ANAHEIM, Calif. (Friday, Jan. 12, 2024) – The Houston Dash selected five players in the 2024 NWSL Draft earlier today.
“It went amazingly well. We came out of this draft with a solid group of players,” Dash General Manager Alex Singer said. “I am really thankful for the coaching staff and the preparation they did for this draft because it set us up for success today.”
Avery Patterson was selected with the No. 19 overall pick and the University of North Carolina alum finished with 72 appearances (all starts) across her four years with the Tar Heels. She scored 27 goals and tallied 23 assists at the collegiate level and was named to the All-ACC First Team in her senior year. The forward scored two goals in the 2022 NCAA Women’s College Cup final. Patterson has represented the U.S. Women’s National Team from the U-14 to U-23 level.
Houston traded $120,000 in allocation money to Utah Royals FC in exchange for the No. 21 overall pick and the Dash selected Kiki Van Zanten from Notre Dame. The midfielder scored 27 goals and tallied nine assists in 95 appearances for the Fighting Irish. She helped Notre Dame reach the NCAA tournament four times and reached the semifinals of the ACC Women’s Soccer Tournament in 2022. Internationally, Van Zanten represented Jamaica at the 2022 Concacaf Women’s Championship where she scored the game-winning goal to secure a berth in the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics.
The Dash selected Amanda West with the No. 36 overall pick from the University of Pittsburgh. The forward scored 50 goals and tallied 31 assists in 75 appearances for the Panthers. She helped Pitt reach the semifinals of the ACC tournament last year and the quarterfinals of the 2023 NCAA Women’s College Cup. She leaves the program as the leader in points (85), points per game (1.89) and game-winning goals (13).
The second trade of the evening came in the third round when Houston traded the No. 40 overall pick and $10,000 in allocation money to the North Carolina Courage for the No. 38 overall pick. Houston used that selection to draft Heather Hinz from the University of South Carolina. The shot stopper was the 2023 SEC Goalkeeper of the Year and named the Most Valuable Player at the SEC Tournament. Hinz finished with 32 shutouts and tallied 255 saves across 61 appearances for South Carolina, winning the 2022 SEC Tournament title and reaching the Round of 32 in in 2023.
Houston’s final selection of the evening came in the fourth round when the team selected Alyssa Bourgeois from Santa Clara University with the No. 47 overall pick. The defender tallied six assists and scored a goal in 51 appearances for the Broncos. She was a 2023 WCC All-Academic honorable mention and All-WCC honorable mention.
