World Cup Panthers Make A Statement For Philippines
 
 The text messages started arriving in the early morning hours of July 25, 2023.
 
"Did you see what happened?"
"They did it!"
"Can you believe this?"
 
The state of Wisconsin and the city of Milwaukee were just waking up that summer morning, but the rest of the soccer world already knew the news. The Philippines, participating in its first-ever FIFA Women's World Cup, had stunned co-host New Zealand by a final score of 1-0.
 
And what exactly made that so newsworthy for the Milwaukee Panthers?
 
Well, for the first time in program history, former members of the Milwaukee women's soccer team were making appearances on the biggest stage in the FIFA Women's World Cup. A pair of sisters, Chandler McDaniel and Olivia McDaniel, were on the roster of the Philippines National Team.
 
Olivia played in goal for the Panthers from 2016 to 2019, part of a very successful four-year stretch where the team went 62-9-8 overall as well as an eye-opening 32-1-3 in regular-season Horizon League play. She posted a 1.13 goals-against average as a freshman as well as a perfect 0.00 GAA as a junior.
 
Chandler transferred to Milwaukee following two years at Virginia Tech and started all 19 games in 2018, finishing the season with one goal and two assists. She made a great first impression, assisting the game-winner in the season opener against Northern Illinois and helped the team to the NCAA Tournament each year (2018/2019).
 
Olivia entered the World Cup as the first-string goalkeeper. She played a key role in helping the Philippines qualify for its first-ever World Cup when her team faced Chinese Taipei in the quarterfinals of the AFC Women's Asian Cup in January. The winner of that match would earn a spot in the World Cup.
 
Olivia held Taipei to just one goal as regular time ended in a 1-1 draw. In the shootout, she saved two shots and scored one of her own as the Filipinas won the shootout, 4-3.
 
"The buildup was so long, because we were one of the first nations to qualify for the World Cup," Olivia said. "The Asian competition, their qualifying tournament was way, way back, last January. So it had been a good year and a half since we had qualified for the World Cup. But, it was always at the front of our minds, because that was the one thing we were working on and pushing towards this entire journey. We had been doing so many camps and so many friendlies and tournaments to get to that point. I think that it was kind of nonstop. We were kind of playing like a club team. We played 30 games last year as a team, which is really unprecedented for a national team being together as much as we were. So I think it was a bit stressful, but the payoff was really awesome getting to be there. I keep using the words 'awesome' and 'amazing', but those are just the words that come naturally when thinking about the experience."

Olivia first played an international match in 2021, and this year had played in 15 international matches for the Philippine national team prior to the WC. In those games, she played 1,291 minutes, posting a 1.31 goals-against average and three shutouts.
 
Chandler played her first international match in 2022 but suffered an injury in qualifying. She returned to the national team in April 2023 after a 16-month rehab from a torn ACL, playing in the opening match of the 2024 AFC Olympic qualifiers.
 
"After qualifying, our coach at the time had talked to us and asked us what our goals were and the whole team had come to the consensus that it wasn't enough to just show up," Chandler said. "We wanted to show the world that we could still compete and that we did want one win (in the group stage). So our original goal was to make it out of the group. We had that goal in mind and then there were so many games set up for the team. And I think that the team overall just had a really good mindset. And we knew that we didn't want to only do it for ourselves. We wanted to do it for the country because it was such a big deal for the country to have a team qualify at the world's largest stage. Most people wouldn't think the Philippines is known for sports. So I think just knowing that we weren't just doing it for ourselves and we're doing it for the whole country, it just pushed us to go even farther. And then having the support from all the fans that we had, whether it be at the stadium or they were watching from home, also helped us to push even harder."
 
After all of the waiting and buildup … then came the real thing.
 
Game one of group play was a matchup with Switzerland on July 21. Olivia started in goal and Chandler subbed on in the second half, a game in which the team held its own but fell by a final score of 2-0.
 
Even with a tough loss, the sisters had made it.
 
"I think you can only allow yourself to be starstruck for a couple seconds and then you have to get back into the game," Olivia said. "We got to the field and probably for me, right before I went on the field, I was like, 'this is crazy' and I was starstruck. But then once I got on the field, it was like, 'OK, regroup'. It's just soccer; we have to go play. That's how it was for me anyways."
 
It was a familiar scene for Chandler.
 
"I was really nervous the first game before Switzerland and I was getting into all the hype behind the World Cup and playing on the largest stage, and then getting there and getting ready and stuff. But the minute you step on the field for warm-up, you just come back to reality and you're like, 'ohh, well it's just soccer; it's just a game'. So I think that really helped bring down the nerves a little bit."
 
After losing to Switzerland in its opener and coming into the match against New Zealand a very heavy underdog, the craziness started with a goal in the 24^th minute to lead 1-0. As the time slowly ticked away, Olivia had the best view on the field – as the starting goalkeeper. And, as it turned out, played one of the largest roles.
 
New Zealand ended the contest with 68 percent possession and a 16-4 advantage in shots, but it was McDaniel who came up big with the game on the line.
 
McDaniel secured the win in extra time with a spectacular save – making a full-out dive to her left on a close-range attempt, directing the ball just wide of the post – on a shot that would have tied it up with less than three minutes remaining in extra time. It was, her coach Alen Stajcic said, "the save of her life."
 
