ElyseBennett

Elyse Bennett is a right-footed forward who joins the Montréal Roses with four seasons of NWSL experience across four clubs, a stint in Spain's Liga F, and an NWSL Challenge Cup championship to her name.

Born in Lake Forest, Illinois, Bennett was raised in De Pere, Wisconsin, a small city outside Green Bay. Unlike most professional players who begin playing as children, Bennett grew up playing multiple sports through middle school and didn't seriously pursue soccer until around age 15.

Bennett played just one season for De Pere High School before graduating early in December 2016 to enroll at Washington State University for the spring 2017 semester. To catch up to players who had been training seven to eight years longer, she traveled two hours each way to Milwaukee to train with FC Wisconsin Eclipse in the Elite Clubs National League. Her hard work paid off as she became one of the ECNL Midwest Conference's top scorers in 2015-16, advancing to the finals of the North American Cup in Seattle. She also participated in the Olympic Development Program. During her senior year of high school, she suffered her first torn ACL, a season-ending injury that taught her resilience. She credits advice from her father, who recovered from ACL injuries during his football career at Florida State and in the NFL, with helping her navigate that first major setback.

Bennett enrolled early at Washington State University in spring 2017, choosing to play in the Pac-12 Conference specifically for its competitive level. Over five seasons with the WSU Cougars (2017-2021), she overcame a second ACL tear to become one of the program's most decorated players, appearing in 93 career games—the second-most in program history.

As a freshman in 2017, Bennett made an immediate impact despite her late soccer start. She was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team after scoring two goals and one assist in conference play. She made her first collegiate start against No. 19 Minnesota, recording four shots with one on goal while playing 75 minutes. She recorded her first collegiate point with a game-winning assist at Oregon, led the team with three shots—including one off the crossbar—in a 1-0 shutout of No. 2 UCLA, scored her first collegiate goal against No. 6 USC, and scored her first career game-winner at ASU.

In her sophomore season (2018), Bennett scored three goals in 14 matches before suffering her second torn ACL, which ended her season. She redshirted the 2019 campaign to recover.

Bennett returned stronger as a redshirt junior in 2020, starting 23 of 24 matches and recording five goals and five assists. One of her goals came as the game-winner against Oregon in Pac-12 play, demonstrating her knack for crucial moments.

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the normal fall 2020 season, pushing it to spring 2021. Bennett started in all 12 matches of the shortened season and led the Cougars in scoring with six goals. She scored in three straight matches for the first time in her career and was named All-Pac-12 Third Team. By this point, she had completed her biology degree in three years and was applying to physician assistant programs for graduate school. Professional soccer was not part of her plan.

"I started applying and got some interviews," Bennett later explained. "I just found that maybe it wasn't what I was wanting to do at the time. So, I took my fifth year and came back to Washington State." That decision to return for a fifth year, made possible by the extra eligibility granted due to COVID-19, changed the trajectory of her life.

Her fifth season in fall 2021 produced career highs across the board: 10 goals, four assists, 24 points (leading the team), 93 shots, 37 shots on goal, and 1,557 minutes played. She scored two game-winners, including a dramatic 89th-minute header on the road at Oregon in a critical match with postseason implications. Washington State finished with 14 wins, including seven in Pac-12 play, earning an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. The Cougars defeated Montana 3-0 in the first round, making Bennett's class the first set of Washington State seniors to advance out of the first round in all four NCAA Tournament appearances during their careers.

Bennett was named to the All-Pac-12 First Team and the United Soccer Coaches All-American Second Team, becoming just the third All-American in program history alongside Morgan Weaver (2019) and Micaela Castain (2013). She also earned First-Team All-Pacific Region honors. Academically, she was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Third Team with a 3.85 GPA in biology and psychology, and had been named to the Dean's List and Academic Honor Roll multiple times throughout her career.

She finished her Washington State career with 26 goals and 12 assists for 64 points, ranking sixth all-time in program history in both goals and points.

On January 12, 2022, the Kansas City Current selected Bennett with the seventh overall pick in the first round of the 2022 NWSL Draft. "We're excited to add a high-quality player of Bennett's caliber," said sporting director Huw Williams. "I had the pleasure of watching her live this past season and I'm confident that she has the potential to become an immediate impact player for us and in the league in general." After a strong preseason that included a goal in an exhibition match, Bennett signed her rookie contract with the Current on March 15, 2022.

