Croix Bethune

Last updated

Croix Bethune
Personal information
Date of birth (2001-03-14) March 14, 2001 (age 23) [1]
Height 5 ft 2 in (1.57 m)
Position(s) Attacking midfielder [2]
Team information
Current team
 Washington Spirit
Number 7
College career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2021–2022 USC Trojans 48 (26)
2023 Georgia Bulldogs 15 (4)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2024– Washington Spirit 11 (4)
International career
2017–2018 United States U-17 15 (7)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of May 24, 2024

Croix Bethune (born March 14, 2001) is an American professional soccer player who plays as an attacking midfielder for the Washington Spirit of the National Women's Soccer League. She played college soccer for the USC Trojans and the Georgia Bulldogs. She was selected by the Spirit third overall in the 2024 NWSL Draft.

Contents

Early life

Bethune was born to Richard and Jean Bethune, both members of the United States Air Force, and has a brother. [3] [4] She started playing soccer at age three or four. [5] At age four, her family moved to England for three and a half years, where she originally played with boys because there was no girls' team. [4] [6] She played club soccer for the ECNL's Concorde Fire Soccer Club in Atlanta and was named to the national Best XI in 2017 and 2018. [1] She played one season of high school soccer at Alpharetta High School. [3] She also played basketball into high school but focused on soccer after tearing her ACL while training with the national under-17 team. [4] [7]

College career

Bethune played three seasons at the University of Southern California (USC). She missed her freshman season due to a second ACL tear. [4] On her debut for the Trojans, she recorded two assists in a 4–3 overtime win against BYU in February 2021. [4] [8] She scored 16 goals in the 2021 season, the third most in a season in program history, including a nine-minute hat trick in the first round of the 2021 NCAA tournament. [3] [9] In both 2021 and 2022, as captain of the Trojans, she was named first-team All-Pac-12, first-team All-American, and the Pac-12 Midfielder of the Year. [1] [4] Highlights of her "flashy playing style" at USC included backheel passes, chip shots, and once balancing the ball on her head to keep control on offense. [4]

Bethune transferred to the University of Georgia for the 2023 season, reuniting with former USC coach Keidane McAlpine, though she tore her ACL for a third time while still at USC finishing her undergraduate degree. [6] [10] She led Georgia to its first postseason title in program history at the 2023 SEC tournament, where she scored an equalizer against Kentucky in the quarterfinals and the last-minute game winner against Texas A&M in the semifinals, and was named the tournament's most valuable player. [6] She was named second-team All-SEC and second-team All-American. [1]

Club career

Washington Spirit, 2024–

The Washington Spirit selected Bethune third overall in the 2024 NWSL Draft; the Spirit acquired the pick by trading Sam Staab to the Chicago Red Stars. [11] She signed a three-year contract with a one-year option. [12] She scored her first professional goal late in stoppage time to beat Bay FC 2–1 on March 23. [13] [14] The following month, she scored in consecutive wins against the Houston Dash on April 12 and NJ/NY Gotham FC on April 20. [13] For her performance, she was named the NWSL Rookie of the Month for March/April 2024. [15] On May 2, she assisted three times in a 4–2 win over the Chicago Red Stars, becoming the youngest NWSL player to record that many assists in one match. [16] She broke the rookie-season assist record with her seventh assist on May 10 and later that month led the league in assists, with eight. [17] She repeated as Rookie of the Month for May 2024. [18]

International career

Bethune was first called up to a youth national team training camp with the United States national under-15 team at age 13 in March 2015. [3] [19] She helped win the 2016 CONCACAF Girls' U-15 Championship, where she was named to the tournament's Best XI team. [20] She was the youngest player on the under-17 team in November 2016. [21] She played for the winning team at the 2018 CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship and competed at the 2018 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup. [22] [23] She played friendlies for the under-23 team in 2022. [24]

