leader?

22:32 What is Christine’s memories of the 2012 London Olympics

26:57 Why doesn’t Christine like being in the spotlight?

28:15   Her perspective on social media

30:28 How does she deal with her competitiveness?

31:40 The importance of team bonding

36:29 Her battle with being a recovering perfectionist

37:55 How has Sinc learned to play more freely?

40:10 What would she tell her 18 year old self?

42:14 Sinc’s favorite coffee shop

43:42 Favorite restaurant

44:38 How has she dealt with body pain?

50:40 Christine’s stats & records

55:03 What does Sinc like about Portland, Oregon

56:31 Her morning routine

58:34 What is the biggest misconception about Christine?

59:31 What one belief does Christine have that others think is crazy?

1:00:20 Favorite failure

1:02:21 Greatest accomplishment

1:04:32 How has she developed her amazing finishing skills?

1:06:00 What is Sinc’s one simple tip for female athletes

1:07:30 Favorite downtime activity

1:08:15 What does Christine enjoy most about scoring goals

1:08:45 pregame rituals & superstitions

1:09:57 What 3 Thorns players would she choose to be with on a deserted island?

1:10:24 Has there ever been a moment when she wanted to quit soccer?

Share the love

If you haven’t already, I would be so very grateful if you rated and left me a review of the podcast. It takes two minutes! Here’s what to do.

1. Click HERE

2. Click “view in itunes”

3. Click the “ratings and reviews” tab

4. Click “write a review” and show me love <3

Resources

Click HERE to become a part of Friday Feelz

Click HERE for a list of the 10 books I believe ever female athlete MUST read.

Click HERE  to be the first to know when a new podcast or article drops, and receive other exclusive content

EP 32- Mana Shim- on desserts, death and befriending strangers

Professional soccer player Mana Shim has a go with the flow attitude and has relied on her intuition her entire life. At 15 years old, the Hawaiian native left surfing, beaches, and her family behind, and moved to Arizona with the hope of playing college soccer at a Division One school one day.

Mana’s decision paid off, and she was recruited by her dream school, Santa Clara University. After college, Mana entered the NWSL draft, but did not get selected by any teams. She opted to tryout for the Portland Thorns, because it was the cheapest flight and the team was talented.

Mana balled out, made the team, and has been with the Portland Thorns for 5 consecutive years.

In this interview, we start out talking light about desserts, and then dive deep (in typical Mana fashion)into the topics of fear, anxiety, and death.

We touch upon:

-Mana’s uncanny ability to befriend strangers

-the mental state that allows Mana to play her best soccer

-why Mana doesn’t share her goals with people (except her therapist)

-the day Mana’s dad passed away, and why it was one of the most beautiful moments of her life

-why suffering is necessary to live a fulfilled life

-how to become a more trustworthy person via what Brene Brown calls  B.R.A.V.I.N.G

-and of course, we talk about surfing, and the best wave Mana has ever ridden.

Share the love

If you haven’t already, I would be so very grateful if you rated and left me a review of the podcast. It takes two minutes! Here’s what to do.

1. Click HERE

2. Click “view in itunes”

3. Click the “ratings and reviews” tab

4. Click “write a review” and show me love <3

Resources

Click HERE to follow Mana on Instagram

Click HERE to follow Mana on Twitter

Click HERE for another interview and full story with Mana

Click HERE to become a part of Friday Feelz

Click HERE for a list of the 10 books I believe ever female athlete MUST read.

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EP 15- Jill Loyden: Former USWNT Goalkeeper, The Keeper Institute Coach- On Overcoming Adversity and Becoming a Bouncy Ball

Former USWNT goalkeeper and founder of The Keeper Institute, Jill Loyden, has been an underdog her entire life. Growing up, Jill was one of three kids raised by a single mom, in Vineland, New Jersey. She was cut from several teams, laughed at when she told her grandma her dreams, and recruited by only two colleges.

But deep down, Jill,  has always known that only she controls her destiny, and has used this stubbornness to find a way through adversity.

Jill fought her way onto the US Women’s National team, but just months before the Olympics, she received the worst call she could have ever imagined. She lost her sister due to domestic violence.

Instead of allowing this tragedy to break her, Jill discovered an even greater purpose in her life. She continued playing in the Olympics, and started in a game on the day of her sister’s birthday, an accomplishment that meant far more than just a soccer game.

She’s since retired, coaches for Sky Blue FC and is the founder at the The Keeper Institute,which hosts the only facility in the country specifically catered towards goalkeepers.

