![Carli Lloyd Carli Lloyd us soccer world cup](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/carli-lloyd.jpg?quality=85&w=2400)
Soccer star Carli Lloyd hasn’t “slept a wink” since Sunday’s FIFA Women’s World Cup win in Vancouver. But after helping bring the team to victory for the first time since 1999 – and a historic hat-trick – how could she?
“We didn’t come here to take second place. We came here to win it, and there was something different in the air with these last few games with our team,” the 32-year-old midfielder said on Good Morning America on Monday.
“I think we all believed. We all knew it,” she said. “We felt it and what a convincing win today to get it done.”
Nicknamed Captain America after the 5-2 victory against Japan in Vancouver, Lloyd also said she imagined the turn of events back in May while out on a run prepping for the big games. She said during the interview that she visualized herself ahead of time scoring “four or five” goals in the final.
“It’s just crazy what the mind can do,” she added.
See the Best Moments From U.S. Soccer’s Victory in the World Cup Final
![USA v Japan: Final - FIFA Women's World Cup 2015 Lauren Holiday #12 and Carli Lloyd #10 of the United States celebrate with teammates after Lloyd scores her second goal against Japan in the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Final at BC Place Stadium on July 5, 2015 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images)](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup008.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![Final - USA vs Japan Carli Lloyd of the United States celebrates her second goal of the first half with teammates during the FIFA Women's World Cup 2015 Final match between USA and Japan in Vancouver, on 05 July 2015.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup004.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![Finals - USA vs Japan Finals - USA vs Japan](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup005.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![Finals - USA vs Japan Japan's goalkeeper Kaihori Ayumi fails to hold the ball during the FIFA Women's World Cup 2015 final match between USA and Japan, at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada, 05 July 2015. The USA won the match.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup006.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![Soccer: Women's World Cup-Final-Japan at United States Jul 5, 2015; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; United States midfielder Tobin Heath (17) celebrates with midfielder Morgan Brian (14) after scoring against Japan during the second half of the final of the FIFA 2015 Women's World Cup at BC Place Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup001.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![Megan Rapinoe, Heather O'Reilly United States' Heather O'Reilly, right, hugs Megan Rapinoe (15) after the U.S. beat Japan 5-2 in the FIFA Women's World Cup soccer championship in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Sunday, July 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup007.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![USA v Japan: Final - FIFA Women's World Cup 2015 VANCOUVER, BC - JULY 05: Fans cheer in the second half between the United States and Japan in the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Final at BC Place Stadium on July 5, 2015 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup009.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![FBL-WC-2015-WOMEN-MATCH52-USA-JPN USA midfielder Tobin Heath (C) celebrates her goal during the final football match between USA and Japan during their 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. AFP PHOTO / FRANCK FIFEFRANCK FIFE/AFP/Getty Images](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup013.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![Soccer: Women's World Cup-Final-Japan at United States Jul 5, 2015; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; United States midfielder Carli Lloyd (10) reacts after defeating Japan in the final of the FIFA 2015 Women's World Cup at BC Place Stadium. United States won 5-2. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup002.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![USA v Japan: Final - FIFA Women's World Cup 2015 Abby Wambach of the United States celebrates the 5-2 victory against Japan in the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Final at BC Place Stadium on July 5, 2015 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Dennis Grombkowski/Getty Images)](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup010.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![USA v Japan: Final - FIFA Women's World Cup 2015 Alex Morgan of the United States celebrates the 5-2 victory against Japan in the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Final at BC Place Stadium on July 5, 2015 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup011.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![APTOPIX WWCup Japan US Soccer The United States Women's National Team celebrates with the trophy after they beat Japan 5-2 in the FIFA Women's World Cup soccer championship in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Sunday, July 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup003.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![USA v Japan: Final - FIFA Women's World Cup 2015 VANCOUVER, BC - JULY 05: Abby Wambach #20 of the United States celebrates the 5-2 victory against Japan in the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Final at BC Place Stadium on July 5, 2015 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Dennis Grombkowski/Getty Images)](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/women-world-cup012.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
The New Jersey native said celebration is taking priority over sleep for the time being.
“[I’ve] barely been able to get through text messages and some of the social media stuff,” she said. “I had some teammates telling me that Mr. President Tweeted me, got to meet Joe Biden today so that was pretty cool.”
“I think it’s huge for women’s soccer,” Lloyd went on. “The energy and atmosphere was just unbelievable this World Cup.”
But the athlete hasn’t fully come to terms with her record-breaking victory just yet. She told the Today show’s Matt Lauer on Monday that it “just didn’t feel real.”
“It was unbelievable, something we have all wanted so long. The heartbreak in 2011, losing to Japan, and then this game – it was just an unbelievable moment, something we’ll cherish for the rest of our lives.”
Lloyd, who has been on the U.S. team since 2005, completed a hat-trick against Japan within the first 16 minutes, an accomplishment she described as “pretty incredible.” (The three-goal maneuver was the fastest hat-trick in World Cup history.)
“It’s hard because you go through these journeys year after year and you’re just so focused on the one thing you have and you don’t ever stop and think about how much you’ve accomplished,” she told Lauer. “I will savor and cherish this moment for a little bit because all the hard work has paid off.”
Lloyd scored goals in four consecutive matches during the tournament, ending with a total of six scoring games. But it wouldn’t have been possible without her teammates, she explained, including Alex Morgan, Sydney Leroux and Abby Wambach.
“We looked down at these stars and one of those stars belongs to us and will always belong to us. We’re just super, super happy,” Lloyd said. “I think that a lot of us needed to pinch ourselves to see if this was really happening just because of the way that it all unfolded from start to finish. It was just an epic journey one will never forget.”
This article originally appeared on People.com.
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