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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Stephanie Renee Cox[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth name | Stephanie Renee Lopez[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1986-04-03)April 3, 1986 (age 39) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Los Gatos,California, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Defender | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current team | Puget Sound Loggers (interim head coach) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002 | Elk Grove Pride | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2007 | Portland Pilots | 74 | (3) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009 | Los Angeles Sol | 19 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | Boston Breakers | 34 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | Seattle Sounders Women | 12 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2015 | Seattle Reign FC | 45 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019–2021 | OL Reign | 8 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000 | United States U-14 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002 | United States U-17 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2006 | United States U-19 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2007 | United States U-21 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2014 | United States | 89 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | Puget Sound Loggers (assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2019 | Gig Harbor HS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 | Seattle Reign FC (assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Reign FC (assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022– | Puget Sound Loggers (head) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of June 1, 2019 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of September 14, 2014 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stephanie Renee Cox (née Lopez; born April 3, 1986) is an Americansoccer coach and former professional player who played as adefender. She is currently the head coach of thePuget Sound Loggers women's soccer team.[3]
As a player, Cox played as adefender for theUnited States women's national soccer team and won an Olympic gold medal at the2008 Summer Olympics.
Born inLos Gatos,California, Cox grew up inElk Grove, California and attendedElk Grove High School where she helped lead her soccer team to two league championships. She was named to the all-section team as a junior and senior, won the youth All-American award fromNSCAA and was named a Parade Magazine All-American. On top of her numerous soccer achievements, she also lettered in basketball for three years and graduated with a 4.17 GPA.[4]
Cox attended theUniversity of Portland, where she started 23 matches her freshman year. In 2005, after returning to thePilots following aredshirt season to play for the US, Stephanie helped lead her team to an undefeated record of 23–0–2 and anNCAA Championship and was named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team. The following season, she started in 13 games and scored her first collegiate goal.[5]
In 2007, after she returned from the World Cup, Lopez led the Jollons to 11 straight wins and 10 shutouts and helped her team advance to the NCAA quarterfinals. After the World Cup, she had a chance to forgo her remaining collegiate eligibility and become a salaried player with thesenior national team, but loyalty to her team and prior commitments led her back to Portland where she graduated with a 3.7 GPA and a psychology degree and a Spanish minor in December 2007. She was honored as theLowe's Senior CLASS Award winner, recognizing her as the nation's top senior in women's soccer. 2007 also marked the first time the award was presented to a female soccer player. Cox was also chosen as Oregon's Female Amateur Athlete of the Year for 2007.[5][6]
In 2009, Cox signed with theLos Angeles Sol for the inaugural season of theWPS. She made 20 starts in 20 games for a total of 1800 minutes.[7] The team came in first in regular season standings, but lost the championship 1–0 toSky Blue FC.
After the Sol disbanded after the2009 WPS season due to financial difficulties, Cox was acquired by theBoston Breakers during the2010 WPS Dispersal Draft. Cox helped lead the team to second place in the regular season standings. She started all 24 games and scored one goal during the2010 WPS season.[citation needed]
Cox returned to the Breakers for the2011 WPS season. She started in all 11 games in which she played.[7]
After theWPS suspended operations in early 2012, Cox signed with theSeattle Sounders Women, joining fellow women's national team members,Hope Solo,Megan Rapinoe,Sydney Leroux, andAlex Morgan.[8][9] She made 12 appearances for the club tallying a total of four points on two assists and one goal.[10]
On June 19, 2013,Seattle Reign FC announced that they had signed Cox for the remainder of inaugural season of theNational Women's Soccer League. Cox was returning to the pitch after taking time away after the birth of her first child.[11] She made four appearances for the club, tallying 326 minutes on the defensive line.[12]
Cox returned to the Reign for the2014 season and helped the team set a league record unbeaten streak of 16 games during the first part of the season. During the 16 game stretch, the Reign compiled a 13–0–3 record.[13] The Reign finished first in the regular season clinching theNWSL Shield for the first time.[14] After defeating theWashington Spirit 2–1 in the playoff semi-finals, the Reign were defeated 2–1 byFC Kansas City during the championship final.[15] Following the regular season, Cox along with goalkeeperHope Solo and fellow defenderLauren Barnes were named to the Second XI team.[16] Cox finished the 2014 season with one assist having started in 20 of the 21 games in which she played.[17]
Following the 2015 season, Cox announced her retirement from professional soccer.[18]
More than three years after her retirement from professional soccer, Cox decided to resume playing and signed as a National Team replacement player for former clubReign FC on May 31, 2019.[19] After four appearances, she was promoted to the club's senior roster on July 16, 2019.[20]
Following the 2021 season, Cox announced her second retirement from professional soccer.[21]
Cox became involved in the US National Team Youth program in 2000. At the U-20 level, she played at the2004 FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship in Thailand; two years later, she captained the US team in the2006 FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship in Russia. She made her first national team career start against France at theAlgarve Cup in 2006. Her play helped the Women's National Team win a gold medal at the2008 Beijing Olympic Games.[22][23]
Cox began coaching while still an active player. She first joinedPuget Sound Loggers as an assistant coach in 2012.[24] Cox was the head coach of the girls' soccer team atGig Harbor High School from 2015 to 2019,[25] and she led them to an undefeated season and a state championship in 2018.[26]
After her retirement from professional soccer, Cox was an assistant coach forSeattle Reign FC in 2017. She returned as assistant coach after the club's relocation toTacoma, Washington, in 2019, before deciding to resume her playing career midway through the season.[19]
In June 2022, Cox was named the interim head coach of thePuget Sound Loggers women's soccer team. Stephanie Cox was named Puget Sound's head coach in December 2022 after serving as the interim head coach for the 2022 season. Cox led the 2022 Loggers to a 16-4-1 overall record and an at-large bid for the NCAA D-III Championship.[3] She also coaches club soccer for Harbor Premier.[26]
Cox is aChristian. Cox has talked about her faith saying, "My faith inChrist has made my role as an athlete so much more meaningful. It is more than wins and losses, X's and O's; it is about loving others and showing them Christ."[27] Cox is of Mexican descent.[28]
Cox has assisted her parents, Rob and Cindy Lopez, in leading a group of teens to Egypt to paint an orphanage, traveled to the Bahamas to clear land for construction of a learning center, traveled to Mexico to serve meals to American missionaries, and was part of a team that created aHurricane Katrina fundraiser in 2005. She recently became a spokesperson for Casey Family Services, the country's largest foster care organization.[citation needed]
Stephanie lives inGig Harbor, Washington with her husband, former University of Portland baseball player Brian Cox, and their daughter Kaylee.[29]
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