Brooke Denesik

Brooke Denesik
Personal information
Full name Brooke Gabrielle Denesik
Date of birth (1996-11-06) November 6, 1996 (age 29)
Place of birth Telluride, Colorado, U.S.
Height 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Position Defender
Youth career
Sereno SC
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015–2018 Texas Tech Red Raiders 81 (1)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2022 BIIK Kazygurt
2022–2023 MSV Duisburg 13 (0)
2024 AaB 8 (0)
2024–2025 Tampa Bay Sun 1 (0)
International career‡
2019 United States U23 1 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:51, June 12, 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 23:51, June 12, 2026 (UTC)

Brooke Gabrielle Denesik (born November 6, 1996) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender. She played college soccer for the Texas Tech Red Raiders. She has previously played for Kazakhstani club BIIK Kazygurt, German club MSV Duisburg, Danish club AaB, and USL Super League club Tampa Bay Sun FC.

Early life

Denesik was born in Telluride, Colorado, as one of two daughters born to John and Debra Denesik. When Denesik was in third grade, her family sold their optical business in Telluride and moved to the Phoenix metropolitan area in order to give the Denesik children more access to advanced youth sports. Denesik spent the rest of her youth in Anthem, Arizona. She played club soccer for Phoenix-based team Sereno SC, contributing to an ECNL national championship in 2013. She also played prep soccer for Boulder Creek High School, where, she helped her school to two state semifinals and earned second team all-state honors as a junior and a senior.

College career

Three games into her freshman season with the Texas Tech Red Raiders, Denesik earned a starting spot on the team. She helped the Red Raiders' defense earn 11 shutouts, which ranked second in the Big 12 Conference, en route to Texas Tech's first-ever Big 12 tournament title and a trip to the NCAA tournament Round of 32. As a sophomore in 2016, she continued to earn minutes, coming in as a substitute in only one of her 18 appearances. Denesik then went on to co-captain the team for the next two years, starting in all 31 of Texas Tech's matches in that span. In her junior year, she scored her only collegiate goal, the equalizer against West Virginia on October 19, 2017.

As a senior, Denesik guided the Red Raiders to reach the NCAA Round of 16 before being eliminated by Virginia on penalties. Her performances throughout 2018 earned her the accolade of Texas Tech Defensive MVP. Throughout her college career, Denesik also shone academically; she was thrice named to the Academic All-Big 12 first team and was the only senior on Texas Tech with a perfect GPA.

Club career

Denesik entered her name into the 2019 NWSL Draft, but was not selected by any team. Instead, she signed her first professional contract with Kazakhstani serial champions BIIK Kazygurt in March 2019. That same year, she recorded her first goal contribution in the UEFA Women's Champions League, assisting Alina Litvinenko in a victory over Estonian side FC Flora. Denesik went on to spend three seasons with Kazygurt, racking up 12 total Champions League appearances in addition to domestic play.

Denesik then moved to German club MSV Duisburg in 2022, joining the team for Duisburg's first season back in the top-division Frauen-Bundesliga after getting promoted the previous season. She played in 13 games for the club after making her Bundesliga debut against SV Meppen on 27 November 2022. In her second season in Germany, Denesik missed the majority of the campaign due to personal reasons. MSV Duisburg terminated Denesik's contract early in November 2023.

The following year, Denesik moved to Aalborg and joined Danish top-flight club AaB. She appeared in 8 Danish Women's League matches before leaving at the end of the season.

In June 2024, Denesik was signed Tampa Bay Sun FC ahead of the inaugural USL Super League season. She made her Super League debut on August 19, 2024, coming on as a second-half substitute for Domi Richardson in Tampa Bay's inaugural match, a draw with the Dallas Trinity. She was rostered on the bench in the Sun's following fixture before not being included in any further matches for the club. After winning the inaugural league championship with Tampa Bay, Denesik departed from the club at the end of the season.

International career

While playing for BIIK Kazygurt in August 2019, Denesik earned her first youth international call-up, receiving an invitation to the United States under-23 national team. In her U23 debut, the United States' opening game of the Nordic Tournament, she assisted Simone Charley in a 2–0 victory over Norway.

Honors

Texas Tech Red Raiders

BIIK Kazygurt

Tampa Bay Sun FC

References

  1. ↑ "Commencement Program 2018" (PDF). Texas Tech University. p. 16. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Strode, Dale (September 1, 2019). "Telluride native named to Team USA". The Telluride Times. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Strode, Dale (November 21, 2018). "Competition drives former Telluride student-athlete". The Telluride Times. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  4. ↑ Media, Carlos Silva Jr A.-J. "Brooke on the spot". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  5. 1 2 "Final list of players registered for the 2019 NWSL College Draft". NWSL. January 9, 2019. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  6. ↑ "Spotlight On: Local sports". North Central News. September 1, 2013. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Texas Tech soccer adds 13 on National Signing Day". KCBD. February 5, 2015. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Brooke Denesik". Texas Tech Red Raiders. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  9. ↑ O'Brien, Jeremy. "Denesik Named First Team Academic All-American". Texas Tech Red Raiders. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  10. ↑ O'Brien, Jeremy. "Denesik Becomes Third Senior This Year to Go Pro". Texas Tech Red Raiders. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  11. 1 2 3 "Brooke Denesik". Soccerway. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Brooke Denesik" (in German). German Football Association. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Duisburg trennt sich von weiteren Spielerinnen". Soccerdonna. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Jetzt sind es wieder fünf: Duisburgs amerikanische Warum-nicht-Momente". Kicker (in German). Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  15. ↑ "Tampa Bay Sun FC's Rising with Potential: How The First Signings Could Shape the Season – RBLR Sports". Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  16. ↑ USL Super League [@gainbridgesuperleague]; (June 12, 2024). "Adding a @texastechsoccer alum to the defense 🧱 @brooke_denesik is the latest player to join @tampabaysunfc's inaugural squad 🌞". Retrieved June 12, 2026 – via Instagram.
  17. ↑ "Tampa Bay Sun Football Club 2025/26 Retained List". Tampa Bay Sun FC. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
  18. ↑ "U.S. U-23 WNT Opens Nordic Tournament With 2-0 Victory Against Norway". US Soccer. August 28, 2019. Retrieved June 12, 2026.