Seven UNC soccer players turning pro

If you want to play women’s professional soccer,  there is one collegiate programs that seems to do a particularly good job prepping players for the big show.  In the recent 2010 Women’s Pro Soccer Draft,  seven Tar Heels were selected, including four of the first eight picks.

Tobin Heath was drafted first overall by the Atlanta Beat. Defender Whitney Engen was selected fourth by the Chicago Red Stars.

Two teammates will stick together. Midfielder Nikki Washington will once again set goals up for forward Casey Nogueria. The two were drafted by my local team – the Los Angeles Sol.

Forward Jessica McDonald was chosen in the second round. She’ll join Engen with the Chicago Red Stars. Goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris was also taken in the second round by the St. Louis team, Athletica.

On top of that, defender Kristi Eveland was taken in the fourth round by the DC Freedom.

Led by legendary coach Anson Dorrance this graduating Tar Heel class won three national championships in four years. Dorrance has been the head coach of the North Carolina women’s soccer program since its inception in 1979 and has won 20 NCAA titles.

Following North Carolina, Santa Clara had the next largest group of players picked in the recent draft with five players selected.

Defender Jordan Angeli was picked by Boston in the second round. In the third round, forward Kiki Bosio was picked by the LA Sol and midfielder Amanda Poach went to the St.  Louis Athletica.

Defender Katherine Reynolds will join Santa Clara teammate Angeli in Boston and forward Meagan Snell is heading to Sky Blue FC.

Other college programs that are sending multiple players to the WPS include UCLA (Lauren Cheney, Kristina Larsen, Lauren Wilmoth), Wake Forest (Kaley Fountain, Jill Hutchinson, Caitlin Farrell) and Boston College, Boston University, LSU, Ohio State, Penn State, Portland, Rutgers, Stanford,  Washington State and West Florida.

Playing in college isn’t a prerequisite for a WPS career, but it certainly provides a great opportunity to develop as a player and be seen by the pro coaches and managers.  If your goal is playing professionally, be sure to check out the colleges mentioned here to see if any are a good athletic and academic match.

WPS Draft results – Tobin Heath is first pick

(via Womens Pro Soccer release)

As many had expected but the Atlanta Beat had yet to confirm until Draft Day, North Carolina’s Tobin Heath (Basking Ridge, NJ) was the first player selected in the 2010 WPS Draft on Friday by Atlanta at the Philadelphia Convention Center.  Heath was the first of four North Carolina Tarheels selected during the first round (and a total of 7 UNC players) including defender Whitney Engen at No. 4 (Chicago Red Stars/Rolling Hills Estates, CA), forward Nikki Washington at No. 5 (Los Angeles Sol/Mesquite, TX) and forward Casey Nogueira at No. 8 (Los Angeles Sol/Raleigh, NC) . The first round included 11 selections for the nine WPS teams with expansion teams Philadelphia Independence and Atlanta Beat both receiving additional picks at the end of the first round, which they traded away prior to the draft.

The first overall four picks went largely how the experts had predicted with Heath going first, the Boston Breakers then selecting attacking forward and 2008 Olympics gold medalist Lauren Cheney (UCLA/Indianapolis, IN), and 2009 MAC Hermann Trophy winner Kelley O’Hara (Fayetteville, GA) of Stanford going to FC Gold Pride with the third pick. Engen, the consensus top defender in the draft, went fourth, while Alyssa Naeher (Penn State/Seymour, CT) was the first goalkeeper selected at No. 11 by the Boston Breakers. Nogueira, predicted by many experts to be among the top four prospects, slipped to eighth and was snapped up by the Los Angeles Sol where the creative forward could partner up top with Marta for an interesting frontline.

Teams were busy with several trades towards the latter rounds, especially the expansion Philadelphia Independence. The Independence swapped their fifth round pick with Atlanta’s fifth round pick. They also sent their 49th overall selection, Jennifer Anzivino (Rutgers), to Sky Blue FC and received Sky Blue FC’s seventh round pick in return with which they selected local Philadelphia prospect Danielle Collins (William & Mary). Boston also traded up for the 56th selection that belonged to Los Angeles, choosing Gina DiMartino (Boston College) in that slot and giving LA future considerations in return.

After North Carolina, Santa Clara was second among colleges with five selections, UCLA and Wake Forest each featured three selections among the draftees.

