McKenna Schultz is a graduate defender on the Toledo women's soccer team. Schultz recently completed her undergrad in law and social thought and is continuing her education at UT in pursuit of a law career. Schultz has played in 63 matches and over 5,600 minutes on the Rockets' back line.
 
On growing up and her start in soccer
I was born in Columbus, but I moved to Rochester Hills, Michigan, when I was in elementary school. That was where I started playing soccer when I was four years old, and ever since then I just fell in love with it. I had a really supportive family that helped me through everything, showed up to everything in the past and shows up to everything now. I also competed in volleyball and track, but when I got to high school I just focused on soccer. I ran the two mile and the 800 in track. The physical fitness part of track and running miles translates into the game of soccer, but track was not for me, so I stuck to soccer.

On her two brothers
I have one younger brother and one older brother. Koan is younger and Kelton is older. They also played soccer in high school, I've become competitive from competing with each other growing up. In the backyard, in the house, wherever, we were always touching a soccer ball, always competing.
 
On playing travel and club soccer in her youth
I started playing travel probably in second grade. I started off with RSC and then I moved to Waza which merged into Nationals, which is what I played the majority through high school.
 
On professional women's soccer players she's looked up to
I looked up to Emily Sonnett and Carlie Lloyd. They were just pivotal parts of the U.S. Women's National Team and I wanted to be just like them when I grew up. I had a chance to go to a game in Cincinnati.
 
On pursuing college soccer
My freshman year, my coaches started pushing college soccer to me. Nationals was really good at getting exposure. They also hosted college camps where college coaches came. That's where I met our old coach, TJ Buchholz, which is how I ended up at Toledo.
 
On committing to Toledo
I committed the summer after my sophomore year. I chose Toledo because when I visited it felt like home. I really liked the law and social thought program that they had, and the opportunity for me to go to law school. I was surprised just how pretty Toledo's campus was. It's a beautiful campus and I liked how small it was and walkable.
 
On sticking with the program after Head Coach Mark Batman stepped in
I like the way that Coach Batman views the program. He's more intense than our old coach in a good way. He's pushed us past our limits. I don't think I'd be the soccer player I am today without him pushing me past where I thought I could be. It was definitely hard going through the change. I loved my old coaches, but Coach Batman made it easy. He gave us a direction of where he wanted the program to go from when he stepped in.
 
On working with assistant coach Sam Turner on defense
Coach Turner gives a perspective of a college player. She understands how it feels to be an athlete and also just a girl trying to navigate college and post-college. She's been a good sounding block and is also very knowledgeable about soccer.
 
On winning MAC Freshman of the Year in 2021
I was not expecting to win that award at all. I didn't expect to come in and play, and it was just an amazing opportunity where my teammates really supported me. I wouldn't have been able to get that award without playing with a great defense. I didn't expect to play that much at all. I had no expectations coming in and I was very nervous, but I was ready for the opportunity. I overcame those nerves in the first few games by just trusting in my teammates. They gave me a lot of support and reassurance that I was good enough to be there.
 
On working through injuries during two different seasons
It was definitely tough those two years (in 2022 and 2024). Those were two years that were taken away from me. Fortunately, I was able to get them back, and looking back, it made me realize that I can work through anything. Everything in the end worked out because it allowed me to pursue the post-graduate degree while also finishing my soccer career. While I was injured, I was more focused on building relationships with my teammates, especially my injured teammates. They helped me get through everything, I couldn't have done it without them. I was also able to focus on school last year before applying for law school."
 
On leading the defensive unit in her fifth season
It's an honor to have the younger girls look up to me. I do have five years of experience, not only on the field, but also being a leader on the team. We've had a lot of injuries, so it's been tougher than it normally would've been to lead the back line, but it's a great opportunity to help my teammates develop and grow into leaders that I know they want to be in the future.
 
On her younger teammates getting opportunities
It's been awesome, I've seen how hard they work, they've overcome a lot of adversity, especially the girls who didn't play a lot their freshman and sophomore year. And seeing them come out and step up to the challenge has been awesome.
 
On pursuing a career in law
I'm pursuing my J.D. (Juris Doctorate), so I'm entering my second year. I don't know exactly what I want to do with it, but I know I want to take the BAR in Ohio and practice as an attorney. I'm still open, but I'm very interested in environmental law and business law in general.
 
On her future plans outside of a law career
I hope to also stay involved in the Toledo community in the future, and be involved in soccer. Whether that's coaching at the youth level, or just being a part of the Toledo soccer community.