STUART, Fla. — A born-and-raised Martin County woman will be head referee at the Women's World Cup final between Spain and England on Sunday.
Tori Penso, who is a Stuart Middle School and Martin High School graduate, is the daughter of Patti Hancock.
Penso has been a soccer referee since 14 and kept up with it through college at Florida State.
She started flying around the nation, including Washington and Little Rock, Arkansas, to referee games in Major League Soccer and the Australia vs. England semifinal.
Recently, she said her daughter picked up several World Cup games in Australia and New Zealand, including a semifinal between Australia and England. She heads a four-woman referee crew, the first time U.S. Soccer referees will lead the officiating crew in a senior FIFA World Cup final.
Her family — all big soccer fans — couldn't be prouder to have Tori represent their family and country internationally.
"I'm busting," Patti said. "And I have to pinch myself, I guess, and you know, it's taken a village, a lot of people, to get her here. It wasn't an easy road. It was hard."
Family members plan to watch the game, which starts at 6 a.m. and will be televised on WFLX Fox 29.
