Kate Markgraf
Kate Markgraf (née
Kathryn Michele Sobrero, born
August 23,
1976), is a
soccer player who belongs to the
United States women's national soccer team.
Markgraf, who stands at five feet, nine inches (1.75 m), is a native of
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where she attended
Detroit Country Day School. At Detroit Country, she helped guide the soccer team to the state title in
1991, scoring 16 goals and having 26 assists. She was also a
volleyball player there, making the
All-League team three times in volleyball while she attended that school. In soccer, she made the
NSCAA All-American team one time and was chosen for the
All-State team three times.
After graduating high school, she decided to attend
Notre Dame. In Notre Dame, she was a member of the
Dean's List, and graduated with a degree in
science and business. She was a three time NSCAA All-American while there, was a three time all
Big East selection, the
1997 Big East defensive player of the year, and the defensive MVP of the
NCAA's Final Four in
1995, the year in which her team won the NCAA women's soccer championship.
In
1998, she played in her first U.S. women's national team game, when they faced the national selection of
Argentina. Markgraf (then Sobrero) was the youngest member of the team that won the
Women's World Cup in
1999, and she participated also in the
2000 Olympic Games of
Sydney, and the
2004 Games in
Athens. The team took home the silver in 2000 and the gold in 2004.
She was a member of the
Boston Breakers in the
WUSA league, and she was named defender of the year for that team in
2001. The WUSA is currently inoperative due to lack of capital. She also enjoys signing
autographs for her fans. In
2003, she married soccer player Chris Markgraf.
She now plays professionally for
KIF Örebro in the
Swedish league alongside longtime USA teammate
Kristine Lilly.
*
Kate Markgraf's U.S. Olympic Team bio
