Dec. 19, 2016
Over the course of the next few weeks GoPSUsports.com will be sharing updates from Penn State women's soccer alums. This week GoPSUsports.com caught up with Nittany Lion alum, Deborah Montague (Summers).
Name: Deborah Montague (Summers)
Hometown: Beavercreek, Ohio
Years with PSWS: 1991-1994 (1994 as varsity program)
Major: B.S. in Industrial Engineering
GoPSUsports.com: How did Penn State prepare you?
DM: Penn State prepared me to strive for excellence in everything I do.
Being around so many great students and great athletes at Penn State, there was always someone smarter or more athletic than me. I learned quickly that if I wanted to compete at their level, I was going to have to outwork them. And outwork I did. In the classroom and on the soccer field, I gave it everything I had. This "all in" mentality has led to some epic fails in life, but also some epic successes and I will be forever grateful that my time at Penn State prepared me for both.
GoPSUsports.com: Favorite memory as a Nittany Lion?
DM: Quite simply…standing in the middle of Jeffrey Field on September 9, 1994, hearing the opening whistle blow for the inaugural home PSU women's varsity soccer game.
After completing my third season on the Penn State club team, my dream of playing soccer at the varsity level was slipping away. Don't get me wrong. It was a privilege to play on the club team, but our goal had always been to compete at the highest level.
Establishing a varsity soccer program at Penn State had been a topic of discussion for years, and it was clear that the program was moving in that direction, but with only one season left, I had to accept that time was running out on my dream. Then, out of nowhere, I received the call I had been waiting for…Penn State was establishing a women's varsity soccer program and it was going to launch next season!
Several months later, as I stood waiting for the opening kick-off, so many emotions flowed through me. I felt extremely proud of the players that had come before me and very hopeful for the players that would follow. I took just a second to soak it all in, but quickly moved on to the next task… proving we deserved the opportunity we had been given.
GoPSUsports.com: What are you currently up to?
DM: I have worked the past 20+ years in different roles across the Walt Disney Company. I currently live in Orlando, Florida, and I am the Director of Supply Chain Engineering. I am married and have three teenage daughters, aged 15, 14, and 13. Yeah, that can be a lot of fun! J My two oldest daughters play competitive soccer, while the youngest refuses to sit in the same room when soccer is on the TV. My family and I recently moved back to the US from a 5 year assignment working at Disneyland Paris in France. Living, working, and playing soccer abroad was an amazing experience that I will never forget!