On the day of the 2023 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Draft, Kayla Fischer was in scrubs completing a 12-hour nursing clinical at Ohio State University. Her mom drove down and picked her up, and the two watched the event with friends and snacks.
Fischer, who first started playing soccer in Kent when she was 3, was drafted to play for Racing Louisville FC in Louisville, Kentucky. She dropped her nurse practitioner classes and took a leave of absence the next day.
Now 24, the former Kent resident is continuing her second season for the team, playing as a midfielder, a position in the center of the field assisting in both defense and offense. Her career, unlike many in professional sports, continues to be based close to home.
Fischer began playing soccer through Kent Parks and Recreation’s youth programs at the age of 3, on a team coached by her dad. When she was about 9 years old, she caught the attention of Leslie Odom, then a coach for Everest Soccer Club, after one of her players moved near the Fischers.
“I remember the first time I saw Kayla play and I immediately knew she was going to be something special,” Odom said.
Part of what set her apart? Her work ethic and aggressive style of play.
“I remember she’s 9 years old and she’s sliding for the ball not to go out of bounds — 9-year-olds don’t do that,” Odom said.
Her former coach sees these same qualities in her today. Fischer leads her team in yellow cards this season, with no fear of being confrontational on the field.
“Even today, she’s going to put her body in the way of anything. She’s not scared,” Odom said.
Fischer started playing for Odom’s club team during her middle school years. During this time she attended Stanton Middle School, also running hurdles for the track team.
A Texas native who also served as head coach of the Kent Roosevelt soccer team, Odom moved back to the south right before Fischer started 9th grade, just missing out on coaching her in high school. After Odom left, Fischer left Everest, joining Cleveland FC, a team full of Division I talent.
Most of the girls on this new club team did not play for their high school squads. Fischer was an exception. Her mom, Jennifer Fischer, knew the teamwork and friendship aspects were worth it.
“I just think there’s nothing like high school sports,” Jennifer Fischer said.
Her daughter is grateful for the chance to participate in school rivalry games against teams like Hudson and to play with the girls she grew up with. One of the highlights of her career at Roosevelt was playing on the same team as her younger sister, Kassidy Fischer.
A talented basketball player in high school, as well, Fischer gravitated to focus on soccer while playing for her club team in Cleveland. College coaches would watch the squad play at regional or national games, and players would attend different development camps at universities. After a fast college recruitment process, Fischer committed to play for Indiana University her sophomore year of high school.
By her senior year, plans had changed. Fischer saw more of a future for herself in Columbus at Ohio State. It was closer to home, and she saw herself succeeding there off the field. Unsure of what her soccer career would look like with the late switch, Fischer joined the Buckeyes in 2018. She says it was one of the best decisions she ever made.
Success in Columbus followed. Playing five seasons with extended Covid-eligibilty, Fischer was a two-time captain, twice earning First Team All-Big Ten honors and scoring 28 career goals with 19 assists.
As for what came after? Fischer spent her college years completing a difficult degree in biology and was not focused on the possibility of playing professionally. It’s a mindset she says helped her play better on the field.
“I just played free. I didn’t have to focus on the next step,” Fischer said.
As the time to register for the NWSL Draft grew near, Fischer continued into graduate school to become a nurse practitioner. Women’s professional soccer had grown fast in her final years in school. She now had an opportunity earlier generations did not, but needed advice on whether to go for it.
“I went through pros and cons lists with her, but I was not making that decision. That was all her,” her mom said.
Taking the chance, knowing nursing will always be an option in the future, Kayla registered for the draft.
College coaches told her that NWSL teams reached out to them, and that interested teams would give her a call before the draft. According to Fischer, no team phoned her up before. She thought they might have changed their mind.
When a call from a team did come, she already had the number in her contacts. The goalkeeper coach for Louisville FC was the coach Fischer originally committed to play under at Indiana.
This small world moment highlights how connected Fischer has remained with the region. Many players in the league are international, playing countries away from their families. At Ohio State and in Kentucky, she’s only a drive away, so loved ones can easily make the trip.
Her first appearance in a professional match came in Houston on March 26, 2023. Odom attended. Fischer values keeping up the connection with her former coach, now inspiring Odom’s own daughter. Fischer has watched her daughter play and spent time talking with both her team and others in Odom’s area.
“She has a relationship with my daughter that I never dreamed would be possible,” Odom said.
Louisville’s first draft pick in 2023, Fischer’s 2023 season was highlighted by her first goal, scoring with her right foot in a June match against the Houston Dash, and her first assist, in July against the Kansas City Current.
Fischer says like any new level of competition, she had to spend time getting adjusted to the league’s quickness.
“You can’t just rely on your athletic ability, which is something I think I did heavily rely on playing at a younger age,” she said.
Odom lauds Fischer’s increase in “soccer IQ,” knowledge of the game’s dynamics you can call upon while on the field. Having played as a forward or striker, not a midfielder, for most of her career, Odom knows Fischer has studied the game to learn her new role on the field. It’s a versatility needed to be the best.
Fischer has appeared in 15 of the 16 league matches Racing Louisville has played in 2024, averaging around 50 minutes per game. In her second season, Fischer says she’s continuing to adapt on the team, leaning on the women around her who are more experienced and taking advice from the coaching staff. Since last season, the size of the roster has grown, bringing out the competitive side of players while training.
“This year, especially, we have so many girls, so it’s always up in the air who’s going to play,” Fischer said.
Admitting she did not know what to expect coming into the league, Fischer arrived in Louisville to a welcoming team. The organization is a tight-knit one, with Fischer making close friends she gets to travel the country with. Her mom is thrilled to see her happy with her friends, a new coaching staff and in a city and church she enjoys. She says like every parent, it is her biggest wish for her child to be happy.
“She’s living her best life right now,” Jennifer Fischer said.
Louisville’s record stood at 3-7-5 entering into a month-long hiatus from league matches for the Olympic Games. The team’s next match is against Rayadas de Monterrey, a professional club from the Mexican state of Nuevo León, at 8 p.m. on Saturday, July 20.
