Lauren Holiday's Brief UCLA Basketball Career: A Promising Start Cut Short

Lauren Holiday, the younger sister of former UCLA star and NBA player Jrue Holiday, had her college basketball career cut short due to repeated head injuries. This article delves into her brief stint with the UCLA Bruins women's basketball team, her accomplishments in soccer, and her personal life.

Early Career and Head Injuries

Holiday, a redshirt freshman guard from nearby Calabasas, began her career at UCLA in the 2012-13 season. Unfortunately, the first of four head injuries ended her first season after she played in only three games. After only 12 games over two seasons, she was forced to end her college basketball career. She averaged 3.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists during her short career.

Coach Cori Close announced the decision on Tuesday. Despite the premature end to her basketball career, Holiday remained with the team as an undergraduate assistant and continued pursuing a sociology degree.

A Stellar Soccer Career

Lauren Holiday (born Lauren Nicole Cheney; September 30, 1987) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a midfielder and forward for the United States women's national soccer team from 2007 to 2015. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and FIFA Women's World Cup champion. Holiday played professionally for FC Kansas City in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) and the Boston Breakers in the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS).

Early Life and High School

Born in Indianapolis, Indiana to Rita and George Cheney, Holiday began playing soccer as a youth after watching her brother play the sport and played on boys' teams until age 12. She attended Ben Davis High School in Indianapolis where she was named the school's most valuable offensive player in 2004-05. In 2004, she was named Metro Player of the Year by the Indianapolis Star. In 2006, she was named Parade All-American and was Gatorade Player of the Year in addition to receiving numerous regional awards including first-team All-Conference, All-County and All-State, and Indianapolis Star Super Team Player of the Year. She earned Indiana All-State selection honors each year of her high school career and was named NSCAA All-American three times.

Collegiate Soccer Career at UCLA

In the fall of 2006, Holiday enrolled at UCLA, where she was named a first-team All-American and NSCAA Freshman of the Year. She led the Pac-10 Conference with 19 goals, which also set a new UCLA freshman record with a goals-per-game percentage of .95. As a sophomore in 2007, she was the runner-up for the women's Hermann Trophy and the Pac-10 Player of the Year. Holiday became the first player in UCLA history to earn NSCAA/adidas First-Team All-America honors all four years of her career. At UCLA, she set new school records for points (173) and game-winning goals (28); and tied the career school record in goals with 71. She had 31 career assists, second place in the record book.

Professional Soccer Career

Holiday's professional career included stints in the WPS and NWSL, where she achieved significant success.

WPS Career

During the 2011 WPS season, Holiday made ten appearances for the club. After returning to Boston following the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, Holiday's brace during the team's final regular season match helped the Breakers clinch the last remaining spot in the playoffs.

NWSL Career with FC Kansas City

In 2013, Holiday was one of three national team players along with Becky Sauerbrunn and Nicole Barnhart to be allocated to FC Kansas City for the inaugural season of the National Women's Soccer League as part of the NWSL Player Allocation. In June 2013, she was named NWSL Player of the Month after scoring six times in five games and becoming the league's leading scorer with eight goals. FC Kansas City finished second during the regular season with an 11-6-5 record. The team advanced to the playoffs but were defeated 2-3 by Portland Thorns FC during the semi-finals. In the post-season playoffs, Holiday scored the second goal in a 2-0 victory over the Portland Thorns FC in the semi-final, and provided both the assists for Rodriguez's two goals, as they beat Seattle Reign FC 2-1 in the 2014 Championship game, to clinch the club's first NWSL title. As of 2015, Holiday was the leading goal scorer (20) and assist leader (12) all-time in the NWSL.

International Soccer Career

Holiday's international career was marked by numerous achievements, including Olympic gold medals and a World Cup title.

Read also: Exploring Lauren Sánchez's Career

Early International Career

team making preparations for the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup and training starting with the Four Nations Tournament in January. Holiday started in all six 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup matches, scoring two goals and leading the team with three assists.

2012 Summer Olympics

She played in all six games at the 2012 Summer Olympics, starting five.

Goal Details

The minute in the match the goal was scored. The ball was passed by the player, which assisted in scoring the goal. Goal scored on penalty-kick which was awarded due to foul by opponent. Sorted by goal difference in the match, then by goal difference in penalty-shoot-out if it is taken, followed by goal scored by the player's team in the match, then by goal scored in the penalty-shoot-out.

Personal Life and Challenges

At the age of three, Holiday had open heart surgery to correct a heart defect. She married professional basketball player Jrue Holiday, fellow former UCLA Bruin and NBA point guard, on July 7, 2013. The two first met and began dating in 2008 while they were both attending UCLA. On September 4, 2016, it was announced that Holiday had previously been diagnosed with a brain tumor during her pregnancy. Her husband chose to take a leave of absence to care for her. In April 2025, it was announced that Holiday, after divesting from Angel City, had invested in the North Carolina Courage through the Holiday Family Trust.

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