Melissa Palma Julie Tancredi (born December 27, 1981) is a Canadian retired soccer forward who played for the Canada women's national soccer team. 3 time Olympian, 2 time bronze medalist. She won an Olympic bronze medal as a participating member of Canada's national team at the 2012 Olympics[3] when Canada defeated France 1–0 in the bronze medal match on August 9, 2012. Tancredi was a participating member when Canada won Bronze defeating Brazil 2–1 in the 2016 Rio Olympics. Tancredi's nickname is "Tanc".[4]

Melissa Tancredi
Personal information
Full name Melissa Palma Julie Tancredi[1]
Date of birth (1981-12-27) December 27, 1981 (age 42)[2]
Place of birth Ancaster, Ontario, Canada
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 9+12 in)[1]
Position(s) Striker
Youth career
Burlington Sting
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2000–2004 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 82 (14)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2004 Detroit Jaguars 10 (2)
2005–2006 Atlanta Silverbacks 15 (7)
2007 Jersey Sky Blue 2 (0)
2007 River Cities Futbol Club 0 (0)
2009 Saint Louis Athletica 14 (0)
2010 Vancouver Whitecaps 9 (5)
2011 Piteå IF 8 (2)
2012 Dalsjöfors GoIF 5 (2)
2014–2015 Chicago Red Stars 21 (5)
2016 KIF Örebro DFF 16 (8)
2018–2019 North Shore GSC Renegades (5)
2019–2022 Fusion FC (13)
Total 172 (31)
International career
2004–2017 Canada 125 (27)
Medal record
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2012 London Team
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team
Pan American Games
Bronze medal – third place 2007 Rio de Janeiro Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of September 7, 2016
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of November 23, 2019

Early life edit

Tancredi was born in Ancaster, Ontario, to parents Peter and Ann-Marie Tancredi, her father being Italian-born from Ascoli Piceno.[5] She began playing soccer at age four.[6] She played soccer, volleyball, and track at Cathedral High School in Hamilton, Ontario. She was named soccer MVP and senior athlete of the year during her senior year.

Tancredi played for the under-19 provincial team and Burlington Sting club program. She helped the Burlington Sting win the Canadian title and Ontario Cup and was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the Burlington Sting in 1999.[7]

College career edit

Tancredi attended the University of Notre Dame in the U.S. from 2000 to 2004 where she majored in anthropology and pre-medicine studies. She played on the school's soccer team, but she was sidelined her first year due to an anterior cruciate ligament injury.[8]

In 2003, Tancredi was named First Team All-American, Second Team All-American, NSCAA Second Team All-Region, Big East Defensive Player of the Year, and First Team All-Big East Conference. She was a finalist for the MAC Hermann Trophy.[7]

In 2004, Tancredi returned to Notre Dame after being awarded a fifth year of eligibility and was named as tri-captain. She helped lead the Irish to the NCAA National Championship and was named First Team All-American, Second Team All-American, First Team All-Big East, and Big East Defensive Player of the Year for a second straight season.[9]

Club career edit

In 2004, Tancredi played with the Detroit Jaguars in the W-League, scoring two goals and providing two assists in ten games played.[7] From 2005 to 2006, she played for the Atlanta Silverbacks Women in the W-League and was named to the 2005 W-League All-League team.[10]

In 2009, Tancredi played for the Saint Louis Athletica in the Women's Professional Soccer league. In 2010, she joined the Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the W-League and led the team with six goals and two assists, The team was undefeated in the regular season and had a spot in the W-League's final four.[11]

In 2011, Tancredi was a member of the Piteå IF in Sweden. In 2012, she played with the Swedish team Dalsjöfors GoIF. In 2014, she was allocated to the expansion Houston Dash by Canadian national team coach John Herdman, but was traded to the Chicago Red Stars for fellow Canadian international Erin McLeod before the Dash's expansion draft.

International career edit

Tancredi was a member of the Canadian U19 national team and trained in British Columbia with the U20 national team in 2000. She was also a member of the 1999 national 'B' training team.

Tancredi made her debut with Canada as a central back, starting in all five games of the 2004 Olympic qualifying tournament in Costa Rica. Canada had 6–0 wins over Jamaica and Panama, two wins over Costa Rica (2–1, 4–0), and a 2–1 loss to Mexico that cost the Canadians a spot at the Olympic Games. Tancredi had previously been invited to play with the Canadian national team at the 2000 Algarve Cup in Portugal.

