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R aquel Rodriguez was in tears as her plane headed north. She had never spent much time away from her fam- ily in San Jose, Costa Rica, and what little she knew about the small central Penn- sylvania town where she would be spending the next four years of her life she had learned from watching the videos that Penn State women's soccer coach Erica Dambach had assembled for her. "I was going through all sorts of emo- tions," she told ESPNW. "But I knew that I wanted to come. I knew it was going to be hard, but it was going to be worth it. And it was." Was it ever. Rodriguez enjoyed an ex- traordinary career at Penn State, and she capped it in December by scoring the biggest goal in the program's 22-year history. Gathering in a pass from fellow senior Mallory We- ber, the standout mid8elder poked a le;-footed shot into the opposite corner of the net in the 72nd minute of the College Cup 8nal, giving the Nittany Lions a 1-0 victory over Duke and in the process de- livering their 8rst national championship. The Lions' title was the product of a mar- velous team e:ort, particularly on defense, as they surrendered only one goal in nine postseason games encompassing the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments. But it was appropriate that Rodriguez was the one who propelled them to a plateau they had never reached before. "She inspires all of us to do things that maybe we're a little bit scared to do," Dambach said. "She packed her bags and moved to another country, moved to a small town, didn't know where she was going or what she was doing. But some- thing inside of her told her it was the right thing to do, and I thank God that she did, because she's been a blessing in all of our lives." Named the College Cup's Most Out- standing O:ensive Player and later the MAC Hermann Trophy winner, Rodriguez 8nished her career with 23 goals and 28 assists in her 93 appearances, all but three of which were starts. The College Cup was by no means Ro- driguez's only moment in the spotlight, as months earlier she had played for her homeland in the Women's World Cup. She became the 8rst Costa Rican player to score a goal while competing on inter- national soccer's biggest stage, scoring the equalizer in what would turn out to be a 1-1 tie with heavily favored Spain and touching o: what she called "an explosion of emotions." A;er her strong 8nish at Penn State, she was back in action in April. Chosen second overall in the National Women's Soccer League dra;, Rodriguez began her 8rst professional season with Sky Blue FC, a New Jersey-based franchise. But no matter how far she goes in her soccer career, she will always be remem- bered at Penn State for her role in bringing the school a national title. She had come close as a freshman, starting 24 games in a season that ended with Penn State falling to North Carolina, 4-1, in the NCAA title game. That loss was fresh in her mind as she took the 8eld against Duke in her 8nal college game. Said Rodriguez, "All I could think of was, I don't want that to happen again." It didn't. The postgame atmosphere this time was jubilant, as Rodriguez, draped in a Costa Rican 9ag that a friend had brought to North Carolina for the College Cup matches, joined with her teammates to celebrate the successful conclusion of the best season in Penn State history. "This," she said, "is what I was dream- ing about." ■ RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR | In her final match, the star senior lifts PSU to college soccer's pinnacle ROCKY TOP Rodriguez won the MAC Hermann Tro- phy, which goes to col- lege soccer's player of the year. Photo by Kevin Sli- man T H E Y E A R I N R E V I E W

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