Natalie Jacobs

Natalie Jacobs
Jacobs playing for the Houston Dash in 2023
Personal information
Full name Natalie Ann Jacobs[1]
Date of birth (1997-08-16) August 16, 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth Coto de Caza, California, United States
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[2]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Houston Dash
Number 4
Youth career
2013–2015 Slammers FC
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015–2017 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 42 (17)
2018–2019 USC Trojans 45 (9)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2019 LA Galaxy OC 14 (4)
2020–2021 Washington Spirit 4 (0)
2021–2022 Real Betis 17 (0)
2022– Houston Dash 49 (1)
International career
2013–2014 United States U17
2014 United States U18
2015–2016 United States U20 3 (1)
2017 United States U23
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 02:25, September 16, 2024 (UTC)

Natalie Ann Jacobs (born August 16, 1997) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender for the Houston Dash.

Early life

Jacobs grew up in Coto de Caza, California. She is the daughter of Jeff and Teresa Jacobs. Her father captained the U.S. Air Force Academy soccer team. Jacobs was a 2013 and 2014 NSCAA Youth All-American. She played club soccer for Slammers FC and graduated from Tesoro High School in 2015.[3]

College career

26 goals and 23 assists.

Notre Dame

Jacobs played for Notre Dame 2015–2017. In her freshman season, she played in 20 games and made 15 starts for the Irish. Jacobs scored five goals and notched five assists, including a game-winning assist to beat No. 1 ranked Virginia. She was named to the All-ACC Freshman Team and to TopDrawerSoccer.com's Freshman Best XI Second Team. She sat out the 2016 season to play in the U-20 World Cup with the United States. In 2017, as a redshirt sophomore, she led the Irish in goals, scoring 13 goals and 7 assists. Jacobs also played a team-high of 1,745 minutes, appearing in 22 games for the Irish. She led the ACC in conference goals and was named to the all-ACC second team.[3][4]

University of Southern California

Jacobs transferred to the University of Southern California in 2018.[5] At USC, Jacobs scored 9 goals and 11 assists in 2018–2019. https://usctrojans.com/sports/womens-soccer/roster/natalie-jacobs/10539 As a redshirt junior, she played in all 22 games, making 17 starts for the Trojans. She scored 5 goals and made 2 assists, including a goal in each of her first two games. In her final season, she played in all 23 games and made 21 starts for the Trojans. She scored four goals and led the team with nine assists. The Trojans advanced the quarterfinals of the NCAA quarterfinals where Jacobs scored against the University of North Carolina but ultimately the Tar Heels defeated the Trojans 3–2.[3][6]

Club career

Real Betis

Jacobs signed with Real Betis in La Liga F in the 2021–2022 season. Jacobs played in Spain for 5 months with 18 appearance for Real Betis Feminas.[7]

Washington Spirit

In the 2020 NWSL College Draft, the Washington Spirit drafted Jacobs with the 13th overall pick.[8] Jacobs made her NWSL debut in the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup on July 1, 2020.[9] She played in 7 games of the Spirit's 9 games during the abbreviated 2020 season. Overall she earned 5 starts and played a total of 397 minutes.[10] Jacobs signed a new, two-year contract with the Spirit after the 2020 season and she joined the team for preseason in February 2021.[11][12]

Houston Dash

Jacobs signed a two-year deal with the Houston Dash in 2022. Jacobs had 20 starts in 20 regular season appearances in 2023. In 2023 the Houston Dash had the 3rd best defense in NWSL history in 2023 and the best in the league in 2023. Jacobs had 10 starts and 15 appearances in 2022 leading to the Dash's first NWSL Playoffs in club history.[13]

References

  1. ^ "FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Papua New Guinea 2016 – List of Players: USA" (PDF). FIFA. November 8, 2016. p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2018. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  2. ^ Natalie Jacobs at Soccerway. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "Natalie Jacobs player profile". USC Athletics. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  4. ^ "Natalie Jacobs player profile". Notre Dame Athletics. 9 July 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  5. ^ "Trojans Announce Addition of Transfers Natalie Jacobs and Alea Hyatt". USC Athletics. February 12, 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  6. ^ Lohse, Dave (November 29, 2019). "Tar Heels Persevere To Advance To 29th College Cup". UNC Athletics. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  7. ^ "Natalie Jacobs signs for Real Betis".
  8. ^ Becherano, Lizzie (January 16, 2020). "Washington Spirit sign 2020 NWSL draft picks and goalkeeper Katie Lund". Black and Red United. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  9. ^ "Washington Spirit 0–2 North Carolina Courage". NWSLSoccer.com. National Women's Soccer League. July 1, 2020. Archived from the original on July 2, 2020. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  10. ^ "Natalie Jacobs". NWSL. Archived from the original on August 22, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  11. ^ "Spirit Re-Sign 2020 Second-Round Pick Natalie Jacobs to a Multi-Year Deal". Washington Spirit. December 9, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  12. ^ Anderson, Jason (February 1, 2021). "Washington Spirit announce 2021 preseason roster". Black and Red United. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  13. ^ "Defender Natalie Jacobs returns to Houston Dash". Houston Dash.