Born in Long Beach, California, Cruz attended Thousand Oaks High School where she was a four-year varsity player.
[4] Cruz was a member of the Cal South Olympic Development Pool from 2006 to 2007 and won the Region IV Championship.
In 2008, she was named to the NSCAA/Adidas Youth Girls All-Region IV team and was an Adidas Elite Soccer Program national selection.
[7] In November 2014, it was announced that Cruz had signed with Seattle Reign FC for the 2015 season of the National Women's Soccer League.
[8][9] Of her signing, Reign FC head coach Laura Harvey said, "Michelle was someone we looked at towards the end of last season and felt could benefit our group.