Sophomore Alexis Fischer has taken the international soccer world by storm, competing into two tournaments in the 2026 season and making strides as a starting goalie.

Alexis competed in her first international soccer tournament from Feb. 9 through Feb. 14, playing for Team USA at the MIMA Cup in San Pedro del Pinatar, Spain. As the starting goalie on the team, she guarded with confidence, assisting her team in winning a shutout game and the championship title.

Soccer has shaped Alexis from the very beginning. “I always just liked watching it.

I'd always go to the women's games, or Chicago Fire,” she said. “I've always been playing soccer, too—I played in a travel club when I was younger.”

Alexis’ passion became a priority when she joined Eclipse Select Soccer Club in sixth grade. “That's when I started getting really serious,” she said. “The club is very time-consuming. In the fall, I'm gone almost every weekend, playing a soccer game in, like, Nebraska.”

Alexis’ effort does not go unrecognized by her teammates. On both the Eclipse and Latin varsity girls soccer teams, senior Lauren Rosenberg practices alongside Alexis and witnesses her many strengths.

“Lexi is a reliable, dedicated teammate,” Lauren said. “As a captain on her Eclipse team, she brings a mature and structured leadership style to practices and games. Lexi's discipline and work ethic are always a standout on the field. Even as a goalie, she is committed to developing her footwork and technique on the ball.”

Director of Student Life and varsity girls soccer Head Coach Tim Cronister also praises Alexis’ work ethic. “She is a phenomenal goalkeeper, and she's been training for years and years and years at a pretty high level,” he said.

Not only Romans have observed Alexis’ talent; her hard work at Eclipse and beyond has garnered national notice. “[Since] seventh grade, I've been called up to U.S. [Soccer Talent Identification or] ID centers. They take the top girls from the Midwest region, and then you go to an ID center, and you showcase your talents,” she said.

After Alexis’ strong performances at the ID centers this year, the Women’s National Team invited her to a larger training camp, with 20 girls from around the country, in Georgia, where she and other athletes spent their Thanksgiving break honing their athletic abilities.

It was at this training camp that Alexis earned her roster spot for February. “They said, when I was in my camp in November, that there was an upcoming tournament in Spain that they were going to pick players for,” Alexis said. “They picked maybe 15 girls from that camp, and then brought [us] to Spain with the MIMA Cup.”

The MIMA Cup, an elite women’s U-17 tournament, is held annually at the Pinatar Arena in San Pedro del Pinatar, Spain. This year, it featured teams from Wales, Morocco, Poland, Scotland, England, Norway, Mexico, and the U.S.

Team USA shifted its roster for this year’s MIMA tournament, bringing Alexis on as a fresh face. “A lot of the girls who are on the team have played in international games before, but it was my first time,” she said. “Honestly, it was a little hard for me.”

Although she’d played soccer for years, the pressure of international sport weighed on her. “It's a super hard environment, because they push you to be your best self,” she said. “And, obviously, mistakes are welcome, but they get on you right away. There's no room for error.”

Alexis’ position as a goalie amplified the on-field pressure. “There's a different kind of pressure, because if a field player loses the ball, it's fine,” she said. ”Nothing will happen. But if a goalkeeper loses the ball, then you're cooked, because you're right in front of the goal.”

Despite the pressure, Alexis returned to what made her fall in love with soccer, improving her mental game and on-field abilities. “Just kind of going back to [my] roots, or [my] fundamentals—that's kind of how I navigated the pressure,” she said.

As she took on the challenges of advanced athletics, Team USA’s traditions also helped Alexis prepare to play. “We do a thing called a pitch walkout. You're in your travel gear, and you get to walk on the pitch before there's anyone on it,” she said. “I think that's a really cool experience: to visualize and listen to good music and get yourself locked in.”

The team’s rituals carried her onto the pitch with an eager confidence as they faced off against Morocco. “When I played in that game, it was just a surreal experience,” she said. “It was also nighttime, so the night vibes were good!”

Against Morocco, Alexis started the game and didn’t let a single goal in—both massive feats for her first international game. “As a goalie, it's very important to get a clean sheet,” she said. “Again, there's no room for error.”

Honing in on the details allowed Alexis to avoid small mistakes and reach this milestone. “There was one save that I had where most people would think that's an easy save. … But I made sure I didn't drop the balI [and] just handled it cleanly,” she said. “That's what they look for at the international level: You make saves cleanly, you aren't deflecting, you're holding onto the ball as much as possible.”

Alexis’ goalie skills, as well as her natural leadership on the field, shone throughout MIMA. “Being a leader and being able to communicate with your team, I think this might be my favorite part [of being a goalie],” she said. “You're the last one in the back line, so just being able to tell your teammates what's going on in front of them, I think, is really helpful.”

Through Alexis and her teammates’ hard work, Team USA won the MIMA Championship title, a huge success for Alexis.

But her achievements expand beyond the win. Like the true leader she is, Alexis’ main takeaway from MIMA was how she could command the field, even in a harder setting. “I just think it makes you a better player when you're in these hard environments,” she said. “The coaching is so great, and when everyone around you is working so hard, it just pushes you to be a better player and a better person.”

Beyond MIMA, Alexis joined the Women’s National Team once again to compete in the Concacaf Qualifiers Tournament from March 9 to March 23. This tournament took her to Houston and Alajuela, Costa Rica, where her team qualified for the U-17 FIFA World Cup.

The two locations allowed for the team to bond and prepare before the competitive qualifiers. “We wanted to train before we got to Costa Rica, so [Team USA] decided to do it in Houston, because it’s the same climate and time zone,” Alexis said. “We were in Houston for about a week, then we flew to Costa Rica, where we were for two weeks.”

Alexis and her teammates hit the ground running in Alajuela. “We trained for two days and then we had our first game against Bermuda, and I played in that game.”

In the Bermuda game, Team USA won with a sweeping 19-0 score, with that final number sourcing pride for Alexis. “I was proud that I kept a clean sheet,” she said.

The Bermuda game, as well as two major wins against Haiti and Puerto Rico, allowed Team USA to qualify for the U-17 World Cup later this year. “I don't know if I'll make that roster, so [I’ll] just continue to train towards it,” Alexis said

No matter where soccer takes Alexis next, her Latin community has high hopes for her. Lauren said, “I'm so proud of Lexi and am so excited to watch her continued athletic success.”

Mr. Cronister mirrored Lauren’s praise. “We are all so happy for and proud of her accomplishments,” he said.

Even as she looks to future international tournaments, Alexis will never forget her experience this year. “Just being able to wear the crest was super cool,” she said.

“I just feel super grateful to have had the opportunity, and just super honored.”