Bethune was called into her first senior national team camp as a training player in June 2024. [25]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Croix Bethune – 2023 – Soccer". University of Georgia Athletics . Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  2. ↑ Kassouf, Jeff (April 25, 2024). "NWSL 2024 MVP Tracker: Who are the best players this season?". ESPN . Retrieved May 25, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Croix Bethune – Women's Soccer". University of Southern California Athletics . Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Nguyen, Thuc Nhi (October 26, 2022). "How USC soccer's Croix Bethune became one of the best players in the country". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  5. ↑ Sylvs, Southern (February 9, 2024). "Croix Bethune: Ready for the World". All for XI. SB Nation . Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 Tidwell, Sara (January 18, 2024). "'Dreams do come true': How this UGA star worked to become a first-round draft pick". Athens Banner-Herald . Archived from the original on March 13, 2024.
  7. ↑ Dubey, Aaddya (August 24, 2021). "Bethune thrives in return to play". Daily Trojan . Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  8. ↑ Maria, Alixandria (February 15, 2021). "Trojans open their season with overtime win over BYU". USC Annenberg Media . Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  9. ↑ Almendarez, Hector (November 13, 2021). "USC thrashes Grand Canyon in first round of NCAA Tournament". Daily Trojan . Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  10. ↑ Warden, Owen (June 22, 2023). "Georgia soccer adds 5 transfers to 2023 recruiting class". The Red & Black . Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  11. ↑ Brockway, Ella (January 13, 2024). "Spirit gets busy, deals Ashley Sanchez, Sam Staab and loads up in draft". The Washington Post . Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  12. ↑ "Washington Spirit Officially Signs 2024 Rookie Class to Professional Contracts". Washington Spirit. March 11, 2024. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
  13. 1 2 Floyd, Thomas (April 20, 2024). "The Spirit bet big on Croix Bethune. The rookie has made that look wise". The Washington Post . Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  14. ↑ Floyd, Thomas (March 23, 2024). "The Spirit's rookies deliver for a last-gasp 2-1 win over Bay FC". The Washington Post . Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  15. ↑ "Washington Spirit Midfielder Croix Bethune Named NWSL Rookie of the Month, Presented by Ally". Washington Spirit. March 7, 2024. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
  16. ↑ Rantz, Susie (May 2, 2024). "Barbra Banda's 2 goals keep Orlando Pride undefeated in NWSL". Associated Press . Retrieved May 7, 2024.
  17. ↑ Brockway, Ella (May 24, 2024). "Croix Bethune strikes again, lifting Spirit to 3–2 win over Reign". The Washington Post . Archived from the original on May 25, 2024.
  18. ↑ "Washington Spirit Midfielder Croix Bethune Named May Rookie of the Month, Presented by Ally". National Women's Soccer League. June 6, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  19. ↑ "U.S. U15 GNT camp roster revealed". United States Soccer Federation. March 2, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2024– via TopDrawerSoccer.com.
  20. ↑ "TSG reveals CU15G Best XI, Awards". CONCACAF. August 22, 2016. Archived from the original on August 24, 2016.
  21. ↑ Yort, Caroline (November 16, 2015). "2019 Girls IMG Academy 150 rankings update". TopDrawerSoccer.com . Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  22. ↑ "U.S. U17 WNT cruises past Bermuda". United States Soccer Federation. June 7, 2018. Retrieved March 11, 2024– via TopDrawerSoccer.com.
  23. ↑ "U17 WNT fall in second World Cup match". United States Soccer Federation. November 17, 2018. Retrieved March 11, 2024– via TopDrawerSoccer.com.
  24. ↑ "Under-23 WNT heads to Europe in June". United States Soccer Federation. June 15, 2022. Retrieved March 15, 2024– via TopDrawerSoccer.com.
  25. ↑ Anderson, Jason (May 22, 2024). "Bethune, Hershfelt talk USWNT call-ups amid standout NWSL rookie seasons". Pro Soccer Wire. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
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