Rachel Pace (née McCarthy, born June 10, 2001)[1] is an American professional soccer player from American Fork, Utah who currently plays as midfielder for the Dallas Trinity FC in the USL Super League.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Rachel Anne Pace | ||
| Date of birth | June 10, 2001 | ||
| Place of birth | American Fork, Utah, U.S. | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Dallas Trinity FC | ||
| Number | 33 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Utah Celtic FC | |||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2023 | BYU Cougars | 101 | (21) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022 | Indy Eleven | 8 | (2) |
| 2024 | ETO FC Győr | 9 | (5) |
| 2024– | Dallas Trinity FC | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of November 2, 2024 | |||
Early life
editPace was born in American Fork, Utah, and attended American Fork High School. In 2017, she and Jamie Shepherd (classmate and future BYU teammate) won the state 6A High School championship.[2] Pace played youth club soccer with Utah Celtic FC, and was part of the team that won the 2019 U19 U.S. Youth Soccer National Championship series, the first Utah team in the competition's history to do so.[3]
College career
editBYU Cougars
editPace attended Brigham Young University, where she played as a midfielder and forward for the Cougars in both the West Coast Conference (WCC) and Big 12 Conference. Over her five seasons at BYU, the Cougars qualified for the NCAA Division I tournament each year, advancing to at least the quarter-finals in three of those seasons.
In total, Pace made 101 appearances for the Cougars, starting in 26 games. Known as a "super-sub" for the energy she brought off the bench, she had a standout moment in a match against top-ranked and defending NCAA champions, UCLA, contributing to BYU's 3–1 upset victory by scoring the team's second goal.[4]
Pace played a key role in helping the Cougars reach the final of the 2021 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament, where they finished as runners-up.
In 2023, during her final year, BYU transitioned to the Big 12 Conference. Pace helped lead the Cougars to the finals of the 2023 Big 12 tournament, where they lost 1–3 to the Texas. In the quarterfinals of the 2023 NCAA Division I tournament, Pace came off the bench in the second half, with BYU trailing 3–0 to North Carolina. Her introduction coincided with a dramatic comeback, as BYU scored four goals in the final 29 minutes to secure a 4–3 victory and advance to the College Cup for the second time in program history.[1]
Club career
editIndy Eleven
editThe Indy Eleven announced that Pace would be joining the club on April 25, 2022, the same day her older sister, Robyn, also joined the club.[5] The 2022 USL W League season was the first season of USL W League. Indy Eleven won the very first game in league history, defeating Kings Hammer FC 3–1 on May 6, 2022. Pace scored the first two goals making her the first player in team and league history with a goal and a brace.[6][7][8] Indy Eleven went undefeated in the regular season but lost to Minnesota Aurora FC in the league's playoffs in July 2023.
ETO FC Győr
editAfter going undrafted in the 2024 NWSL Draft, McCarthy signed with Hungarian side ETO FC Győr in February 2024 for the remainder of the 2023–24 season.[9] She made her professional debut on March 2, 2024 coming on as a substitute in the 55th minute in a 2–0 home victory over Diósgyőri VTK.[10]
On March 6, 2024, Pace scored two goals in the first-half of a Hungarian Women's Cup match against Budapest Honvéd FC, which was also her first professional goal and brace.[11] Pace got her second brace in a league match on May 5, 2024, in a 4–1 home win over Puskás Akadémia FC.[12] On April 25, 2024, she started in the final of the Hungarian Women's Cup, helping Győr secure their third consecutive title.[13]
Győr finished runners-up in the Női NB I league for the third consecutive season, finishing just four points behind league winners, Ferencvárosi TC.[14]
Dallas Trinity FC
editOn June 18, 2024, Pace joined Dallas Trinity FC in preparation for the inaugural USL Super League season.[15] Pace made her club debut as a substitute, replacing Allie Thornton in the 88th minute.
Career statistics
editCollege summary
edit| College team | Season | Regular season | Conference Tournament | NCAA Tournament | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| BYU Cougars | 2019 | WCC | 18 | 1 | — | 2 | 0 | 20 | 1 | |
| 2020–21 | 15 | 9 | — | — | 15 | 9 | ||||
| 2021 | 18 | 4 | — | 6 | 0 | 24 | 4 | |||
| 2022 | 17 | 1 | — | 3 | 1 | 20 | 2 | |||
| 2023 | Big 12 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 22 | 5 | |
| Total | 86 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 16 | 1 | 101 | 21 | ||
Club summary
edit- As of November 2, 2024
| Club | Season | League | League Cup | Playoffs | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Indy Eleven[16] | 2022 | USL W League | 8 | 2 | — | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | |
| ETO FC Győr | 2023–24 | NB I | 9 | 5 | 3 | 2 | — | 12 | 7 | |
| Dallas Trinity FC | 2024–25 | USL Super League | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Career total | 18 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 9 | ||
Personal life
editPace graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from BYU in December 2023. She has four siblings.[17] Her older sister, Robyn, also played college soccer at Fresno State.[18]
Honors
editIndy Eleven
- Great Lakes Division winners: 2022
ETO FC Győr
- Hungarian Women's Cup: 2024
- Női NB I runner's up: 2024
References
edit- ^ "Rachel McCarthy". Indy Eleven. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- ^ "High school girls soccer: American Fork squeaks past Layton with 1–0 overtime win". Deseret News. 2023-12-24. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- ^ "Celtic Alumni". Utah Celtic FC. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- ^ "No. 7 BYU women's soccer shocks No. 1 UCLA, 3–1". heraldextra.com. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- ^ "Rachel McCarthy". Indy Eleven. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- ^ ""Tonight was surreal": What made the W League inaugural match so special". uslwleague.com. USL W League. May 10, 2022. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
- ^ Haenchen, Brian (May 7, 2022). "USL W League debuts with Indy Eleven victory: 'It was so much more than I expected.'". Indianapolis Star. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
- ^ ""Tonight was surreal": What made the W League inaugural match so special". www.uslwleague.com. Retrieved 2024-09-15.
- ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
- ^ www.esportsmedia.cz, eSports cz, s r o-. "Match ETO FC GYŐR vs. DVTK (02.03.2024) | ETO FC Győr". www.eto.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2024-09-20.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
- ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
- ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
- ^ www.esportsmedia.cz, eSports cz, s r o- (2024-06-25). "ETO-játékos kerülhet a világ legerősebb bajnokságába! | ETO FC Győr". www.eto.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2024-08-08.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "McCarthy Signs with Dallas Trinity FC". byucougars.com. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- ^ "Indy Eleven - 2022 Playoffs - Roster - #24 - Rachel McCarthy -". www.uslwleague.com. Retrieved 2024-08-23.
- ^ "#33 Rachel McCarthy". BYU Athletics. Retrieved August 24, 2024.
- ^ "Robyn McCarthy - Women's Soccer". Fresno State. Retrieved 2024-09-15.
External links
edit- Rachel Pace's profile at Brigham Young University
- Rachel Pace #33 at Dallas Trinity FC
- Rachel McCarthy at Soccerway