Santa Clara’s Ertz one of big names headed to Olympics
Julie Ertz made it. Catarina Macario did not.
The two former Bay Area college greats were at the center of a trying selection process as coach Vlatko Andonovski announced Wednesday the U.S. women’s soccer roster for the Summer Olympics.
Ertz, a former Santa Clara University star, was picked despite suffering a medial collateral ligament injury in her right knee on May 16. She is expected to be almost fully recovered by the time the top-ranked United States opens the tournament on July 21 against rival Sweden.
Macario, the two-time player of the year at Stanford, is expected to become one of the world’s top attacking midfielders. The Brazilian-born player is going to Japan as an alternate but her time probably is two years away at the 2023 World Cup.
Andonovski had difficult decisions because the Olympic squad is limited to 18 players, five fewer than World Cup rosters.
Six players with Bay Area connections made the roster: Stanford’s Tierna Davidson, Kelley O’Hara and Christen Press, Cal’s Alex Morgan, Abby Dahlkemper of Menlo Park and Ertz.
Former Stanford goalkeeper Jane Campbell will join Macario as an alternate.
Andonovski picked 17 players who helped the United States win the 2019 World Cup in France. Kristie Mewis, who didn’t make the cut in 2019, was picked for the Tokyo Games over Macario.
“For Kristie, she is a product of NWSL,” Andonovkis said in a call with reporters. “She played extremely well in the league in the last year and a half or so, earned herself an opportunity. Then after the opportunity was given to her, she took full advantage of it. Every game that she came in, whether it was 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes, she maximized that opportunity and continued growing and developing in the league and performing in the league.”
Redding forward Megan Rapinoe, who turns 36 on July 5, was one of the many veterans Andonovski picked over promising young stars like 20-year-old Sophia Smith, another Stanford product. Carli Lloyd, who turns 39 on July 16, and Tobin Heath, 33, made their fourth Olympic teams.
“I don’t judge the players by their age,” Andonovski said. “They are either good, perform well and can help us win, or they can’t. In terms of Carli, she’s done everything that she needs to do to earn herself a spot on the team. Now, the fact that she is 39, I think it’s remarkable, it’s incredible and just speaks a lot about Carli and her determination and her mentality. And that’s something that is always welcome on this team.”
Like Ertz, Heath had been a question because of injuries. She hasn’t played since January after hurting her ankle and then knee. But also like Ertz, Heath is expected to be ready next month.
“Both Tobin and Julie are rehabbing very well and progressing very well,” Andonovski said. “Tobin is slightly ahead of Julie.”
Ertz is expected to see action in closed-door games in Japan and then have her minutes on the field increase as the tournament progresses.
The Olympic format allowed Andonovski to take a chance with Ertz and Heath, two of the team’s most influential players.
Coaches are allowed to make five substitutions in Olympic games as well as the possibility of one additional change for a concussion. Also, teams can replace injured players with alternates during the tournament.
In the end, it came down to experience for Andonovski. Defender Becky Sauerbrunn, Morgan, O’Hara and Rapinoe made their third consecutive Olympic teams.
“We know there are some very talented players that won’t be in Japan, but these were the difficult decisions that we had to make,” Andonovski said. “We have a very experienced roster that has been through adversity at the highest levels, so it’s no surprise those players have distinguished themselves. They’ve embraced the challenges and have shown tremendous flexibility and determination over the past 15 months to get us to where we are today.”
The Americans play host to Mexico on July 1 and July 5 in Connecticut in the final tuneup games before facing No. 5 Sweden.