Pitt grad Kathryn Nesbitt to referee Women's World Cup Final

Throughout her life, Kathryn Nesbitt has been determined not to let her passion for two very different interests, science and soccer, get in the way of one another.

To say Nesbitt has managed to pull off an impressive balancing act in that regard might be an understatement.

Nesbitt, 34, studied chemistry in college and earned a Ph.D in the subject from Pitt in 2015.

A former assistant professor of chemistry at Towson University outside Baltimore, Md., Nesbitt has seen her academic work featured in several dozen publications.

Meanwhile, as she advanced her scientific career, she was doing the same on the soccer field.

Nesbitt is a highly-experienced soccer referee.

What began as volunteer work as a teenager paved the way for multiple high-profile professional assignments, as Nesbitt has worked Major League Soccer and National Women’ Soccer League games in the United States, as well as internationally with FIFA.

Additionally, while living in Pittsburgh, Nesbitt also refereed Riverhounds games.

Last winter, she was among the first handful of women referees who worked at the World Cup in Qatar, and, on Sunday, she will serve in the same capacity at the Women’s World Cup Final in Australia, featuring England and Spain.

In Qatar, Nesbitt worked 11 matches, including the final between Argentina and France.

Nesbitt earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Saint John Fisher University in Rochester, N.Y., and this past spring, she served as Pitt’s undergraduate commencement speaker.

In 2020, she was named MLS Assistant Referee of the Year.