Tracy Jean Ducar (; born June 18, 1973) is an American soccer

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

who previously played for the

United States women's national soccer team The United States women's national soccer team (USWNT) represents the United States in international women's soccer. The team is the most successful in international women's soccer, winning four Women's World Cup titles ( 1991, 1999, 2015, an ...

and the

Boston Breakers The Boston Breakers were an American professional soccer club based in the Boston neighborhood of Allston. The team competed in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). They replaced the original Breakers, who competed in the defunct Women's ...

in the

Women's United Soccer Association The Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) was the world's first women's soccer league in which all the players were paid as professionals. Founded in February 2000, the league began its first season in April 2001 with eight teams in the Un ...

Early life

Ducar was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts and began her athletic career at

North Andover High School North Andover High School is a public high school in the town of North Andover, Massachusetts, United States. The school is a part of the North Andover Public School System, and is the only high school in the district. Construction on the school w ...

. She played both basketball and soccer, however, her second year she injured her back and needed surgery for two vertebrae to be fused together. Ducar was not able to play her junior year of soccer, and her soccer coach thought she was never going to be able to play again. However, Ducar proved her coach wrong, and led North Andover's women's soccer team to a Cape Ann League Title.

University of North Carolina

Ducar attended and played goalkeeper for the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

. She graduated in 1995 with a degree in

biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

and a minor in chemistry. She was also inducted into

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...

. In the 1994 NCSS Tournament, Ducar played every minute in every game, and

won the National Championship. Ducar had complete shutouts both in the semi-final and final games. Ducar was nominated for the 1995

Missouri Athletic Club Player of the Year The Hermann Trophy is awarded annually by the Missouri Athletic Club to the United States's top men's and women's college soccer players. History In 1967, Bob Hermann, the president of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) and the ...

. She was named All-American, captain, Most Valuable Player, (M.V.P.), and led U.N.C. with a record of 23–0–0 in 1995.

Playing career

Club

In 2000, Ducar became one of the twenty founding players of the

, (WUSA), the first official professional women's soccer league in the United States. From 2000 to 2001, Ducar played for the

. In 2001, Ducar was awarded the Boston Breaker's Shield Award. Previously, during the summer of 1998, Ducar played for the Raleigh Wings. In 1999, Ducar played again for the Wings and led the team to a win in the W-League Championship.

International

Ducar's first appearance on the

was on January 16, 1996 vs. Brazil in Campinas, Brazil. Ducar picked up two more ''caps'', (games played against international competition), in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

on February 28, 1996 and in Bathurst on March 3, 1996. Ducar managed her first shutout on January 28, 1996 vs. the Ukraine. Then in 1997, during the Nike Victory Tournament, Ducar split time in every game with

Briana Scurry Briana Collette Scurry (born September 7, 1971) is an American retired soccer goalkeeper, and assistant coach of the Washington Spirit . Scurry was the starting goalkeeper for the United States women's national soccer team at the 1995 World Cu ...

, (the starting goal keeper for the U.S. National Team), and also in the Women's World Cup in 1997. One of Ducar's most shining moments was during the U.S. vs. Salzgitter, Germany. A substitution was made by the U.S., replacing Scurry with Ducar. Ducar had made four big saves to keep the shut out. In 1997, Ducar had made twelve overall appearances for the national team, while starting in three of them. In 1998, Ducar played in six matches for the national team and while starting in each one, had four shutouts, and allowed only two goals. That same year, the team won the Goodwill Games. During the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup, Ducar represented the U.S. as one of the two back-up goalkeepers.

Coaching career

From 1999 to 2000, Ducar was goalkeeper coach and recruiting coordinator at the

University of North Carolina at Greensboro The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG or UNC Greensboro) is a public research university in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. UNCG, like all members of the UNC system, is a stand- ...

. In 2004, Ducar was named the women's head soccer coach at

Greensboro College Greensboro College is a private college in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church and was founded in 1838 by Rev. Peter Doub. The college enrolls about 1,000 students from 32 states, the District of Columbi ...

. Ducar and her husband, Chris Ducar, (the women's goalkeeper coach at the University of North Carolina), live together in Durham, North Carolina and run soccer camps, clinics, and private teaching sessions together.

References

External links

Tracy Ducar bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ducar, Tracy Living people 1973 births North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer players American women's soccer players Boston Breakers (WUSA) players United States women's international soccer players Women's United Soccer Association players Soccer players from Massachusetts 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup players FIFA Women's World Cup-winning players UNC Greensboro Spartans women's soccer coaches Women's association football goalkeepers American soccer coaches Raleigh Wings players USL W-League (1995–2015) players