Mallory Pugh

Mallory Diane Pugh (born April 29, 1998) is an American soccer player for Sky Blue FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), the highest division of women's professional soccer in the United States, and the United States women's national soccer team. In January 2016, she became the youngest female player to be selected and play for the U.S. national team during an Olympic qualifying tournament. After playing extensively with the U–17 and U–20 teams, Pugh first appeared for the United States senior national team on January 23, 2016 in an international friendly against Ireland. At 17, she was the youngest player to debut for the national team since Heather O'Reilly's debut in 2002. Pugh scored in the 83rd minute in her first appearance, becoming the 19th United States player to score in her debut. Shortly after her debut, Pugh was one of the 18 players chosen to represent the United States at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It was there that Pugh scored her first Olympic goal against Colombia, giving the United States a 2–1 lead. Her goal also made her the youngest player to ever score a goal for the United States in an Olympic game. Pugh has represented the United States at the FIFA Women's World Cup tournament in 2019. On April 17, 2017, Pugh made the announcement that she would forego her college career with UCLA and turn professional. On May 13, 2017, it was announced that Mallory Pugh had signed to play with Washington Spirit after negotiations to get to Portland Thorns FC had failed.