Marian Dalmy certainly isn’t the first talented young woman to find awe and opportunity in Los Angeles.
And although most up-and-coming 22-year-olds would settle for a mere brush with the great names of their trade, Dalmy has – at least temporarily – joined their A-list.
Dalmy, who graduated from Lakewood’s Green Mountain High School in 2003, made the 18-player roster for the U.S. national soccer team this week as the team prepares for Saturday’s friendly against Mexico at Gillette Stadium outside Boston.
Having just completed her senior season at Santa Clara, the 2006 West Coast Conference player of the year and former Parade prep All-American was brought into coach Greg Ryan’s squad after impressing at team camp at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.
Saturday’s match is the first of eight tuneups for the top-ranked U.S. team in preparation for the World Cup in China, which begins Sept. 10.
“This is something I’ve wanted to do since I was a little girl,” Dalmy said Thursday. “That’s kind of why I’ve been in awe since the first day at camp.”
Dalmy, who was captain of the U.S. under-21 squad, is the only player on the roster yet to make an appearance for the national team. It is a team that has featured players Dalmy has idolized for years, from icon Mia Hamm to current veteran Kristine Lilly.
Converted from the forward and central midfield positions at Santa Clara, Dalmy is the kind of talented outside defender Ryan hopes can provide depth to his thinning ranks.
With veteran defender Kate Markgraf still recovering from the birth of her child and Lori Chalupny having been converted into a midfielder, Dalmy has an outside chance of making the trip to China, where the U.S. will be after its third World Cup title since 1991.
“She’s definitely earned her shot,” said Ryan, who lives in Colorado Springs. “She has a shot to make this team based on what we’re seeing now.”
Saturday’s match in Foxborough, Mass., could be minus the usual emotion associated with this rivalry after Mexico narrowly missed out on qualifying for the World Cup.
A far cry from the simmering contempt that serves as a backdrop when the U.S. men’s team faces Mexico, the women’s matchup has a much shorter history that has been dominated by the U.S.
It’s a history Dalmy seems primed to join, whether it be this fall or the 2008 Olympics.
“You never know what will happen,” she said. “If you keep working hard, it will pay off in the long run.”