"We had scored pretty early on in the game, so we couldn't really start celebrating much yet because we still had 60 minutes left and it turned out we would be defending for the majority of it," Olivia recalled. "So, it was a battle. It was a grind for the rest of the game. And you know, taking on so much pressure, it starts to build and build and build and at some point it's going to pop and it's something's going to happen. And that was the moment that they had gotten at the very smack, dab, end of the game. Those are the moments that as a goalkeeper you live for; you do or die. There wasn't much going on in my head other than 'don't let it go in, don't let it go in, don't let it go in'. But after that a part of me was so excited and happy, but at the same time I was like, 'we have to defend a corner now'. And then finally, when they blew the whistle, it was like all of the weight and the pressure falls off your shoulders and you're like, 'Oh my gosh, finally the game's over, we won'. And it was getting to celebrate with my teammates and the crowd that came and supported us, which was so amazing. They were so loud, especially in a stadium full of Kiwis on home soil. They were so loud and it was really, really exciting and a moment you can't really replicate over again."
 
"Obviously you go in with your team wanting to win a game, but I think actually being able to come out of our very first World Cup with a win against the home nation is huge," Chandler said. "It definitely makes a statement and it shows the whole world that we're not just a one-time team – we're in this for a long time. So I think being able to also bring that win back home for the country was something that we all wanted to do and I was very happy to be a part of it. Now it's something that we can look back and say we did it, but we can't dwell on it. We have to keep moving forward and continue to win big games. So it was very cool."
 
The moment was stunning, as the host New Zealand squad carried a FIFA world ranking of No. 26 coming into the matchup, compared to No. 46 for the Philippines. Playing such a key role, Olivia had the world's media spotlight shine on her immediately afterwards. But she downplayed that just as quickly.
 
"Our coach gave us until midnight that night to soak it all in and to enjoy it," Chandler said. "And then after midnight and until the next day, it was 'we have to refocus now', like the tournament's not over. And of course our group was a bit odd at the time because anyone really could have gone through. So we really had to just accept the fact to be happy that we won, but know that we still have a whole other game and if we win the game we could move on. So it was probably a hectic couple of hours because our game was a little later, but then it was just back to business and how can we move on and how do we refocus for the next game. There were a lot of people there and luckily after the game we all got to see our parents, they could come to the hotel. So it was nice seeing them and they did a pretty good job with trying to control the media. But it was definitely a little hectic."
 
So how did it all start? How did a couple of sisters from California end up wearing the Black & Gold of the Panthers for their collegiate careers? After all, neither had ever even been to Milwaukee prior to committing to then-head coach Troy Fabiano.
 
"For me, I had just finished one year at Cal State Fullerton, a school right by where we live (in California)," Olivia said. "And all of my friends were going off to school and going away, moving out of state and I was like, 'well, I don't want to be left here by myself'. So I got a call one day from the coach at the time, Troy, and he said they needed a goalkeeper and you know, it's super short notice, but if you want to come, come. And I was like, you know what?  Why not? It was super short. The season started in maybe a week and half or so. Preseason had started and I had to get on a plane and I knew nobody and I knew I didn't know where it was or whatever. But I ended up absolutely loving the school. And you know, it turned out to be a great time. I'm pretty thankful for that."
 
"Well, I came because Olivia was here," Chandler joked. "So Olivia was already here, and I came because I was thinking about transferring out (from Virginia Tech). And I think I just decided that I'd have fun if I went with Liv."
 
The sisters have great memories of their time at UWM, both on and off the field.
 
"I think my junior year when we went to PK's in the semis, that was pretty cool and sticks out," Chandler said. "We went to penalty kicks in the semifinal (against Oakland) to go on to the championship and the PK's were pretty intense. I did the last PK so that's probably why I liked it."
 
"I think my favorite moment soccer-wise was when we went and played against Santa Clara, first round in the NCAA tournament (in 2018) and getting to play and all of our family got to come and support us," Olivia said. "That was really, really cool to see everybody we knew there, especially since we were out of state, so we didn't really have a lot of family to come to many of our games during the season. Another moment, non-soccer, I'd say getting to go to 'Golden Panther' awards [MKE's student-athlete awards banquet] senior year was really, really fun. I don't know why it's stuck in my head, but it was. I always loved going to Golden Panther Awards."
 
And now they have come full-circle and have accomplished something no other player has ever done in a program that dates back to 1984.
 
The fairy tale couldn't last forever, unfortunately, and the Philippines ended up failing to advance from the group stage after losing to Norway in its third and final match in the tournament.
 
"The experience is definitely like a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing," Chandler said. "The word that we usually use for it is it's very 'surreal'. I mean, just thinking that we went there. I mean, it's crazy to think that we actually got to experience a dream of ours. And I mean, every little soccer player growing up dreams of actually going to a World Cup. And since we were actually able to do it, it's pretty amazing. The overall experience as a whole was very amazing. We were very happy to be a part of it and just to have that experience now going forward is just really good to have as overall players."
 
The next step for the sisters? Joining a professional team in Austria – together, of course. The pair recently signed to play for FC Pinzgau, a club from Saalfelden in the state of Salzburg. It currently plays in the Austrian Regionalliga Salzburg which is the third tier of Austrian professional soccer.
 
"It's a transition period," Olivia said. "I think right now for our national team, we're getting a new coach and we've been building up to the World Cup for so long and so now we need to refocus on something different. And personally for us, we wanted to find a club team to play for in the meantime. So we're in Austria right now playing for a pro team here."
 
"I think right now we just want to keep playing for as long as possible," Chandler said. "I think the only things that will determine that are just how our bodies hold up and how we handle the next couple of years. So we would prefer to play together. So I think as of right now, our goal is to just try to be on the same club team for as long as possible and then maybe in the next four years, if we're still up to it, try to compete at another World Cup."
 
Mark it down now Panther fans, and keep an eye out for the McDaniel sisters in the summer of 2027.