Ava Cook

Ava Leigh Cook (born October 3, 1998) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for USL Super League club Carolina Ascent. She played college soccer for the Grand Valley State Lakers and the Michigan State Spartans. She was selected by the Chicago Red Stars in the second round of the 2022 NWSL Draft.

Early life

Cook grew up in Battle Creek, Michigan, and played high school soccer and basketball for Lakeview High School. She played youth soccer for Midwest United. She was named second-team All-American and first-team All-GLIAC after leading the conference with 24 goals as a sophomore in 2018.

Club career Chicago Stars The Chicago Red Stars (later renamed Chicago Stars FC) selected Cook 18th overall in the second round of the 2022 NWSL Draft. She became a regular player and then starter for the Red Stars, appearing in 19 games of the 24-game NWSL season in 2022 and 20 games in 2023.

In mid-April 2024, after appearing in three games of the season, Cook tore her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), causing her to miss the remainder of the season. At the end of 2025, Cook departed from the Stars. She had scored 6 times across 51 NWSL appearances in her four years with Chicago.

Carolina Ascent

After four seasons at Chicago, Cook signed with USL Super League club Carolina Ascent in January 2026. She made her Super League debut on February 7, 2026, coming on as a second-half substitute for Riley Parker in a 2–1 defeat to Lexington SC.

International career

Cook was called up to the United States national under-23 team for a friendly tournament in June 2022. She scored her first goal for the team against India on June 26 and scored again against Sweden on June 28.

Honors and awards

Grand Valley State Lakers NCAA Division II women's soccer tournament: 2019 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference: 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 GLIAC women's soccer tournament: 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020

Individual Second-team All-Big Ten: 2021 First-team NCAA D2 All-American: 2019 Second-team NCAA D2 All-American: 2018 First-team All-GLIAC: 2018, 2019, 2020 Second-team All-GLIAC: 2017 GLIAC Freshman of the Year: 2017