Savannah DeMelo

Savannah Marie DeMelo (born March 26, 1998) is an American professional soccer midfielder who plays for Racing Louisville FC in the National Women's Soccer League and the United States national team. She was the fourth pick in the 2022 NWSL Draft.[2]

Savannah DeMelo
DeMelo with Racing Louisville FC in 2023
Personal information
Full name Savannah Marie DeMelo[1]
Date of birth (1998-03-26) March 26, 1998
Place of birth Bellflower, California, U.S.
Height 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Racing Louisville
Number 7
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2021 USC Trojans 75 (17)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022– Racing Louisville 27 (4)
International career‡
2016–2018 United States U20 21 (6)
2023– United States 4 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of July 30, 2022
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of September 24, 2023

College career

DeMelo played five years at the University of Southern California, making 75 appearances and tallying 17 goals and 28 assists for the Trojans.[3] A regular starter over her college career, DeMelo was a three-time All-Pac-12 selection, including All-Freshman team honors in 2017. As a sophomore in 2018, DeMelo scored nine goals and assisted 10 others en route to United Soccer Coaches All-American honors. DeMelo missed her junior season because of a torn Achilles' tendon,[4] but she successfully returned to action as a senior, starting all 14 games. USC reached the NCAA Tournament in each of the five years DeMelo played for the Trojans.[3]

Club career
DeMelo playing for Racing in the 2023 NWSL Challenge Cup final

Racing Louisville selected DeMelo with the fourth pick in the 2022 NWSL Draft, two spots after the club selected fellow midfielder Jaelin Howell. DeMelo made her professional debut on March 25, playing 11 minutes off the bench against the Houston Dash in Racing's second game of the 2022 NWSL Challenge Cup.[5] She started for the first time on April 2 in a 3–0 win against the Kansas City Current. DeMelo started every Racing match in the 2022 NWSL season, scoring four goals and assisting two while leading the league in scoring chances created and fouls won.[6] DeMelo's first professional goal, a game-winning direct free kick against San Diego Wave FC on May 18, 2022, was featured on ESPN's SportsCenter Top 10.[5][7][8][9]

International career

DeMelo delayed her start at USC to play for the United States in the 2016 U-20 Women's World Cup. She also played in the 2018 U-20 Women's World Cup, scoring four goals, and helped the U.S. win the 2015 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship in Honduras.[3][10][11][12]

In September and October 2022, DeMelo received her first call-ups to the U.S. senior national team for friendlies against Nigeria, England, and Spain, but did not see any playing time.[13]

On June 21, 2023, DeMelo was named to the U.S. squad for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, becoming the third player to ever make a U.S. World Cup roster without previously earning a cap.[13] She received her first cap coming on as a second half sub during the team's send-off match against Wales.[14] At the World Cup, DeMelo was in the starting lineup for the team's first two group stage matches, a 3-0 win against Vietnam and a 1-1 tie to the Netherlands.[15]

Career statistics

International
As of match played September 24, 2023
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoalsAssists
United States 2023400
Total400

Honors
Racing Louisville FC

References
  1. "FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup France 2018 – List of Players: USA U20 (women)" (PDF). FIFA. July 26, 2018. p. 16. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 26, 2018. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  2. Herrera, Sandra; Booth, Chuck (December 19, 2021). "NWSL Draft results, trade tracker: San Diego Wave take Naomi Girma with No. 1 pick; OL Reign make four trades". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  3. "Savannah DeMelo – Women's Soccer". USC Athletics. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  4. Sturges, Amanda (February 15, 2021). "Mind over matter: Savannah DeMelo has 'renewed life and energy' after overcoming Achilles injury". USC Annenberg Media. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  5. Morgan, Bekki (June 23, 2022). "Savannah DeMelo is the real deal". The Equalizer. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  6. "10 story lines to know as Racing opens preseason training". Racing Louisville FC. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  7. Holton, Brooks (May 19, 2022). "Watch: Racing Louisville FC cracks SportsCenter Top 10 with Savannah DeMelo's game-winning goal". money.yahoo.com. The Courier-Journal. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  8. Hruby, Emma (May 19, 2022). "Savannah DeMelo and Louisville snap San Diego's winning streak". Just Women's Sports. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  9. Racing Louisville FC [@RacingLouFC] (May 19, 2022). "Bang 💥 Leading off @SportsCenter's Top 10: @Savannah_DeMelo's set piece goal. 🔥" (Tweet). Retrieved July 30, 2022 – via Twitter.
  10. "DeMelo, U.S. look to gain from early CU20W tests". Concacaf. February 9, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  11. Byrd, Daniel (December 9, 2015). "U-20 USWNT Routs Haiti 6–0, Advances to CONCACAF Championship Semis". The Mane Land. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  12. "Canada's U-20 women settle for silver in Honduras". CBC Sports. December 13, 2015. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  13. "Andonovski Names U.S. Team for 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup". US Soccer. June 21, 2023.
  14. "Trinity Rodman brace leads U.S. Women's National Team to 2-0 victory over Wales in final match before 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup". Associated Press. July 9, 2023.
  15. "Savannah DeMelo makes 1st international start for US at Women's World Cup". Associated Press. July 21, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  16. Kassouf, Jeff (June 15, 2022). "NWSL's 2022 rookies are the best the league has ever had, and there are a few reasons for it". ESPN. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  17. "Racing Louisville FC Midfielder Savannah DeMelo Named July Rookie of the Month, Presented by Ally" (Press release). National Women's Soccer League. August 4, 2022. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
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