Over the history of the NWSL draft, 90 percent of the athletes have been drafted from just seven conferences (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Big East, SEC, PAC 12 and the WCC). Last year, half of the draft attended just two of those, the ACC and the PAC 12.
So, what makes the 10 percent of players not from those conferences stand out?
Over the past four years, only nine players from schools not in that group of seven were selected. The highest drafted was Konya Plummer, Orlando’s first pick in the second round of the 2020 draft. Plummer had played on the Jamaican National Team, she was a first team All-American, the American Athletic Conference defensive player of the year, and before transferring to UCF she recorded seven goals and ten assists as a freshman at Southeastern. Highly decorated would not only describe Plummer coming into the draft, but would also describe her eight smaller school counterparts. All of them conference All-Americans, some of them players of the year, some on the Mac Hermann watch list, some with national team experience. The table below shows those nine players and their accomplishments.
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| Year/Pick | First | Last | Team | School | Conference | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021/19 | Anna | Heilferty | WAS | Boston University | Patriot | Mac Herman Trophy watch list, U18 USWNT member, 2x All-American, recoded 1281 minutes and 13 points as a freshman |
| 2021/29 | Sydney | Schneider | WAS | UNC-Wilmington | Colonial | Started every game as a freshman, member of the Jamaican National Team, all american, conference goal keeper of the year |
| 2020/10 | Konya | Plummer | ORL | UCF | American | Member of the Jamaican U21 national team, All-American, AAC defender of the year, recorded 1210 minutes, 10 assists, and 7 goals as a freshman |
| 2020/12 | Kate | Del Fava | UTA | Illinois State | Missouri Valley | Recorded 1979 mins and 5 points as a freshman, 4x All-American, MVC POY senior season with 17 goals and 39 points, 61 career points |
| 2020/35 | Aerial | Chavarin | CHI | Yale | Ivy | Played for the US youth national team,3x All-American, Ivy league defensive player of the year, IVY League rookie of the year |
| 2019/14 | Lauren | Milliet | NC | Colorado College | Mountain West | Recorded 1848 minutes and 10 points as a Freshman, olympic development program member, 3x All-American |
| 2019/35 | Jenna | Szczesny | CHI | Loyola Chicago | Missouri Valley | MVC freshman of the year, 4x All-American, MVC Player of the year, 84 career points |
| 2018/31 | Rachel | Moore | WAS | William & Mary | Colonial | Started 17 games and recorded 12 pts as a freshman, 4x All-American, 56 career points |
| 2018/39 | Carlin | Hudson | NC | Yale | Ivy | Played 1246 minutes as a freshman, 3x All-American |
Now, the original formation of the Dossier doesn’t include many players from these smaller conferences, since the focus was on the players with the highest probability of being drafted. In no way does this mean that these players can’t or won’t be drafted, and it certainly doesn’t mean that they don’t deserve recognition. So without further ado, here are the small conference athletes who have the best chance of having their name called in the 2022 NWSL draft. Keep in mind a few of these players will find their way onto the Dossier after the season is over, but for now, we’ll list them all here.
| Player | School | Position | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miri Taylor | Hofstra | F | Member of the England U15 and U17 national teams, recorded 1245 minutes and 9 points as a freshman, 3x All-American |
| Lucy Shepherd | Hofstra | F | Member of the England u15 national team, played for Aston Villa, 2x All-American |
| Tanya Boychuk | Memphis | F | U20 canadian national team, 3x All-American, 1060 minutes and 7pts as a freshman |
| Jazmin Grant | Houston | F | Played for the U20 jamaican national team, recorded 771 minutes and 15 pts as a freshman, 3x All-American |
| Hannah Friedrich | Saint Louis | F | 85 career points, 3x All-American, 1476 minutes and 30 pts as a freshman |
| Samantha Jerabek | VCU | F | 3x All-American, 76 career points, Started 17 games and recorded 3pts as a freshman |
| Sydney Carr | Seattle U | F | Member of the US U17 and U19 national teams, WAC offensive player of the year, NCAA leader in goals and points (16 and 38) junior season |
| Whitley Griffiths | Dixie State | F | 86 career points, 3x All-American |
| Jacqui Hand | Colorado College | F | Member of the Zew Zealand U20 and U17 National Teams, 2x All-American, 42 career points, recorded 903 minutes and 7 points as a Freshman |
| Marcy Barberic | Buffalo | F | 3x All-American, MAC offensive player of the year, 79 career points, recorded 4 points and 1651 minutes as a Freshman |
| Lucy Porter | Hofstra | M | 2x Mac Hermann trophy watchlist, 3x All-American, CAA midfielder of the year, 109 career points, Member of the England U15 and U17 national teams |
| Jordan Littleboy | Hofstra | M | Member of the England U20 national team, signed with Arsenal in 2017, 2x All-American |
| Ebony Wiseman | James Madison | M | Invited to England U15 and U17 camps, 2x All-American |
| Marleen Schimmer | Grand Canyon | M | Arizona State transfer, 29 points already this year, member of the U17 Germany squad, recorded 11 points as a freshman and played for TSV Schott Mainz |
| Amber Tripp | Utah Valley | M | WAC Freshman of the year, invited to ODP regional camp, 2x All-American, 59 career points |
| Brenna McPartlan | South Alabama - LSU | M | Member of the U19 Ireland squad, played for the Man City U19 team, Sun Belt freshman of the year, 2x All-American, 31 points in 2020 |
| Laura Fuentes | San Diego State | M | Participated in a U18 USWNT training camp, 3x All-American, started 19 games and recorded 7 points as a freshman, 25 career points |
| Nicky Potts | Ball State | M | Member of multiple England youth national teams,plays with Aston Villa, 2x All-American |
| Abby Swanson | Loyola | M | Conference freshman of the year, Conference defensive player of the year, 2x All-American |
| Victoria Tran | Navy | M | Patriot league midfielder of the year, 3x All-American, 18 career points |
| Mikenna McManus | Northeastern | D | U18 USWNT Training Camp invite, 3x All-American, played 1937 minutes as a freshman |
| Chyanne Dennis | USF | D | Attended USWNT U17 training camp, has plyed for the Jamaican U20 team, American Athletic Conference co-defensive player of the year |
| Brionna Halverson | Saint Louis | D | Member of the USWNT U17 national team, 3x All-American, recorded 1259 minutes as a Freshman |
| Taylor Hansen | Montana | D | 2x All-American, 2x All tournament team, 21 career points, recorded 1089 minutes as a freshman |
| Sarah Sodoma | Arkansas State | F | Sun Belt Freshman of the Year, 4x All-American, Conference Player of the Year, and Offensive Player of the Year |
Why no goalkeepers? Very few are drafted to begin with, and Sydney Martinez is already listed on the pre-season Dossier, so she was not included on this list.
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SoccerDossier Staff
Working to cover and predict the NWSL draft earlier than it ever has been before. Make sure to check out our other articles, and The Dossier, a list of NWSL draft prospects!