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,. The population was 12,029 at the 2020 census. Gig Harbor is one of several cities and towns that claim to be "the gateway to the Olympic ...

) is an American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

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 55 state organizations as well as national, regional and state leagues. The National Premier Soccer League, NISA ...

amateur team

CASL Elite CASL Elite is an American amateur association football, soccer team based in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 2009, the team plays in Region III of the United States Adult Soccer Association, a network of amateur leagues at the f ...

Career

High school and college

Merritt attended

Bellarmine Preparatory School Bellarmine Preparatory School is a private, Roman Catholic, coeducational high school run by the USA West Province of the Society of Jesus in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It is located in the Archdiocese of Seattle. Today it serves just ...

and played

college soccer College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and the Philippines. The United Kingd ...

at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

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 North Carolina Fusion U-23, formerly known as Carolina Dynamo, is an American soccer team based in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1993, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The ...

in the

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United States soccer league syste ...

, 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 Major League Soccer SuperDraft. Expansion club Real Salt Lake had the first pick as the result of a coin toss (fellow newcomers C.D. ...

D.C. United D.C. United is a professional soccer club based in Washington, D.C. that competes in the Eastern Conference of Major League Soccer, the top tier of American soccer. Domestically, the club has won four MLS Cups (league championships), four Suppo ...

. 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 f ...

. 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 Crossfire Redmond, previously the Seattle Wolves and Washington Crossfire, is an American soccer organization based in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 2009, the team plays in the National Premier Soccer League, the fourth tier of ...

in the South Puget Sound League, and having trialed with the

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

during pre-season, Merritt signed with

Miami FC The Miami FC is an American professional 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 (NASL) in the 2016 se ...

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 Miami FC (2006) players USL League Two players USL First Division players North Carolina Tar Heels men's soccer players American soccer players American expatriate soccer players American expatriate soccer players in Germany FSV Oggersheim players Colorado Rapids U-23 players Soccer players from Washington (state) D.C. United draft picks People from Gig Harbor, Washington Association football defenders