Tancredi was part of the Canadian team that finished second to the United States at the 2006 CONCACAF Women's Gold Cup. In 2007, Tancredi scored the second-fastest goal in World Cup history (just 37 seconds from the start of the September game against Australia) in her first game at the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup in China.[6]

Tancredi won a bronze medal at the 2007 Pan American Games. She played for 199 minutes (starting three games) at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup. She was part of the bronze medal-winning teams at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, scoring four goals in the London games and two in the Rio games.[12][13][14]

Tancredi competed for team Canada in three World Cup final tournaments: 2007, 2011 and 2015; and three Olympics: Beijing 2008, London 2012, and Rio 2016. At these tournaments, she played in 24 matches and scored 8 goals. She and her teammates won bronze medals at both the London and Rio Olympics. Tancredi scored both goals in a 2–1 win against Germany on the third match day of the 2016 Rio Olympics to put Canada at the top of their group.[14]

Personal life edit

Tancredi is openly lesbian.[15] Tancredi announced her retirement from soccer in January 2017.[16] She is now a Doctor of Chiropractic, practicing out of The Workshop Performance Clinic in Vancouver.[17]

Career statistics edit

Club edit

Club Season League Playoffs[a] Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Chicago Red Stars 2014 NWSL 13 3 13 3
2015 8 2 1 0 9 2
Career total 21 5 1 0 22 5
  1. ^ Includes NWSL Playoffs

International edit

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Canada 2004 7 0
2005 6 0
2006 1 0
2007 7 2
2008 18 6
2009 4 1
2010 9 2
2011 15 3
2012 21 8
2013 1 0
2014 3 0
2015 17 0
2016 15 5
2017 1 0
Total 125 27
Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Tancredi goal.
List of international goals scored by Melissa Tancredi
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
1 July 14, 2007 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil   Uruguay 6–0 7–0 2007 Pan American Games [m 1]
2 September 20, 2007 Chengdu, China   Australia 1–0 2–2 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup [m 2]
3 April 2, 2008 Ciudad Juárez, Mexico   Trinidad and Tobago 1–0 6–0 2008 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying [m 3]
4 April 6, 2008 Ciudad Juárez, Mexico   Costa Rica 1–0 1–0 2008 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying [m 4]
5 April 9, 2008 Ciudad Juárez, Mexico   Mexico 1–0 1–0 2008 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying [m 5]
6 April 12, 2008 Ciudad Juárez, Mexico   United States 1–0 1–1 (a.e.t.) 2008 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying [m 6]
7 June 14, 2008 Suwon, South Korea   Argentina 4–0 5–0 2008 Peace Queen Cup [m 7]
8 August 12, 2008 Beijing, China   Sweden 1–2 1–2 2008 Summer Olympics [m 8]
9 March 10, 2009 Larnaca, Cyprus   Russia 2–0 2–0 2009 Cyprus Women's Cup [m 9]
10 September 30, 2010 Toronto, Canada   China 2–1 3–1 Friendly [m 10]
11 October 29, 2010 Cancún, Mexico   Trinidad and Tobago 1–0 1–0 2010 CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying [m 11]
12 January 21, 2011 Yongchuan, Chongqing, China   China 1–2 3–2 2011 Four Nations Tournament [m 12]
13 January 23, 2011 Yongchuan, Chongqing, China   United States 1–1 1–2 2011 Four Nations Tournament [m 13]
14 September 17, 2011 Kansas City, Kansas, U.S.   United States 1–1 1–1 Friendly [m 14]
15 January 21, 2012 Vancouver, Canada   Cuba 2–0 2–0 2012 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying [m 15]
16 January 27, 2012 Vancouver, Canada   Mexico 2–0 3–1 2012 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying [m 16]
17 February 28, 2012 Larnaca, Cyprus   Scotland 5–1 5–1 2012 Cyprus Women's Cup [m 17]
18 June 30, 2012 Sandy, Utah, U.S.   United States 1–1 1–2 Friendly [m 18]
19 July 25, 2012 Coventry, England   Japan 1–2 1–2 2012 Summer Olympics [m 19]
20 July 28, 2012 Coventry, England   South Africa 1–0 3–0 2012 Summer Olympics [m 20]
21 July 31, 2012 Newcastle, England   Sweden 1–2 2–2 2012 Summer Olympics [m 21]
22 2–2
23 February 14, 2016 Houston, Texas, U.S.   Trinidad and Tobago 2–0 6–0 2016 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying [m 22]
24 February 16, 2016 Houston, Texas, U.S.   Guatemala 1–0 10–0 2016 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying [m 23]
25 9–0
26 August 9, 2016 Brasília, Brazil   Germany 1–1 2–1 2016 Summer Olympics [m 24]
27 2–1

