Penelope Hocking Bio
Penelope Elizabeth Hocking (born December 29, 1999) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward. A product of the So Cal Blues youth club, she played college soccer for the USC Trojans and the Penn State Nittany Lions before launching her professional career in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL). Selected by the Chicago Red Stars in the first round of the 2023 NWSL Draft, she later played for Bay FC and currently plays for Bay FC of the NWSL.
At USC, Hocking became the program’s all-time top scorer and earned first-team All-American honors. She has represented the United States at the under-20 and under-23 levels, including competing at the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.
Early Life and Background
Penelope Elizabeth Hocking was born on December 29, 1999, in Anaheim, California. She grew up in Anaheim and attended Canyon High School, where she played high school soccer and developed into one of the top young forwards in the region.
Hocking comes from an athletic family. Her mother, Venetta Dorlis, played basketball at Cypress College, and her father, Denny Hocking, was a Major League Baseball player. Her paternal grandmother worked as a youth soccer coach, which helped shape Hocking’s early connection to the sport. Hocking has a fraternal twin sister, Iliana, and the two were the first twins born to a member of the Minnesota Twins, the baseball franchise her father once played for.
Outside of soccer, Hocking later majored in computer science at the University of Southern California, balancing her academic coursework with a demanding college athletic schedule.
Path to Soccer
Hocking played her youth soccer for So Cal Blues, one of the top development clubs in Southern California. With So Cal Blues, she won the 2015 ECNL U15 National Championship, an early signal of the scoring touch she would later carry into college and professional play.
Her youth success led to an invitation to the United States under-20 national team, where she became a regular and was part of the squad that competed at the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. Those experiences sharpened her game and helped her earn a scholarship to USC.
At Canyon High School, Penelope and her twin sister Iliana played together on the school team, with Iliana later going on to play collegiate soccer as a midfielder for the Arizona Wildcats.
Penelope Hocking Career
Early Career (2018–2022)
Hocking began her college career with the USC Trojans in 2018, and she wasted no time making an impact. She was named the Pac-12 Conference freshman of the year, the first of several major conference honors she would collect during her time at USC. Over the next three seasons, she was a three-time All-Pac-12 selection and won Pac-12 Forward of the Year in both 2020 and 2021. In 2020, she was also named a first-team All-American.
On October 7, 2021, Hocking set the USC career goals record with her 49th goal, surpassing a mark that had stood since 2000. She finished her Trojans career with 54 goals across 72 games, a total that ranked 12th in Pac-12 history at the time. After the 2021 season, Hocking transferred to Penn State to use the extra year of NCAA eligibility granted because of the COVID-19 pandemic. With the Nittany Lions in 2022, she scored seven goals and added 11 assists, tying for the Big Ten Conference lead in assists.
NWSL Breakthrough (2023–2024)
The Chicago Red Stars selected Hocking with the seventh overall pick in the 2023 NWSL Draft, and on March 20, 2023, she signed a three-year contract with an option for a fourth year. She made her professional debut on March 25, 2023, starting against San Diego Wave FC in a 3–2 loss. Less than a month later, on April 15, 2023, she scored her first professional goals with a brace against Kansas City Current in a 4–2 victory, a performance that announced her arrival in the league.
On August 31, 2024, Chicago traded Hocking to Bay FC for a $350,000 transfer fee, one of the largest in women’s soccer history. The move allowed her to play closer to her home in Southern California.
Bay FC Era (2024–Present)
With Bay FC, Hocking settled into a forward role on a young NWSL expansion side that continued to build its identity around developing talent. Her experience as a proven college scorer translated into regular minutes, and her pace and movement gave the Bay FC attack a focal point in the final third.
Notable Events and Milestones
Among the defining moments of Hocking’s early professional career was her first NWSL brace against Kansas City Current in 2023, which established her as a reliable finisher. Her 2024 trade to Bay FC for a then-record-setting fee also marked a milestone for women’s soccer transfer values, and her USC career-goals record remains a benchmark for the Trojans program.
Penelope Hocking Career Wins
Penelope Hocking has collected titles and individual honors at every level of the sport. As a youth player, she won the 2015 ECNL U15 National Championship with So Cal Blues, and at USC she was a first-team All-American, a two-time Pac-12 Forward of the Year, and a three-time All-Pac-12 selection. At Penn State, she tied for the Big Ten lead in assists in 2022.
Other Wins & Performances
Hocking also represented the United States at the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup and was called into under-23 national team training camps in 2022, including a pre-season tournament against NWSL sides. Those international opportunities underscored her standing among the top young forwards in the country.
Penelope Hocking Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Hocking’s family is deeply rooted in sports. Her father, Denny Hocking, was a Major League Baseball player and a member of the Minnesota Twins, and her mother, Venetta Dorlis, played college basketball at Cypress College. Her paternal grandmother coached youth soccer, helping to plant the seeds for Hocking’s own career in the sport.
Personal Life
Hocking has a fraternal twin sister, Iliana Hocking, who also played soccer. The two sisters played together at Canyon High School and were the first sisters selected in the same NWSL Draft, with Iliana taken by NJ/NY Gotham FC with the 44th overall pick. At the University of Southern California, Hocking majored in computer science, an academic pursuit she balanced alongside her college and professional soccer commitments.
2025 Season Performance
In the 2025 NWSL season, Hocking continued her role as a forward for Bay FC, contributing goals and assists while helping the club build on its expansion-era foundation. Her scoring instincts, refined over four years of college play and two NWSL seasons, remained a key part of the Bay FC attack.
Playing closer to her Southern California home gave Hocking a stable platform to perform at a high level, and she remained a regular contributor in the final third throughout the campaign.
Looking ahead, Hocking’s blend of experience, finishing ability, and familiarity with the NWSL environment positioned her as a forward to watch as Bay FC continued its growth as a club.