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In a historic accomplishment, Kennedy Fuller, a sophomore at Southlake Carroll High School, became the second player from Texas to win the Gatorade National Girls Soccer Player of the Year award. Fuller, who has won back-to-back Texas Gatorade Player of the Year honors in her two years of high school, was surprised with the award by Mallory Swanson, a USWNT staple and 2015 winner.

Fuller, currently competing with her Solar SC team in San Diego for ECNL Nationals, first discovered her accomplishment through an impromptu Zoom call. “I kind of put two and two together when I saw Mal [Swanson] on zoom. It was very surprising and fun.”

With an impressive tally of 55 goals and 26 assists this past high school season, Fuller spoke glowingly of her teammates and the team culture. “Being able to play with such a good team and a good group of people was very fun, and we accomplished a lot of our individual and team goals.”

Fuller also spoke about the benefits she has received from the highly competitive training environments at Southlake Carroll and Solar SC and how that shaped her collegiate decision.

“The training that we get not only in Southlake but through club is very different from a lot of places that you’ll see. They provide a very competitive environment which is something I really love and a reason I chose North Carolina.”

With a state championship as a freshman and Gatorade Player of the Year honors as a sophomore, Fuller will continue to push herself after reclassifying last September to graduate high school a year early and begin her collegiate career at UNC in the fall of 2024.

“My parents were coaches and always say that if you are completely excelling in your environment, you need to find somewhere else and excel there to push yourself.”

That competitive and hard-working mentality is something Mallory Swanson commended as something that will serve Fuller well as her career unfolds.

“She seemed super motivated and has this winning mentality . . . At the level that is the highest, everyone has talent- what is going to separate you is the hard work.”

Fuller will now turn her attention to club soccer as the Solar SC U17 girls have advanced to the quarterfinals of ECNL Nationals to take place next month in Richmond, Virginia.