Sarah Griffith
American soccer player (born 1999)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sarah Elaine Griffith (born April 30, 1999) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for USL Super League club Lexington SC. She played college soccer for the Purdue Boilermakers before being drafted by the Chicago Red Stars in the third round of the 2022 NWSL Draft.
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Griffith with the Chicago Red Stars in 2024 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Sarah Elaine Griffith[1] | ||
| Date of birth | April 30, 1999 | ||
| Place of birth | Naperville, Illinois, United States | ||
| Height | 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Lexington SC | ||
| Number | 35 | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2021 | Purdue Boilermakers | 72 | (26) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022–2025 | Chicago Stars[a] | 28 | (2) |
| 2022–2023 | → Newcastle Jets (loan) | 11 | (4) |
| 2025 | → Calgary Wild (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2025– | Lexington SC | 15 | (3) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of February 18, 2026 | |||
Early life
Griffith was a ball girl for the Waubonsie Valley High School girls' soccer team, and later graduated from the school.[2][3][4]
College career
Griffith initially committed to play college soccer at Illinois State. She later de-committed[5] and played at Purdue from 2017 to 2021.[6] She scored her first collegiate goal on August 27, 2017, against Indiana State.[7] In 2018, Griffith was diagnosed with spondylolisthesis; she would undergo spinal surgery as she redshirted the 2018 season.[8][9]
She was named to the All-Big Ten Conference second team for the 2020–21 season.[10] On August 19, 2021, she scored a goal against Kentucky which was featured on SportsCenter,[11] and on August 29, 2021, she recorded a hat-trick against Ball State.[12] For the 2021 season, she was Big Ten Forward of the Year and All-Big Ten first team;[13] she was also named United Soccer Coaches All-America Second Team and set a Purdue record with 16 goals.[14]
As a student at Purdue University, Griffith majored in psychological sciences.[6][15]
Club career
Chicago Stars
In December 2021, Griffith was selected by the Chicago Red Stars (later named Chicago Stars FC) in the third round of the 2022 NWSL Draft.[2] She made her NWSL regular season debut on April 30, 2022, playing 80 minutes against Racing Louisville FC.[16] She scored her first goal for the club against Orlando Pride on May 22, 2022. On July 10, 2022, she scored against North Carolina Courage in the stoppage time.[17]
On November 1, 2022, it was announced that Griffith was signed on-loan by Newcastle Jets for the 2022–23 A-League Women season.[18] On November 26, 2022, Griffith scored a hat-trick in a match against Western Sydney Wanderers leading the team to a 4–2 victory.[19] In mid-February 2023, Griffith returned from her loan early to prepare for the 2023 NWSL season.[20]
On March 27, 2025, it was announced that Griffith was being loaned to Calgary Wild FC through the remainder of her contract with Chicago.[21] On April 16, 2025, she started in the league's inaugural game, a 1-0 loss to Vancouver Rise FC.[22]
Lexington SC
Ahead of its second season of play, USL Super League team Lexington SC signed Griffith as a free agent.[23] Griffith debuted for the club on August 23, starting and playing 63 minutes of Lexington's season-opening draw with Fort Lauderdale United FC.[24] On February 18, 2026, Lexington re-signed Griffith through the 2026–27 season.[25]
Personal life
Griffith was born to parents Peter and Melissa, and was raised with an older brother, Noah, who played college soccer for Illinois Tech,[26] and a younger brother, Aaron.[5]
Career statistics
- As of July 31, 2025
| Club | Season | League | Playoffs[b] | League Cup[c] | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Chicago Red Stars | 2022 | NWSL | 19 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 26 | 2 | |
| 2023 | 6 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | ||||
| 2024 | 6 | 0 | — | — | 2[d] | 1 | 8 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 31 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 44 | 3 | ||
| Newcastle Jets FC (loan) | 2022–23 | A-League | 11 | 4 | — | — | — | 11 | 4 | |||
| Calgary Wild (loan) | 2025 | Northern Super League | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 0 | ||
| Lexington SC | 2025–26 | USL Super League | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 48 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 61 | 7 | ||
- Known as Chicago Red Stars until the 2025 season.
- Includes NWSL Playoffs and A-League Women Finals series
- Includes the NWSL Challenge Cup
- Includes the NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup
Honors
Individual[6]
- United Soccer Coaches All-America Second Team: 2021
- United Soccer Coaches All-North Region First Team: 2021
- Big Ten Conference Forward of the Year: 2021
- All-Big Ten First Team: 2021
- All-Big Ten Second Team: 2020–21
- Big Ten All-Tournament Team: 2021