The draft festivities included a Commissioner’s Welcome from WPS Commissioner Tonya Antonucci and appearances from NSCAA President Randy Waldrum, NSCAA Executive Director Joe Cummings and Los Angeles Sol goalkeeper and WPS All-Star Karina LeBlanc. Draft day began with a panel of coaches discussing the growth of the global professional women’s game including Boston Breakers Head Coach Tony DiCicco and North Carolina Head Coach Anson Dorrance.

2010 WPS Draft
FIRST ROUND
1. Atlanta Beat – Tobin Heath, M, UNC
2. Boston Breakers # – Lauren Cheney, F, UCLA
3. FC Gold Pride – Kelley O’Hara, F, Stanford
4. Chicago Red Stars – Whitney Engen, D, North Carolina
5. Los Angeles Sol # – Nikki Washington, F, North Carolina
6. Sky Blue FC – Brittany Taylor, D, Connecticut
7. Washington Freedom – Nikki Marshall, D/M/F, Colorado
8. Los Angeles Sol # – Casey Nogueira, F, North Carolina
9. Los Angeles Sol – Kiersten Dallstream, F, Washington St.
10. FC Gold Pride # – Ali Riley, D, Stanford
11. Boston Breakers # – Alyssa Naeher, GK, Penn State

SECOND ROUND
12. FC Gold Pride # – Becky Edwards, D/M, Florida State
13. Philadelphia Independence – Malorie Rutledge, M, LSU
14. Los Angeles Sol # – Michelle Enyeart, F, Portland
15. Chicago Red Stars – Jessica McDonald, F, North Carolina
16. Boston Breakers – Jordan Angeli, D, Santa Clara
17. Saint Louis Athletica # – Kristina Larsen, F, UCLA
18. Washington Freedom – Carly Dobratz, M, Washington State
19. Saint Louis Athletica – Ashlyn Harris, GK, North Carolina
20. FC Gold Pride # – Kaley Fountain, F, Wake Forest

THIRD ROUND
21. Atlanta Beat – Blakely Mattern, D, South Carolina
22. Los Angeles Sol # – Kiki Bosio, F, Santa Clara
23. Atlanta Beat # – Shameka Gordon, D/M, West Florida
24. Chicago Red Stars – Kelsey Davis, GK, Portland
25. Los Angeles Sol – Estelle Johnson,  D, Kansas
26. Sky Blue FC – Katie Schoepfer, F, Penn State
27. Washington Freedom – Beverly Goebel, M, Miami
28. Saint Louis Athletica – Amanda Poach, M, Santa Clara
29. Sky Blue FC # – Melissa Clarke, M, LSU

FOURTH ROUND
30. Atlanta Beat – Jill Hutchinson, F, Wake Forest
31. Philadelphia Independence – Kelly Henderson, D/M, Boston College
32. FC Gold Pride – Erin Guthrie, GK, Rutgers
33. Chicago Red Stars – Michele Weissenhofer, F, Notre Dame
34. Boston Breakers – Katherine Reynolds, D, Santa Clara
35. Sky Blue FC – Danielle Johnson, D, Ole Miss
36. Washington Freedom – Kristi Eveland, D, UNC
37. Saint Louis Athletica – Veronica Perez, M/F, Washington
38. Los Angeles Sol – Mary Casey, GK, Maryland

ROUND FIVE
39. Atlanta Beat – Mallori Lofton-Malachi, GK, South Florida (traded to Philadelphia)
40. Philadelphia Independence – Carrie Patterson, F, Georgia (traded to Atlanta)
41. FC Gold Pride – Ashley Bowyer, M/D, Ohio State
42. Chicago Red Stars – Sophie Reiser, M/F, Columbia
43. Boston Breakers – Cynthia Morote-Ariza, F, Loyola-Chicago
44. Sky Blue FC – Meagan Snell, F, Santa Clara
45. Washington Freedom – Lauren Robertson, GK, Ohio State
46. Saint Louis Athletica – Carolyn Blank, M/D, WVU
47. Los Angeles Sol – Lindsay Browne, M/F, Clemson

ROUND SIX
48. Atlanta Beat – Kasey Langdon, F, Oklahoma St.
49. Philadelphia Independence – Jennifer Anzivino, D/M, Rutgers (to Sky Blue FC)
50. FC Gold Pride – Eilzabeth Harkin, D, Arizona State
51. Chicago Red Stars – Fiona O’Sullivan, M/F, San Francisco
52. Boston Breakers – Carly Peetz, D, Nebraska
53. Sky Blue FC – Kelly Isleib, M, Utah
54. Washington Freedom – Mara Osher, D/M, Boston University
55. Saint Louis Athletica – Sarah Teegarden, M, Wisconsin-Milwaukee
56. Boston Breakers – Gina DiMartino, M/F, Boston College (pick traded from Los Angeles Sol)

