Caroline Kelly
American soccer player (born 2002)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Caroline Jayne Kelly (born February 22, 2002) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for USL Super League club Dallas Trinity FC. She played college soccer for the Saint Louis Billikens and the TCU Horned Frogs.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Caroline Jayne Kelly[1] | ||
| Date of birth | February 22, 2002 | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Dallas Trinity | ||
| Number | 4 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| KC Athletics ECNL | |||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020–2023 | Saint Louis Billikens | 76 | (31) |
| 2024 | TCU Horned Frogs | 22 | (13) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2025 | Brooklyn FC | 5 | (2) |
| 2025– | Dallas Trinity | 10 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 14:11, December 14, 2025 (UTC) | |||
Early life
Kelly grew up nearby Kansas City in the town of Kearney, Missouri.[2][3] She attended Kearney High School, where she played both soccer and basketball.[4] With the soccer team, Kelly was an All-State honorable mention as a freshman before winning two All-State first team awards in her latter years.[2] She also played for KC Athletics in the Elite Clubs National League, where she helped the team reach a U18 State Championship match and the ECNL quarterfinals in her youth.[5]
College career
Saint Louis Billikens
As a high school sophomore, Kelly committed to Saint Louis University.[3] She kicked off her collegiate career with the Billikens in 2020, although the COVID-19 pandemic and a knee injury delayed her college debut by a year.[2][3] She recovered in time to play in the final 7 games of her freshman season and scored her first college goal against Duquesne on April 4, 2021.[6] The following season, Kelly rose to a starting role and played in all 23 of the Billikens' games.[2][7] She was named to the A-10 Championship All-Tournament team and scored 5 goals on the season. Kelly also tallied 2 assists, one of which occurred in SLU's conference quarterfinal victory over Rhode Island.[2]
Kelly built on her success in her junior year, being named the College Soccer News National Player of the Week in September 2022,[4][8] landing a spot on two TopDrawerSoccer National Teams of the Week, and being named on the All-Conference first team at the end of the season.[2] Kelly had a breakout season in her final year at Saint Louis, once again winning multiple accolades.[9] She was named to the All-Region second team, the All-Conference first team, and won the A-10 Championship Most Outstanding Player award.[2] She also was included on the Mac Hermann Trophy watchlist and helped SLU achieve its longest NCAA tournament run in history.[3][10] Kelly completed her tenure with Saint Louis as the third-highest program goalscorer, with 31 scored in her 76 appearances.[3]
TCU Horned Frogs
Kelly transferred to Texas Christian University in 2024 and exercised her final year of college eligibility to play one season with the TCU Horned Frogs.[5] In her lone campaign at TCU, Kelly was responsible for 13 goals, which tied for first within her team and the Big 12 Conference as a whole.[11] One of her goals was the game-winner in TCU's NCAA tournament first round victory, and two others occurred in the knockout stages of the Big 12 tournament.[11][12] Kelly was recognized on the All-Big 12 and Big 12 All-Tournament Teams at the end of the year.[11]
Club career
Brooklyn FC
Directly out of college, Kelly spent time as a preseason trialist with San Diego Wave FC of the National Women's Soccer League. However, she did not sign a contract with the Californian club.[13] Instead, she inked a deal with USL Super League club Brooklyn FC on April 1, 2025, lasting through the remainder of the team's inaugural season.[14][15] Kelly made her professional debut on April 19, coming in as a second-half substitute in a 1–1 draw with Lexington SC.[16] Two games later, she scored her first professional goal in a 4–1 victory over Fort Lauderdale United FC.[17] She scored once more as Brooklyn failed to qualify for the playoffs at the end of the season.[18][19]
Dallas Trinity
On July 14, 2025, Kelly signed with fellow USL Super League team Dallas Trinity FC.[20] She made her Dallas debut on August 23, coming on as a substitute in the Trinity's season-opening win over Spokane Zephyr FC.[21]
Career statistics
Club
- As of December 13, 2025[18]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Playoffs[a] | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Brooklyn FC | 2024-25 | USL Super League | 5 | 2 | — | — | 5 | 2 | ||
| Dallas Trinity FC | 2025–26 | USL Super League | 10 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 2 | ||
- Includes USL Super League playoffs
