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Offense Rules WUSA Draft

February 2, 2003 - Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) News Release


ATLANTA (Sunday, February 2, 2003) - Offense was the theme of the 2003 Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) Draft at the league's headquarters at Cox Central Park in Atlanta, GA. Led by top pick Aly Wagner of Santa Clara and the U.S. national team, 22 of the 32 total selections were either forwards or midfielders in today's draft.

With the first pick in the 2003 WUSA Draft, San Diego selected Santa Clara University midfielder Wagner. The starting playmaker for the U.S. Women's national team, Wagner has 36 caps and eight goals with 16 assists for the American squad. The 2002 MAC Hermann Award winner as the nation's top college player, Wagner was a high school teammate of Carolina's Danielle Slaton, the top pick of the 2002 WUSA Draft.

"I'm extremely excited to be given this opportunity," Wagner said. "Since the league's inception, my heart has been set on playing for the Spirit. It's a perfect place to play and I'm going to a team where I think I'll fit right in. My brother lives in nearby San Clemente and I'm looking forward to him being my neighbor."

"I think my style will work well with the likes of Mac (Shannon MacMillan), Julie Fleeting and the other forwards," Wagner added. "And the leadership on this team is amazing. Players like Julie (Foudy) and Joy (Fawcett) are people I can learn from every day. These are players who will make my transition that much easier."

The first player in women's soccer history to earn NSCAA All-America honors for four-consecutive years, Penn State University forward Welsh was selected by the New York Power as second pick overall. The 2001 Hermann Trophy winner and MAC Player of the Year, Welsh has 20 caps and 12 goals for the U.S. national team. The Massapequa, New York native collected 82 goals, 52 assists, 216 points and 27 game-winning goals over her four seasons as a Nittany Lion.

The Boston Breakers selected Devvyn Hawkins from Santa Clara University third overall. Named the nation's premier college defensive midfielder in 2002 by Soccer America, Hawkins recorded 21 goals and 23 assists in 93 career games for the Broncos. She was called into U.S. national team camp and played for April Heinrich's squad at the Four Nations Tournament in China, where she scored her first career international goal in a 1-0 victory over Germany on January 29, 2003.

University of Washington goalkeeper Hope Solo was selected fourth overall by the Philadelphia Charge. The 2001 Pac-10 Player of the Year, Solo was one of seven finalists for U.S. Soccer's 2002 Young Female Athlete of the Year. Solo finished her collegiate career as Washington's all-time leader in every goalkeeping category, including shutouts (18), saves (325) and goals against average (1.02).

Rounding out the first round, the Atlanta Beat selected midfielder Callie Withers from Stanford University. Withers orchestrated a Cardinal offense which outscored opponents 163-13 in 2002. Philadelphia with the sixth and seventh picks of the 2003 draft selected forward Deliah Arrington and midfielder Mary McVeigh. Arrington was the 2002 ACC Player of the Year at Clemson University. McVeigh was a NSCAA second-team All-America selection. The eighth and final pick of the first round went to the defending WUSA champion Carolina Courage. With the pick, Carolina selected Breanna Boyd from the University of Nebraska. Boyd has 37 caps with the Canadian national team.

The San Jose CyberRays and Washington Freedom did not have first-round picks in today's draft. San Jose's first selection of the draft came in second round. With the fourth pick in the second round (12th overall) the CyberRays selected Betsy Barr. A midfielder from the University of Portland, Barr is a three-time all-WCC selection. Washington's first selection of the 2003 WUSA Draft took place in the third round. With the second pick of the third round (18th overall) Washington selected Missy Gregg from Christian Brothers University. Gregg concluded her collegiate career with a total of 180 goals and 394 points, both NCAA records for all divisions, male or female.

The 32-player draft covered four rounds and lasted approximately two and a half hours. Four trades were made on the day. The Washington Freedom started things off trading its seventh pick in the second round (15th overall) to San Diego for midfielder Lori Lindsay and the Spirit's second pick in the third round (18th overall). Philadelphia made the second trade of the afternoon, sending midfielder Rebekah McDowell and its sixth pick of the third round (22nd overall) to Washington for midfielder Anne Makinen. The third trade of the draft with executed by the San Diego Spirit. The Spirit traded defender Anna Kraus and its second-round pick in the 2004 WUSA Draft for midfielder Kerry Connors. The fourth and final trade of the afternoon took place between San Jose and Boston. The CyberRays sent defender Danielle Borgman to the Breakers for defender/midfielder Keri Sanchez.

Many of the trades that affected today's draft too place during the last 16 months. During the 2001 offseason, San Jose traded forward Jacqui Little and its third-round pick in the 2003 draft (20th overall) to Washington for forward Pretinha. During the 2002 season, Washington traded its first pick in the 2003 WUSA Draft to Philadelphia for future considerations. Also in 2002, Atlanta traded defender Anna Kraus to San Diego for its second-round pick in the 2003 WUSA Draft (10th overall). During the 2002 offseason, New York sent midfielder Jen Lalor and forward Wynne McIntosh along with the Power's first-round pick in the 2003 WUSA Draft (first overall) to the Spirit for midfielders Shannon Boxx and Sherrill Kester, defender Margaret Tietjen and San Diego's first-round pick in the 2003 WUSA Draft (second overall). Also during the 2002 offseason, Philadelphia traded forward Mandy Clemens for San Jose's first-round pick (fourth overall) in the 2003 WUSA Draft. In the final trade leading into the WUSA Draft, New York sent midfielder Sherrill Kester and its third-round pick in the 2003 WUSA Draft (17th overall) to San Diego for goalkeeper Carly Smolak.

The Santa Clara University and the University of North Carolina led all schools in representation in this year's draft. Each school produced three selections. With its three picks in the 2003 WUSA Draft the Tar Heels remain the most represented school in the WUSA Draft with 20 total selections.



Women's United Soccer Association Stories from February 2, 2003


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


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