ROUND SEVEN
57. Atlanta Beat – Shaneka Gordon, F, West Florida
58. Philadelphia Independence – Caitlin Farrell, D, Wake Forest
59. FC Gold Pride – Lauren Wilmoth, D, UCLA
60. Chicago Red Stars – Jackie Santacaterina, M, Illinois
61. Boston Breakers – Casey Brown, D, Boston University
62. Philadelphia Independence – Danielle Collins, D/M, William & Mary
63. Washington Freedom – Caitline Miskel, M/F, Virginia
64. Saint Louis Athletica – Elisabeth Redmond, M, Duke
65. Boston Breakers – Taryn Hemmings, F, Denver

#via trade

read more at womensprosoccer.com

2010 Women’s Professional Soccer Draft

The Women’s Professional Soccer draft takes place next week, on January 15th in Philadelphia at the NSCAA National Convention.

The folks at WPS have done a great job keeping fans in the loop and as we countdown to the big day, they’ve polled a number of media experts to rank the top college seniors. It’s a great class providing all the teams with lots of terrific choices to balance their squads.

Top Rated Forwards
Almost all the experts believe that Lauren Cheney (UCLA) will be the top pick followed by Kelley O’Hara (Stanford) and Casey Nogueira (North Carolina). Other players who are expected to go in early rounds include Michelle Enyeart, (Portland), Jill Hutchinson (Wake Forest), Katie Schoepfer (Penn State) and Gina DiMartino (Boston College).

Top Rated Midfielders
It’s no surprise that Tobin Heath (North Carolina) is the top prospect for a midfielder. Heath, part of the Tar Heel team that won this year’s College Cup, is a 2008 Olympic gold medalist and was named 2009 Young Female Athlete of the Year  by U.S. Soccer.  Other top picks include teammate Nikki Washington (North Carolina), Kara Lang (UCLA) and Becky Edwards (Florida State).

Top Rated Defenders
Whitney Engen (North Carolina) is the almost unanimous choice as the top defender. Among other defenders, Connecticut’s Brittany Taylor was a top prospect along with Stanford’s Ali Riley (an LA player we’ve been following for a while) and Santa Clara’s Jordan Angeli.

Top Rated Goalkeepers
USC goalkeeper, Kristin Olsen, made each of the experts’ Top 5 Prospects lists.  Other top picks include Ashlyn Harris (North Carolina)  and Alyssa Naeher (Penn State).

The  Draft begins at 10am on Friday, January 15 and is scheduled for seven rounds for each team with the two expansion teams receiving an additional pick each at the end of Round One. For more information, go to: http://www.womensprosoccer.com/Home/schedule/2010-wps-draft.aspx

Here’s how the draft picks will go:

FIRST ROUND
1. Atlanta Beat
2. Boston Breakers
3. FC Gold Pride
4. Chicago Red Stars
5. Los Angeles Sol
6. Sky Blue FC
7. Washington Freedom
8. Los Angeles Sol
9. Los Angeles Sol
10. Atlanta Beat
11. Boston Breakers

SECOND ROUND
12. Atlanta Beat
13. Philadelphia Independence
14. FC Gold Pride
15. Chicago Red Stars
16. Boston Breakers
17. Saint Louis Athletica
18. Washington Freedom
19. Saint Louis Athletica
20. Los Angeles Sol

THIRD ROUND
21. Atlanta Beat
22. Los Angeles Sol
23. FC Gold Pride
24. Chicago Red Stars
25. Boston Breakers
26. Sky Blue FC
27. Washington Freedom
28. Saint Louis Athletica
29. Sky Blue FC

FOURTH – SEVENTH ROUNDS
Atlanta Beat
Philadelphia Independence
FC Gold Pride
Chicago Red Stars
Boston Breakers
Sky Blue FC
Washington Freedom
Saint Louis Athletica
Los Angeles Sol

Stay tuned for complete coverage and exclusive interviews relating to the draft.

Vote for U.S. Soccer Awards

U.S. Soccer has announced the finalists for the 2009 Best of U.S. Soccer awards and there’s only one week left to vote for the 12 categories  on USSoccer.com.

