Canadian defender Shannon Woeller first player to sign with Vancouver Rise

By The Canadian Press on December 16, 2024.

Shannon Woeller poses with a Vancouver Rise FC scarf during a news conference to announce her as the first player to join the organization in Vancouver, B.C., Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns

VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Rise have signed Canadian defender Shannon Woeller as the first player in club history.

The National Super League team announced the deal Monday, with sporting director Stephanie Labbé saying in a release that Woeller is “an experienced professional” who will be a leader and a key member of the team’s backline.

The 34-year-old Woeller hails from Vancouver and began her career playing for the Vancouver Whitecaps in the USL W-League in 2008.

She went on to play for the Seattle Sounders’ W-League squad, then took her talents overseas, suiting up for clubs in Norway, Iceland, Germany, Spain and Sweden.

The five-foot-eight defender also spent four years playing for the Scarlet Knights at Rutgers University.

Woeller has made 21 appearances for Canada’s women’s national team, including at the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France where the country was ousted by Sweden in the round of 16.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 16, 2024.