Waniya Hudson

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Waniya Hudson
Personal information
Full name Waniya LaRyn Hudson [1]
Date of birth (2001-06-02) June 2, 2001 (age 24) [2]
Place of birth Rochester, New York, United States [2]
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) [3]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
Kristianstad
Number 23
College career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2019–2023 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 96 (0)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2024 Washington Spirit 0 (0)
2024Dallas Trinity (loan) 9 (0)
2025– Kristianstad 3 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of October 4, 2025

Waniya LaRyn Hudson (born June 2, 2001) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender for Damallsvenskan club Kristianstad. She played college soccer for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Contents

Early life

Hudson grew up in Greece, New York, a suburb of Rochester. [4] She took after her older sister and began playing soccer when she was seven or eight,. [2] [5] She attended Greece Athena High School, where she captained the soccer team and was twice named all-state, and she also lettered in track. [4] [6] She played club soccer for the Super 9 boys' team, where she wore the 20 jersey like Abby Wambach, a Rochester native who also played on a boys' team. [4] [5] She captained her state Olympic Development Program team and played for the regional ODP squad. [4] She committed to the University of Notre Dame during her junior year in 2017. [6]

College career

Hudson made 96 appearances for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish from 2019 to 2023, starting every game from her sophomore year onwards. She and teammates Eva Gaetino and Leah Klenke formed an Irish defense that was statistically among the best in the country in 2022, keeping clean sheets through the first three rounds of the NCAA tournament before falling in the quarterfinals. She played a team high in minutes in her senior and graduate seasons. [4]

Club career

Hudson trained with NWSL club NJ/NY Gotham FC in the 2024 preseason before signing a one-year contract with the Washington Spirit on May 22, 2024. [7] On September 23, the Spirit announced that she would join USL Super League club Dallas Trinity on loan for the rest of the year. [8] She made her professional debut on October 6, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2–1 win over the Spokane Zephyr. [9] Her contract expired while she remained on loan on December 31. [10]

Swedish club Kristianstad announced that they had signed Hudson on September 5, 2025. [11] She made her club debut eight days later as a late substitute in a 2–1 win over Växjö. [9]

Personal life

Hudson is the daughter of Woodruff and Wanda Hudson and has three siblings, all of whom played college sports. Her father played college basketball at RIT, and her mother ran track at Nazareth. Her older brother, Woody, played ice hockey at St. Lawrence; her older sister, Winsom, played soccer at Buffalo State; and her younger sister, Wrianna, plays soccer for Florida State. [4] [12]

References

  1. "University of Notre Dame Commencement Official" (PDF). University of Notre Dame. p. 57. Retrieved March 13, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 "Waniya Hudson". Rochester Lancers . Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  3. "Waniya Hudson". Washington Spirit . Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Waniya Hudson". Notre Dame Fighting Irish . Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  5. 1 2 "Getting to Know Defender Waniya Hudson". Washington Spirit. August 21, 2024. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
  6. 1 2 Johnson, Stevie (September 13, 2018). "Athena soccer stars Waniya Hudson, CJ Takatch remain hungry after college commitments". Democrat and Chronicle . Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  7. "Washington Spirit Signs Defender Waniya Hudson". Washington Spirit. May 22, 2024. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  8. "Washington Spirit Loans Defender Waniya Hudson to Dallas Trinity FC". Washington Spirit. September 23, 2024. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  9. 1 2 "Waniya Hudson". flashscore.com. Retrieved October 8, 2025.
  10. "Washington Spirit Announces Offseason Roster Moves, Updated Roster". Washington Spirit. December 10, 2024. Retrieved March 21, 2025.
  11. "Välkommen Waniya Hudson" (in Swedish). Kristianstads DFF . Retrieved October 8, 2025.
  12. "No Hudson derby or rivalry here: Sisters work for each other on the Lady Lancers". Rochester Lancers. June 18, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
    "Winsom Hudson". Rochester Lancers . Retrieved October 8, 2025.