Crystal Dunn - The Mentor
SOCCER - DEFENDER, USWNT - MIDFIELDER, PORTLAND THORNS
ARCHETYPE: THE MENTOR
Day 46/135
Athletic Accomplishments
Crystal Dunn has been one of the most dynamic, adaptive, intelligent, and athletic players in soccer since she was in high school. The New York Gatorade Player of the Year led her squad to state championships in 2006, 2007, and 2009. “What happened in 2008?” you ask. Well, Dunn was busy competing at the U-17 World Cup, and there’s no replacing someone that special in a roster.
Even as a freshman, Dunn had an instant impact at the University of North Carolina. She was a four-time All-ACC selection and bookended her career with some exceptional adaptability. Dunn was the first freshman ever to win the ACC Defensive Player of the Year award, and then as a senior, was named ACC Offensive Player of the Year. A total chameleon, who won the 2012 Hermann Trophy as best college soccer player.
Professionally, Dunn was the first pick in the 2014 NWSL draft, where she was awarded both the NWSL MVP and Golden Boot awards as a rookie, the youngest ever to win both (age 23. In 2015, Dunn won the Golden Boot yet again. Despite playing for the USWNT since 2013 and her astounding success in the NWSL, was rather inexplicably left off Jill Ellis’s 2015 World Cup roster.
Dunn played for Chelsea FC for the 2017-2018 season, before returning to the NWSL. She played for the North Carolina Courage winning back-to-back championships in 2018 and 2019. She now plays for the Portland Thorns, where I’m sure she’ll bring home a title. That’s kinda what Dunn… does.
In 2019, she won her first World Cup title, as the team’s trusty left back. But Dunn wants more from her career than playing that position. And she’s stepping into her power, finding her voice, and leading the charge.
Character Archetype: The Mentor
Dunn is a true two-way player, who can score and defend at an elite, world-class level. She’s fast, tactical, technical, and criminally underrated.
But what’s most impressive is Dunn’s IQ. Having played attacking midfielder most of her career, she thinks like an offensive player. But in her role as left back for the USWNT, she intuits a forward’s every move, beats them to the spot, and wins the ball every time. Watching Dunn is a master class.
But Dunn wants a bigger role. Not just on the team, but in society at large. Dunn’s dominance has shined a spotlight on the Black players of the USWNT, and her leadership has helped the team confront racism, police brutality, and vocally advocate for racial justice and Black Lives Matter.
In a recent Forbes article, Dunn made it clear that a Black woman can and should be the face of the national team. She wants Black girls to look up to her, to see her shining, to see her winning, and know that they can be just like her too.