Jan. 15, 2010

PHILADELPHIA – Led by No. 1 overall pick Tobin Heath of North Carolina, the Atlantic Coast Conference made a strong showing in the 2010 Women’s Professional Soccer Draft.

Heath, a standout midfielder and the youngest member of the 2008 U.S. Olympic team, was drafted No. 1 by the Atlanta Beat on Friday. She was joined by three Tar Heel teammates among the first eight overall selections. Defender Whitney Engen, the 2009 Honda Award winner for Women’s Soccer, was taken fourth by the Chicago Red Stars, while forwards Nikki Washington (fifth overall) and Casey Nogueira (eighth) were both selected by the Los Angeles Sol.

ACC schools placed eight players among the top 20 selections, as four more players from the conference were taken in the second round. Florida State midfielder/defender Becky Edwards was the first player chosen in the second round by the FC Gold Pride (12th overall) and became the first Seminole player in school history to be drafted by the WPS.

The Chicago Red Stars made North Carolina forward Jessica McDonald the No. 4 pick of the second round, and Tar Heel goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris went eighth in the second round to the Saint Louis Athletica. Wake Forest forward Kaley Fountain went ninth in the second round to the FC Gold Pride.

Overall, 18 ACC players were selected in the seven-round WPS Draft. NCAA champion North Carolina led the way with seven selections, while Wake Forest had three players selected and Boston College had two. Florida State, Maryland, Clemson, Virginia, Miami and Duke were represented by one selection apiece.

See below for the list of ACC players taken in the 2010 WPS Draft (overall selection in parenthesis). For the complete results of the 2010 WPS Draft, see http://www.womensprosoccer.com/

First round
Tobin Heath, MF, North Carolina (1) – Atlanta Beat
Whitney Engen, D, North Carolina (4) – Chicago Red Stars
Nikki Washington, F, North Carolina (5) – Los Angeles Sol
Casey Nogueira, F, North Carolina (8) – Los Angeles Sol

Second round
Becky Edwards, MF/D, Florida State (12) – FC Gold Pride
Jessica McDonald, F, North Carolina (15) – Chicago Red Stars
Ashlyn Harris, GK, North Carolina (19) – Saint Louis Athletica
Kaley Fountain, F, Wake Forest (20) – FC Gold Pride

Third round
Beverly Goebel, MF, Miami (27) - Washington Freedom

Fourth round
Jill Hutchinson, F, Wake Forest (30) – Atlanta Beat
Kelly Henderson, D, Boston College (31) – Philadelphia Independence
Kristie Eveland, D, North Carolina (36) – Washington Freedom
Mary Casey, GK, Maryland (38) – Los Angeles Sol

Fifth round
Lindsay Browne, F, Clemson (47) – Los Angeles Sol

Sixth round
Gina DiMartino, MF, Boston College (56) – Boston Breakers

Seventh round
Caitlin Farrell, D, Wake Forest (58) – Philadelphia Independence
Caitlin Miskel, F, Virginia (63) – Washington Freedom
Elisabeth Redmond, F, Duke (64) – Saint Louis Athletica