Malia Berkely
![]() Berkely with the North Carolina Courage in 2023 | |||
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Malia Nicole Berkely[1] | ||
Date of birth | February 13, 1998 | ||
Place of birth | Liberty Township, Ohio, United States | ||
Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
Position(s) | Center back | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | North Carolina Courage | ||
Number | 7 | ||
College career | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2016–2020 | Florida State Seminoles | 84 | (4) |
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2021 | Bordeaux | 10 | (1) |
2022– | North Carolina Courage | 27 | (0) |
International career | |||
2019 | United States U23 | 3 | (0) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of July 9, 2023 |
Malia Nicole Berkely (born February 13, 1998) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a center back for the North Carolina Courage of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played college soccer for the Florida State Seminoles.
Early life
[edit]Berkely was raised in Hamilton, Ohio, where she attended Father Stephen T. Badin High School.[2]
College career
[edit]Berkely attended Florida State University where she played for the Seminoles from 2016 to 2020. She helped the team win the 2018 NCAA tournament and was twice named ACC Defensive Player of the Year (2019 and 2020) and first-team All-American (2019 and 2020).[3]
Club career
[edit]Bordeaux, 2021
[edit]Berkely joined FC Girondins de Bordeaux in January 2021 on an 18-month contract.[2][4] She appeared in 10 games, scoring one goal, before Bordeaux transferred her with six months remaining on her contract.[5]
North Carolina Courage, 2022–
[edit]In December 2021, Berkely was transferred the North Carolina Courage for a fee,[5] and the Courage signed her to a three-year contract.[6] On March 19, 2022, she started the first game of the 2022 NWSL Challenge Cup and assisted on an Abby Erceg goal to defeat NJ/NY Gotham FC 2–0.[7] She scored her first goal for the Courage in a 2–2 Challenge Cup draw to the Washington Spirit on April 23.[8] She went on to start in the Challenge Cup final, which the Courage won against the Washington Spirit.[9]
On July 21, 2023, the Courage extended Berkely's contract for three years, keeping her with the team through 2026.[10] She started in a second Challenge Cup final in a row in 2023, in which the Courage defeated Racing Louisville FC.[11] She led the NWSL in passing accuracy (89.8%) in the 2023 season.[12]
Personal life
[edit]Berkely married RJ Gerhardt on December 17, 2023.[13]
Honors
[edit]Florida State Seminoles
North Carolina Courage
References
[edit]- ^ "Malia Nicole Berkely". UEFA. Archived from the original on June 19, 2022. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ^ a b Dermer, Shelby. "Former Badin standout, Ms. Ohio Soccer Malia Berkely to play professionally in France". The Enquirer. Retrieved 2022-05-01.
- ^ "Malia Berkley – 2020-21 – Women's Soccer". Florida State Seminoles. Retrieved 2023-12-03.
- ^ "Malia Berkely rejoint les Girondins !". Girondins.com (Press release). Retrieved 2022-05-01.
- ^ a b Ferrandon, Vincent; Romain, Vincent (December 15, 2021). "Girondins : Vanessa Gilles et Malia Berkely vont quitter l'équipe féminine" [Girondins: Vanessa Gilles and Malia Berkely will leave the women's team]. Sud Ouest (in French). Retrieved July 21, 2023.
- ^ "NC Courage Sign Malia Berkely" (Press release). North Carolina Courage. Retrieved 2022-05-01.
- ^ "NJ/NY Gotham FC Falls to NC Courage, 2-0, in Challenge Cup Opener". NJ/NY Gotham FC. 2022-03-19. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
- ^ "Match Recap: Courage Clinch NWSL Challenge Cup Semifinal Berth with Draw Against Spirit, 2–2". North Carolina Courage. 2022-04-23. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
- ^ "Match Recap: Courage Win 2022 NWSL Challenge Cup Championship". North Carolina Courage. 2022-05-07. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
- ^ "Courage D Malia Berkely signs three-year extension". Yardbarker. Field Level Media. July 21, 2023. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
- ^ "Champions! Courage claim Challenge Cup with 2-0 win Saturday". North Carolina Courage. 2023-09-09. Retrieved 2024-08-12.
- ^ OptaJack⚽️ [@OptaJack] (2023-10-16). "89.8 - @TheNCCourage's Malia Berkely ..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Berkely, Malia [@malia_berkely] (2023-12-20). "The most perfect day ..." Retrieved 2024-08-16 – via Instagram.
External links
[edit]- Malia Berkely at Soccerway
- Malia Berkely at FBref.com
- 1998 births
- Living people
- American women's soccer players
- Soccer players from Ohio
- Sportspeople from Butler County, Ohio
- Women's association football defenders
- Florida State Seminoles women's soccer players
- FC Girondins de Bordeaux (women) players
- North Carolina Courage players
- Division 1 Féminine players
- National Women's Soccer League players
- American expatriate sportspeople in France
- Expatriate women's footballers in France
- American expatriate women's soccer players
- United States women's youth international soccer players
- 21st-century American sportswomen
- American soccer defender stubs
- American women's soccer biography stubs