As of 2026, eight Santa Barbara Soccer Club alumni have worn a U.S. national team jersey, from the U-14 level all the way to the senior team. Their paths started on the same fields our players train on today, learning the basics on as kids in Santa Barbara SC kits.
Not every player will wear the Stars and Stripes, and that’s not the only measure of success. But these stories prove that the dream is real, and that it can start right here in the 805.
Kiki Pickett
Born in Santa Barbara, Pickett played for SBSC from 2011 to 2013 before starring at Dos Pueblos High. At 16 she was the youngest player on the U.S. U-20 roster for the 2015 CONCACAF qualifiers. At Stanford she won NCAA titles in 2017 and 2019, scoring the winning penalty in the 2019 final shootout. In December 2019 she was named to a senior USWNT identification camp in Florida. She was the 4th overall pick in the 2021 NWSL Draft and signed with San Diego Wave FC in 2026.Julian Araujo
The Lompoc defender made his U.S. senior debut in December 2020 against El Salvador, after playing at the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup. His club career took him from the LA Galaxy to FC Barcelona and the Premier League with AFC Bournemouth.The Vom Steeg Brothers
A goalkeeper from San Marcos High, Vom Steeg played for SBSC from 2007 to 2012. He was called into U.S. youth camps as early as U-14 and later joined the senior U.S. preparation camp ahead of the 2019 Gold Cup. His younger brother Carson also represented the U.S. at youth level.John Requejo and Rodrigo Lopez
Carpinteria’s Requejo was picked in 2011 as one of the 48 top under-16 players in the country for U.S. Soccer’s full-time residency program. He went on to play for the U-17 and U-20 teams and turned prowith Club Tijuana.
Lopez, who calls Santa Barbara home, played for the U-17 and U-20 teams before working his way through the USL to Liga MX’s Toluca.
Marcus Vasquez
Marcus Vasquez is one of the younger names on the club’s honor roll. The Goleta native is listed by SBSC as a U.S. U-15 national team player, and he was also invited to U.S. youth national team training camps.
He now plays college soccer at Western Oregon University, where he wears No. 10 in midfield as a redshirt junior in 2026.
Sam Strong
The 6-foot-1 center back graduated from San Marcos High in 2014 and signed with UC Santa Barbara.
In April 2015, he was one of only two college players named to the U.S. U-23 roster for a friendly against Mexico in Carson. Strong earned two U-23 appearances that year as the team prepared for Olympic qualifying.
He went on to play in the USL for Fresno FC, Hartford Athletic and Monterey Bay, then abroad in Thailand, the Philippines, Cambodia and Singapore, where he joined Hougang United in 2025.
| Player | U.S. teams | Where the road led |
|---|---|---|
| Julian Araujo | U-15, U-17, U-20, U-23, senior (1 cap) | LA Galaxy, Barcelona, AFC Bournemouth |
| Kiki Pickett | U-14, U-17, U-20, U-23, senior camp | Stanford (two NCAA titles), NWSL |
| Justin Vom Steeg | U-14, U-15, U-17, U-20, senior camp | UCSB, Fortuna Düsseldorf, LA Galaxy, Portland Timbers |
| John Requejo | U-15, U-17, U-20 | Tijuana, LA Galaxy II |
| Rodrigo Lopez | U-17, U-20 | Sacramento Republic, Toluca (Liga MX) |
| Carson Vom Steeg | U-17, U-20 | Stanford, UCSB, Loudoun United, Memphis 901 |
| Sam Strong | U-23 | UCSB, Hartford Athletic |
| Marcus Vasquez | U-15 | — |