A happy ending for Lilly’s international career?

Kristine Lilly is pregnant, which may very well mean that her days of toiling for the United States women’s team are over.

 Lilly is due in July (which, if you do the math, means she got pregnant either just before or just after playing in St. Louis in October). Right now, she is only saying she will sit out the 2008 season, including the Olympics, should the U.S. team qualify. She still plans to play in the new women’s league when it starts in 2009, but you’d have to think that coming back to play on the international stage at 37 after taking a year off might be too much even for the amazingly fit Lilly. But she hasn’t ruled it out.

Lilly is U.S. women’s soccer. She played her first game for the team at 16 in 1987 and holds the world record for caps with an amazing 340. She has scored 129 goals, second only to Mia Hamm’s 158. (Though Abby Wambach will likely catch her soon.) She has started every Women’s World Cup and Olympic match the United States has played. They’ll have to find a way to do it without her this time.

“I am excited about having a baby and being home with my husband, but the process of stepping away from the game and my teammates has been a bit emotional,” said Lilly in a statement released by U.S. Soccer. “I will miss the game, but I will miss being around my teammates even more. When you do something for over 20 years, it will just take some time to adjust to a new lifestyle. I plan to continue promoting soccer by running my camps, doing clinics and appearances, as well as looking into starting a foundation. I may be stepping away from the game for a bit, but I won’t stop supporting it.”