Kaitlin Fregulia

Kaitlin Fregulia
Personal information
Full name Kaitlin Danielle Fregulia[1]
Date of birth (1998-06-18) June 18, 1998
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Position Center back
Youth career
Beach FC
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2021 Long Beach State Beach 70 (7)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022 North Carolina Courage 0 (0)
2023 Tijuana 7 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 00:43, February 24, 2026 (UTC)

Kaitlin Danielle Fregulia (born June 18, 1998) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a defender. She played college soccer for the Long Beach State Beach before being selected in the first round of the 2022 NWSL Draft by the North Carolina Courage. She also previously played for Mexican Liga MX Femenil club Tijuana.

Early life

Fregulia grew up in Torrance, California.[2] She played seven years of club soccer for Beach FC,[3] where she led the team to a US Soccer youth national title in 2014 and two regional championship titles.[2] She attended West High School,[4] where she scored a goal in her high school debut.[5] She went on to lead the program to four straight league titles and one Southern CIF title. In her junior year, she was named first-team all-CIF and the league offensive MVP.[2] As a senior, she was named West's team captain.[6]

College career

As a member of Beach FC, Fregulia played for Long Beach State assistant coach Jeff Joyner and often practiced on the Cal State Long Beach campus with her teammates. In 2016, she joined the university's team after graduating from high school. She entered the program as a forward or outside back, but was converted to center back by Long Beach State coach Mauricio Ingrassia. Fregulia initially struggled with the position change, but eventually gained confidence and earned both a spot on the Big West all-freshman team and an all-Big West honorable mention at the end of her freshman season.[2][3] She scored her first collegiate goal on August 29, 2016, contributing to a 3–0 victory over San Diego. On November 6, she scored Long Beach State's game-winner against UC Irvine in the Big West Tournament final.[2]

In her sophomore season, Fregulia made 14 appearances before picking up a season-ending knee injury.[2][7] She had recorded two goals (both of which were game-winners) and two assists in that timeframe. Despite missing the end of the season, she was named the Big West Defensive Player of the Year.[2] Fregulia went on to miss nearly two years of action before returning to the field in 2019 and putting on a season in which she was named second-team All-Big West after starting every game.[2][7]

The 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] In 2021, Fregulia captained the team, leading Long Beach State from central defense in all 18 games. She was named Big West Co-Defensive Player of the Year and first-team All-Big West. She also earned her second All-West region second team honor (her first had come in her sophomore year). Fregulia departed from Long Beach State having made 70 appearances and scored 7 goals.[2]

Club career

Fregulia was selected by the North Carolina Courage in the first round of the 2022 NWSL Draft (twelfth overall).[8] She became the third player from the Big West conference to be drafted into the NWSL (after Mexican internationals Christina Burkenroad and Kiana Palacios) and first-ever from Cal State Long Beach.[9] On February 7, 2022, the Courage announced that they had signed Fregulia to her first professional contract, a one-year deal with an option for 2023.[10] Fregulia spent North Carolina's preseason and 2022 NWSL Challenge Cup campaign sidelined by an injury. On April 28, she was waived one day before the Courage's regular season opener against Angel City FC.[11]

In February 2023, Fregulia signed for Mexican side Club Tijuana near the end of the Liga MX Femenil transfer window.[12] She earned her first professional minutes for Tijuana, including in the team's 1–0 victory over Guadalajara in May 2023 to round out the Clausura phase of Tijuana's season.[13]

On August 18, 2023, Fregulia announced her retirement from professional soccer due to health concerns.[14]

Personal life

In November 2023, Fregulia got engaged to Portland Timbers and Canada men's national team player Zac McGraw.[15] The couple welcomed their first child, a son, on January 29, 2025.[16]

Honors and awards

Long Beach State Beach

Individual

  • First-team All-Big West: 2021
  • Second-team All-Big West: 2019
  • Big West all-freshman team: 2016
  • Big West Conference Defensive Player of the Year: 2017, 2021

References

  1. ^ "Liga MX Femenil. Disciplinary Report: Week 17". Mexican Football Federation. May 16, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2026.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Kaitlin Fregulia". Long Beach State Beach. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  3. ^ a b Fiddler, JJ (September 6, 2017). "West Torrance's Kaitlin Fregulia central to Long Beach State women's soccer success". Daily Breeze. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  4. ^ Thorpe, Dave (January 9, 2016). "Kaitlin Fregulia turns wild Pioneer League girls soccer opener West's way". Daily Breeze. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  5. ^ "PREP-JC ROUNDUP: West Torrance girls pull off league stunner, beat Mira Costa in girls soccer". Daily Bulletin. January 9, 2013. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  6. ^ Nguyen, Thuc Nhi (January 11, 2016). "SoCal Prep Legends Girls Athlete of the Week: Kaitlin Fregulia, West Torrance". Daily Breeze. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  7. ^ a b Fiddler, JJ (August 22, 2019). "Long Beach State Women's Soccer Season Preview". The 562. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  8. ^ Fiddler, J. J. (December 21, 2021). "Long Beach State Notebook: Kaitlin Fregulia Drafted By NWSL". The 562. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  9. ^ "Long Beach State's Kaitlin Fregulia Selected 12th Overall in NWSL Draft". Big West. December 2, 2025. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  10. ^ "NC Courage Ink Five 2022 NWSL Draft Picks to Rookie Contracts". North Carolina Courage. February 7, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  11. ^ "MATCH PREVIEW: Courage Open 2022 NWSL Regular Season at Angel City FC". North Carolina Courage. April 28, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  12. ^ Caña, Alan (February 6, 2023). "Liga MX Femenil: Tijuana anuncia la contratación de Kaitlin Fregulia". Debate (in Spanish). Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  13. ^ "Chivas Femenil cae de último minuto ante Xolas". Chivas (in Mexican Spanish). February 28, 2026. Retrieved March 1, 2026.
  14. ^ Fregulia, Kaitlin [@kaitlinmcgraw_]; (August 18, 2023). "My first love. I miss you. I've thought about this post for months now. It's not even relevant to share because most don't care, but I'm grieving this part of my life. I was also avoiding this post because I don't want to close that door. My time playing professional soccer has come to an end due to some health issues". Retrieved March 1, 2026 – via Instagram.
  15. ^ Portland Timbers [@timbersfc]; (November 15, 2023). "She said yes 💍". Retrieved March 1, 2026 – via Instagram.
  16. ^ Fregulia, Kaitlin [@kaitlinmcgraw_]; (January 29, 2026). "My baby boy. A whole year around the sun. 365 days of motherhood". Retrieved March 1, 2026 – via Instagram.
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