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Photo by: Duke Athletics
Making History and Making Space: Duke Alumnae Work Towards Revolutionizing Soccer
11/20/2023 8:26:00 AM | Women's Soccer
By Charlotte Tannenbaum, Duke Athletics Communications Student Assistant
DURHAM -- Any great player can tell you that soccer is more than just a game … it's an art. This past spring, two former Duke student-athletes found a new canvas.
Schuyler DeBree and Ashton Miller graduated in 2018, after an extremely successful four-year run for the Blue Devils. Following their stint as teammates in Durham, the women took to the field together in Prague playing professionally for AC Sparta. Currently living in New York, DeBree and Miller are still playing together. This time, it's for Bowery FC: a historic club at the center of the city's vibrant pickup scene.
It goes without saying that DeBree and Miller know the game inside and out. Their appreciation for the sport and the powerful women who play it have inspired them to leave their mark on the soccer community in a creative new way.
"Both of us retired from professional soccer because we were unsatisfied with the state of the league and wanted to impact the sport from the outside in," said Miller.
When Bowery FC approached them about creating a tribute to the Women's World Cup, their vision took shape.
"We wanted to create a project that celebrated the progress the U.S. Women's National Team (USWNT) has made for women at large through the lens of their World Cup wins," said Miller.
Ultimately, the project resulted in several artistic outputs.
Partnering with Only New York and Umbro, DeBree and Miller designed and produced a special edition jersey that pays homage to both Bowery FC and the five historic USWNT wins. Across the back of the jersey, DeBree and Miller pay tribute to one of New York's most iconic and inspiring female figures: Lady Liberty.
DeBree and Miller also set up an exhibit that featured signed jerseys from each U.S. World Cup championship, including two donated by Carla Overbeck, a legendary Duke assistant coach who was a critical player in the USWNT 1991 and 1999 World Cup victories.
The multimedia project culminated in a short film that celebrates the progress the USWNT has made with each of their World Cup wins and urges for more change.
The film is entitled "Make Space," a phrase that is also found stitched onto a patch on the jerseys. The idea of "making space" was a central theme throughout the project and is a philosophy that DeBree and Miller encourage viewers to embrace in their lives, both on and off the pitch.
"It's time to take up space in ways that we are not always taught that we can," said DeBree.
The short film remains accessible online for viewing. DeBree and Miller hope that its message and the process of its creation will serve as an inspiring reminder for women in sports, art, and beyond.
"There's so much value in seeing female creative people who are putting out their vision and content shamelessly into the world," said DeBree. "You see women as the creative directors and women starring in the video celebrating other really successful important women through the lens of sport."
The project is a long overdue tribute to the powerful and underappreciated women revolutionizing the soccer world.
"I don't remember that kind of content being present frequently when I was younger, so this feels very special," said DeBree. "If I had seen a piece like this, it would have gotten me super excited and inspired about how the women's game is changing and becoming better and better."
Schuyler DeBree, Ashton Miller, and the other brave women making space for female athletes are an important part of that change. Their work in pushing soccer forward is creating a powerful legacy that will undoubtedly remain long after they hang up their cleats.
#GoDuke
DURHAM -- Any great player can tell you that soccer is more than just a game … it's an art. This past spring, two former Duke student-athletes found a new canvas.
Schuyler DeBree and Ashton Miller graduated in 2018, after an extremely successful four-year run for the Blue Devils. Following their stint as teammates in Durham, the women took to the field together in Prague playing professionally for AC Sparta. Currently living in New York, DeBree and Miller are still playing together. This time, it's for Bowery FC: a historic club at the center of the city's vibrant pickup scene.
It goes without saying that DeBree and Miller know the game inside and out. Their appreciation for the sport and the powerful women who play it have inspired them to leave their mark on the soccer community in a creative new way.
"Both of us retired from professional soccer because we were unsatisfied with the state of the league and wanted to impact the sport from the outside in," said Miller.
When Bowery FC approached them about creating a tribute to the Women's World Cup, their vision took shape.
"We wanted to create a project that celebrated the progress the U.S. Women's National Team (USWNT) has made for women at large through the lens of their World Cup wins," said Miller.
Ultimately, the project resulted in several artistic outputs.
Partnering with Only New York and Umbro, DeBree and Miller designed and produced a special edition jersey that pays homage to both Bowery FC and the five historic USWNT wins. Across the back of the jersey, DeBree and Miller pay tribute to one of New York's most iconic and inspiring female figures: Lady Liberty.
DeBree and Miller also set up an exhibit that featured signed jerseys from each U.S. World Cup championship, including two donated by Carla Overbeck, a legendary Duke assistant coach who was a critical player in the USWNT 1991 and 1999 World Cup victories.
The multimedia project culminated in a short film that celebrates the progress the USWNT has made with each of their World Cup wins and urges for more change.
The film is entitled "Make Space," a phrase that is also found stitched onto a patch on the jerseys. The idea of "making space" was a central theme throughout the project and is a philosophy that DeBree and Miller encourage viewers to embrace in their lives, both on and off the pitch.
"It's time to take up space in ways that we are not always taught that we can," said DeBree.
The short film remains accessible online for viewing. DeBree and Miller hope that its message and the process of its creation will serve as an inspiring reminder for women in sports, art, and beyond.
"There's so much value in seeing female creative people who are putting out their vision and content shamelessly into the world," said DeBree. "You see women as the creative directors and women starring in the video celebrating other really successful important women through the lens of sport."
The project is a long overdue tribute to the powerful and underappreciated women revolutionizing the soccer world.
"I don't remember that kind of content being present frequently when I was younger, so this feels very special," said DeBree. "If I had seen a piece like this, it would have gotten me super excited and inspired about how the women's game is changing and becoming better and better."
Schuyler DeBree, Ashton Miller, and the other brave women making space for female athletes are an important part of that change. Their work in pushing soccer forward is creating a powerful legacy that will undoubtedly remain long after they hang up their cleats.
#GoDuke
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