You’ve always had a cerebral approach to your game, but do you think because of that time off you are seeing different things now that you are near a return?

Definitely. Not even just on-the-field stuff. But an aspect that I didn’t really pay attention to that I’ve really been homing in on is the mental side of the game. I’ve been reading some sports psych books. And it’s something I wish I’d discovered earlier because I really think it would have helped me in college. And one of the things when you have an injury is, are you going to come back as strong as you left? And homing in on that mentality is probably going to help me more than it would have if I hadn’t been focusing on it.

Are there moments this year that you return to in your mind?

Getting the first cap under my belt. The first five, 10 minutes, I thought it was going to be a long game because I turned the ball over every single ball and was chasing like a mad woman. But settling down as the game went on, and just getting that game under my belt, gave me confidence going forward, to know I can compete at this level.

A lot of people view you as the future of women’s soccer in this country. Do you let yourself think about it in that way?

I really don’t look at it that way. We are in a transition period for the national team. And I may be one of the people that came up from it, but there are others. Sam Mewis is playing really well. Other people have gotten their first caps. It’s just an exciting time for the national team, in general, because there are a lot of really good players coming up and getting noticed. So I don’t think of myself as the focal point of it. I think I am one of many.

What is the next evolution for you?

Something that I take away from college is that I don’t think I did enough, I wasn’t productive enough for Wisconsin. I don’t think stats are the be-all and end-all, but I don’t think I scored enough for them, or created enough chances. So I want to work on finishing, creating more chances in the final third.

How do you do that?

You practice finishing, and you go back and study film, instances where I should have passed, instances where I should have taken it myself. Analyzing my game more, and working on this stuff in the off-season. It’s a little weird: It’s the first off-season I’ve really had, ever. I’ve had high school and club, college and summer league. It’s the first one I’ll be on my own, to train and find things to do.