Two U.S. women’s national team Olympic hopefuls have already joined the team’s growing injury list this weekend.
Gotham FC and USWNT defender Tierna Davidson left a match against the Washington Spirit early on Saturday with an apparent hamstring issue. She walked off unassisted but was ultimately replaced by teammate Sam Hiatt. During halftime, Davidson was walking around. She was still on the team’s bench at the start of the second half.
Midway through the first half, Davidson had been sprinting back to the goal to cover a run from Spirit forward Trinity Rodman, but pulled up without any contact and called for a trainer. She walked off the pitch minutes later but did not return to the game.
Davidson’s exit comes less than 24 hours after San Diego Wave forward and USWNT teammate Alex Morgan left a game against Orlando Pride early with an ankle injury following a goal-line tackle.
The two incidents add to a growing list of USWNT injuries. Wave defender Naomi Girma and forward Jaedyn Shaw played 58 minutes for San Diego on Friday. Girma continues to work back from a muscle injury sustained during the USWNT’s SheBelieves Cup match against Japan earlier this month, while Shaw continues to be cautiously monitored by both her club and national team due to what Wave head coach Casey Stoney characterized as a “niggle.”
“Before she went away with SheBelieves it wasn’t an option for me (to play her for 90), I wasn’t protecting her,” said Stoney before the game against Orlando. “She was actually injured prior to that tournament. So we were limited, medically advised to only play her half an hour in one game, and I think we pushed her to 40. So it wasn’t something we wanted to do. But it’s something we had to do. It’s a long season; trying to look after her for club is my priority. And obviously, she’s got the Olympics in the back of her mind as well.”
All four players are in contention for USWNT head coach Emma Hayes’ 18-player Olympic roster with less than 100 days to the tournament in France. The U.S. faces Zambia in its first Olympic Group B game on July 25.
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Though Davidson has only recently returned from an ACL injury in 2022 and a facial fracture last year, the defender has emerged as the preferred partner for Girma under interim head coach Twila Kilgore. The injuries could put a question mark around at least Davidson and Morgan’s inclusion in Hayes’ first camp, which starts May 28. Hayes’ first game in charge will be June 1 in a friendly against South Korea.
(Photo: Geoff Burke, USA TODAY Sports)
