SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes announced today that the club has added defender/midfielder Destinee Coronado to the roster ahead of Wednesday’s match against Atlanta United FC, presented by Honda, set to kick off at 7:45 p.m.
Coronado, 10, joins the Quakes from the Honeybees and will serve as the honorary captain on Wednesday. Her soccer idol is Guillermo Ochoa of the Mexican National Team, in keeping with the Quakes’ Mexican Heritage Night celebration at the match.
On April 14, Coronado was taken to the ER with pain in her abdominal area. After many tests and a CT scan, doctors found a Stage 3, malignant cancerous tumor growing in one of her ovaries. She underwent surgery to have the tumor removed the next day. Coronado is also currently undergoing chemotherapy for cancer cells found near her belly button.
In anticipation of her honorary captaincy on Wednesday, Coronado will attend training today, Tuesday, Sept. 18, and meet with her new teammates in the locker room. She will then participate in media day, taking headshots and filming her starting XI introduction video for the match. Afterwards, she will join her teammates for training.
On Wednesday, Coronado will meet with Quakes general manager Jesse Fioranelli and sign her contract. She will then attend the pregame pep talk, participate in warmups, take the ceremonial first goal, walk out with the team captain and do the coin toss.
Coronado’s honorary captaincy is made possible by the Austen Everett Foundation. Austen Everett, the founder of the Austen Everett Foundation, was engaged to former Earthquakes forward Matt Luzunaris who played for the team in 2011. Everett was a Division I goalkeeper at Miami when she was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2008. She started the Austen Everett Foundation, which works to inspire, empower and improve the lives of kids battling cancer by uniting them with professional and collegiate athletic organizations. She passed away in 2012, but her legacy continues with the Austen Everett Foundation for this honorary captain experience.
The Quakes Foundation will sell limited edition black and gold Soccer For All scarves at the home game, with proceeds benefitting the Austen Everett Foundation. The scarves will be sold at the Quakes 50/50 Kiosk under Section 112. The black and gold scarves are the third and final installment in this year’s Soccer For All scarf series by the Quakes Foundation.
