Wave make roster decisions ahead of 2026 season, affecting two San Diego natives

The San Diego Wave’s 2026 roster won’t include one San Diego native, and may not include another local rising star.

The club announced Tuesday morning that it had made roster decisions ahead of the 2026 season, casting five players into free agency while announcing it was “in active negotiations regarding contract options” with another five players.

Striker Kyra Carusa is among the five heading to free agency. A former San Diego Surf player who attended Del Norte High School, Stanford and Georgetown, Carusa joined the club in August 2023 from a club in London. The others who won’t return: goalkeeper Hillary Beall and forwards Mya Jones, Chiamaka Okwuchukwu, and Makenzy Robbe.

Forward Melanie Barcenas is among the players who remain in contract limbo. The San Diego native in 2023 became the youngest player, at age 15, to sign with a National Women’s Soccer League team. Barcenas has started eight matches over the last two seasons, logging two goals and an assist. The club is also negotiating with defenders Hanna Lundkvist and Nya Harrison, midfielder Jordan Fusco and goalkeeper DiDi Haračić. Lundkvist has been one of the Wave’s most dependable players, starting 45 matches while helping anchor the defense.

The Wave will open their 2026 season on March 13. The team is coming off a 10-9-7 regular season that ended with a Nov. 9 loss to the Portland Thorns in the first round of the NWSL playoffs.