Freshman Natalie Jacobs is second on the Irish with four goals and leads the team with five assists.

Getting to Know Natalie Jacobs

Oct. 15, 2015

By: Nick Beals

Natalie Jacobs of the Notre Dame women’s soccer team is a freshman forward from Coto de Caza, California. She is currently enrolled in the First Year of Studies with plans to study psychology. Jacobs has been a member of the United States U-14, U-17, U-18 and U-20 national teams, logging 14 caps as a central defender. Jacobs is second on the Irish with four goals and leads the team in assists with five.

Q: What is your favorite purchase?

A: My new boots. They’re brown and have a little heel. They’ll be good for the winter, and I’m excited to wear them.

Q: What is your dream vacation?
A: Fiji. I’ve heard it’s really nice. My uncle’s been all over the place and that was the one place that he said was his favorite. I love the beach, so I think that would be really fun.

Q: If you had to play a sport other than the one you play, what would it be?

A: I always wanted to try volleyball. Beach volleyball would be really fun.

Q: What is your favorite book/book series?

A: The Hunger Games Trilogy.

Q: What kind of car do you drive?

A: My parents won’t let me call it my car, so don’t let them hear this. It’s a white Prius. It gets me places. There’s no gas, really.

Q: Do you have any superstitions?

A: The way I put my clothes on [before a game, always in the same order].

Q: Which animal are you most like?

A: A dog. Dogs love people, and I love people, so there’s a connection.

Q: What is one thing you can’t live without?

A: My phone. I have to keep talking to people.

Q: Favorite professional athlete?

A: Anyone from the Women’s World Cup Team [United States Women’s National Team]. They’re all really cool people off the field. I really like Amy Rodriguez.

Q: If you could be someone else for a day, who would you be?

A: Taylor Swift or really anyone who could have a concert. I would love to have a concert, to strut up there, and everyone is cheering. That would be so fun.

Q: What is your greatest soccer accomplishment?

A: Playing for the national teams at different levels (U17, U20). With the U17 team, we went to the World Cup qualifiers in Jamaica. We ended up not qualifying, but it was still great, and we had to build up to that. For the U20s playing all the international teams, we traveled to Spain, Mexico and all different places. Playing with such a high-level team was fun.

Q: What was it like to represent your country in that way?

A: When you’re standing [on the field] for the national anthem, you have the U.S. on your shirt. It’s such a huge representation.

Q: When did you realize you could have a future playing soccer?

A: It was always just so fun being able to play all the time. Just constantly trying to get better and have fun with it, and we’ll see where it leads.

Q: What are your expectations for Notre Dame soccer this year?

A: If we keep working, the way we’re headed right now, I think we can do really well this year. Just take one step at a time and focus on each game and not think too far in advance, but at the same time, know we can go as far as we want.

Q: What are your expectations for yourself?

A: Just trying to contribute as much as I can to the team and keep working.

Q: Why did you come to ND?

A: I didn’t watch much college soccer when I was little, but the one game I watched, we [Notre Dame] won it all, so I knew I wanted to go to that school. I started looking into it more as I got older and started thinking about college. The religious part really brought me in because that’s a big part of my life. The soccer team is an awesome thing to be a part of. Academically, it’s very solid as well.