PHILADELPHIA – Four rounds full of emotions gave 48 women a chance to live out their dreams at the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Draft. A night unlike any other, with a record 12 trades.
It started off, to no one’s surprise, with the Angel City FC selecting the first-ever high school player to be drafted. Alyssa Thompson went first overall.
What did surprise fans was the trade for the second pick overall between the Kansas City Current and the NJ/NY Gotham FC. The Current traded U.S. National Women’s team forward Lynn Williams to Gotham in exchange for the number two pick. Kansas City then selected Michelle Cooper out of Duke.
Yet, like every draft, fans are captivated with the first-round talent. Sometimes, the best picks are found in the later rounds. Players who suffered an injury during the season fall to the later rounds and are sometimes overlooked.
In the NFL, Brock Purdy was the last pick in the 2022 draft by the San Francisco 49ers. The last pick in the draft is called Mr. Irrelevant. When given his chance, he proved why late-round picks could be valuable to a franchise.
In the NWSL draft, the late rounds proved to be full of talent, grit, and resilience.
Sophie Jones Duke University
In Chicago, the Red Stars selected Sophie Jones out of Duke in the fourth round. Jones became one of three Duke players to be drafted.
The former 2018-2019 Gatorade player of the year coming out of high school had her first season at Duke cut short due to a season-ending ACL injury.
Even with the injury, through ten games, Jones reached the 2019 ACC All-Freshman team.
After the injury, Jones never looked back, starting all 75 games over her career with the Blue Devils, the fifth most in Duke’s history.
Jones brings durability to the Red Stars and a lot of talent with her. She was named to the 2022 United Soccer Coaches Second-Team All-American.
Riley Mattingly Parker University of Alabama
The Racing Louisville FC selected Riley Mattingly Parker with their third-round pick. Parker comes in after a dominant year in Alabama.
Parker led the team in scoring this season with 17 goals, breaking two 17-year-old records at Alabama for most points and goals scored in a single season.
Not only a three-time SEC offensive player of the week in 2022, Parker was also named to the United Soccer Coaches All-American and First Team All-Southeast Region Team. Parker became the first Alabama player to be named SEC Forward of the year.
Before the accolades, Parker tore her ACL in 2021 during the spring season. Parker spent several months recovering and had a chance to play in the 2021 season. A quad injury forced her to redshirt and prepare for 2022.
Parker scored a total of 63 points and 25 goals during her career with the Crimson Tide. During the 2022 season, Parker helped propel the team to the final-4 and secure the regular season title over Florida.
She is now tied as the career leader at Alabama with 10 game-winning goals.
Civana Kuhlmann University of Colorado
Selected as the first pick in the fourth round (37th overall), Civana Kuhlmann makes her way to the Washington Spirit after overcoming plenty of challenges in her soccer career.
Kuhlmann, a transfer from Stanford to Colorado, capitalized on her fifth year of eligibility. Starting in 19 games for the Buffaloes, she notched career-highs in points, goals, and assists.
Her 30 points ranked second in the Pac-12 and 22nd in the NCAA, helping her achieve first-team All-Pac-12 in her only season at Colorado.
Before Colorado, Kuhlmann, a standout at Stanford, is a two-time NCAA Champion and a three-time Pac-12 Champion.
The former Cardinal made the All-Pac-12 freshman team at Stanford, scoring 47 points and 20 goals in total.
Although with success comes challenges, and for Civana Kuhlmann the road to success was a long one. Kuhlmann tore her ACL along with her meniscus in 2019. With her knee under repair, she got her right hip done in 2021 and then her left hip in 2022.
Several injuries and a fifth year of eligibility forced her to take a chance. She took her fresh start for one more season back at home, in Colorado.
Madelyn Desiano UCLA
Like anything in life, all things must come to an end. For Madelyn Desiano, the NWSL draft may have felt never-ending.
Desiano was the last pick in the draft after the Houston Dash moved back into the fourth round to select her 48th overall. She was the 11th Pac-12 player to be selected in the NWSL draft for the fourth consecutive year. Desiano becomes the 22nd Bruin to be selected as UCLA leads all schools with the most players drafted in league history.
The California native took her talents to UCLA in 2018 after being the South Coast League MVP in high school in 2017.
Desiano had everything ahead of her, but like our other players, success did not come so easily.
Hurdling Obstacles
In 2018, Desiano redshirted after tearing her ACL and undergoing surgery. Desiano underwent a second knee surgery in 2019. Like many of the players, she had to deal with COVID-19 in 2020.
Desiano missed two full seasons to start UCLA due to injury. The defender from California played 11 games in 2020, leading up to her big comeback.
Desiano helped the team in a total of 24 shutouts over the next two years. Being named Pac-12 defensive player of the week twice in 2021. She led the charge, ranking fourth in assists in the Pac-12 in 2021.
In 2022, Desiano helped UCLA win a national championship, playing in all 25 games that season. She scored her first collegiate goal in 2022, topping the season off with two more in the postseason. She scored a game-winner over Northwestern in the third round of the tournament.
Tons of support poured in for Desiano when she was selected on draft night. She was emotional and in tears after a long night of waiting, but she never lost her spirit.
The Outlook
For these women, the path was tough, and they will have to continue to prove why they were chosen.
So much talent was found late in this year’s draft. These players come in not only with great accomplishments but strong mentalities, being able to overcome the worst.
“It’s a sign of hope, a sign of the future,” Commissioner Jessica Berman said.
The 2023 season of the NWSL kicks off on March 25.
 Draft. A night unlike any other, with a record 12 trades.){kind=link}