Kendall Fletcher

Kendall Fletcher

Fletcher playing for Saint Louis Athletica in 2010
Personal information
Full name Kendall Lorraine Fletcher
Date of birth (1984-11-06) November 6, 1984
Place of birth Cary, North Carolina, United States
Height 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Playing position Defender/Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Canberra United
(on loan from Seattle Reign FC)
Number 4
Youth career
2002–2005 North Carolina Tar Heels
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2004 Carolina Dynamo 11 (4)
2005–2006 New Jersey Wildcats 11 (2)
2007 Jersey Sky Blue
2008 Pali Blues 11 (3)
2009 Los Angeles Sol 1 (0)
2009–2010 Saint Louis Athletica 22 (0)
2009 → Central Coast Mariners (loan) 11 (4)
2010–2012 Sky Blue FC 30 (1)
2010–2012 Melbourne Victory 22 (4)
2012–2013 Vittsjö GIK 43 (4)
2013–2014 Canberra United 12 (1)
2014– Seattle Reign FC 24 (2)
2014– → Canberra United (loan) 5 (2)
National team‡
2001–2002 United States U-19
United States U-21
2009 United States 1 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of December 6, 2015.
† Appearances (goals)

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of January 9, 2015

Kendall Lorraine Fletcher (born November 6, 1984) is an American soccer defender currently playing for Canberra United on loan from the Seattle Reign FC of the National Women's Soccer League. She previously played for the Los Angeles Sol, St. Louis Athletica, and Sky Blue FC in the WPS. She has played for Vittsjo in the Swedish top-division Damallsvenskan as well as Melbourne Victory of the Australian W-League. She played for the United States women's national soccer team in 2009.

Early life

Born in Cary, North Carolina to parents, Gwen and Yates Fletcher, Fletcher has one brother, Eric, and a sister, Preston. She attended Apex High School in Apex, North Carolina where she played center midfield for the soccer team for four years and played two years of varsity basketball as a point guard.

In 2002, she was ranked as the nation's sixth best high school senior by Soccer America, was a Parade and NSCAA High School All-America selection, and was named Gatorade Player of the Year. She was also named All-State in 2001 as well as All-conference and All-region in 2001 and 2002.[1]

Fletcher played for the North Carolina Olympic Development Program (ODP) team from 1997–2002. She also played for several different club teams including the CASL Spartan Stars, the CASL Spartan Vipers, and the GYSA Twisters Green.[1] She won two State Cup championships with two of the club teams.[1]

University of North Carolina

Fletcher attended the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and played for the Tar Heels from 2002–2005. During her career, she won three ACC championships and was a starter for the 2003 NCAA-title winning team that went 27–0–0 for the season.[2] During her freshman season, she played in 19 matches for the team after being out for part of season due to illness. She scored her first goal against the University of Washington Huskies.[1] She returned in 2003 and started in 18 of the 25 games she played. She scored four goals and served seven assists as a defender helping the team earn a 27–0–0 record and ultimately the 2003 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship – the highest accolade for collegiate sports teams in the United States.[3][1][4] During her junior season in 2004, Fletcher started all 23 games and finished the season with three goals and five assists. She was named second-team All-Southeast Region by Soccer Buzz and third-team All-Region by the NSCAA.[1]

Playing career

Club

Fletcher signed for Jersey Sky Blue for the 2007 W-League season, but did not make an appearance for the club.[5] She switched coasts in 2008, joining Pali Blues in Los Angeles, California as the first signing in team history.[6]

Los Angeles Sol, St. Louis Athletica and Central Coast Mariners, 2009–2010

Fletcher during a game against the Boston Breakers in 2009.

She joined Los Angeles Sol in the WPS in 2009, but only played one game for the club before she was traded to Saint Louis Athletica.[7] She played seventeen games for Athletica, and gave multiple assists in helping the team go from the bottom of the ladder to second place and the playoff semifinal. Athletica then loaned her to the Central Coast Mariners, where she scored four goals in ten games as the Mariners finished second in the league.[8]

Sky Blue FC and Melbourne Victory, 2010–12

Athletica kept Fletcher for the 2010 WPS season, but surprisingly folded only six games into the season, all of which she started. Sky Blue FC picked up her contract and she became a regular player there as well, starting ten of the fifteen games she played with the Jersey-based club. During the off-season, she returned to Australia, this time with the Melbourne Victory – the Mariners had folded as well – and helped them to the semi-finals.

