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Alexa Spaanstra

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Alexa Spaanstra
Personal information
Full name Alexa Christine Spaanstra[1]
Date of birth (2000-02-01) February 1, 2000 (age 24)[1]
Height 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m)
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 Portland Thorns
Number 77
Youth career
Michigan Hawks
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2022 Virginia Cavaliers 107 (37)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2023–2024 Kansas City Current 26 (3)
2024– Portland Thorns FC 0 (0)
International career
2016 United States U-17 3 (0)
2017 United States U-19 3 (2)
2018–2020 United States U-20 17 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of August 19, 2024

Alexa Christine Spaanstra (born February 1, 2000) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Portland Thorns FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played college soccer for the Virginia Cavaliers, where she was a five-time All-ACC selection. Internationally, she has played for the United States youth national team, winning CONCACAF tournaments at the under-17 and under-20 levels. She was selected by the Current in the first round of the 2023 NWSL Draft.

Early life

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Spaanstra grew up in Brighton, Michigan, the older of two children born to Andrea and Scott Spaanstra.[2] Her father played college basketball for the Northern Michigan Wildcats, and her mother ran track at Aquinas College.[2] Spaanstra played club soccer for the Michigan Hawks of the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) starting at the under-11 level, helping the team win national ECNL titles in 2014 and 2017 and finish runners-up in the years between.[2][3] She was also a competitive sprinter, winning a national 200-meter dash at age 10 and lettering in track at Brighton High School.[2][3] She was ranked by TopDrawerSoccer as the No. 7 recruit of the class of 2018.[2]

College career

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Spaanstra was a five-year starter at forward and midfield for the Virginia Cavaliers from 2018 to 2022.[2][4] She helped Virginia win the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) regular season title in 2021 and reach the finals of the ACC tournament in 2019 and 2021, earning all-tournament honors in each of her first four seasons.[2][4][5] As a freshman in 2018, she recorded nine goals and six assists, both joint team bests, and was named All-ACC third team and ACC All-Freshman.[2][6] She had three goals and a team-best twelve assists as a sophomore in 2019, including four assists in one game and two against Florida State in the ACC semifinals, and was second-team All-ACC.[2] After missing about a month due to injury, she made the All-ACC first team with ten goals as a junior in 2020–21, including four goals in the first two rounds of the 2020 NCAA tournament as the Cavaliers reached the semifinals.[2][7] She recorded seven goals and nine assists as a senior in 2021, helping Virginia take the ACC regular season title, and was named second-team All-ACC.[2][8][9] She finished her fifth season of eligibility with eight goals and was third-team All-ACC in 2022.[2][10]

Club career

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Kansas City Current, 2023–2024

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The Kansas City Current selected Spaanstra tenth overall in the first round of the 2023 NWSL Draft.[11] She was signed to a two-year contract in February 2023.[12] She made fifteen appearances and five starts as a rookie.[13] She recorded her first professional assist and her first goal in a 6–0 win over the Chicago Red Stars on October 7.[14][15] She scored again the following week, helping salvage a 2–2 draw away at NJ/NY Gotham FC on October 15, and was recognized for her performances as the NWSL Rookie of the Month for September/October 2023.[14][16] Spaanstra started eight games and recorded a goal and an assist in 11 appearances for the Current in the 2024 regular season. Additionally, she played in four matches in the NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup and one in the Women's Cup, where she scored the winning goal against South African club Mamelodi Sundowns on August 15.[17]

Portland Thorns, 2024–

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On August 19, 2024, Portland Thorns FC announced that they had acquired Spaanstra in a trade with the Kansas City Current in exchange for $25,000 in intra-league transfer funds and an additional $15,000 in allocation money.[18]

International career

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Spaanstra trained with the United States youth national team beginning at the under-14 level in May 2013.[19] She was called up to the national under-17 team in August 2014 to play friendlies in South Korea and trained with both the under-17 and under-20 teams in August 2015, aged 15.[20][21][22] She helped the United States win the 2016 CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship and competed at the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup.[3][23] She led the national under-19 team to win a tournament in China in September 2017 and was recognized as the tournament's most valuable player.[24] While in college, she competed at the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup and won the 2020 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship.[25][26] She first played with the national under-23 team at an NWSL preseason tournament in February 2022.[27]

