Katie Meyer

Summary

Kathryn Diane Meyer (January 20, 2000 – March 1, 2022) was an American soccer player who played as goalkeeper for the Stanford University's women's soccer team.[3]

Katie Meyer
Meyer during her tenure on Stanford
Personal information
Full name Kathryn Diane Meyer[1]
Date of birth (2000-01-20)January 20, 2000[2]
Place of birth Burbank, California, U.S.[3]
Date of death March 1, 2022(2022-03-01) (aged 22)
Place of death Stanford, California, U.S.
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[3]
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
2014–2017 Newbury Park Panthers
2014–2016 Eagles Soccer Club
2016–2018 Real So Cal
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2022 Stanford Cardinal 50 (0)
International career
2015 United States U16

Early life edit

Meyer was born in Burbank, California, and grew up in Newbury Park, California, with her parents Steven Meyer and Gina Meyer.[4][5] Kathryn Meyer was a middle child with older sibling Samantha, and younger sibling Siena.[3] In 2015, she was featured in the Soccer Superstar reality show on Nickelodeon.[6]

High school (2014–2018) edit

Meyer attended Newbury Park High School for her first three years of high school before transferring to Century Academy in Thousand Oaks, California for her senior year. During her time at Newbury Park High School, she was also the kicker for the varsity football team for two seasons.[3][7] In addition to her school team, she played for club teams Real So Cal and Eagles Soccer Club, as well as the U16 girls' national team.[4][8]

Stanford University edit

On October 10, 2015, Meyer committed to playing college soccer for the Stanford Cardinal.[7] She began at Stanford University in 2018. She redshirted during her freshman year, and played her first season for the team in 2019.[9] She played a critical role in the 2019 College Cup championship game against the University of North Carolina as Stanford won in a penalty shootout.[10][11][12] Meyer was recognized as the MVP of the match and video of her goalkeeping went viral.[11] She was a team captain in the 2020 and 2021 seasons.[3]

Meyer was pursuing a degree in international relations with a minor in history. She was part of the 2022 cohort for the selective Mayfield Fellows Program which develops Stanford students to lead technology ventures.[13]

International career edit

Meyer was named to the United States national under-16 team in 2015.[14]

Death edit

Meyer passed away in her dorm room in Crothers Hall, a residential housing building on the Stanford campus, on March 1, 2022.[15][16] When asked about the situation surrounding her death, Meyer's mother said that she had received an email about disciplinary action, and that "She had been getting letters for a couple months... This letter was kind of the final letter that there was going to be a trial or some kind of something. This was the only thing we can come up with that triggered something."[17] Meyer, who had no legal representation in the action and suffered from anxiety and depression, received the email in the evening while on the phone with Stanford teammate and future U.S. National Team player Naomi Girma.[18]

Dee Mostofi, the Stanford Assistant Vice President, stated "We [the Stanford University administration] are not able to share information about confidential student disciplinary matters".[17] A statement by Santa Clara County on March 3, 2022, stated that the coroner's office determined the death to be "self-inflicted", with "no indication of foul play".[17]

The Meyer family filed a wrongful death suit against Stanford on November 23, 2022[19][13] in Santa Clara County Superior Court.[20] The suit reported that Meyer had been "facing disciplinary action for allegedly spilling coffee on a Stanford football player who was accused of sexually assaulting a female soccer player. Meyer's father said his daughter was defending that teammate, who was a minor at the time."[13] The complaint was through the Stanford Office of Community Standards and possible sanctions included having her diploma withheld.[21] It was reported that Meyer was hoping to attend Stanford Law School after graduating.[21]

In 2024, California State Assembly passed Assembly Bill 1575, or Katie Meyer's Law, introduced by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin.[22] Now moving onto the State Senate, the bill requires an outside adviser for a college student facing a disciplinary issue.[22]

College career statistics edit

School Season Regular season College Cup Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Stanford Cardinal[3] 2019 Div. I 11 0 5 0 16 0
2020–21 14 0 14 0
2021 19 0 1 0 20 0
NCAA total 44 0 6 0 50 0

Honors edit

Stanford Cardinal

Individual

References edit

  1. ^ "Kathryn Diane Meyer". Stanford University. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
  2. ^ Stanford Women's Soccer [@StanfordWSoccer] (January 20, 2022). "She's feeling 22, Happy birthday to team captain, @kdmeyer19!" (Tweet). Archived from the original on March 6, 2022. Retrieved March 6, 2022 – via Twitter.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Stanford Cardinal – 2022 Women's Soccer Roster – 19 – Katie Meyer". gostanford.com. Stanford Cardinal. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Katie Meyer – Women's Soccer". Stanford University Athletics. Archived from the original on 2022-05-12. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  5. ^ Williams, Madison. "Parents of Stanford Goalie Katie Meyer Confirm She Died By Suicide on 'TODAY' Show Appearance". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  6. ^ Levine, Kellie (April 2, 2015). "Soccer Superstar: Freshman goalkeeper dives into reality television". Panther Prowler. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
  7. ^ a b Juan, Victoria (October 24, 2015). "Kick it to Win it". Panther Prowler. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
  8. ^ "Star Stanford women's soccer goalkeeper Katie Meyer, 22, found dead on campus". www.cbsnews.com. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 2022-03-05.
  9. ^ Joe Curley (4 December 2012). "Local Chatter: Former Newbury Park goalies Meyer, Dederick guide teams to Final Four". VC Star. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
  10. ^ Rosen, Haley (January 11, 2020). "Interview: Stanford GK Katie Meyer". Just Women's Sports. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
  11. ^ a b Kim McCauley (10 December 2019). "Meet Katie Meyer, the trash-talking goalie who led Stanford to the college soccer championship". SB Nation. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
  12. ^ Charlie Foy (16 January 2020). "Who is Katie Meyer?". Rule of Tree. SB Nation. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
  13. ^ a b c "Meyer family sues Stanford for wrongful death". ESPN.com. 2022-11-24. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  14. ^ "U-16 and U-15 Girl's National Teams Gather for Portland Camp". May 30, 2015. Archived from the original on October 6, 2015.
  15. ^ "Katie Meyer, 'larger-than-life' Stanford women's soccer captain, dies aged 22". The Guardian. March 4, 2022. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  16. ^ Chan, Stella (March 4, 2022). "Stanford University star soccer player died by suicide, parents tell NBC". CNN. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  17. ^ a b c "Stanford's star soccer goalie Katie Meyer died by suicide, authorities confirm". Mercury News. 2022-03-04. Retrieved 2022-03-05.
  18. ^ "Katie Meyer's Parents Say Stanford Failed Her. The School Disagrees. - Sports Illustrated". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
  19. ^ Gabriel San Román (26 November 2022). "Family of Stanford soccer player Katie Meyer sues school over her suicide death". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  20. ^ SFGATE, Katie Dowd (2022-11-24). "Katie Meyer's parents file wrongful death suit against Stanford". SFGATE. Retrieved 2022-11-26.
  21. ^ a b SFGATE, Katie Dowd (2022-11-24). "Katie Meyer's parents file wrongful death suit against Stanford". SFGATE. Retrieved 2022-11-25.
  22. ^ a b "Katie Meyer's Law: Bill named after Stanford soccer player passes through California Assembly". NBC Bay Area. 2024-01-31. Retrieved 2024-03-13.