Carli Lloyd and I share a name. I did a school project on Kelley O’Hara. Julie Ertz (then Johnston) wore the number 19 just like me. I started wearing pink pre-wrap in my hair because of Alex Morgan.

These details, though small, were how I felt connected to the female athletes who quickly became my idols. A girl who was once a young, left winger trying to perfect her cross like Megan Rapinoe grew up and entered a world where women weren’t viewed as trailblazers. 

It’s no coincidence that the USWNT players my generation grew up adoring are the same ones who ignited the fight for equal pay. To me, they were more than athletes – they were the first female role models I ever had. The first to show me that I didn’t have to submit to the boys on the playground who said I couldn’t hang. Sure, a couple Olympic golds and World Cup titles make quite the legendary resumé. But the players who leave a real, lasting impact are the players who continue to work hard off the pitch. True icons make us feel something beyond the thrill of a goal. They also inspire us to take action in a world that too often tells women to stay in their lane. It’s what made them feel less like distant icons and more like close mentors. As they begin to retire, it doesn’t just mark the end of their era – it marks a transition in mine.

Over half of the starters of the 2019 World Cup team have retired. That’s a product of time, I know. Our heroes are not invincible even though we like to think they are. I’m not sure if I’m upset because my favorite athletes are getting old, or because I am. Growing up is realizing that many of the pros I see on TV are my age – or, god forbid, even younger.

As we look ahead to the next generation of athletes, I feel nothing but confidence that our national team will continue to make waves in the game. Let me make that abundantly clear. With young talent like ‘Triple Espresso,’ the Thompson sisters, and Naomi Girma, otherwise known as the most expensive player in women’s soccer history thus far, we’ve prepared ourselves for many successful years to come.

While the 99ers celebrate the anniversary of the legacy they began, those who were born that year are saying goodbye to the women who defined what came next – the ones who raised us, on and off the field.