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The National Women's Soccer League preseason is wrapping up and the 12 clubs in the league are preparing for the eight-month grind with the Challenge Cup and the regular season looming. The 2022 Challenge Cup will kick off on March 18 with the cup final closing on May 7. Fans can watch the Challenge Cup opening weekend matches live and on-demand on Paramount+. For the full NWSL regular season schedule, click here.  

San Diego Wave FC is the newest expansion side and the club is preparing to take its first steps in NWSL action during the upcoming Challenge Cup. The franchise announced its arrival to the league naming former USWNT head coach and two-time World Cup champion Jill Ellis as club president. The club later hired Casey Stoney as their head coach to lead the team during its inaugural season. 

Let's take a look at San Diego Wave FC ahead of the 2022 NWSL season:

Offseason overview

Staff: Jill Ellis quickly added a head coach in Stoney and a general manager in Molly Downtain. The coaching staff also includes assistant Rich Gunney, who joined from Portland Thorns, and assistant Victoria Boardman. Louis Hunt is in the role of goalkeeper coach. 

Biggest acquisitions: The franchise assembled their entire roster over the offseason, but had some marquee additions before and after the expansion draft. They announced their first player signing in USWNT defender Abby Dahlkemper then later announced another USWNT player to the roster after trading for Alex Morgan from the Orlando Pride. The club also kept their No. 1 draft pick during trade window and used it to select defender Naomi Girma from Stanford University.

Biggest burning question entering 2022 season

San Diego Wave FC is one of two franchises being introduced into the league. The though of bringing a California expansion team into the fold has long been part of the conversation in NWSL since the arrivals of Houston Dash (2015) and Orlando Pride (2016). Five years after Orlando's introduction, we finally have two California sides entering the fold. No expansion side has ever made the postseason during its maiden year in the league. Can the Wave become the first to break this trend?

What they're saying

Kelsey Turnbow is entering her first year in the league after back-to-back appearances in the NCAA College Cup final with Santa Clara. Turnbow was drafted in 2021, but elected to use her extra year of eligibility to remain at Santa Clara and join NWSL in 2022. The Chicago Red Stars traded her player rights to San Diego in a multiplayer deal for protection in the expansion draft.

The 2020 College Cup champion signed a contract with the Wave during preseason and sat down with the "Attacking Third" CBS Sports podcast to discuss joining San Diego Wave FC ahead of their inaugural season. 

"I think it's really neat that we have an opportunity to build a culture here that hasn't been established yet so there's no predetermined friendships, there's no 'right way' of doing things so far. Casey [Stoney] and the staff have this opportunity to create what they want here in San Diego and it's so special to be a part of that.

"It's such a competitive environment -- they foster that. It's an environment where we're battling all the time and we're not afraid to fail because those are growing opportunities."

Want more coverage of women's soccer? Listen below and make sure to follow Attacking Third, A CBS Soccer Podcast devoted to bringing you everything you need to know from the NWSL and around the globe.

San Diego Wave FC roster

The Wave currently have a 24-player roster as the team navigates Challenge Cup. Defenders are the most crowded line with eight players, followed by forwards with seven players. Expect Sweden international Sofia Jakobbson to line up alongside Alex Morgan this season. 

Goalkeepers (3): Carly Telford, Kailen Sheridan, Melissa Lowder

Defenders (8): Abby Dahlkemper, Christen Westphal, Kaleigh Riehl, Kayla Bruster, Mia Gyau, Naomi Girma, Taylor Hansen, Tegan McGrady

Midfielders (6): Belle Briede, Emily van Egmond, Kelsey Turnbow, Kristen McNabb, Sydney Pulver, Taylor Kornieck

 Forwards (7): Alex Morgan, Amirah Ali, Jodie Taylor, Katie Johnson, Makenzy Doniak, Marleen Schimmer (INT), Sofia Jakobsson (INT)Projected Finish

Projected finish

Look for the team to be frustrating to play against despite a lower-mid table finish. Casey Stoney has shown she can turn a club around to the next level, and San Diego may swell to new heights with the talent on their roster, but it won't be in their first season.