She attended Hillsboro High School in Hillsboro, Oregon from 1987 to 1990, where she graduated holding Oregon's state record for goals in a season with 54; and in a career with 131. She was a three-time Oregonian 4A Player of The Year and a two-time Parade All-American. She also was a talented basketball player and Track and Field participant, and she was offered college scholarships at those two sports too.
She attended University of Portland from 1990 to 1995 and left that educational institution with various awards and NCAA records. In 1990, she was named Soccer America's Freshman Soccer Player of The Year, and in 1991, she led her team with 21 goals and six assists. In 1992, her 30 goals and 12 assists placed her second among the nation's scorers, and in 1994, she helped her team reach the soccer Final Four, making the All-Tournament Team. She also garnered West Coast Offensive Player of The Year awards in '92 and '94, and was a three time NSCAA All-American as well as a three time finalist for the Hermann Trophy And Missouri Athletic Club Award. Milbrett was her university's all-time leader in goals with 103, and assists with 40. She placed second in NCAA career goals with 103, and tied for fourth in career points with 246. She was also named to Soccer America's College Team of The Decade for the 1990s.
She was a member of the US-under 20 team from 1990 to 1993, and saw her first action in 1991, against China. She scored her first goal with that selection in 1992, against Norway, and helped the team win the International Women's Tournament in France in '93. She played a total of 21 games with the over-20 team during that period, and in 1995, she finally joined the over-20 team full time. She was a member of the team that finished third at the World Cup that year in Sweden, and in 1996, she became a starter for the team that won the 1996 Olympic gold medal in Atlanta, scoring the game winning goal in the gold medal game against China. In 1997, she set a women's national team record with five assists in a game againt Australia, and in 1998, she was a member of the team that won the Gold medal at the Goodwill Games. In 1999, she was the goal leader on the USA team that won the Women's World Cup, and in 2000 she helped the team obtain Olympic Games silver in Sydney. She was named the Concacaf's Offensive Player of The Year that same year, as well as Chevrolet's female athlete of the year. She was also nominated along with Hamm and Sun Wen for the first ever FIFA World Player of the Year award, and participated in the 2001 Nike's women's cup. She won the Chevrolet female athlete of the year award for the second time in a row in 2001 also.
Professionally, Milbrett began her career in Japan, when she travelled there after graduating in 1995 and joined the Shiroki Serena of the women's J-league there. She played in that team until 1997.
In 2001, she became a founding member of the New York Power in the WUSA. She was the league's MVP as well as Offensive Player of The Year, as she led her team in various offensive categories. She scored the league's first hat trick ever, when the Power beat Boston's team, 3 to 1. She was named to the WUSA's second team in 2002, when she finished eighth in the league in points, and she scored her second career hat trick, versus San Jose's team.
A player who enjoys signing autographs for her fans, she is in the top five all time in the United States national soccer team in three offensive categories.