Career statistics

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As of match played July 6, 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup[a] Playoffs[b] Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Kansas City Current 2023 NWSL 15 2 6 0 — 21 2
2024 11 1 — — 11 1
Career total 26 3 6 0 0 0 32 3
  1. ^ Includes the NWSL Challenge Cup
  2. ^ Includes NWSL Playoffs

Honors

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United States U20

References

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  1. ^ a b "Alexa Spaanstra". National Women's Soccer League. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Alexa Spaanstra". Virginia Cavaliers. April 28, 2020. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Eskilson, J.R. (September 26, 2016). "Meet the 2016 U.S. U17 World Cup squad". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  4. ^ a b Prochaska, Val (August 15, 2023). "Previewing the 2023 Virginia Women's Soccer Season". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  5. ^ "North Carolina Wins ACC Women's Soccer Championship in Double Overtime". Atlantic Coast Conference. November 10, 2019. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
    "Florida State Wins Second Consecutive ACC Women's Soccer Championship". Atlantic Coast Conference. November 7, 2021. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  6. ^ "ACC Women's Soccer: 2018 Season Awards Announced". Atlantic Coast Conference. November 1, 2018. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  7. ^ Conlin, Bennett. "Alexa Spaanstra scores twice in return to action as Virginia blanks Louisville". The Daily Progress. Archived from the original on April 21, 2024. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  8. ^ "Virginia women's soccer wins ACC regular-season title with tie at Florida State". National Collegiate Athletic Association. November 2, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  9. ^ Madia, Greg (November 19, 2021). "Spaanstra gives Virginia women's soccer team a spark in NCAA Tournament". The Daily Progress. Archived from the original on April 21, 2024. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  10. ^ "2022 All-ACC Women's Soccer Awards Announced". Atlantic Coast Conference. November 2, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  11. ^ Newton, Matt (January 13, 2023). "Spaanstra & Hopkins Drafted Back-to-Back in First Round of NWSL Draft". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  12. ^ "Kansas City Current sign first round draft pick Alexa Spaanstra to contract through 2024 season". Kansas City Current. February 22, 2023. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  13. ^ "Alexa Spaanstra". fbref.com. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  14. ^ a b "Kansas City Current Forward Alexa Spaanstra Named September/October Rookie of the Month, Presented by Ally". National Women's Soccer League. October 19, 2023. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  15. ^ Sperry, Daniel (October 7, 2023). "KC Current blast Chicago behind 6 (yes, 6) goals in final game at Children's Mercy Park". The Kansas City Star. Archived from the original on October 8, 2023.
  16. ^ Sperry, Daniel (October 15, 2023). "Wild final day of 2023 NWSL regular season included dramatic KC Current comeback". The Kansas City Star. Archived from the original on April 21, 2024.
  17. ^ "Match Report: First-half Scoring Barrage Sends Kansas City Current to Final of The Women's Cup". Kansas City Current. August 15, 2024.
  18. ^ "Portland Thorns FC Acquire Forward Alexa Spaanstra - Portland Thorns". www.thorns.com. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
  19. ^ "U14 GNT Heads to Portland, Ore". United States Soccer Federation. May 6, 2013. Retrieved April 21, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  20. ^ "Snow names U17 WNT roster for Korea trip". United States Soccer Federation. August 14, 2014. Retrieved April 21, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  21. ^ "24 players called into U17 WNT camp". United States Soccer Federation. August 4, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
    "U.S. U20 WNT roster unveiled for camp in LA". United States Soccer Federation. August 21, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  22. ^ Parchman, Will (September 4, 2015). "From the ECNL to the U20 World Cup?". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  23. ^ "U.S., Spaanstra work to achieve CU17W objectives". CONCACAF. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
    "USA Defeats Mexico 2–1 to Claim 2016 Concacaf U-17 Women's Championship Title". United States Soccer Federation. March 13, 2016. Archived from the original on March 17, 2016.
  24. ^ "USA U19 wins CFA International Tournament". United States Soccer Federation. September 15, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  25. ^ Bunting, Bill (July 17, 2018). "Four Hoos To Represent U.S. In 2018 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in August". University of Virginia. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  26. ^ Clark, Travis (March 8, 2020). "U20 WNT wins Concacaf Championship". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  27. ^ "U.S. U23 WNT roster for Thorns tournament". United States Soccer Federation. February 23, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
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