She made her professional debut on March 18, 2022, as a substitute in a 1-1 draw against Racing Louisville FC in the NWSL Challenge Cup. Her breakthrough came quickly. During the 2022 Challenge Cup, a preseason tournament featuring all NWSL teams, Bennett recorded four assists in her first six matches, including a standout two-assist performance against the Chicago Red Stars on April 27. Her first assist found defender Alex Loera for a long-distance goal that ended up on SportsCenter's Top 10 plays; her second found Kristen Hamilton for the game-winner. The performance earned her NWSL Player of the Week honors and led Kansas City to the Challenge Cup semifinals.

Bennett scored her first professional goal on May 14, 2022, in a 2-2 draw with the Orlando Pride. She finished her rookie regular season with 21 appearances across all competitions (six starts), accumulating 831 minutes with three goals and two assists total.

On January 11, 2023, OL Reign acquired Bennett from Kansas City in exchange for $150,000 in allocation money. She made her Reign debut as a substitute in a 1-0 defeat to the Washington Spirit. Bennett scored her first goal with the Reign on May 27 in a 4-1 victory over Angel City FC. In July 2023, she was nominated for NWSL Player of the Week honors after scoring a goal and recording an assist against Racing Louisville FC. Midway through the year, the Reign extended Bennett's contract through 2024, with an option for 2025.

The Reign advanced to the NWSL playoffs, defeating Angel City FC and San Diego Wave FC to reach the final against NJ/NY Gotham FC. Bennett came on as a substitute and was involved in a sequence resulting in opposing goalkeeper Mandy Haught receiving a red card, though the Reign ultimately lost the championship match. Over the 2023 season, she made 29 appearances across all competitions with three goals and two assists.

On December 15, 2023, the Utah Royals selected Bennett with their first pick (second overall) in the 2024 NWSL Expansion Draft. Two days later, Utah immediately traded her to San Diego Wave FC for $40,000 in allocation money.

Bennett debuted for the Wave in the starting lineup for the 2024 NWSL Challenge Cup, reformatted that year as a single preseason match between the reigning NWSL champions (Gotham FC) and Shield winners (the Wave). San Diego won 1-0, giving Bennett her first professional title. She made 14 regular season appearances for the Wave but did not score. At season's end, her contract expired and San Diego announced Bennett would not return, instead exploring opportunities as a free agent.

On February 3, 2025, Bennett signed with Deportivo de La Coruña in Spain's Liga F on a free transfer through the end of the 2024-25 season. She made her debut on March 2, 2025, as a substitute in a 1-1 draw away to Espanyol. Over the remainder of the half-season, she featured in nine Liga F appearances with two starts, accumulating 203 minutes.

Her lone goal in Spain proved crucial. On May 11, 2025, in Deportivo's penultimate match of the season, Bennett scored a 92nd-minute equalizer in a 1-1 home draw against Sevilla FC in front of over 5,000 fans at Estadio Riazor. Capitalizing on defensive hesitation, she secured a vital point that helped cement Deportivo's place above the relegation line, ensuring the club's survival in Spain's top division.

On August 31, 2025, Bennett returned to the NWSL, signing a short-term contract with the Orlando Pride through the end of the 2025 season. Orlando Pride VP of Soccer Operations and Sporting Director Haley Carter praised the signing: "She's a player with tremendous upside, and her experience across multiple systems and clubs gives her a unique perspective that we value. Elyse's energy, professionalism and attacking instincts will be a great fit for our locker room and our style of play." She made her first appearance for Orlando on September 2, coming on as a second-half substitute in the Pride's first-ever CONCACAF W Champions Cup match.

Elyse comes from an athletic family: her father, Edgar Bennett, is a Super Bowl XXXI champion running back who played for the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears and went on to coach professionally. Her older brother Edgar IV also pursued athletics. 

Known for her speed, aerial ability, attacking instincts, and resilience, Bennett has described her playing style in one word: "gritty." Her journey from a late starter in high school to a professional player across two continents embodies her hardworking mentality and determination to fight for what she wants.