Unquestionably, the talk of the 2019 NWSL College Draft was the ongoing controversy surrounding Sky Blue FC and the lack of apparent progress towards bringing the New Jersey-based club up to appropriate standards off the field. However, the Washington Spirit’s takeover of the first round was not far behind, as they made major trades both the day before and the day of the draft to go from having two first round picks to four.
The Spirit used those picks in part to bolster their defense, selecting Samantha Staab with the 4th overall pick and Tegan McGrady at #7.