Ali Riley Puts Her Best Foot Forward in Rio

Ali Riley has long been a familiar face in the world of women’s professional soccer and Palisadians will surely recognize her as one of their own Wednesday when she takes the pitch for New Zealand against the United States to kick off the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Riley is a defender for the Football Ferns and this is the third Olympics for the former St. Matthew’s multi-sport star. She is regarded as one of the best players in the world at her position (left back) and she honed her skills at the Palisades Recreation Center, not far from where she grew up in the Alphabet Streets.

After a stellar prep career at Harvard-Westlake High in Studio City, Riley captained a Stanford University squad that included future FIFA Women’s World Cup winners Kelley O’Hara and Christen Press.

Riley, 28, played a season for the Pali Blues at Stadium by the Sea and won two championships in the Women’s Professional Soccer league and currently plays for Rosengard of the Swedish League alongside five-time FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year and Brazilian star Marta.

“I’m really excited — there’s really nothing like the Olympics,” said Riley, the only daughter of John Riley and Bev Lowe, both of whom are regular participants in the Palisades-Will Rogers 5/10K Run. “Given Brazil’s love for the game, it’s a great country to play in. We have high expectations and want to show we can compete with the elite teams.”

Riley played every minute for New Zealand in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China, where the Football Ferns tied Japan 2-2, lost to Norway 1-0 and lost to the United States 4-0. She played every minute in the 2012 Olympics in London, where New Zealand lost to the United States 2-0 in the quarterfinals.

New Zealand has a tough draw in Rio. After facing the reigning gold medalists Wednesday (the USA-New Zealand game will be televised at 3 p.m. on NBC), the Football Ferns will continue Group G play against Colombia on Aug. 6 and France on Aug. 9.

— Steve Galluzzo