Lo'eau LaBonta
Lo'eau Kaiulani LaBonta (born March 18, 1993) is an American professional soccer player who currently plays as a midfielder for Kansas City Current in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL).
| LaBonta in May 2016 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Lo'eau Kaiulani LaBonta[1] | ||
| Date of birth | March 18, 1993 | ||
| Place of birth | Rancho Cucamonga, California, United States | ||
| Height | 5 ft 1 in (1.55 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Kansas City Current | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2011–2014 | Stanford Cardinal | 78 | (22) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015 | Sky Blue FC | 6 | (0) |
| 2016–2017 | FC Kansas City | 22 | (2) |
| 2017–2019 | → Western Sydney Wanderers (loan) | 21 | (1) |
| 2018–2020 | Utah Royals | 42 | (2) |
| 2021– | Kansas City Current | 61 | (12) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 24 March 2024 | |||
College soccer edit
LaBonta attended Stanford University from 2011 to 2014, and was part of the NCAA National Championship winning team in the 2011 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament.[2]
Club career edit
Sky Blue FC, 2015 edit
Sky Blue FC drafted LaBonta from Stanford with the 37th overall pick in the 2015 NWSL College Draft. She made six appearances before Sky Blue FC waived her and Meg Morris in July 2015 to make room on the roster for players returning from the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup.[3][4]
FC Kansas City, 2016–2017 edit
FC Kansas City signed LaBonta in May 2016.[5] She debuted for FCKC against the Orlando Pride shortly thereafter, and soon earned a regular starting position with the team.[4] FCKC head coach Vlatko Andonovski cited her tenacity in winning possession from opponents for her increased playing time.[6]
Western Sydney Wanderers, 2017–2019 (loan) edit
In October 2017, LaBonta joined Australian club Western Sydney Wanderers.[7] She played every match for the Red & Black, scoring one goal. She returned to the Wanderers for the 2018–19 season and appeared in 9 games.[8]
Utah Royals FC, 2018–2020 edit
After FC Kansas City ceased operations after the 2017 season, LaBonta was officially added to the roster of the Utah Royals FC on February 8, 2018.[9] LaBonta appeared in 16 games for the Royals in the 2018 NWSL season.
She returned to Utah for the 2019 season and scored her first goal for the club on April 21, in a 1–0 win over the Washington Spirit.[10] LaBonta was named to the NWSL Team of the Month for August, she had 1 goal and 2 assists during the month of August.[11]
Kansas City Current, 2021–present edit
LaBonta followed the transfer of player related assets to the Kansas City expansion team, Kansas City Current, after the Utah Royals FC folded. She earned the nickname "Celly Queen" for her elaborate celebrations after scoring goals.[12] In the first away game of the 2024 season, she converted a penalty in the 71st minute for a 2–1 win against San Diego Wave.[13]
Viral Goal Celebration Video edit
During the 2022 National Women's Soccer League season, Labonta's goal celebration went viral after converting a penalty kick against Angel City FC. After scoring, Labonta began moving toward the corner flag and walking as if she had injured her hamstring only to start twerking. The video of her celebration quickly went viral and other players in different sports began imitating the celebration including Travis Kelce and Alexander Mattison.[14][15][16]
Personal life edit
LaBonta was born in Rancho Cucamonga, California.[12] LaBonta is married to retired Sporting Kansas City player Roger Espinoza.[12]
While attending Stanford, she earned a degree in engineering.[12]
Career Statistics edit
last updated October 21, 2023
| Club | Division | Season | League (includes playoffs) | Domestic Cup | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| FC Kansas City | NWSL | 2017 | 22 | 2 | — | 22 | 2 | |
| Utah Royals | 2018 | 16 | 0 | — | 16 | 0 | ||
| 2019 | 22 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 27 | 2 | ||
| 2020 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Kansas City Current | 2021 | 19 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 22 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 23 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 30 | 9 | ||
| 2023 | 17 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 22 | 2 | ||
| 2024 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 124 | 16 | 20 | 1 | 140 | 17 | ||
| WS Wanders (loan) | W-League | 2017-2018 | 12 | 1 | — | 12 | 1 | |
| 2018-2019 | 9 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | |||
| Total | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 1 | ||
| Career Total | 145 | 15 | 20 | 1 | 161 | 18 | ||
Honors edit
Individual
References edit
- ^ "School of Engineering – Bachelor of Science: Degrees Conferred March 31, 2016". 125th Commencement. Stanford, California: Stanford University. June 12, 2016. p. 39. (PDF) from the original on June 28, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
- ^ "Stanford's Lo'eau LaBonta Seizing Opportunity To Go Out A Champion". November 15, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
- ^ . Sky Blue FC. July 2, 2015. Archived from the original on June 14, 2018. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
- ^ a b Gaylor, Rachel (May 25, 2017). "Player Profile – Lo'eau LaBonta". FC Kansas City. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
- ^ FC Kansas City (May 28, 2016). "Blues Sign Midfielder Lo'eau LaBonta". OurSportsCentral. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
- ^ Scoby, Ashley (September 10, 2016). . The Kansas City Star. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
- ^ "LaBonta joins the Wanderers". Western Sydney Wanderers. October 19, 2017.
- ^ "LeBonta returns to the Red & Black". September 20, 2018.
- ^ "Utah Royals FC officially welcomes five additions to 2018 NWSL roster". February 8, 2018. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
- ^ "L.LABONTA". Retrieved April 21, 2019.
- ^ "August Team of the Month". September 5, 2019. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
- ^ a b c d Bachman, Rachel (October 28, 2022). "Kansas City's Soccer Star Is a Twerking, Goal-Scoring Late Bloomer". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
- ^ "Kansas City Current extinguish San Diego Wave in first regular season road match". Sunflower State Radio Network. March 24, 2024. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
- ^ "Chiefs' Travis Kelce channels KC Current's Lo'EAU LaBonta". September 15, 2023.
- ^ "A professional soccer star faked an injury after scoring to set up an epic twerking goal celebration". Insider.com.
- ^ "MSN". MSN.
- ^ "NWSL Announces Winners of Mastercard Best XI Awards". NWSL Soccer. November 3, 2022. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
External links edit
- Lo'eau LaBonta at Soccerway
- National Women's Soccer League player profile
- Utah Royals FC player profile November 28, 2020, at the Wayback Machine