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SANDY — The Utah Royals won’t have three U.S. national team players when the club kicks off against league-leading North Carolina at Rio Tinto Stadium on Friday night.
But they added a couple of former local college standouts to bolster the squad in the absence of captain Becky Sauerbrunn, forward Amy Rodriguez and forward Christen Press.
Utah announced Thursday the signings of former BYU midfielder Colette Jepson Smith and Weber State goalkeeper Becca Ritchie as national team replacement players ahead of Friday night’s match.
Kickoff at Rio Tinto Stadium is scheduled for 8 p.m. MDT. The game will be streamed live on KSL.com and the KSL TV app.
Per team and league policy, details of the contracts were not immediately available. But the duo will be available for selection to coach Laura Harvey's side Friday against the Courage.
Both players also have experience with Real Salt Lake Women, the semiprofessional women's soccer team that competes in United Women’s Soccer and went 4-5-1 in 2018.
"I'm so excited for these two girls," RSL Women coach Mark Davis told KSL.com. "Colette is a player that can change a game at any time with her speed. She’s dynamic, and she’s an awesome player to coach.
"She hasn’t stopped grinding for the last four years, and I’m excited for her to get this opportunity."
Smith had three goals and an assist in six games for Real Salt Lake Women during the 2018 United Women’s Soccer regular season. She’s also trained with the Royals as a member of the practice squad since the franchise’s inception.
A product of Davis High School in Kaysville, Smith played her freshman season at UNLV before transferring to BYU, where she had nine goals and six assists in three full seasons with the Cougars. Since graduation, she’s also served as a part-time radio analyst for the BYU women’s soccer team.
Ritchie started all four seasons at Weber State and made more than 100 saves in her standout career in the Big Sky Conference. A native of Hilton, New York, Ritchie also has experience with the RSL Women’s semipro team.
"Becca has been through semipro women’s soccer of years, and she's got to be the best goalkeeper around," Davis said of Ritchie, who was a preseason camp goalkeeper for the Royals. "I'm excited to see them be with the Royals this weekend, and I’m stoked for them."
Ritchie will provide much-needed depth for Utah, which waived draft pick EJ Proctor several weeks ago before starting goalkeeper Abby Smith collided with a teammate and landed on her head during the Royals' 2-1 loss to Orlando on Saturday evening.
In addition to the new players, the Royals have waived midfielder Alexa Newfield. The 26-year-old 2016 NWSL college draft pick made eight appearances for the now-defunct FC Kansas City but has not played for Utah since the expansion franchise inherited Kansas City’s player contracts prior to the start of the 2018 season.
