CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Before it was even official that Charlotte was the 30th Major League Soccer franchise, retired women's soccer star Heather O'Reilly made sure it was an announcement we couldn't forget.
O'Reilly, who was a part of two national championship teams at the University of North Carolina, belted out her own rendition of James Taylor's iconic "Carolina In My Mind."
"I have this ritual of rolling my car windows down, blasting James Taylor's 'Carolina In My Mind," said O'Reilly, explaining that Alexi Lalas broke out his guitar for the Austin MLS announcement. "I can't play guitar, but I will sing some James Taylor for you, because it's one of my life goals to always one-up Alexi Lalas."
What happened next, was well...the moment of the announcement.
So, other than being all of us when James Taylor comes on the radio, here's some background on one of North Carolina's biggest soccer stars.
1. She played for UNC from 2003-2006 and won two national titles, in 2003 and 2006, respectively. In her four years at UNC, O'Reilly scored 59 goals and earned 49 assists. She was ESPN the Magazine's All-American Player of the Year during her senior year. Her No. 20 jersey has since been retired by UNC.
2. O'Reilly joined the New Jersey Wildcats of the W-League in 2004, helping the team win the 2005 championship.
3. At just 19 years old, O'Reilly was the youngest player on the 2004 U.S. Women's Olympic team and scored the game-winning goal in the semifinal match vs Germany. O'Reilly won three Olympic gold medals with the USWNT.
4. She was selected for three World Cups with Team USA. Her final appearance was in 2011, when she scored a goal vs Colombia in the group stage. She was selected for the 2015 team but did not appear in any games. O'Reilly retired from the Women's National Team on September 1, 2016.
5. She is tied with Julie Foudy for fifth all-time in assists for the USWNT and made over 230 international appearances during her career. After retiring from soccer, O'Reilly became an analyst for Fox Sports.