Neeku Purcell
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Neeku Kazemi Purcell | ||
| Date of birth | October 7, 2003 | ||
| Place of birth | Seattle, Washington, U.S. | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Seattle Reign | ||
| Number | 35 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2016–2022 | OL Reign Academy | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022–2023 | UCLA Bruins | 27 | (0) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2024–2025 | Brooklyn FC | 17 | (0) |
| 2025– | Seattle Reign | 0 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 2018 | United States U-16 | ||
| 2019 | United States U-17 | 3 | (0) |
| 2019 | United States U-18 | 1 | (0) |
| 2022 | United States U-20 | 7 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of May 10, 2025 | |||
Neeku Kazemi Purcell (born October 7, 2003) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Seattle Reign FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). Born in Seattle, she played college soccer for the UCLA Bruins and was part of the team that won the 2022 national championship. She has represented the United States at the youth level, appearing at the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.
Early life and college career
[edit]Purcell was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, one of two twin sisters born to Elham Kazemi and Mark Purcell. Both of her parents went to UCLA. She attended the Northwest School, where she played basketball and lettered in three seasons.[1] She played club soccer for the OL Reign Academy from its inception in 2016.[2] She was rated by TopDrawerSoccer as the eighth-best player of the 2022 class, part of UCLA's second-ranked recruiting class.[3]
UCLA Bruins
[edit]Purcell made 8 appearances (all off the bench) for the UCLA Bruins in her freshman season in 2022, serving as the understudy to Lauren Brzykcy. She appeared briefly in the first round of the NCAA tournament but was unused in the rest of the competition as UCLA won its second national championship.[1][4] In her sophomore season in 2023, she started all 19 games and kept 11 clean sheets (including 4 combined shutouts). UCLA won the Pac-12 Conference and earned a one seed in the NCAA tournament, where the team was upset by UC Irvine in the first round.[1][5]
Club career
[edit]Brooklyn FC
[edit]Brooklyn FC announced on August 6, 2024, that the club had signed Purcell ahead of the USL Super League's inaugural season.[6] She made her professional debut on September 29, 2024, starting in a 1–0 win against Lexington SC. She eventually won the starting job over Sydney Martinez and saw out the fall series with consecutive clean sheets against Lexington on December 7 and Dallas Trinity on December 14.[7][8] Brooklyn led in the standings at the winter break but proved unable to replicate its form in the spring and ended in sixth place.[9] Purcell finished the season with 4 clean sheets in 17 appearances (16 starts).[10]
Seattle Reign
[edit]On June 3, 2025, hometown club Seattle Reign FC announced Purcell's signing on a short-term goalkeeper replacement contract.[10]
International career
[edit]Purcell was called up to the United States youth national team at the under-15, under-16, under-17, under-18, and under-20 levels.[11] She started all four knockout rounds for the United States at the 2022 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship, conceding no goals as they won the tournament.[7] She started the country's second game at the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, a 3–0 loss to the Netherlands, as the United States did not make it out of the group stage.[7] She was called up by Emma Hayes into Futures Camp, practicing alongside the senior national team, in January 2025. She was the only USL Super League player called into the camp.[8]
Honors and awards
[edit]UCLA Bruins
United States U-20
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Neeku Purcell". UCLA Bruins. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
- ^ "OL Reign Academy Player Neeku Purcell Called Up to U-20 U.S. Youth National Team". Seattle Reign FC. February 15, 2022. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
- ^ Clark, Travis (August 16, 2022). "Final 2022 Women's DI Recruiting Rankings". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved June 3, 2025.
- ^ Whitaker, Grace (August 18, 2023). "UCLA women's soccer starts off the season strong with win against Georgia". Daily Bruin. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
- ^ Friedman, Isabelle (November 10, 2023). "UC Irvine cuts No. 1 seed UCLA women's soccer's NCAA run short with late-game shot". Daily Bruin. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
- ^ "Goalkeeper Neeku Purcell and Forward Mackenzie George join Brooklyn FC after collegiate success". Brooklyn FC. August 6, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
- ^ a b c Neeku Purcell at Soccerway
- ^ a b Leigh, Andrew (January 8, 2025). "Brooklyn FC's Neeku Purcell invited to USWNT Futures Camp". Hudson River Blue. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
- ^ Leigh, Andrew (May 24, 2025). "Brooklyn FC season ends with no playoffs, no wins in Brooklyn". Hudson River Blue. Retrieved June 3, 2025.
- ^ a b "Seattle Reign FC Signs Goalkeeper Neeku Purcell as Short-Term Replacement Player". Seattle Reign FC. July 3, 2025. Retrieved June 3, 2025.
- ^ "Neeku Purcell". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
- ^ "USA Wins Concacaf Women's U-20 Championship With 2-0 Victory Over Mexico". www.ussoccer.com. Retrieved May 31, 2025.
External links
[edit]- Neeku Purcell at Soccerway.com
- Living people
- 2003 births
- 21st-century American sportswomen
- Soccer players from Seattle
- American women's soccer players
- Women's association football goalkeepers
- United States women's youth international soccer players
- United States women's under-20 international soccer players
- UCLA Bruins women's soccer players
- Brooklyn FC players
- USL Super League players
- Seattle Reign FC players