In our conversation we talk about why Jill thrives being an underdog, why she views herself as a bouncy ball, how the loss of her sister changed her perspective on soccer and life, what to do if you our someone you know is involved in a domestic violence dispute, the one trait all the Greats possess, and she gives us  a simple yet highly effective exercise to get you through the most difficult times.

Jill’s a very inspiring human, and once you’re done listening to our interview, if you’re like me, you’ll want to head out into the world and take names!

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4. Click “write a review” and show me love <3

Resources

Click HERE to become a part of Friday Feelz

Click HERE for a list of the 10 books I believe ever female athlete MUST read.

Click HERE  to be the first to know when a new podcast or article drops, and receive other exclusive content

Ep 04: Tobin Heath: World Champion, 2x Olympic gold medalist-on crushing days and living authentically

U.S women’s national team member Tobin Heath (@TobinHeath) aka “The Nutmeg Queen” of the soccer world, is a 3x NCAA champion at North Carolina, a two-time olympic gold medalist, a World Cup champion, 2016 US soccer women player of the year winner, one of two women with 5 star skills on the EA Sports FIFA ’16 video game w/ 5 star skills….the list goes on.
She is an absolute baller and feels most at home on the pitch.
In this conversation, we cover many things, including:

-if her family share’s her laid-backness
-her thoughts while destroying an opponent down the flank
-living to crush each day
-if she gets nervous (spoiler alert: she doesn’t)
-the power of playing with intention
-staying true to herself, despite critics
-life after soccer
-her favorite failure
and heaps more.

Show Notes

1:01      Welcome Tobin Heath!

2:25      www.arrowliving.com

2:58     Does it bother Tobin when her hair is always in her face?

3:59     Did Tobin come from a laid back family?

5:23    Was Tobin born soccer obsessed?

6:44     Tobin’s most influential people in her youth.

7:30     At what age did Tobin want to make the National team?

10:15    When was her 1st National Team call up? 

11:00    Does Tobin get nervous? 

11:51    How does Tobin deal with off-field pressure?

12:38    What is going through Tobin’s mind when she destroy an opponent down the flank? 

14:19    Are skills innate or learned? 

16:26    What does it means to “feel” the ball and importance of intentions

18:05    Is Tobin intentional outside of soccer?

18:53    Where is home?

20:52    What’s left for Tobin to win?

22:23    Anson Dorrance quote

23:06    Tobin’s “here and now” mentality

24:39    Morning routine

25:34    Favorite coffee shop in Portland:  Coffeehouse Northwest

26:08    Free time activities

27:27    Favorite books

28:03    Tobin’s greatest accomplishment in soccer 

34:29    Does Tobin ever go against her instincts?

35:53    Tobin’s life-purpose 

38:40    Favorite failure  

40:20    Tobin’s one simple tip for female athletes

41:32     Where can you find Tobin Heath?

Share the love

If you haven’t already, I would be so very grateful if you rated and left me a review of the podcast. It takes two minutes! Here’s what to do.

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2. Click “view in itunes”

3. Click the “ratings and reviews” tab

4. Click “write a review” and show me love <3

Resources

Click HERE to become a part of Friday Feelz

Click HERE for a list of the 10 books I believe ever female athlete MUST read.

Click HERE  to be the first to know when a new podcast or article drops, and receive other exclusive content

Allie Long and her Resting Itch Face

Every morning Allie Long rolls into the locker room with her headphones on and Starbucks in hand. She changes into her practice attire, laces up her cleats, and heads out to the field with Tobin Heath to mess around with the ball before practice.

Often times she’ll perform this routine without saying “hi” to anyone.

After warming up, practice almost always begins with a passing pattern.

If the ball isn’t passed hard enough, Allie will yell at you.

Next, we will perform a possession drill.

If the team is playing at slow tempo, Allie will demand you to play faster.

Practice ends with a small-sided game to goal.

If you don’t play Allie the ball when she’s wide open for a shot, she will fling her hands in the air and roll her eyes at you.

Practice will end, and Allie will sometimes gather a bag of balls to work on her shooting. Coach Paul Riley will urge Allie to rest her legs that day. Allie will argue with him and insist that she feels fine. They’ll come up with a mutual agreement and Paul will allot her a certain number of shots. Allie will agree.

To the unbiased bystander, Allie may come off as self-righteous or bratty, but that’s far from the truth.

To fully understand the meaning behind Allie’s mannerisms and actions, one must reflect back to her 22 year-old self and the the single most influential day of her life.

Coming off a national championship win with University of North Carolina, and performing well with the U-21 national team, Allie received a call into the the full national team.

Allie always dreamt of playing for the US national team, but with the team’s average age in the upper 20’s she was surprised when she received the invitation.

