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How Alex Morgan went from an unknown college soccer player to US Soccer star and 2-time World Cup champion

Alex Morgan took home her second consecutive FIFA Women's World Cup Championship after the United States Women's National Team's victory on Sunday.

United States' Alex Morgan celebrates after scoring her side's second goal during the Women's World Cup semifinal soccer match between England and the United States, at the Stade de Lyon, outside Lyon, France, Tuesday, July 2, 2019. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
  • Morgan attended the University of California, Berkley, where she led the women's soccer team in goals scored all four seasons.
  • She married MLS midfielder Servando Carrasco on New Year's Eve, 2014.
  • She has become a household name as her career has evolved since first playing for the USWNT in 2008, becoming one of the best strikers in the world.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories .
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Over the past decade, Alex Morgan has risen from an unknown college athlete to one of the most famous female soccer players in the world.

Known as one of the best soccer players in the world, Morgan has accumulated 169 caps and 107 goals.

After Sunday's 2-0 victory over the Netherlands, she is now a two-time FIFA Women's World Cup Champion as a member of the United States National Team.

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In addition to her success on the field, she has become a role model and celebrity. Below we take a look at her rise to fame.

Max Rosenberg contributed to this article.

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Morgan was born on July 2, 1989, and is from Diamond Bar, California.

She went to Diamond Bar High School where she played soccer, volleyball, and ran track.

Then she attended the University of California, Berkeley to play soccer. Morgan led the team in scoring in all four seasons with the California Golden Bears. They reached the NCAA Tournament four years in a row behind her.

She graduated a semester early with a degree in political economy.

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Leon Halip/Getty Images

By 2010, she was called up to play for the senior US national team.

She was the youngest player on the US team that finished second in the 2011 World Cup. In the final match against Japan, she became the first player to ever record a goal and an assist in the World Cup final. The US won silver in the final after losing to Japan in a shootout.

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Sports Illustrated Video

Along with some of the top models in the world, a number of athletes are chosen to appear in SI's swimsuit edition.

Morgan graced the pages of the issue wearing only body paint. Since her first shoot with Sports Illustrated, Morgan also modeled in the swimsuit issue in 2014 on Guana Island , British Virgin Islands, and was one of three cover models for SI Swimsuit 2019 .

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In 2012 she scored 28 goals and 21 assists as a member of the USWNT.

It was only the second time a US player has scored at least 20 goals and assists in one calendar year.

The other player is the great Mia Hamm.

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In 2012, she was nominated for the ESPY Award for Best Breakthrough Athlete.

She was the 2012 U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year and finished third in voting for the Ballon d'Or, awarded to the best soccer player in the world.

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ESPN the Mag

While it did not garner as much attention as her SI shoots did, Morgan posed as Katy Perry in ESPN The Magazine's music issue in 2013.

She's also been featured on the May 2015 cover of ESPN Magazine with teammates Abby Wambach and Syndey Leroux.

Since then, she's appeared on the covers of Health and Self magazines, as well as in Vogue , Elle , and Time , among others.

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@alexmorgan13

Morgan and her teammateSydney Leroux, dressed as Gabby Douglas, Instagrammed a number of photos that quickly went viral.

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The 11 players were chosen as part of the centennial anniversary of the US Soccer Federation.

Morgan was the youngest player selected at 24 years old.

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Maddie Meyer - FIFA / Contributor

Morgan and Carrasco met at UC Berkley, where they both played soccer. They dated for seven years before getting married on December 31, 2014.

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AP Photo/Elaine Thompson

Morgan injured her knee playing for the Portland Thorns of the National Women's Soccer League. She spent two months leading up to the World Cup recovering and played in all seven matches, starting in five of them.

Morgan recorded only one goal throughout the tournament, but helped win penalties for the team and raised the trophy after their 5-2 championship victory over Japan.

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AP Photo/Joel Auerbach

The invitational four-team tournament included England, France, Germany, and the US.

Morgan scored against France and Germany, helping the US to victory.

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AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino

Morgan was given the nickname "Baby Horse" because of her long strides that mimicked a horse's gallop.

She did not begin playing club soccer until she was 14 years old and was 21 years old when her teammates coined the nickname, which is where the "baby" part comes from.

Now, teammate Megan Rapinoe says Morgan has evolved into a "full-on stallion."

Throughout Morgan's time in the NWSL and Women's Professional Soccer, Morgan's game has turned her into one of the best strikers of all-time, making her a household name.

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Morgan joined Canada's Christine Sinclair and Australia's Steph Catley to be the first women to appear on the game's cover in its 22-year history.

Morgan appeared alongside Lionel Messi on the copies of FIFA 16 sold in the US.

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AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani

On June 25, 2019, Morgan was named one of PETA's Most Beautiful Vegan Celebrities of 2019, along with Kyrie Irving.

In an interview with Reuters , Morgan shared that she chose to eat a vegan diet "because it didn't feel fair to have a dog I adore, and yet eat meat all the time."

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AP Photo/David Vincent

A co-captain of the national team, Morgan scored five goals in the opening match against Thailand, tying the World Cup single-game goals record set by Michelle Akers in 1991.

She had three assists in the 13-0 victory. In the semifinals match against England, Morgan became the first woman to score a world cup goal on her birthday.

She was awarded the Silver Boot after the team's 2-0 victory over the Netherlands for the Women's World Cup title.

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