Elise Evans

College career

Evans was an immediate starter for the Stanford Cardinal as a freshman in 2022. She contributed to one of the country's top defenses, recording 12 shutouts in 19 games, and added three game-winning goals as the Cardinal claimed the Pac-12 Conference title. She was recognized as the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, first-team All-Pac 12, and TopDrawerSoccer National Freshman of the Year. She led the team in minutes played as a sophomore in 2023, helping the team to a near-undefeated record before falling to Florida State in the NCAA championship title game, and was named second-team All-Pac 12 and United Soccer Coaches third-team All-American.

Despite missing about a month while at the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, Evans was named third-team All-ACC as a junior and helped the Cardinal return to the NCAA tournament semifinals.

Club career

Chicago Stars FC announced on January 16, 2026, that they had signed Evans to her first professional contract on a three-year deal. Six months later, on July 24, she made her professional debut as a second-half substitute for Sam Staab in a 1–0 loss to the Orlando Pride.

International career

Evans helped the United States win the 2018 CONCACAF Girls' U-15 Championship. She trained and played friendlies with the under-16 team in 2019 and 2020. She was selected to play at the 2023 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship, where she captained the team to qualify for the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup. She started in two games at the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup as the United States finished in third place, its best result since 2012.

Personal life Evans was born in Stanford Hospital in a family with a history in college sports at Stanford: Her father, Marlon Evans, played college football and ran track; her mother, Dena ( Dey), played soccer and earned three-time All-American honors in middle-distance track; and her great-grandfather, Ben Dey, won the NCAA doubles tennis title in 1936. Her older sister, Adrienne, played college soccer at Penn.

Honors and awards

Stanford Cardinal Atlantic Coast Conference: 2025 ACC tournament: 2025 Pac-12 Conference: 2022

United States U-15 CONCACAF Girls' U-15 Championship: 2018

United States U-20 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup bronze medal: 2024

Individual First-team All-American: 2025 Third-team All-American: 2023 First-team All-ACC: 2025 First-team All-Pac-12: 2022 Second-team All-Pac-12: 2023 Third-team All-ACC: 2024 ACC Defensive Player of the Year: 2025 TopDrawerSoccer National Freshman of the Year: 2022 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year: 2022 ACC tournament all-tournament team: 2025