I was a soccer mom. That was long before soccer moms took on political cachet. We simply spent our Saturdays at the soccer fields, watching our kids' teams, cheering their successes and consoling them after their losses. When they were little, their teams were like schools of minnows, flowing after the ball as it rolled across the field, while their coaches yelled, "Hold your positions!" Small goalies tried valiantly to fend off boredom in order to be ready for that frightening moment when the occasional ball fluttered towards their end of the field. I vividly remember the day when my first-grader, the goalie, was trying to chin himself on the crossbar as the ball rolled gently under his dangling feet for the game-winning, and only, goal. Being a goalie's mom wasn't easy.

These memories filled my mind as I watched the American Women's Soccer Team in their stunning World Cup victory. The sports commentators and writers lauded Brandi Chastain, whose powerful penalty kick won the game for the Americans. But I, like so many other soccer moms and dads, knew that it was goalie Briana Scurry's spectacular save against a Chinese penalty kick that won the game. Yes, the American team scored on every one of its penalty kicks. And the women were superb in making their kicks count. But, the Chinese women were good, too. If Briana Scurry hadn't blocked the Chinese penalty kick, the score at the end of the period would have been 5 to 5. She opened the window to victory.

What opened the door for Briana Scurry and the entire American team was Title IX. Without it, there wouldn't be a world champion women's soccer team. Because girls wouldn't be playing sports as they are today. Years ago, when I was in high school, the boys played interscholastic football, basketball and baseball. We girls could compete only in tennis-if the boys' bus had room for us. Otherwise, we had to arrange our own transportation-or not go. Even in college, there were precious few competitive sports for women. Sports facilities for us were minimal. We engaged in sports as part of a physical education class, not as part of our university. We didn't even think much about it and the opportunities we were missing. That was before Title IX.

Passed by Congress in 1972, Title IX prohibited discrimination against women in education. Suddenly, girls' athletics blossomed in schools and in extracurricular sports leagues. Colleges and universities began to offer competitive sports programs for women students. Before Title IX, only 1% of high school athletes were girls and virtually no college athletic scholarships were available to girls. Twenty-five years later, women made up 37% of college varsity athletes and won 23% of the athletic scholarships.

Why did all this matter? Because, sports have opened wide the thrill of competition and the doors of opportunity to girls and women. College scholarships, once only for boys, became accessible to girls. That was the only way many young women could afford higher education. Colleges and universities actively began to recruit for their women's teams. And little girls, like my own daughter, got to grow up learning how important teamwork is, acquiring a set of skills that better prepares them for the workforce most of them will enter. They discovered that it takes individual hard work to develop the skills you need to be good at something. They greatly improved their physical fitness. They learned about competition and sportsmanship. They found they could be involved in sports even if they would never be good enough to compete in the Olympics. They added a very important dimension to their lives. We have come a long way since 1972. We have a long way to go to reach full equity under Title IX.

What a thrill to see 90,000 fans filling the Rose Bowl to watch a superb women's soccer team become world champions. Those women, many of whom will themselves be soccer moms, made millions of Americans proud. Title IX has made a big difference. And, it can do much more.