Mary Alice Vignola

Her nickname is M.A., it was given by a next-door neighbor shortly after she was born.

She was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and adopted at birth by white parents in predominantly white community as a biracial African American, which led to a complex racial identity journey.

It was during college that she began to more actively explore and embrace her mixed-race identity and heritage.

She began playing soccer at age five.

She competed in the UEFA Women’s Champions League with Valur following their league title.

She earned her first U.S. youth national team call-up at age 14 and played against Germany for the U-17s.

She started wearing number 16 as a tribute to her boyfriend when he tore his ACL and couldn't play football. It became their shared number.

Her role model was Ali Krieger.

She loves small-sided games.

She once played nine months with a torn hip labrum. She felt a pop during a slide tackle early in her Iceland stint and didn’t realize the severity until returning to the U.S. Later, it required surgery and an 8-month recovery.

She’d burned out after college but rediscovered joy in the sport — and life — while playing in Iceland with a welcoming group and beautiful surroundings.

She has a dog named Fade.