Fletcher playing for the Central Coast Mariners of the Australian W-League.

Fletcher returned to the Sky Blue FC for the 2011 WPS season, and started all 15 games that she played and scored one goal. Like the previous season, Sky Blue was just short of making the playoffs.[8] Following the end of the season, she returned to the Melbourne Victory for the fourth season of the W-League. She played in eleven games for the Victory during the 2011-12 W-League season where the team finished fourth during regular season play.[8]

Vittsjö, 2012–13

After the WPS suspended operations in 2012, [9] Fletcher signed with Vittsjö in the Swedish Damallsvenskan where she played for the 2012 and 2013 seasons. During the 2012 season, she scored one goal and started in all 21 games that she appeared. Vittsjö finished sixth during the regular season.[8] After returning for the 2013 season, she scored 3 goals and started in all 22 matches for the team. Vittsjö finished in eighth place.[8]

Seattle Reign, 2014–present

In February 2014, Fletcher signed with Seattle Reign FC of the National Women's Soccer League for the 2014 season. Of the signing, Reign FC head coach Laura Harvey said, "Kendall adds experience and depth to our backline and potentially our midfield as well. She has proven professional experience in America, Australia and in Europe, which could prove vital for us in the coming season."[10] Fletcher scored two goals as a defender for the team and helped them set a league record unbeaten streak of 16 games.[11] The Reign won the league's regular season title (NWSL Shield) with a 16–5–6 record and 54 points – 13 points ahead of the second place team, FC Kansas City.[12] Fletcher was named to the league's Best XI team after contributing to the Reign's 0.83 goals against average, scoring two goals, and serving one assist.[13][14]

International

Fletcher was a member of the United States under-19 women's national team that won the first ever under-19 World Cup in 2002.[15] She played for the team in two Nordic Cup Championships with the under-21 national team winning the championship in 2005. She was team captain in 2006.[2]

Fletcher was a member of the player pool for the United States women's national soccer team having trained with the team during residency in previous years.[16] She made her first cap for the team in 2009.[17]

Coaching career

Fletcher was an assistant coach for the University of California, Irvine and University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.[1][2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Kendall Fletcher bio". University of North Carolina. Retrieved December 27, 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 "Kendall Fletcher, assistant coach". UC Irvine. Retrieved December 27, 2012.
  3. ↑ "North Carolina, UConn will decide title after shutout wins in semifinals.". Soccer Times. December 5, 2003. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  4. ↑ Veileux, Richard (December 10, 2003). "Women's Soccer Team Competes In NCAA Final". University of Connecticut. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  5. ↑ "Fletcher joins Sky Blue". W-League. December 15, 2006. Retrieved September 26, 2009.
  6. ↑ "KENDALL FLETCHER SIGNS AS FIRST-EVER PLAYER FOR PALI BLUES". Pali Blues. December 26, 2007. Retrieved September 26, 2009.
  7. ↑ "Athletica acquires Welsh, Fletcher from L.A. in trade". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. May 8, 2009. Archived from the original on May 15, 2009. Retrieved September 26, 2009.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Kendall Fletcher". Soccer Way. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  9. ↑ "WPS suspends 2012 season". ESPN. Associated Press. January 30, 2012. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  10. ↑ "Reign Sign Veteran Defender Kendall Fletcher". Sounder at Heart. February 11, 2014. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  11. ↑ "Seattle Reign FC sees unbeaten streak end at 16". The Seattle Times. July 12, 2014. Retrieved 12 November 2014.
  12. ↑ "2014 NWSL Standings". National Women's Soccer League. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  13. ↑ Oshan, Jeremiah (August 29, 2014). "Reign dominate NWSL Best XI selections". Sounder at Heart. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  14. ↑ Kassouf, Jeff (August 30, 2014). "Fletcher’s addition, improved chemistry led to Seattle’s league-best defense, run to NWSL final". Equalizer Soccer. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  15. ↑ "Reign FC sign defender Kendall Fletcher". The Equalizer. February 11, 2014. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  16. ↑ "Kendall Fletcher". US Soccer. Retrieved December 27, 2012.
  17. ↑ "2014 USWNT Media Guide". U.S. Soccer Federation. Retrieved 9 January 2015.

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