Gyasi Zardes is the top goal-scorer for the United States so far in this year’s Gold Cup. He has notched three scores through four games in the tournament, including a pair against Trinidad and Tobago during the Group Stage.
The Americans face their 2017 Gold Cup final opponents in Jamaica on Wednesday night in Nashville (9:30 p.m. Eastern time, FS1 and Univision). One person that will be cheering Zardes on is his wife Madison Goodvin.
The two met while they were both student-athletes at CSU Bakersfield. They got married in 2013 in a small ceremony in Los Angeles. Zardes, now a forward for the Columbus Crew of the MLS, was playing for the LA Galaxy at the time.
According to their wedding registry, they tied the knot officially on Dec. 14. Galaxy fans heavily participated, buying several of the items on the list.
While He Played Soccer, She Swam & Competed in Track & Field for CSUB
Zardes scored 38 goals in 56 caps for the CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners. However, Goodvin may have been the more prolific athlete, competing in three different sports.
According to her athletic bio, she swam as a freshman before focusing on sprinting and throws as a sophomore. Whereas Zardes hails from Hawthorne, Goodvin is from Frontier High in Bakersfield.
As a swimmer in 2011-12, she took home the 200 IM at dual events versus UC Davis and San Jose State. She also won the 200 breaststroke against UC Santa Cruz. On the track the next season, she ran her season-best time of 30.38 in the 200 meters at the Cal Poly Pomona Invitational.
Her major was in CAFS with plans to become a special education teacher. CSU Bakersfield runs in the family, as her brother Chase competed for the varsity golf team until 2013.
Goodvin won several prominent events over the course of his college career, including the Taft City Amateur in 2012. He now works as an Events and National Sales Specialist at Mattress Firm, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Goodvin & Zardes Have 2 Children Together in Columbus
Goodvin gave birth to the couple’s first child, a son named Gyan, in May 2014. According to our own Rick Rosen, “Baby G has been a fixture on Gyasi’s Instagram feed. Now over a year old, Gyan can be seen hangin’ at the beach, eating Chipotle, and of course, kicking a ball around.”
A few years later, Goodvin gave birth to a daughter named Maylie Faith. In 2018, Zardes was forced to take the family to Columbus to play for his now-USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter and the Crew.
“It’s crazy that my kids are experiencing more moving than I did as a kid,” Zardes said to Pro Soccer USA. “But it’s been great. My kids love it here. Lot of activities, family-wise. This state has a lot of families and things for families, so it’s been great. The kids are adjusting well and they love it here.”
Over 51 matches for the Crew, he has scored 26 goals and notched an assist. He won the MLS Comeback Player of the Year award for his first season in Columbus after tallying a career-high 19 goals.
“Sometimes players need change and sometimes a different environment can bring out different abilities,” he said to the Los Angeles Times. “It was just a great time for me to just try something new and kind of get out of my comfort zone.”
Going from Southern California to central Ohio is a big transition, but Goodvin, Zardes and the children are making it work. For such a late game versus Jamaica, it’s not clear if the children will be awake, but he knows his family is behind him.
Comments
Gyasi Zardes, His Wife Madison Goodvin & Family Are Thriving in Ohio