The eighth annual series gives fans the opportunity to make their selections for the best in soccer in the United States. The 12 categories recap a busy 2009 crammed full of action, which included FIFA World Cup qualifying, the FIFA Confederations Cup, Abby Wambach’s 100th goal, another Development Academy Season and the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Female Athlete of the Year nominees include national team players Shannon Boxx (Sol), Heather O’Reilly, Christine Rampone (Sky Blue), Hope Solo (Athletica) and Abby Wambach (Freedom).

The Young Female Athletes of the Year are nominees Tobin Heath (UNC), Sydney Leroux (UCLA), Christine Nairn, Kelly O’Hara (Stanford) and Katie Schoepfer.

Fans can vote once a day from now until Sunday, Dec. 13, in the Community section of ussoccer.com. For certain categories, voters will be able to watch videos and view photos as they relive some of the best moments of 2009.

Go make your vote count.

Carli Lloyd U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year

December 18, 2008 – For her excellence at the highest levels of the sport, U.S. Soccer named U.S. Women’s National Team midfielder Carli Lloyd as the 2008 Female Athlete of the Year.  U-17 WNT midfielder Kristie Mewis won the Young Female Awards. The U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year award is the highest honor awarded to soccer players in the U.S.

The U.S. Athlete of the Year honor is the first for Lloyd who becomes the first midfielder since Shannon MacMillan in 2002 to take the award. In the five years since, forwards Abby Wambach and Kristine Lilly have traded the honor back and forth.

The U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year awards have a longer history than any major award in American soccer – more than 20 years. They join the FIFA Players of the Year as the only two awards to honor both the top male and the top female in the sport.

Lloyd took home her first Athlete of the Year award by playing a vital role in the United States’ march to a gold medal repeat at the Olympics. She started all six games in Beijing and played every minute of the tournament where she expended boundless energy and scored two of the most important goals of her career. Both goals were invaluable in the USA’s run to the gold medal. Her blast from the top of the penalty box in the USA’s 1-0 group game win over Japan kept the WNT alive in the tournament, and then her legendary strike in overtime of the gold medal game against Brazil lifted the Americans to Olympic glory.

“I’m truly honored to have won this award,” said Lloyd, who also totaled career highs in goals (9) and assists (9). “So many fantastic players have won this in the past and this year, so many players this year were deserving of the award, as it was such a great year for this team.”

We look forward to watching her play next year with the Chicago Red Stars.

Other Awards:

Best Assist: In the closest race of the 2008 “Best Of” Awards, Lindsay Tarpley just edged out teammate Abby Wambach to take the title for Best Assist. Tarpley had a career year for goals this year, but it is her intuitive one-time pass to set up Lori Chalupny against Ireland that took 25 percent of the vote and put her among the winners for this year’s “Best Of” awards.

Best Video: Tobin Heath’s juggling prowess is well known and she took to the streets again for the 2008 Best all_access Video winner. “Tobin Heath’s Walkabout” showcases the Olympic gold medalist juggling a ball around different San Diego locales as the WNT prepared for a friendly against Brazil.

 

Still Blue: UNC wins 19th women’s soccer crown

December 7, 2008 – North Carolina’s junior forward Casey Nogueira provided the heroics in the championship game of the Women’s College Cup for the second time in three years, scoring two second-half goals to lead the Tar Heels to a come from behind 2-1 victory over Notre Dame on Sunday.

Notre Dame, the only undefeated team remaining in D-I women’s soccer, opened the scoring just 17 seconds into the College Cup championship game on Sunday. But the Tar Heels overcame the fastest goal in Notre Dame history and never let up to win their 19th women’s soccer championship in the 27-year history of the tournament.

The Tar Heels ended the season on a 22-match unbeaten streak, beating the nation’s No. 2- and No. 1-ranked teams in the semifinals and finals of the NCAA Tournament and adding to their dynasty. Nogueira’s winning goal with only 2:06 left in the match dropped the Fighting Irish to 26-1-0 at season’s end.

Nogueira, who is from nearby Raleigh, North Carolina, played in high school state-championship games on the same field where she starred Sunday.

“She has every conceivable soccer skill, but that doesn’t necessarily make a player,” North Carolina coach Anson Dorrance said. “Her evolution as a player is to take all these remarkable tools she has and figure out how and when to use them. The two balls that she struck today were world-class finishes.”

Despite some questionable calls, it was truly a terrific series this year (even if UCLA didn’t go all the way!)

Recap