Flame Bearers: Pathways to Paris

Stacey Enos is one of the three original University of North Carolina (UNC) Tar Heels to blaze the trail to the USWNT. Stacey was actually the FIRST Tar Heel to earn a cap for the USWNT, but Stacey was used to being the first, or the only one doing something. "I had to play with the boys. I couldn't be afraid. When you got knocked down, I had to pick myself back up," she says. Stacey was the '85er responsible for the recent reunion of the 1985 team, the first reunion since the team played together 38 years ago. As Stacey shares, she wanted to honor her teammates who until this point have largely been unrecognized. No more. As Stacey shares, "the history of US Women's Soccer started with us." And Stacey's fearless trailblazing didn't stop there even though she admits that after college she "felt a little lost" as "there wasn't really a pathway" to get back onto the national team after graduation. So, she became a coach (an infamous one beloved by all), a real estate agent, and most recently partial owner and coach of Asheville City Soccer Club. According to Stacey, she wants her players to be "treated with equity and fairness...put out a quality product in and give these players a chance to succeed." She concludes, that she wants them "to know what respect looks like" even if she didn't have it herself. This episode is cohosted with Michelle Akers. Contributing experts include Stacey's wife, Annie, and son, Gabrielle. Thank you to Stacey and the Asheville City Soccer Club for all of their incredible support in Asheville and since! Media used in this production: -38 years after making history, first USWNT to be honored at Asheville City regular season finale, Chris Womack, June 29th 2023, -The Forgotten Early History of Women’s Soccer, Laurent Dubois, January 22, 2016 -ESPN YouTube Channel, 'USWNT win the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage | 2023 ESPYS (📍 @CapitalOne)'