One Yale junior from a small New Jersey town is no stranger to success on the soccer field.

That success, defined by powerful kicks and swift movement on the field have made Becky Brown ’11 this week’s Ivy League Player of the Week.

“Soccer is definitely a passion of mine,” Brown said. “I wouldn’t be where I am today without it. I can’t remember a time when my life didn’t involve soccer.”

Brown, who has been on the soccer field since the age of six, plays at forward for the women’s soccer team and helped lead the Bulldogs to a 7–0 victory against Sacred Heart last weekend by scoring three goals in the first half. Her six goals also place Brown atop the Ivy League in goals scored, besting Penn’s Jessica Fuccello’s five-goal effort.

The Saybrook College resident, who helped her high school to a share of the 2003 New Jersey state championship, spent the summer training in California, which, according to head coach Rudy Meredith, most definitely paid off. With only four games down in the season, Brown has already scored six goals, which is one more than she scored in the 17 games she played last season. It also accounts for half of the team’s 12-goal total.

“Becky has been one of our best players for the last couple years, and I believe she has the ability to be one of the best players in the league and it’s because of her work ethic and speed,” Meredith said.

Brown has been one of Yale’s standout players during her three-year career, winning the team’s MVP award last season after notching a team-high 10 assists. She was named to the second team All-Ivy last year and the SoccerBuzz All-Northeast Region Freshman team after her rookie year.

But it is not only Brown’s ability on the field that has brought her athletic success. Her teammates said that her good sportsmanship is just as notable as her energetic and determined personality, and that she has inspired fellow players.

“Over the past three years I have seen Becky grow into a strong leader both on and off the field,” teammate Hannah Smith ’10 said. “She is an extremely hard-worker with an intelligence on the field and in the classroom. I am not ashamed to say that as a senior I do look up to her.”

Brown said that her current goal is to lead the Bulldogs to victory this season. But her coach thinks that she has the ability to go much farther. Meredith said that if she continues to play at a consistent rate, it is possible that pro-camps may pick her up post-graduation.

For Brown, going pro has been a lifelong dream, but she plans to keep her options open.

“My primary goal is to help the team win the Ivy League,” Brown said. “We have the ability to achieve that goal, but it’s only going to happen if we always outwork other teams and bring intensity to every game.”