Briana Scurry, the goalkeeper who went from Anoka High to global fame as one of the stars of the World Cup-winning 1999 U.S. women's national team, has been elected to the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
Scurry will be in the hall's Class of 2017, and according to the Washington Post she will be the first black woman and first female goalkeeper to make the hall.
Scurry, 45, also won a gold medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and again in 2004. She made over 170 international appearances, second-most among female goalkeepers.
Scurry, who had been nominated for the Hall of Fame before, retired from professional soccer in 2010.
"It's a fantastic honor to be inducted to the Hall of Fame," Scurry said in a USA Soccer news release. "I remember watching the Olympics on the couch with my parents at 8 years old, dreaming of becoming an Olympian myself. It was with their help — and that of my coaches, teammates, and countless others — that I was blessed to not only become an Olympian, but an Olympic and World Cup champion.
"Soccer had already given me so much more than I could possibly give back. Now, to be inducted alongside the likes of Michelle Akers, Mia Hamm, and Kristine Lilly — I am truly humbled. And though my mother and father have passed, I can feel their pride swell. Thank you for letting me play for you, and thank you all for this incredible honor."
Dr. Joe Machnik is the other hall inductee. Machnik has been a player, coach, referee, instructor, match commissioner and now a broadcaster for Fox Sports.
On the 1999 U.S. team that captivated the country and dominated media coverage that summer, Scurry is perhaps most remembered for the final save that clinched the penalty shootout victory against China.
The USA Soccer release said: "Scurry is one of the most prolific and successful goalkeepers in U.S. Women's National Team history. She played every minute in goal for the USA at three Women's World Cups and two Olympic Games, suffering only two losses in those tournaments."
In addition to soccer at Anoka — she led the Tornadoes to a state title her senior year in 1989 — Scurry ran track and played softball and basketball. She was named Anoka's Athena Award winner as the school's top female athlete, and in 2010 she was inducted into the Minnesota State High School Hall of Fame.
