Kat Rader

Last updated

Kat Rader
Duke vs Ascent 2025 - 127 (cropped).jpg
Rader with Duke in 2025
Personal information
Full name Katherine Ann Rader [1]
Date of birth (2004-06-30) June 30, 2004 (age 21) [1]
Height 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Position Forward
Team information
Current team
 Houston Dash
College career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2022–2025 Duke Blue Devils 65 (32)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2026– Houston Dash 0 (0)
International career
2018 United States U-15
2019–2020 United States U-16
2022–2024 United States U-20 8 (4)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Katherine Ann Rader (born June 30, 2004) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for the Houston Dash of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played college soccer for the Duke Blue Devils, earning first-team All-American honors in 2025. She has represented the United States at the youth international level.

Contents

Early life

Rader grew up in Stuart, Florida. [2] She began playing soccer when she was four years old. [3] She played club soccer for the Orlando Pride, Weston FC, and Florida United in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy/Girls Academy. [4] She committed to play college soccer for the Duke Blue Devils during her freshman year. [5] TopDrawerSoccer ranked her as the 5th-best prospect in the 2022 class. [2]

College career

Rader had an impressive freshman season with the Duke Blue Devils in 2022, forming a strong attacking duo with Hermann Trophy winner Michelle Cooper. [6] She scored 12 goals with 5 assists in 23 games, with her goal tally tying the Duke freshman record and ranking second nationally among freshmen. [2] She helped the Blue Devils reach the ACC tournament semifinals, scoring the winner against Virginia in the first round, and the NCAA tournament quarterfinals. [7] She was named second-team All-ACC, the ACC Freshman of the Year, and TopDrawerSoccer Freshman Best XI. [2]

In 2023, after Cooper left for the NWSL, Duke struggled and missed the NCAA tournament for the first time in eight years. [8] Rader was a bright spot as she led the team with 7 goals and added 2 assists in 16 games and again collected second-team All-ACC honors. [8] Four games into her junior year in 2024, she fractured her ankle and tore two ligaments and missed the rest of the season. [3] She returned in her senior year to score 12 goals and lead the Blue Devils with 12 assists (tied with Mia Oliaro) in 22 games in 2025. [2] In the NCAA tournament, she had two goals and four assists as Duke made their second consecutive NCAA College Cup appearance. [9] She earned second-team All-ACC and first-team All-American honors. [2]

Club career

The Houston Dash announced on January 7, 2026, that they had signed Rader to her first professional contract on a three-year deal. [10]

International career

Rader began training with the United States youth national team at the under-14 level in 2018. [11] Later that year, she helped the under-15 team win the 2018 CONCACAF Girls' U-15 Championship. [12] She helped the under-20s finish runner-up at the 2023 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship, scoring one goal as they qualified for the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup. [13]

Personal life

Rader is the daughter of Matt and Christine Rader and has three siblings. [2] She is the granddaughter of Major League Baseball (MLB) player Doug Rader. [2]

Honors and awards

Duke Blue Devils

United States U-15

Individual

References

  1. 1 2 "National team roster (USA) - 2023 Concacaf Women's Under-20 Championship" (PDF). CONCACAF. p. 1. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Kat Rader". Duke Blue Devils . Retrieved December 26, 2025.
  3. 1 2 Rieder, Meredith (November 4, 2025). "The Comeback - Kat Rader Back Where She Belongs". Duke Blue Devils . Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  4. ↑ "U15 GNT roster for Concacaf Championship". United States Soccer Federation. July 31, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2026– via TopDrawerSoccer .
    "Women's Soccer Adds Five to 2022 Signing Class". Duke Blue Devils. November 22, 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  5. ↑ Shealer, Sheldon (October 22, 2018). "Recruiting Roundup: Oct. 22-28". TopDrawerSoccer . Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  6. ↑ "Rader Turning in Impressive Rookie Campaign". Duke Blue Devils. November 3, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Women's Team of The Week: November 1". TopDrawerSoccer . November 1, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  8. 1 2 Chavis, Elle; Tan, Jun; Khatod, Riya; Olin, Sydney (August 15, 2024). "Duke women's soccer 2024 season preview". Duke Chronicle . Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  9. ↑ "Rader & Minestrella Tabbed United Soccer Coaches All-America". Duke Blue Devils. December 5, 2025. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Houston Dash Begin 2026 Roster Build with Signing of Duke Standout Kat Rader". Houston Dash. January 7, 2026. Retrieved January 7, 2026.
  11. ↑ "U14 GNT heads to camp in Chula Vista". United States Soccer Federation. May 25, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2026– via TopDrawerSoccer .
  12. ↑ Eskilson, J.R. (August 13, 2018). "U.S. wins 2018 Concacaf U15 Championship". TopDrawerSoccer . Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  13. ↑ "U20 WNT Begins World Cup Preparations". United States Soccer Federation. January 10, 2024. Retrieved January 5, 2026– via TopDrawerSoccer .
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.