Honours edit

Canada

References edit

  1. ^ a b "FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 – List of Players: Canada" (PDF). FIFA. July 6, 2015. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 8, 2019. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
  2. ^ "Melissa Palma Julie Tancredi". London2012.com. Archived from the original on August 1, 2012. Retrieved August 3, 2012.
  3. ^ "Melissa Tancredi". Team Canada – Official Olympic Team Website. September 18, 2011. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  4. ^ "'Caps for Canada: Melissa Tancredi". Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  5. ^ "Melissa Tancredi". Canada Soccer. November 21, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Melissa Tancredi biography". Canadian Olympic Team. September 18, 2011. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  7. ^ a b c "Melissa Tancredi player profile". University of Notre Dame. Archived from the original on February 23, 2017. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  8. ^ "Notre Dame Women's Soccer". Notre Dame Fighting Irish – Official Athletics Website. August 7, 2018. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
  9. ^ "Melissa Tancredi resume". Melissa Tancredi. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  10. ^ "SILVERBACKS' TANCREDI NAMED ALL-LEAGUE; MILLER-JOBSON EARNS ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS". Atlanta Silverbacks. Archived from the original on November 21, 2010. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  11. ^ whitecapsfc. "Former 'Caps W-League player Melissa Tancredi announces international retirement | Vancouver Whitecaps". whitecapsfc. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
  12. ^ "Ancaster's Melissa Tancredi returns to Olympic soccer team". Hamilton Community News. Archived from the original on January 25, 2013. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  13. ^ "Tancredi & Sinclair: We're back in the race". FIFA. Archived from the original on August 4, 2012. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  14. ^ a b "Canada scores historic soccer win over Germany, ends 22-year losing streak".
  15. ^ "Out at the Rio Olympics". washingtonblade.com. August 4, 2016.
  16. ^ "Canadian veterans announce retirements from women's soccer team | CBC Sports".
  17. ^ "Book Online at The Workshop Performance Clinic". melissatancredi14.janeapp.com.
Match reports
  1. ^ "Canada vs Uruguay – 14 July 2007". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  2. ^ "Canada vs Australia – 20 September 2007". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  3. ^ "Canada vs Trinidad & Tobago – 2 April 2008". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  4. ^ "Canada vs Costa Rica – 6 April 2008". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  5. ^ "Canada vs Mexica – 9 April 2008". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  6. ^ "Canada vs USA – 12 April 2008". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  7. ^ "Canada vs Argentina – 14 June 2008". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  8. ^ "Canada vs Sweden – 12 August 2008". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  9. ^ "Canada vs Russia – 10 March 2009". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  10. ^ "Canada vs China PR – 30 September 2010". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  11. ^ "Canada vs Trinidad & Tobago – 29 October 2010". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  12. ^ "Canada vs China PR – 21 January 2011". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  13. ^ "Canada vs USA – 23 January 2011". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  14. ^ "Canada vs USA – 17 September 2011". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  15. ^ "Canada vs Cuba – 21 January 2012". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  16. ^ "Canada vs Mexica – 27 January 2012". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  17. ^ "Canada vs Scotland – 28 February 2012". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  18. ^ "Canada vs USA – 30 June 2012". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  19. ^ "Canada vs Japan – 25 July 2012". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  20. ^ "Canada vs South Africa – 28 July 2012". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  21. ^ "Canada vs Sweden – 31 July 2012". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  22. ^ "Canada vs Trinidad and Tobago – 28 February 2016". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  23. ^ "Canada vs Guatemala – 16 February 2016". Canada Soccer Association. November 21, 2019.
  24. ^ "Women's Olympic Football Tournament Rio 2016: Group Stage: Germany vs Canada". ESPN.

External links edit