FAIRFIELD, Conn. – When you spend your entire life working at a dream, sometimes it actually comes true. For former Fairfield midfielder Nikki 'Guti' Stanton, her current job brings her to a place where she has spent the majority of her life: a soccer pitch. Stanton, a 2014 graduate and former team captain, is currently preparing for her second season as a professional athlete for Sky Blue FC of the National Women's Soccer League.

“Professional soccer has always been a dream of mine,” Stanton said. “I still sometimes look around and think to myself, 'Look where you are!' It truly is a dream one true and I am loving every minute of it.”

“Having a former student athlete in any professional is a thrill and with Nikki in our domestic league is an added bonus,” Head Coach Jim O'Brien said. “This helps us in our recruiting quality student athletes that we have the ability, reputation, and resources to make professional dreams a reality.” 

As a Stag, Stanton was a three-time member of the All-MAAC First Team and led the Stags to the 2013 MAAC Finals. As a midfielder, Stanton was a lock down defender helping Fairfield become one of the top defensive units in the conference during her stay. She was also able to create chances on the offensive side, which helped her earn six goals and 15 assists, including a team-high seven in her final season.

Stanton, who missed the entire 2009 campaign with a knee injury, was able to fight back and was named a two-time team captain.

“Nikki brings a great sense of positivity and enthusiasm which are great assets to have and she brings it every day,” Sky Blue FC technical director and head coach Jim Gabarra said. “She comes in here and lightens everybody up while also adding a positive frame of mind.”

Stanton got the taste of professional soccer in 2012 when she played for the Seattle Sounders of the United States League. With her home town team, Stanton was actually teammates with several United States national team members such as Alex Morgan, Hope Solo, Megan Rapinoe, among others.

Stanton started as a member of the Sky Blue reserve team and now wears No. 44 as an official member of the team.

“Nikki came in last year as a reserve players and earned her way into a starting spot,” Coach Gabarra said. “As with every player, there comes an opportunity to show that you can play or earn a roster spot, and she took advantage of that opportunity to move up to a full contract. She is still fighting to maintain it, but she has done a great job of taking full advantage of her opportunities.”

Nikki is one of the most technically gifted student athletes that I have ever coached,” O'Brien said. “She combines this with a supremely high fitness level that enables her to compete with the best players in the world. “

“The pace of the game is much faster than the college game,” Stanton said. “My speed of play has increased immensely as well as mu knowledge of the game. At this level if you don't know exactly what you are going to do with the ball before you get it, you will find yourself in trouble. It was scary in the beginning.”

Sky Blue FC is one of the nine teams of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), the top level professional soccer league in the United States. Sky Blue is based in Piscataway, N.J., and plays their home games at Yurcak Field. The squad will open their 2015 schedule at FC Kansas City on April 12.

On that date, Stanton will continue playing for something she has worked for her entire life, being a professional athlete.

I have coached many student athletes over the years who have made professional soccer a career and Nikki ranks as one of the best,” Coach O'Brien said. “We had quite a few conversations about her aspirations of a pro career and I always encouraged her to believe in herself and everything would fall into place. Not many people have the drive to succeed as a pro but I always felt that Nikki had it in her.”

“Her greatest strengths are her personality and her positive attitude,” Coach Gabarra said. “She gets along with everybody, and everybody likes her. She is also very resilient. If she gets knocked down, she gets back up with a smile on her face and keeps going.”

“Anything can happen if you work hard and stay persistent,” Stanton said. “There were many opportunities for me to give up, but I didn't.”