Savannah King (soccer)

Savannah Mckenzie King (born February 7, 2005) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender for Bay FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played college soccer for the North Carolina Tar Heels and has played internationally for the United States national under-20 team. She was drafted second overall by Bay FC in the 2024 NWSL Draft.

Early life
King was born in Santa Monica, California, to Karrie King and Kim Parker King, and grew up in West Hills. She has a twin brother, Parker. She played multiple sports in her youth, including softball, baseball, and flag football. She began playing soccer at age ten for a team in the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO). She later played club soccer for Real So Cal and then Slammers FC HB Køge in the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL), with which she won the ECNL's under-18/19 national title in 2023.

King lettered in four years of track for Agoura High School and set school records in the 200-meter (25.49) and 400-meter dash (56.87). She also played flag football at Agoura and once recorded six interceptions and four touchdowns in a single game. Ranked by TopDrawerSoccer.com as the top left back of the class of 2023, she committed to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in November 2022. She entered into a name, image, and likeness (NIL) agreement with Nike before starting college.

College career
King was the starting center back for North Carolina in 2023. Head coach Anson Dorrance called her performance in the team's scoreless season opener at Penn State the "best first-game performance by a freshman" in program history. In the first three weeks of the season, she received two Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Defensive Player of the Week Awards as North Carolina conceded only two goals in its first six matches. She led the team in minutes played in her freshman season, which ended in the 2023 NCAA tournament quarterfinals, and was named to the ACC All-Freshman team and the All-ACC second team.

Professional career
Bay FC, a new NWSL expansion team, selected King second overall in the 2024 NWSL Draft; she and North Carolina teammate Ally Sentnor were the top two picks. She signed a three-year contract with the team in February 2024. She made her debut as a starting left back in Bay's first ever game, against Angel City FC, on March 17.

International career
King was invited to United States national under-15 team training camps in 2019 and 2020. In 2022, she helped the national under-17 team win the 2022 CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship to qualify for the 2022 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, where she helped the United States advance out of the group stage, though they lost in the first knockout round on penalties. The next year, she was called up to the national under-20 team for the 2023 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship, where as co-captain she helped the United States qualify for the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.