# Jenna Walker

Jenna Walker (née Winebrenner; born March 1, 1999) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a center back for Dallas Trinity FC of the USL Super League.
Walker played college soccer for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the TCU Horned Frogs before being drafted by the Kansas City Current in the 2022 NWSL Draft. She was an assistant coach for the Kansas City Comets of the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) in 2022–23.

## Early life and college career

Walker grew up in Kansas City, Missouri, the younger of two children born to Eric and Lisa Winebrenner. She began playing soccer at age three. She played high school soccer at Park Hill High School, winning three consecutive Kansas City Suburban Red Conference titles, and also competed in basketball and cross country. She was named second-team all-state in 2014 and 2015 and first-team all-state in 2016 and 2017.

### Notre Dame Fighting Irish, TCU Horned Frogs

Walker played four seasons for Notre Dame Fighting Irish between 2017 and 2020, joining the starting lineup and playing 18 games as a sophomore. She tore her UCL during her sophomore season and played the rest of the year in a brace, undergoing surgery in the spring. She started all 21 games and scored 2 goals in her junior season. She started all 13 games in her senior season, which was shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Walker transferred to the TCU Horned Frogs in 2021, starting all 24 games in her graduate season and earning first-team All-Big 12 Conference honors. She helped lead TCU to victory at the Big 12 tournament, where she was named the tournament's defensive most valuable player. She provided three assists while at TCU, all of them game winners, including one to Messiah Bright in the Big 12 semifinals and one in the first round of the NCAA tournament, where TCU reached the round of 16. While in college, Walker began coaching girls' soccer teams when home in Kansas City.

## Club career
### Kansas City Current

The Kansas City Current selected Walker 41st overall in the fourth round of the 2022 NWSL Draft. She was signed to a one-year contract with an option to extend an additional year, which was exercised. She made her professional debut on March 18, 2022, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 draw against Racing Louisville in the 2022 NWSL Challenge Cup group stage. She started all but one of the Current's seven games of the Challenge Cup as they reached the semifinals. She also started six of the Current's first seven regular-season games but was left out the starting lineup after June 4. She was unused in the playoffs as Kansas City reached the league championship game, finishing her rookie season with 18 appearances (12 starts) in all competitions.
Following her rookie season, Walker was hired as an assistant coach by the Kansas City Comets of the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) on November 22, 2022, becoming the first female coach in MASL history. She knew Comets head coach Leo Gibson and assistant coach Stefan Stokic from her youth soccer days. Her duties included analyzing game film and scrimmaging with the men in practice. She said the opportunity to train with the indoor team was "an ideal situation for the offseason".
Walker started at midfielder against the Houston Dash on July 22, 2023, and recorded her first two professional assists in the game, setting up the first two goals of Kristen Hamilton's hat trick in a 3–1 victory in the 2023 NWSL Challenge Cup group stage. She made 14 appearances (7 starts) in all competitions in 2023.

### Dallas Trinity

Walker was rostered with the North Carolina Courage as an injury replacement player for five months in 2024, making no appearances. On August 1, 2024, she was waived by the Courage and signed with USL Super League club Dallas Trinity FC ahead of the league's inaugural season. She appeared in the starting lineup of Trinity's first-ever game on August 18, which they drew 1–1 against the Tampa Bay Sun. On March 9, 2025, she helped Trinity notch a 6–0 victory over league leaders Brooklyn FC.

## Personal life

Walker is married to professional lacrosse player Ethan Walker. They got engaged in July 2024.

## Honors and awards

TCU Horned Frogs
* Big 12 Conference tournament: 2021
Individual
* USL Super League Team of the Month: December 2024
* First-team All-Big 12: 2021
* Big 12 Conference tournament defensive most valuable player: 2021