As one of the world’s best programs, the talent pool for the United States Women’s National Team appears to have an ever-expanding depth of prospective additions. The manager’s role is incorporating these potential players at all levels of the pyramid and handing out the coveted senior camp invitation. Katherine “Kat” Rader is enjoying a standout debut season in the National Women’s Soccer League and could be close to being included at the top level. The 22-year-old Houston Dash attacker has demonstrated
her scoring touch and should be in the running for Rookie of the Year.
Raised in Stuart, Florida, Rader competed with Orlando Pride, Weston FC, and Florida United at the youth level, leading the Development Academy in scoring across all age groups. TopDrawerSoccer rated her as a four-star prospect and ranked her as the fifth-overall recruit in the 2022 class. The forward endeavored to “work a lot on [her] own” in order to develop her technical skills on the ball, shooting, and finishing.
Wanting to play in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Rader then matriculated to Duke University and contributed 12 goals and five assists in 23 matches in her first campaign, reaching the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals and being named ACC Freshman of the Year, ACC All-Tournament Team, and All-ACC Second Team. As a sophomore, she put up seven goals and two assists in 16 appearances, receiving All-ACC Second Team. Her junior year opened with a goal and an assist in four fixtures before being derailed by a lower-body injury; embracing the process and maintaining a “very positive outlook helped [her] with [her] recovery” through two surgeries and “learning to walk again.” The forward returned with a vengeance for her final year in Durham with 12 goals and 12 assists in 22 games, meriting United Soccer Coaches First-Team All-America, USC First-Team All-Region, NCAA College Cup All-Tournament Team, All-ACC Second Team, and ACC All-Tournament Team as the Blue Devils reached the semifinal of the College Cup.
“She is just so smart,” said Duke head coach Kieran Hall. “She understands how the game is played. She can onboard ideas really quickly and effectively. Her ball striking ability is incredible. She can hit the ball harder with her left foot harder than most players can hit with their dominant foot. She can play on the right side of the field, she can play in the center of the field, and she can play on the left side of the field with equal effect. Not many players can do that … Statistically, she is showing she can [score and create], which I think maybe a year ago it was untapped. She just wants to improve and she has shown she can do that. She has this real hunger to be an elite player and she’s showing she can be really versatile.”
Rader next entered the professional ranks by signing a three-year contract with the Houston Dash in January, being praised for her “scoring ability and competitive nature.” She hit the ground running with a start in the season-opening 1-0 victory over San Diego Wave, followed with a goal and an assist the following week to secure a 3-0 win against Boston Legacy. Thus far, the forward has six finishes in 17 appearances, establishing herself as one of the top NWSL newcomers and being named Rookie of the Month for May.
Rising up a level always brings new challenges, often testing a player’s athleticism. “I think the biggest change for me has definitely been the physicality of the league,” said Rader. “I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s super similar to college in that way. I think there’s some other aspects of it. I would say applying [to] the ACC, the speed of play has been pretty similar. That hasn’t been too big of an adjustment. But definitely the physicality of the league, and then also the tactical adjustments we have to make playing a big-time game every weekend.”
At the international level, Rader began featuring for the United States in the Under-14 age group and was a member of the Under-15 side that won the 2018 CONCACAF U-15 Championship. She helped the Under-20 team finish second at the 2023 CONCACAF U-20 Championship, scoring in the 6-0 group-stage victory over Panama, but was left out of the ensuing U-20 World Cup. Her most recent duty came with the Under-23 cohort for the winter camp and the spring’s WU23 Friendly Finals, with her goal in the semifinal against Denmark helping to claim the title.
Standing at five feet, six inches tall, Rader is a striker, attacking midfielder, and winger who creates a bevy of chances, relishes duels, recovers possession in the final third, and gets regular touches in the box. She “loves to attack, score goals, get assists, and help the team.” However, dealing with “tighter” defending, there is a desire to learn how to better “find space, find pockets, turn off players, and lay the ball off.”
“At Duke, I was really lucky to play a lot of different positions,” Rader told Bayou City Soccer. “I kind of learned a lot of different things about the game: being able to play different positions and being able to work on different areas of my game through those different positions. My biggest thing is I love to attack. I love to create chances, score goals, assist, just be creative and help my team create chances. So, I would say that is the biggest thing for me is no matter what position I’m in, just trying to create as many good chances for the team as I can.”
As is to be expected, the competition for minutes on the USWNT is fierce, but Emma Hayes has proven willing to test out any deserving potential new talent. Rader is an interesting option who has demonstrated the ability to contribute in the attack and work hard on the defensive side of the game. The time to prove herself may come after the current World Cup and Olympic cycles, which will require that she continue to produce over the next few years.