“I couldn’t believe it. It’s what I always dreamed of, but I thought I had to be older to get called up to the full team. It was one of the greatest feelings ever.”

Allie entered the camp not knowing what to expect, but was excited to find out.

In only her first practice, Allie suffered an MCL injury, sidelining her for the rest of camp.

Even though Allie competed in merely half of a training session, it was enough to give birth to an indescribable itch.  An itch that confirmed, without a doubt, that reaching the highest level, playing for the U.S National team was her purpose and what she wanted. An itch to represent her country on the highest stage in the World Cup and Olympics.

And this itch has been the driving force behind her actions ever since.

Pre-itch Allie was on cruise-control and got by largely on talent.  She worked on some aspects of her game, but not seriously.

Post-itch Allie didn’t want to have any weaknesses.

“Being in camp at 22 made the dream more of a reality. It made me want to give everything I had to get back there.”

Allie knew that in order to earn another shot with the national team she had to upgrade her game.

Every season Allie found ways to make herself uncomfortable and challenge herself.   She practiced with boys teams, studied the absolute best players while watching the English Premier League. She ventured overseas to play with the world-class France team, Paris Saint Germain.  She practiced every angle and type of shot imaginable-bent balls, driven balls, outside of the foot, left foot, right foot.

Year after year passed and Allie hadn’t heard a word from the national team.

From putting in this much work, one would expect to reap rewards. Yet Allie still hadn’t achieved her desired outcome.

“Sometimes I questioned myself. Is all this work worth anything? But I knew it was. I knew I had to keep going and give it my all.”

With each year that passed, Allie’s itch grew bigger. She had a burning desire to get back into the national team picture and knew she was good enough.  Allie kept focusing on improving and performing well with her club team, the Portland Thorns.

After two exceptional seasons of being the most productive player on the pitch with the Thorns, Coach Jill Ellis finally took notice and invited Allie back to camp.

“When I opened up the email, I cried. I was so thankful and happy. I immediately thought back to a day when it was freezing cold and I was walking and dragging a bag of soccer balls 10 blocks to practice at a field. At that time, I remember thinking it would all be worth it.”

On May 14, 2014 in a stadium full of 28,255 fans in Winnipeg, Canada, Allie’s dream of playing for the national team came true. In the 68th minute, Allie replaced Morgan Brian with a surreal calmness.

“[Entering the game] was one of the greatest moments of my life. Everyone asked if I was neverous. I wasn’t. It felt like I was right where I was meant to be. I was in the zone for sure.”

Allie performed well and was repeatedly called back into camps throughout the next year.

Finally. Allie’s perseverance was paying off.  But as the World Cup approached, Jill had to narrow down the roster to 23 players.

In the January camp, Allie admitted she wasn’t playing to her full potential.

As US national team mainstay Tobin Heath says, “at the national team level, you can’t just be good, you have to stand-out consistently. If you have a bad day, you have to quickly let it go or it’ll break you.”

Jill called Allie into her office, and told her that they were going to go with a more experienced player and she wouldn’t make the final cut.

Allie boarded the plane devastated. Years of dedication and she was coming home empty-handed. She missed her chance. Now what?

It was a long, sad flight home. And just when Allie though that maybe she wasn’t cut out for this team after all, the itch reemerged.

The itch that verified she was still hungry for more. The itch that told her she couldn’t live with herself if she gave up now.

So it was back to work. Back to yelling at her teammates, taking extra shots after practice, and strengthening her mental toughness.

Tobin claims “every time Allie leaves the national team, she uses it as a learning opportunity. She’s not just ok with being there. She know what she has to improve on and works on it.”

Despite not making the World Cup roster, Allie’s dedication hasn’t gone unnoticed.

Allie is the all-time leader in points (most combined goals and assist for the Thorns. She’s a crucial component to the team’s offense and continuously comes up big time in clutch moments.

Yet even with consistent dominant performances, Allie consistently receives flack from social media users and her peers.

They’ll make comments questioning her ability and her attitude.

“I want to prove anyone who doubts me wrong. When I get tweets like that, I just have to laugh. Absolutely nothing has been handed to me….when my dreams come true, it will be the most satisfying achievement because I’ll know I earned it.”

Allie isn’t affected by those comments.She doesn’t care that she just turned 28 and the next World Cup cycle isn’t until another four years.

“As long as my body is functioning, I will keep going after my dreams.”

And it all comes back to the itch. The itch that grows bigger with each doubter, obstacle, and missed opportunity.

The itch that is sometimes conveyed through flamboyant hand gestures and verbal assaults.

“I’m passionate. I’m competitive. I want to win. I will do whatever it takes.”

As long as the itch remains, Allie will scream for more.