Casey Murphy Credits Rutgers for Helping Blaze Olympic Path

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Casey Murphy has checked off a ton of boxes in her long and illustrious goalkeeping career. Her biggest check mark to date begins in Paris this week as she joins Alyssa Naeher as one of two goalkeepers on the 18-player United States Women’s National Team roster at the 2024 Olympic Games.

 
For the 28-year old Murphy, who starred at Rutgers from 2014-17, it was fitting that she and the rest of Team USA came together at the Miller Training Complex on the Piscataway campus for the first time to begin preparations for the Games that kick off on July 25 – one day before the Opening Ceremonies – against Zambia.
 
While standing on the sun-bathed practice field earlier this month, Murphy said, “Yeah it’s really cool. I train here in the offseason sometimes and so to be here at a camp in preparing for an Olympics is awesome and I’m just excited to be back for sure.”
 
The highlight of Murphy’s Rutgers career came during her final season at RU in 2017 when, as a redshirt junior, she started all 21 matches in net en route to being named Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Year and First Team All-Big Ten after leading the conference in goals against average, save percentage and shutouts. Murphy began the year by registering nine straight shutouts behind a program-record 924:07 scoreless minutes. She became Rutgers’ all-time shutout leader with her 45th career clean sheet in the 0-0 double-overtime draw with No. 7 West Virginia in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. Murphy’s season was capped by being named a 2017 NCAA First-Team All-American.
 
Murphy, who grew up a Rutgers fan tailgating at football games in her grandfather’s RV, credits her experience at Rutgers playing for head coach Mike O’Neill as playing a vital role in laying the foundation for the success she would find down the road. 

“I had an amazing experience at Rutgers, the coaching staff there, the team, it was a great three years I spent there. I feel like it was the starting point to help me get to my professional career,” she said. “My experience here instilled great habits in me for which I’m very thankful. I learned a lot from the coaches here and I think overall the biggest thing was the…