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// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Meagan McClelland a good climber? She's a great McClelland-er.

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Meagan McClelland
McClelland with the Carolina Ascent in 2025
Personal information
Full name Meagan Erin McClelland
Date of birth (2000-08-05) August 5, 2000 (age 26)
Place of birth Kearny, New Jersey
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Position Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
 Angel City
Number 41
Youth career
2008–2018 PDA
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2022 Rutgers Scarlet Knights 102 (0)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2023 Chicago Red Stars 0 (0)
2023 San Diego Wave 0 (0)
2023 NJ/NY Gotham FC 0 (0)
2024 Odense Boldklub Q 9 (0)
2024–2026 Carolina Ascent 34 (0)
2026– Angel City 0 (0)
International career‡
2016 United States U17
2017 United States U19 1 (0)
2019 United States U20 2 (0)
2019 United States U23 1 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17:27, June 4, 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of December 13, 2019

Meagan Erin McClelland (born August 5, 2000) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Angel City FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played college soccer for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, where she was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and All-Big Ten four times. After stints with several NWSL clubs, she made her professional debut for Danish club Odense Boldklub Q in 2024, helping them earn promotion to the top flight. Later that year, she joined USL Super League club Carolina Ascent, winning the inaugural Golden Glove and Players' Shield in 2025.

Early life

[edit]

McClelland grew up in Kearny, New Jersey, one of three children born to Coleen and Patrick McClelland.[1] She began playing soccer when she was three and joined Mike O'Neill's PDA academy at age eight. She played multiple outfield positions before turning to goalkeeper when she received goalkeeping gloves as a Christmas present in third grade.[2][3] She also played basketball growing up and starred in both sports at Kearny High School. She kept 20 clean sheets in one-and-a-half seasons with the soccer team, and she scored 1,348 points in 91 games for the basketball team.[4] She committed to Rutgers as a sophomore.[5]

College career

[edit]

McClelland succeeded Casey Murphy as the starting goalkeeper for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.[5] In her freshman season in 2018, she played all 20 games and kept 8 clean sheets, leading the Big Ten Conference in goals against average. Rutgers placed second in the conference and qualified for the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments, losing in both first rounds. McClelland was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year and third-team All-Big Ten.[1][6] In her sophomore season, she kept 12 clean sheets in 21 games, earning second-team All-Big Ten honors and helping Rutgers repeat as Big Ten regular-season runners-up. They made the semifinals of the Big Ten tournament but lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament.[1][7] She became team captain in her junior season, which was pushed back to the spring because of the COVID-19 pandemic. She kept 7 clean sheets in 16 games, earning second-team All-Big Ten honors, as Rutgers made the Big Ten tournament semifinals and the second round of the NCAA tournament.[1]

McClelland and Rutgers had a banner year in her senior season in 2021. She made a career-high 83 saves and kept a career-high 13 clean sheets in 25 games, earning third-team All-Big Ten honors. Rutgers went 10–0 in conference play to claim the program's first Big Ten regular-season title, and they did not concede in the Big Ten tournament until the final where they lost to Michigan. In the NCAA tournament, McClelland saved three penalty kicks and made one herself in a third-round shootout win against TCU, then saved one kick and converted another in a quarterfinal shootout win against Arkansas. The No. 1 seed Scarlet Knights reached their second-ever national semifinal where they fell to eventual champions No. 1 Florida State.[1][8] McClelland returned to use her fifth year of eligibility, granted by the NCAA due to the pandemic. She kept 8.5 clean sheets in 20 games as Rutgers finished seventh in the conference in 2022.[1][9] She left college with the second-most minutes played in NCAA history behind McKinley Crone.[10]

Club career

[edit]

McClelland was not selected in the 2023 NWSL Draft but was invited to preseason training with the Chicago Red Stars, who signed her to a short-term national team replacement contract on April 7, 2023.[11][12] Later that year, she signed further short-team deals with San Diego Wave FC in July and NJ/NY Gotham FC in September. She signed a permanent contract with Gotham in November as they finished the season as NWSL champions.[13][14]

McClelland returned to Gotham for the 2024 preseason before going overseas to join Danish Women's 1st Division club Odense Boldklub Q on February 26, 2024.[15][16] She made her professional debut in a 1–1 draw against B.93 on March 16. She ended up making 9 starts and kept 6 clean sheets, helping Odense secure promotion to the top division, before returning to the United States after her last game on June 8.[17][18]

