Savannah Mckenzie King (born February 7, 2005) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a left back for Bay FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played college soccer for the North Carolina Tar Heels before being drafted second overall by Bay FC in the 2024 NWSL Draft. She represented the United States at the under-17 and under-20 level, helping win bronze at the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.
_099_(cropped).jpg) King with North Carolina in 2023 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Savannah Mckenzie King[1] | ||
| Date of birth | February 7, 2005 | ||
| Place of birth | Santa Monica, California, U.S. | ||
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Left back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Bay FC | ||
| Number | 2 | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2023 | North Carolina Tar Heels | 23 | (0) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2024– | Bay FC | 15 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2022 | United States U-17 | 14 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | United States U-20 | 19 | (0) |
Medal record | |||
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of July 6, 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of September 21, 2024 | |||
Early life and college career
editKing was born in Santa Monica, California, to Karrie King, a former professional cyclist and runner, and Kim Parker King. She grew up in West Hills with her twin brother, Parker.[2][3] She played multiple sports in her youth, including softball, baseball, and flag football, only taking up soccer at age ten on an AYSO team.[4] She later played club soccer for Real So Cal and then Slammers FC HB Køge, with which she won the ECNL's under-18/19 national title in 2023.[5][6]
King lettered in four years of track for Agoura High School and set school records in the 200-meter (25.49) and 400-meter dash (56.87).[2][7] She also played flag football at Agoura and once recorded six interceptions and four touchdowns in a single game.[2][4] Ranked by TopDrawerSoccer as the top left back of the class of 2023, she committed to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in November 2022.[4] She entered into a name, image, and likeness (NIL) agreement with Nike before starting college.[8]
North Carolina Tar Heels, 2023
editKing spent one season as a starting center back for North Carolina in 2023.[2] Head coach Anson Dorrance called her performance in the team's scoreless season opener at Penn State the "best first-game performance by a freshman" in program history.[9] In the first three weeks of the season, she received two Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Defensive Player of the Week Awards as North Carolina conceded only two goals in its first six matches.[10][11] She led the team in minutes played in her freshman season, which ended in the NCAA tournament quarterfinals, and was named to the ACC All-Freshman team and the All-ACC second team.[12]
Club career
editBay FC, 2024–
editBay FC, a new NWSL expansion team, selected King second overall in the 2024 NWSL Draft; she and North Carolina teammate Ally Sentnor were the top two picks.[13] She was signed to a three-year contract.[14] She made her debut in the starting lineup of Bay's first ever game, against Angel City FC, on March 17.[15]
International career
editKing was invited to United States national under-15 team training camps in 2019 and 2020.[16][17] In 2022, she helped the national under-17 team win the 2022 CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship to qualify for the 2022 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, where she helped the United States advance out of the group stage, though they lost in the first knockout round on penalties.[2][4] The next year, she was called up to the national under-20 team for the 2023 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship, where as co-captain she helped the United States qualify for the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.[12] She played almost every minute of the U-20 Women's World Cup, helping the United States finish in third place, its best result since 2012.[18][19]
Career statistics
editClub
edit- As of May 11, 2024
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Playoffs[a] | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Bay FC | 2024 | NWSL | 9 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | ||
- ^ Includes NWSL Playoffs
References
edit- ^ "FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup India 2022 – Squad List: USA" (PDF). FIFA. October 11, 2022. p. 16. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ a b c d e "Savy King – Women's Soccer". University of North Carolina Athletics. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ Mastrodonato, Jason (March 16, 2024). "'She can run for days': How Savy King's moms helped push Bay FC's youngest player to the edge of stardom". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on March 18, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Appelbaum, Eliav (November 25, 2022). "Soccer Royalty". Thousand Oaks Acorn. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ Duren, Jonathan (June 5, 2021). "ECNL North Carolina: Day 2 in Review". Elite Clubs National League. Archived from the original on June 23, 2021.
- ^ "Slammers FC HB Køge captures ECNL Girls U18/19 national championship". SoccerWire. July 1, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ "Agoura HS Track Records – Outdoor Team Records". Athletic.net. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ Newman, Mia (December 14, 2023). "The Biggest NCAA Women's Soccer NIL Deals this Year". Girls Soccer Network. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
- ^ Monroe, Noah (August 21, 2023). "First-years shine in UNC women's soccer's 3–1 home opener victory over California". The Daily Tar Heel. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ "King Collects First ACC Defensive Player Of The Week Honor". University of North Carolina Athletics. August 22, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ "King Grabs Second ACC Defensive Player Of The Week Award". University of North Carolina Athletics. September 5, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ a b "Making the Case: Savannah King for Chipotle U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year". United States Soccer Federation. December 13, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ Ingemi, Marisa (January 12, 2024). "Bay FC takes Savy King with No. 2 overall pick in NWSL college draft". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
- ^ "Bay FC signs 2024 NWSL Draft pick Savy King". Bay FC. February 15, 2024. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
- ^ Mastrodonato, Jason (March 17, 2024). "Bay FC shocks Angel City with 1–0 win in first-ever NWSL game". The Mercury News. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
- ^ "Roster released for U15 Girls YNT Camp". United States Soccer Federation. October 10, 2019. Retrieved December 14, 2023 – via TopDrawerSoccer.com.
- ^ "U15 GNT to hold first training camp of 2020". United States Soccer Federation. March 5, 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2023 – via TopDrawerSoccer.com.
- ^ "USA's Cali girl looking to extend stay in Colombia". FIFA. September 14, 2024. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
- ^ "USA Scores Dramatic 119th-Minute Game-Winner To Defeat The Netherlands 2-1 And Finish Third At 2024 FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup". United States Soccer Federation. September 22, 2024. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
External links
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