Tonya Antonucci, the WPS Commissioner, begins by reading the rules of the draft, including time limits, breaks, and rules. The WPS lawyer comes on the line, to elaborate, and to extend a caution on keeping certain rules.
The Staff sits around the phone call, trolling the Internet for “instant bios” to send to media (and to you! Our fans). Then, in the breaks (each team has one five minute “time out”, which is on as I write this), we glance up at the board in the conference room, where all the players on every team thus far have been listed, and we gossip about whom we think might be suitable for whom (like we are some kind of “Ian Sawyers” experts…). Who will we get??
Sky Blue FC has snagged Cori Alexander, goalkeeper from the 2005 NCAA Championship University of Portland team, and defender Keeley Dowling, a standout from the University of Tennessee.
(I stop to text my daughter, who knows the delightful Ella Masar, a forward who played for the U. of Illinois and the USA Under-23 team). She has just been selected to Chicago. And Kendall Fletcher, UNC alumni, and a wonderful leader, goes to adoptive home, Los Angeles.)
There’s a long pause between picks. At times, the pure silence can set the imagination going, or, if the pause goes long enough, you begin to think of your shopping list.
We’re starting to make bets. Mine started at $100, went do $10, and right as
I realize I am going to lose; I drop it to $1.
Waiting, waiting, waiting…It’s Sky Blue FC’s turn again, and Ian selects midfielder Kacey White, The US National Team and former UNC player. And defender Jenny Anderson-Hammond, who played for the Chicago Gaels of the W-League and is the assistant women’s soccer coach at Eastern Illinois.
We’ve got our four. Time to hear from Coach Sawyers.
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