On June 6, 2024, Carolina Ascent FC announced the signing of McClelland before the inaugural season of the USL Super League.[14] She started in the league's inaugural game as the Ascent won 1–0 against DC Power FC on August 27.[19] She kept 6 clean sheets through 11 games and was the only goalkeeper in the league to start every game in the inaugural fall series.[20][21] During the winter break, Carolina signed former North Carolina Tar Heels goalkeeper Samantha Leshnak Murphy. Leshnak Murphy won the starting job during the spring and led the Ascent to finish the regular season as Players' Shield winners.[20][22] Despite finishing the season as a backup, McClelland earned the inaugural Golden Glove Award with the best goals against average in the league, having allowed just 17 goals in 18 appearances.[23] McClelland regained the starting job at the start of the following season, before new signing Sydney Martinez took over halfway through the campaign.[24]

On August 7, 2026, it was announced that McClelland had signed a short-term contract with Angel City FC, returning to the NWSL.[25]

International career

[edit]

She was called into the United States national under-17 team shortly before the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup and made the tournament roster as a bench player.[26] She later appeared in friendlies at the under-19, under-20, and under-23 levels.[17]

Honors and awards

[edit]

Rutgers Scarlet Knights

NJ/NY Gotham FC

Carolina Ascent

Individual

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Meagan McClelland". Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  2. ↑ Eskilson, J.R. (September 26, 2016). "Meet the 2016 U.S. U17 World Cup squad". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  3. ↑ "Kearny's McClelland proving to be two-sport star". The Observer. February 2, 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  4. ↑ Bernstein, Jason (August 1, 2023). "Going Pro — Kearny's Meagan McClelland signs with San Diego Wave FC". The Observer. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  5. 1 2 Anzidei, Melanie (January 12, 2023). "Meagan McClelland, former Rutgers star, has eyes set on pro women's soccer draft". NorthJersey.com. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Women's Soccer 2018 Season Recap". Rutgers Scarlet Knights. December 12, 2018. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  7. ↑ "2019 Women's Soccer Season in Review". Big Ten Conference. December 24, 2019. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  8. ↑ Anzidei, Melanie (December 3, 2021). "Rutgers women's soccer falls to Florida State in heartbreaking Final Four loss". NorthJersey.com. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  9. ↑ Kalegi, Edward (October 30, 2022). "No. 20 Rutgers women's soccer falls in 1st round of Big Ten Tournament". The Daily Targum. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  10. ↑ "Division I Women's Soccer Records – Goalkeeper Minutes Played" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. p. 8. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  11. ↑ Anzidei, Melanie (January 20, 2023). "Rutgers' Meagan McClelland invited to Chicago Red Stars training camp". northJersey.com. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  12. ↑ "Chicago Red Stars Sign Meagan McClelland". Chicago Red Stars. April 27, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  13. ↑ "Gotham FC adds Goalkeeper Meagan McClelland". NJ/NY Gotham FC. November 11, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  14. 1 2 Cover, Amanda (June 6, 2024). "NWSL Champion Goalkeeper, Meagan McClelland, Signs with Carolina Ascent FC". Carolina Ascent FC. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  15. ↑ "Gotham FC Adds Ten Players for Preseason Training". NJ/NY Gotham FC. February 13, 2024. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  16. ↑ "Meagan McClelland er ny målmand i OB Q" (in Danish). Odense Boldklub Q. February 26, 2024. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  17. 1 2 Meagan McClelland at Soccerway Edit this at Wikidata
  18. ↑ "Meagan McClelland drager tilbage USA" (in Danish). Odense Boldklub Q. June 6, 2024. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  19. ↑ Cover, Amanda. "Carolina Ascent FC Record Historic First Win". Carolina Ascent FC. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  20. 1 2 Spencer, Sam (April 23, 2025). "Carolina Ascent FC is Poised to Win the USL Super League's Inaugural Season". Soccer Sheet. Retrieved May 31, 2025.
  21. ↑ Turner, De (January 30, 2025). "What to expect from Carolina Ascent FC in the spring". USL Super League. Retrieved May 31, 2025.
  22. 1 2 "Carolina Ascent claims 2024/25 USL Super League Players' Shield". USL Super League. May 17, 2025. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
  23. 1 2 "USL Super League announces 2024/25 Golden Award Winners". USL Super League. June 1, 2025. Retrieved June 13, 2025.
  24. ↑ Goldberg, Steve (April 25, 2026). "Carolina Ascent's Sydney Martinez plays for club, country in 24 hours". The Charlotte Post. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  25. ↑ "Angel City FC Signs Goalkeeper Meagan McClelland To Short-Term Contract". Angel City FC. August 7, 2026. Retrieved August 7, 2026.
  26. ↑ "Snow names U17 roster for Women's World Cup". United States Soccer Federation. August 26, 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
[edit]
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