Sophia Smith, Mallory Swanson headline USWNT's first roster since Olympics
Eighteen members of the United States women's national team that won the Olympic gold medal in August will be saluted by home fans in the Americans' first matches since the Summer Games in Paris.
USWNT coach Emma Hayes on Thursday named a 26-player roster for three stateside friendlies in late October.
The U.S. will take on Iceland on Oct. 24 in Austin, Texas and again on Oct. 27 in Nashville, Tennessee. The three-match schedule concludes against Argentina three days later in Louisville, Kentucky.
"The summer was brilliant, and we want to make these three games about celebrating some amazing accomplishments and players," Hayes said in the press release announcing the list. "I love that we get to see most of our Olympic team again after a few months, but I also love getting to work with some newer players and evaluate how they perform in our environment."
The squad is headlined by star forwards Sophia Smith and Mallory Swanson. Trinity Rodman, the third member of the Americans' "Triple Espresso" front line that accounted for 10 of the USWNT'S 12 goals at the 2024 Olympics, won't participate this month. World Cup-winners Crystal Dunn and Tierna Davidson are the other gold medalists who'll miss out. So will midfielder Croix Bethune, who served as one of Hayes' four alternates in France.
The full 26-woman roster is as follows:
Goalkeepers: Jane Campbell, Houston Dash; Casey Murphy, North Carolina Courage; Alyssa Naeher, Chicago Red Stars
Defenders: Emily Fox, Arsenal (England); Eva Gaetino, Paris Saint-Germain (France); Naomi Girma, San Diego Wave; Casey Krueger, Washington Spirit; Hailie Mace, Kansas City Current; Alyssa Malonson, Bay FC; Jenna Nighswonger, Gotham FC; Emily Sams, Orlando Pride; Emily Sonnett, Gotham
Midfielders: Korbin Albert, Paris Saint-Germain; Sam Coffey, Portland Thorns; Hal Hershfelt, Washington Spirit; ,Lindsey Horan, Olympique Lyon (France); Rose Lavelle, Gotham; Olivia Moultrie, Portland Thorns; Ashley Sanchez. North Carolina Courage
Forwards: Yazmeen Ryan, Gotham; Emma Sears, Racing Louisville; Jaedyn Shaw, San Diego Wave; Sophia Smith, Portland Thorns; Mallory Swanson, Chicago Red Stars; Alyssa Thompson, Angel City; Lynn Williams, Gotham
Forward Jaedyn Shaw returns after missing the Olympics with the muscle injury she suffered on the eve of the Games. Shaw was the youngest player on the Olympic roster and is one of three teenagers on this one, joining fellow 19-year-olds Moultrie and Thompson.
"I was so gutted she couldn't make it in the Olympics," Hayes, speaking later Thursday during a videoconference with reporters, said of Shaw. "What a teammate she was during that period, and I was very hopeful she would make it back, but wasn't be the case…I'm really looking forward to having a fit and healthy Jaden in with us."
Thompson, the youngest member of the Americans' 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup squad, was left off the Olympic roster but has been on fire in NWSL play lately, with five goals in her last eight games. She is one of 22 U.S. based players picked by Hayes, with the other four employed by European clubs.
But there was no place for forward Catarina Macario. Macario was named to the Olympic roster but had to withdraw because of the knee problems that have sidelined her for most of the last two-plus years.
"We need Cat playing week in, week out on a regular basis," Hayes said. "I think it's so, so important for her to get that right.
"I know her history," added Hayes, who also coached Macario at English club Chelsea. "I think it's best for her to stay put, to get herself to a place where she can start regularly for Chelsea first, and hopefully that will be very soon. Because Cat is not only an important plan for Chelsea, but hopefully for us too."
Hayes invited six uncapped players in Eva Gaetino, Hal Hershfelt, Alyssa Malonson, Yazmeen Ryan, Emily Sams, and Emma Sears. While Sams has never appeared for the USWNT, she was an unused sub at two games during the Paris Games and received a gold medal as a result.
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The Olympic triumph was the fifth in program history. The U.S. has also won a record four World Cups, making it the most successful country in women's soccer history by far.
These three October games will be the last for the USWNT on home soil in 2024. Hayes' side will close out the calendar year with November exhibitions at England and The Netherlands, where Hayes suggested there could be a few more fresh faces.
"[There are] a handful of players that could very well be within this roster that are not," Hayes said. "Every player from the Olympics, as per the Victory Tour, has to be included in this squad. So I could only select a very small size of new players in this camp in particular. So, for those that have missed out, there will be another opportunity."
Doug McIntyre is a soccer reporter for FOX Sports. A former staff writer with ESPN and Yahoo Sports, he has covered U.S. men's and women's national teams at FIFA World Cups on five continents. Follow him @ByDougMcIntyre.
