Seattle Reign FC today announced its 26-player preseason roster on Wednesday, which includes 20 players under contract for the 2024 NWSL season. The club's draft picks will also be reporting to camp, in addition to three non-roster invitees.
As reported last week, the Reign will begin their preseason camp in southern California – training there for six days before moving to Costa Rica. They'll return to Seattle on February 11 and complete their final month of preseason training at Starfire Sports Complex. The regular-season schedule will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 25.
The two-part preseason trip will give the Reign a chance to integrate their new players into the squad and build relationships. As Reign General Manager Lesle Gallimore shared in a team press release, “It gives the players time to be in a more isolated environment to bond and learn about the expectations and culture of Reign FC. We want to build on our run to the final last year, by again optimizing our depth, whilst also improving in all facets of the game with a new group."
While in Costa Rica, the Reign will the use facilities of Costa Rican side Liga Deportiva Alajuelense (LDA) and play in two preseason matches. They'll go up against LDA on February 3 and will follow that match with a friendly against the Costa Rican women's national team on February 9. The club said it would share more details about the friendlies at a later date.
Preseason Roster Notes
All three Reign draft picks, along with three non-roster invitees, are included on the club's preseason roster.
Two of the Reign's non-roster invitees are still in high school. Both are presumably under 18 years old still and qualify for the league's U-18 mechanism rather than needing to enter the draft.
JuJu Harris is part of the 2025 high school graduating class and currently plays for Florida United. She's also a Brazilian youth national team player who recently committed to Florida State. Harris was on Brazil's U-19 national team squad that won the CONMEBOL Liga Evolución tournament in September 2023. Here's a highlight reel for the forward, which should be noted is two years old.
Emeri Adames plays for Solar Soccer Club in Texas and will graduate from high school this year. Noted as a "top 10 player in the 2024 class" by Top Drawer Soccer (TDS), Adames committed to UNC last year. According to TDS, the U.S. U-19 National Team forward and 2023 ECNL All-American "is an excellent finisher with outstanding ability to link up play and time her runs in behind." Adames represented the U.S. in the 2023 Pan-American games last October.
#USYNT EMERI ADAMES REDUCES THE CHILE LEAD TO 1!!!!!
— Taylor Vincent (@tayvincent6) November 1, 2023
Her 2nd of #USWPAT, U19 #USWNT 1, Chile 2 pic.twitter.com/TqYqDnMubR
The third non-roster invitee is Gianna Gourley, who scored 21 goals and notched five assists in her senior year with Grand Canyon University. With great timing and movement in the box, and some pace on top of that, Gourley finished her college career with 55 goals and 18 assists.
All three draft picks – Sam Meza, Maddie Mercado, and Makena Carr – will also join the Reign in preseason training. They remain unsigned at this time. Ji So-Yun will report to the Reign's preseason following receipt of her visa.
Jacob Cristobal
Defender Jimena Lopez and midfielder Luany will continue their loan in Liga F in Spain through June. Lopez has appeared in 13 matches for Valencia and notched one assist. Luany currently has three goals and four assists in nine starts with Madrid CFF. Her attacking contribution numbers are good for 18th in the league, according to Opta Analyst. (Unsurprisingly, several FC Barcelona players fill up the top spots.)
“It’s an exciting time to get the players together and begin our preparations for the 2024 season,” said Reign Head Coach Laura Harvey in a team release. “Last season, we truly showed the depth and quality we have to be successful and I think preseason is an important time to see what our roster looks like so we can continue pushing forward.”
Current Seattle Reign FC Roster by Position
Goalkeepers (3): Claudia Dickey, Laurel Ivory, Maia Pérez
Defenders (9): Lauren Barnes, Ryanne Brown, Makena Carr (DRAFT), Alana Cook, Shae Holmes, Sofia Huerta, Julia Lester, Jimena López (LOAN), Phoebe McClernon
Midfielders (8): Olivia Athens, Jess Fishlock, Luany (LOAN), Sam Meza (DRAFT), Quinn, Ji So-Yun (INT/NYR), Nikki Stanton, Olivia Van der Jagt
Forwards (8): Emeri Adames (NRI), Bethany Balcer, Gianna Gourley (NRI), Juju Harris (NRI), Jordyn Huitema (INT), Tziarra King, Veronica Latsko, Maddie Mercado (DRAFT)
INT – International Player
LOAN – Player on Loan
DRAFT – Players selected in 2024 NWSL Draft but not signed to a contract
NRI – Non-roster invitee
NYR – Player has not yet reported for preseason training
