USA vs. Iceland: Starting XI & Lineup Notes

USWNT vs. Iceland presented by AT&T
Date: October 27, 2024
Venue: GEODIS Park; Nashville, Tenn.
Broadcast: TNT, truTV, Universo, Max, Peacock
Official Kickoff Time: 4:37 p.m. CT / 5:37 p.m. ET

Starting XI vs. Iceland: 18-Casey Murphy; 3-Korbin Albert, 5-Jenna Nighswonger, 9-Mallory Swanson (Capt.), 12-Emily Sams, 13-Olivia Moultrie, 14-Emily Sonnett, 15-Jaedyn Shaw, 17-Sam Coffey, 20-Casey Krueger, 24-Yazmeen Ryan

Available Subs: 1-Alyssa Naeher, 4-Naomi Girma, 6-Lynn Williams, 7-Alyssa Thompson, 10-Lindsey Horan, 11-Sophia Smith, 16-Rose Lavelle, 19-Hal Hershfelt, 22-Eva Gaetino, 23-Emily Fox, 25-Alyssa Malonson, 26-Emma Sears

Not dressing: Mandy Haught, Hailie Mace, Ashley Sanchez

GAME NOTES | FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

• USWNT Starting XI Cap Numbers (Including this match): Swanson (102), Sonnett (101), Krueger (58), Coffey (26), Murphy (20), Albert (19), Shaw (18), Nighswonger (17), Moultrie (5), Ryan (2), Sams (1)
• Today’s starting lineup in Nashville features seven changes from the lineup that started on Thursday night in Austin, with Swanson, Sonnett, Coffey and Nighswonger the only players starting both matches.
• This starting lineup features nine players from the 2024 Olympic Roster, though three of the Olympians – Murphy, Shaw and Sams – did not see action during the tournament.
• The starting lineup averages 39 caps per player with only three starters – Swanson, Sonnett and Krueger – having over 30 caps.
• Today’s roster averages 25.5 years of age and includes two teenagers in 19-year-olds Olivia Moultrie and Jaedyn Shaw, marking the first time in over six years that two teenagers have featured in the same starting lineup for the USWNT. On April 8, 2018, Mallory Swanson and Tierna Davidson – both age 19 at the time – started for the U.S. in a friendly against Mexico.
• Mallory Swanson will captain the USWNT for the first time in her career as she is honored pre-match for her 100th cap, which she earned on August 10 during the gold medal match against Brazil. Swanson, who scored in her USWNT debut at age 17 in January of 2016, became the 44th player in USWNT history to reach 100 international appearances, and at 26 years old, was the youngest to reach the century mark since 25-year-old Amy Rodriguez achieved the feat in 2012. Swanson led the U.S. in scoring with four goals at Paris 2024 and her 38 career international goals rank 16th all-time in USWNT history.
• Casey Murphy will earn her 20th cap for the USWNT as she makes her third start of 2023. Murphy started and recorded clean sheets in the USA’s wins over Argentina (Feb. 23) and South Korea (June 4) earlier this year and has kept a clean sheet in eight straight appearances for the USWNT, a streak that dates back to the USA’s win over New Zealand on January 21, 2023. Murphy has 15 career clean sheets good for sixth all-time in USWNT history.
• Korbin Albert will earn her 19th cap as she makes her 10th career start and first since starting against Brazil in the Olympic final, where she assisted the game-winning goal by Swanson. Albert appeared in five matches for the U.S. at Paris 2024 and made two starts, those coming in the quarterfinal against Japan and the gold medal match, and also scored her first international goal in the group stage finale against Australia. Albert is the first player in USWNT history to score her first career goal at an Olympics.
• Jenna Nighswonger will make her second consecutive start and the 10th start overall of her USWNT career as she earns her 17th cap. Nighswonger started and played the full 90 minutes in Thursday’s win over Iceland in Austin, which marked the sixth 90-minute outing of her USWNT career.
• Emily Sams, who had the rare distinction of earning an Olympic gold medal before earning her first USWNT cap, will make her international debut, becoming the 264th player all-time to be capped by the USWNT and the sixth player to debut under Emma Hayes. Sams received her first USWNT call-up as a training player for the July Friendlies against Mexico and Costa Rica after a standout season with the 2024 NWSL Shield Winners Orlando Pride and was added as an alternate to the Olympic roster following the injury to Catarina Macario. She was then elevated to the 18-player matchday roster for the matches against Australia and Japan, which made her eligible to receive a medal.
• The youngest player in today’s starting lineup, Olivia Moultrie will earn her fifth cap as she makes her second career start for the USWNT. Now 19-years-old, Moultrie made her USWNT debut on Dec. 2, 2023, at age 18 and tallied a brace in her first career start on Feb. 20, 2024, that coming in the USA’s opening match of the 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup against the Dominican Republic. At 18 years and 156 days, Moultrie became the third-youngest player to score a brace in USWNT history, trailing only Mia Hamm and Cindy Parlow Cone.
• After earning her 100th cap in Thursday’s win in Austin, Emily Sonnett will make her second consecutive start and the 50th start of her international career. A World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist, Sonnett became the 45th player in USWNT history to reach the 100-cap milestone and helped lead the USA to 87 wins in her first 100 caps, tied with Carli Lloyd and Lindsey Horan for the most wins through 100 caps in program history.
• Jaedyn Shaw, who scored the game-winning goal in Thursday’s win in Austin, will earn her 18th cap as she makes her eighth career start for the USWNT. Shaw, who will celebrate her 20th birthday in November, has six goals this year – tied for second on the team – and eight goals in her international career, which ranks fifth all-time in USWNT history for goals by a teenager. Shaw’s six goals so far in 2024 are tied with Cindy Parlow Cone (6 goals in 1997) for fourth-most by any teenager in a calendar year for the USWNT and the most since Christie Welsh scored a record 11 goals for the USWNT in 2000 while still in her teens.
• Sam Coffey will make her 17th start and 19th appearance of the year as she earns her 26th career cap. Coffey assisted Alyssa Thompson’s goal against Iceland on Thursday night, which marked the second career assist, both of which have come this year.
• After assisting Jaedyn Shaw’s game-winning goal on Thursday night, Casey Krueger will make her 58th international appearance and her third start of 2024. Krueger, the only mother on this roster, started the USA’s June 4 match against Korea Republic and also started – and added an assist – in the USA’s Feb. 23 win over Argentina at the 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup. Krueger will be making her 16th appearance of the year for the USWNT, her most ever in a calendar year in her international career.
• Three days after making her international debut, Yazmeen Ryan will make her first career start as she earns her second cap for the USWNT. Ryan, who earned her first call-up to the USWNT for these October matches, on in the 66th minute of the USA’s Oct. 24 win over Iceland in Austin, Texas, becoming the 262nd player all-time to earn a USWNT cap and the fourth player to debut under Emma Hayes.