Ilana Izquierdo Explained

Ilana Izquierdo
Birth Date:14 June 2002
Birth Place:Cali, Colombia
Height:160 cm
Position:Midfielder
Currentclub:Mississippi State Bulldogs
Clubnumber:23
Collegeyears1:2021–2022
College1:Southern Miss Golden Eagles
Collegecaps1:30
Collegegoals1:8
Collegeyears2:2023–
College2:Mississippi State Bulldogs
Collegecaps2:23
Collegegoals2:4
Years1:
Nationalyears1:2018
Nationalteam1:Colombia U17
Nationalyears2:2022
Nationalteam2:Colombia U20
Nationalyears3:2024–
Nationalteam3:Colombia

Ilana Izquierdo (born 14 June 2002) is a Colombian footballer who plays as a midfielder for the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Colombia national team.

Youth and college career

Izquierdo was born in Cali, Colombia.[1]

Izquierdo played two seasons with the Southern Miss Golden Eagles. She led the team in scoring as a freshman with seven goals and seven assists in the 2021 season, starting every game, and was named the Conference USA freshman of the year and first-team all-conference.[1] In the 2022 season, she recorded two goals and one assist and was named to the Sun Belt all-conference second team.

After her sophomore season, Izquierdo played for amateur club Asheville City SC in the 2023 USL W League season.[2] She returned to Asheville City SC for the 2024 USL W League season, leading the club to qualify for the national playoffs for the first time.[3]

Izquierdo transferred to the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the spring of 2023.[4] She started every game and played the most minutes on the team in the fall 2023 season, recording four goals and three assists.[5] She helped the Bulldogs advance to the round of 16 of the 2023 NCAA tournament, marking the program's best ever result in the national tournament, where they lost to eventual finalists Stanford.[6] [7]

International career

Izquierdo represented Colombia with the national under-17 team at the 2018 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup.[8] She played at the under-20 level at the 2022 South American Under-20 Women's Football Championship, the 2022 Bolivarian Games (where she won gold with the team), and the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.

Izquierdo was first called up to Colombia's senior national team at the 2024 CONCACAF W Gold Cup.[9] She started every match at the Gold Cup as Colombia made it to the quarterfinals.[10] She was selected to the 18-player roster for the 2024 Summer Olympics in France.[11] She started in all three Olympic group stage matches, including her country's first ever Olympic win in the game against New Zealand, and appeared as a substitute in their quarterfinal loss to Spain.[12]

Notes and References

  1. News: Ilana Izquierda – Women's Soccer. Southern Miss Golden Eagles. 2024-07-14.
  2. News: Seven new Players to Watch in the 2023 USL W League season. 2023-05-08. USL W League. SoccerWire. 2024-07-14.
  3. News: Asheville City's Izquierdo heading to Olympics with Colombian National Team. Womack. Chris. 2024-07-04. WLOS. 2024-07-14.
  4. News: International transfer makes an immediate impact for Bulldogs. Murphy. Alex. 2023-09-06. The Commercial Dispatch. 2024-07-14.
  5. Web site: Ilana Izquierdo – Soccer. 2024-07-14.
  6. News: How Sweet It Is! State Soccer is Sweet 16 Bound for the First Time in Program History. 2023-11-17. Pardue. Lance. Mississippi State Bulldogs. 2024-07-14.
  7. News: Mississippi State's NCAA tournament run ends in Sweet 16 against Stanford. Murphy. Alex. 2023-11-09. The Commercial Dispatch. 2024-07-14.
  8. News: Mississippi State's Izquierdo, Perez to play soccer for Colombia at Paris Olympics. Rosenberg. Benjamin. 2024-07-09. The Commercial Dispatch. 2024-07-14.
  9. News: Las nuevas caras de la Selección Colombia Femenina en Copa Oro W 2024. Luisa María. Gilón. 2024-02-21. 90minutos.co. 2024-07-14.
  10. News: Izquierdo, Perez Selected to Represent Colombia in 2024 Paris Games. Pardue. Lance. 2024-07-05. Mississippi State Bulldogs. 2024-07-14.
  11. News: MSU's Izquierdo, Perez to play for Colombia at Paris Olympics. 2024-07-09. Rosenberg. Benjamin. Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. 2024-07-14.
  12. News: MSU's Ilana Izquierdo heading home after Colombia's Olympic soccer exit. Damms. Colin. 2024-08-06. The Commercial Dispatch. 2024-08-07.