Tim Merritt (born June 28, 1982, in

Gig Harbor, Washington Gig Harbor () is the name of both a bay on Puget Sound and a city on its shore in Pierce County, Washington, Pierce County, Washington (state), Washington. The population was 12,029 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Gig Harbor bills ...

) is an American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player who currently plays for

USASA The United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) is a national organization for amateur soccer in the United States. It consists of 54 state associations in four regions, as well as national, regional, and state leagues. It compares to the Uni ...

amateur team CASL Elite.

Career

High school and college

Merritt attended

Bellarmine Preparatory School Bellarmine Preparatory School is a private Catholic co-educational high school run by the USA West Province of the Society of Jesus in Tacoma, Washington. It is located in the Archdiocese of Seattle. Today, it serves just over 900 students fro ...

and played

college soccer College soccer, called college football in some countries, is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. While it is most widespread in the United States, it is also prominent in Japan, South Kore ...

at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

from 2001 to 2004. Merritt was a two-time second-team All-ACC selection at defender for Carolina and was a member of the Tar Heels’ 2001 NCAA Championship team. He scored 10 goals and had 11 assists for 31 points over his collegiate career. During his college years he also played with

Carolina Dynamo Salem City FC is an American amateur soccer club based in Bermuda Run, North Carolina that fields a men's team in USL League Two, and a women's team as the North Carolina Fusion in the USL W League. The teams plays their home games at the Truis ...

in the

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States, forming part of the United States soccer league system. The league will featu ...

, and was named to the PDL All-Central Conference team in 2004.

Professional

Merritt was drafted in the fourth round (48th overall)

2005 MLS SuperDraft The 2005 MLS SuperDraft, held in Baltimore, Maryland, on January 14, 2005, was the sixth incarnation of the annual MLS SuperDraft. Expansion club Real Salt Lake had the first pick as the result of a coin toss (fellow newcomers C.D. Chivas USA g ...

by D.C. United. Merritt made only one appearance with United's regular squad but was a strong contributor to the reserve team's inaugural

MLS Reserve Division The MLS Reserve League was a soccer league for the reserve teams of Major League Soccer with teams in both the United States and Canada. It was inaugurated on April 9, 2005, with the first official reserve game being a 2–0 victory by Chivas ...

championship in 2005. Merritt spent the next two years playing abroad in Germany with

FSV Oggersheim FSV 1913 Ludwigshafen-Oggersheim is a German association football club based in the Oggersheim district of Ludwigshafen, Rhineland-Palatinate. The club advanced to the Regionalliga Süd (III) following an Oberliga (IV) title win in 2007, but ...

. At FSV Oggersheim, Merritt helped the club win promotion to the Regionalliga Süd in 2007. In his two years with the club, he compiled 40 appearances while tallying 1 goal and 6 assists. After suffering a knee injury while playing in Germany, Merritt returned to the United States in 2008. While recovering, he played with the amateur Seattle Wolves in the South Puget Sound League, and having trialed with the

San Jose Earthquakes The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional association football, soccer club based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Origin ...

during pre-season, Merritt signed with

Miami FC Miami FC is an American professional association football, soccer team based in Miami, Florida that competes in the USL Championship, the second tier of the American soccer pyramid. The club began play in the North American Soccer League (201 ...

in 2009.Miami FC announces latest roster moves
/ref> He went on to play 24 games and score one goal for Miami before choosing to retire from professional soccer and pursue other career opportunities at the end of the season.

References

External links

Miami FC bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merritt, Tim 1982 births Living people North Carolina Fusion U23 players D.C. United players Fort Lauderdale Strikers (2006–2016) players USL League Two players USL First Division players North Carolina Tar Heels men's soccer players American men's soccer players American expatriate men's soccer players American expatriate men's soccer players in Germany FSV Oggersheim players Colorado Rapids U-23 players D.C. United draft picks Sportspeople from Gig Harbor, Washington Soccer players from Pierce County, Washington Men's association football defenders