Great Story On Allie Long’s Offseason

Friday, Allie Long‘s hometown newspaper, Newsday, wrote about Allie’s offseason work to get herself onto the U.S. National Team for the Olympics:

After last season ended, “instead of taking a vacation, the 28-year-old midfielder and her fiancé, former U.S. youth international midfielder and Molloy College standout Jose Batista, embarked on an ambitious five-month training program.”

They competed together in all-male indoor leagues in New York City. When they visited Batista’s parents in Houston they followed a rigorous schedule, rising early to run before working on Long’s speed, agility and strength at a gym.

All of Long’s work paid off during last week’s match against Columbia when Long earned a spot in the starting lineup:

USA coach Jill Ellis, whose team faces Colombia again in Chester, Pennsylvania on Sunday, liked what she saw. “She had a good week of training,” she said. “We are still looking for depth and she did well. She made some good decisions, got a couple goals and was impactful.”