February 5, 2010 Chicago Sports
Stars Select Nogueira In Dispersal Draft
The Chicago Red Stars selected forward Casey Nogueira with their first pick in the Women’s Professional Soccer Dispersal Draft on Thursday.
“Casey will be a great addition to the core of players that we already have,” Red Stars Head Coach Emma Hayes said. “She’s an up-and-coming player who will have time to develop with our group. At the same time we also made ourselves better for the future with next year’s draft.”
The Red Stars traded their second-round pick (13th overall) to FC Gold Pride for the Bay Area’s 14th overall pick in the dispersal and their second-round pick in the 2011 WPS Draft. Chicago then traded FC Gold Pride’s 14th pick to St. Louis for Athletica’s 2011 WPS Draft second-round selection.
The Red Stars passed on their third-round selection in the dispersal draft. WPS held the draft following the recent announcement that the Los Angeles Sol would discontinue operations for the 2010 season. Full draft results are available at www.womensprosoccer.com.
Nogueira, a Raleigh, N.C., native, quickly reunites with two fellow University of North Carolina teammates — Red Stars defender Whitney Engen, Chicago’s first-round pick in the 2010 WPS College Draft; and second-round pick and forward Jessica McDonald. Nogueira and McDonald were the Tar Heels’ top two scorers, respectively, during the 2009 season.
Nogueira had a decorated career at North Carolina that included three College Cup Championships, four ACC Tournament Championships and the honor of consensus National Player of the Year following her junior season in 2008. She accumulated 55 goals, 29 assists and 139 points in four seasons. In five of the six College Cup games she played in, Nogueira either had the game-winning goal or assist.
The Chicago Red Stars are members of Women’s Professional Soccer and play their home games at Toyota Park, 7100 S. Harlem Ave., in Bridgeview. The Red Stars’ 2010 home opener takes place on Saturday, April 17 against St. Louis Athletica.
For more information about the Red Stars, log on to www.ChicagoRedStars.com or call (866) WPS-2009