Mallory Swanson Carted Off Before Halftime of USWNT Friendly Vs. Ireland

Mallory Swanson carted off before halftime of USWNT friendly vs. Ireland originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

The U.S. women’s national team won their friendly against Ireland on Saturday, but it might have come at a major cost. 

Forward Mallory Swanson had two serious collisions in the first half, the second of which required her to be carted off.

Mallory Swanson had to be stretchered off the field after suffering an apparent knee injury. pic.twitter.com/MtpWGd4TuD

— espnW (@espnW) April 8, 2023

Swanson first hit the ground in the 25th minute when she tried to connect with teammate Sophie Smith’s pass into the box. She seemed to get bumped by an Irish defender before crashing into goalkeeper Courtney Brosnan. She was evaluated by the medical staff for a potential neck/head injury but was allowed to return to play.

Despite the scary start, Swanson seemed to be back in full force, celebrating Emily Fox’s first goal for the national team just over 10 minutes later. 

That momentum, however, was short-lived as Swanson went down minutes later with a knee injury. She was visibly in pain and immediately required medical attention. She was ultimately carted off and reportedly taken to the hospital for further treatment. 

With a World Cup less than 4 months away, the USWNT’s most in form player of 2023 Mal Swanson is carted off with what looks like a potentially serious injury. Devastating for Mal and the USWNT. Fingers crossed that it’s not as bad as it looks. 🙏 🇺🇸
pic.twitter.com/OLGlIGXAcI

— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) April 8, 2023

Mallory Swanson injured her left knee and is on way to the hospital, per USSF. #uswnt

— Steven Goff (@SoccerInsider) April 8, 2023

Lindsey Horan added another goal off a penalty in the second half to secure the Stars and Stripes a 2-0 victory, but the injury to Swanson casted a dark cloud over the victory at Q2 Stadium in Austin. 

#USWNT leads Ireland 1-0 at halftime, but this game has totally been taken over by concern for Mallory Swanson.

— Laken Litman (@LakenLitman) April 8, 2023

Swanson has been electric over the past year. A fixture on the women’s soccer scene since debuting for the women’s national team at 17, she enjoyed a breakout 2022 campaign with seven goals and seven assists. The 24-year-old continued to produce at a blistering pace in 2023, netting six goals just in the past three months. 

She similarly dominated the NWSL, scoring 11 goals and six assists -- top-five in each category -- for the Red Stars.

The injury to Swanson comes less than four months before the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. The U.S. is set to kick off group play against Vietnam on July 21.

Meanwhile, the Red Stars season is already several weeks underway. They lost their first two games and have one goal from Swanson so far.