Krysten Muir had no problem splitting the goalposts in high school, but her place on the Marco de Niza football team is what gave her the confidence to know no boundaries when striving to achieve her goals anywhere else.
“Being the only girl on the football team has prepared me for college by showing me that it’s okay to step outside of your boundaries.” Muir said. “You need to work hard for what you want.”
What the incoming Gateway Community College freshman wants is to become a professional soccer player. If that doesn’t work out, the midfielder has hopes of pursuing a sports medicine focus in the classroom to secure a career in personal training.
“Krysten inspires me to do my best,” her mother Kathy said. “I’ll sit back and just look at her in amazement of how well put together she is at only eighteen-years-old.”
Those lessons are not limited to just athletics and have prepared the recent high school graduate to succeed in the classroom and as a young professional.
“The most important thing I learned from him is to not give up,” Krysten Muir said. “Just because some things might be challenging doesn’t mean to give up. There is always a way to overcome any problem.”
“I think she learned to work hard and that everyone has to do their part for a team to be successful,” Jeremy Muir commented. “She learned to not make excuses for herself. At the end of the day, she needs to be a little better than she was the day before.”
Muir is a little better today because her parents supported her decision to go against the grain and attack her goals as one of the guys. On the soccer field, she plays center mid or defense.
Playing defense is her favorite.
“I hate being scored on and losing,” she said. “I want to protect the goal and goalie as much as I can.”
A lead-by-example type, Muir is not sure she would call herself a role model. However, she’s quick to encourage and support women to learn from her story. She believes in converting negative energy into something positive and using it as fuel to succeed.
“I would say to other girls out there to not let anyone get into their heads or bring them down.” Muir said. “Also they need to work hard to not only get a spot on the team, but to earn the respect of their teammates.”
“Watching Krysten play among the guys was exciting, almost like an adrenaline rush every Friday night.” Her mom, Kathy Muir, said. “At times it was terrifying because you never knew if she would get taken out. But she was pretty accurate every time.”
Kathy Muir’s pride in Krysten is evident, having the opportunity to watch and support her daughter doing something other girls might not. The proud mom would look around the stands and see fans young and old yelling Krysten’s name in support.
“It was humbling knowing that she was doing something that she enjoyed and never stopped doing because of her gender,” Kathy Muir said.
“I don’t think of her as a woman that plays sports,” her father said. “I see her as an athlete. She takes pride in what she does and who she is. She works hard.”
Krysten Muir is on to new beginnings and eager to attack new goals as a college freshman this fall.
