Nicole Marie Phillips (; born 23 May 1987) is an American-born Polish professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who plays as a defender and a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

. She has been a member of the Poland women's national team. She previously played for the

Chicago Red Stars The Chicago Red Stars are a professional women's soccer club based in Bridgeview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. A founding member of the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) league, they have played in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) sin ...

and the Philadelphia Independence in the WPS, and the

United States U-20 women's national soccer team The United States U-20 women's national soccer team is a youth soccer team operated under the auspices of U.S. Soccer. Its primary role is the development of players in preparation for the senior women's national team. The team most recently ...

Early life

Born in Ridgewood,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, to parents, Linda and Joseph Krzysik, Nikki attended Clifton High School in her hometown of

Clifton, New Jersey Clifton is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Criss-crossed by several major highways, the city is a regional commercial hub for North Jersey and is a bedroom suburb of New York City in the New York Metropolitan Area. As ...

. She set the school's records for goals scored in a season with 21 and career goals with 55. In 2004, she was named NSCAA High School Scholar-Athlete of the Year. She was also a two-time Parade Magazine All-American.

University of Virginia

Krzysik attended the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

where she anchored the Cavalier defense for four seasons. As a freshman in 2005, Krzysik started all 25 games. During her junior year, she started on a defensive unit that led the nation in goals against average (0.40) and set a school record with 15 shutouts. She was named All-ACC first team twice, in 2007 and 2008. As a senior, she was named Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year and was a semi-finalist for the Hermann Trophy. She played every minute and led the defensive line that posted nine shutouts and allowed 5.1 shots per game. A versatile player, Krzysik scored three goals and provided three assists.

Playing career

Club

Chicago Red Stars, 2009

Krzysik was selected by the

of the WPS in the second round (13th overall) of the 2009 WPS Draft. She appeared in 14 games, making 10 starts during the 2009 season. Nikki Krzysik at 2010 WPS Championship 2

Nikki Krzysik at 2010 WPS Championship 2

Philadelphia Independence, 2010–11

Krzysik was selected as the fifth overall pick by the Philadelphia Independence during the

2009 WPS Expansion Draft The 2009 WPS Expansion Draft was a special draft for the Women's Professional Soccer teams Atlanta Beat and Philadelphia Independence, taking place on September 15, 2009. Each expansion team made 9 selections from the existing seven WPS teams. F ...

. She appeared in 23 games for a total of 2030 minutes during the 2010 season. Krzysik returned to the Independence for the 2011 season and was named captain of the team after two games into the season. She was also nominated for WPS Defender of the Year.

FC Kansas City, 2014–

Krzysik was selected as the first pick (second overall) by the

Seattle Reign FC OL Reign is an American professional women's soccer team based in Seattle, Washington. Founded by Bill and Teresa Predmore in 2012 as Seattle Reign FC, it was one of eight inaugural members of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). In 2020, ...

in the

2013 NWSL Supplemental Draft The 2013 NWSL Supplemental Draft took place on February 7, 2013. Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 Round 6 See also * List of NWSL drafts * List of foreign NWSL players References External links NWSL Supplemental Draft to Comme ...

for the inaugural season of the NWSL; however, she opted not to play. In 2013, her player rights were traded to FC Kansas City.

International

Krzysik represented the United States at the U-16, U-1, U-21, U-23 levels. She played for the United States at the 2004 U-19 and 2006 U-20 World Championships and was instrumental in the United States winning the 2006 CONCACAF U-20 Final Women's Qualifying Tournament. In 2008, she made 11 starts for the United States U-23 women's national soccer team. Krzysik made her first appearance for

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

in the fall of 2013.

Personal life

She married John Phillips in 2013.

References

External links

*
FC Kansas City player profile

US Soccer player profile

Chicago Red Stars player profile

Virginia player profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Nikki 1987 births Living people Polish women's footballers Women's association football defenders Women's association football midfielders Poland women's international footballers American women's soccer players Women's Professional Soccer players Chicago Red Stars players Virginia Cavaliers women's soccer players Clifton High School (New Jersey) alumni Sportspeople from Clifton, New Jersey People from Ridgewood, New Jersey Philadelphia Independence players USL W-League (1995–2015) players New York Fury players Women's Premier Soccer League Elite players National Women's Soccer League players FC Kansas City players American people of Polish descent Citizens of Poland through descent Polish people of American descent United States women's under-20 international soccer players OL Reign draft picks