Wave FC begin training locally in San Diego
Credit: San Diego Wave
San Diego Wave FC’s first week of training is in the books. The week started with smiles on the players’ faces as they arrived at the Del Mar Surf’s Sports Park training facility.
“The first week was so positive,” head coach Casey Stoney said. “It was a historic day to have all the players and staff in the building, to be out on the pitches and grass in this amazing city and in this incredible weather and to build something new.”
It was the first time that a lot of the players had the opportunity to train together. Wave FC has been able to put together a competitive roster filled with international talent and young players, who were drafted looking to make a mark in the league.
No words for this @Kailen_Sheridan save 😱#LOUvNJNY | https://t.co/iecT7II54a | #NWSL21 pic.twitter.com/wosROqhhvO
— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) October 29, 2021
One of the talented players who brings international experience is goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan. She was a part of the Canadian national team that won gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“I’m incredibly excited to be here,” Sheridan said. “This team is amazing and the facilities are absolutely beautiful. We have a world class team that just needs to get together and build some chemistry. I’m excited to see what the future holds for this club.”
The team is built of competitive individuals who want to compete and win games representing San Diego. Apart from Sheridan, Alex Morgan and Abby Dahlkemper bring international success. Both were part of the US team that won the 2019 Women’s World Cup. Dahlkemper was one of two players who started every game for the United States in the 2019 World Cup (the other was goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher).
Dahlkemper was also a member of the UCLA Bruins team that won the National Championship in 2013.
Another member of the Wave with a National Championship is forward Kelsey Turnbow. She was an integral part of the University of Santa Clara Broncos team that won in the 2020-21 season. Turnbow scored a second half goal to tie the game and her team eventually won in penalty kicks.
“I’m so excited to be here,” Turnbow said. “I was drafted over a year ago, and just the anticipation of waiting and seeing how this new club has unfolded has just made me so excited to be here. Now that all the girls are finally here and we finally got to meet the coaching staff, it’s so surreal and it’s a blessing. We can’t wait to get on the field and compete.”
The biggest on-field struggle for any new club is developing an identity and team chemistry.
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“We know we have a lot of work to do but we won’t shy away from that,” Stoney said. “We have a lot of work to embed our principles and philosophy but week one has gone really well so far and I think we’re in a really positive place.”
The Wave have another month of training before they begin their inaugural season on Mar. 19 against fellow NWSL newcomers Angel City FC in the Challenge Cup.
Current student at SDSU. From Santa Rosa in Northern California. Big fan of Bay Area teams (SF Giants, Warriors, Niners). Soccer is my passion “Glory Glory Man United”